Recommended: STRONGER, FASTER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL by Arwen Elys Dayton
Publisher’s Description of Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful For fans of television shows Black Mirror and Westworld, this compelling, mind-bending novel is a twisted look into the future, exploring the lengths we’ll go to remake ourselves into the perfect human specimen and what it means to be human at all. The future is curious. STRONGER Today our bodies define us. We color our hair; tattoo … Continue reading Recommended: STRONGER, FASTER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL by Arwen Elys Dayton
Window & Mirrors: BLENDED by Sharon M. Draper
Welcome to Windows & Mirrors, where we feature books that provide us windows to lives outside our own and mirrors to our shared common human experiences. Today we are featuring BLENDED by Sharon M. Draper. Because her parents are divorced, eleven-year-old Isabella feels like she’s literally torn between two different worlds. Every other week, she’s Isabella who hangs out with her black dad, his girlfriend … Continue reading Window & Mirrors: BLENDED by Sharon M. Draper
Interview with Author Christine Grabowski Four on 400 Winner
Welcome Christine Grabowski, young adult author and Four on 400 contest winner! We are excited to share news of your debut young adult novel and learn about your path to publication. Let’s start with your novel. Tell us about Dickensen Academy. Dickensen Academy is a young YA contemporary fantasy that bridges the gap between MG and YA. It is about a fourteen-year-old girl, Autumn, who … Continue reading Interview with Author Christine Grabowski Four on 400 Winner
November Four on 400 Contest
Q: What is Four on 400? A monthly contest that provides ONE LUCKY MG or YA WRITER with feedback on their opening 400 WORDS! As part of our ongoing mission to support writers, we’ll give a MG or YA writer feedback from four of The Winged Pen’s contributors. Q: Sounds exciting! How do I enter? To enter, simply click the link the at the bottom of this post and submit … Continue reading November Four on 400 Contest
WHAT THE NIGHT SINGS: A Story About Jewish Identity
Welcome to Windows & Mirrors, where we feature books that provide us windows to lives outside our own and mirrors to our shared common human experiences. Today we are featuring WHAT THE NIGHT SINGS by Vesper Stamper. At the opening of WHAT THE NIGHT SINGS, sixteen-year-old Gerta is skeletally thin and sick with typhus. The Nazi concentration camp where she has been incarcerated has just … Continue reading WHAT THE NIGHT SINGS: A Story About Jewish Identity
SPOOKED! How a Radio Broadcast and THE WAR OF THE WORLDS Sparked the 1938 Invasion of America by Gail Jarrow
Publisher’s Description In this nonfiction title for young readers ages 10 to 14, acclaimed author Gail Jarrow explores in riveting detail the famous War of the Worlds radio broadcast from 1938; she highlights the artists behind the broadcast, the broadcast itself, the aftermath, and the repercussions of “fake news” today. On the night of October 30, 1938, thousands of Americans panicked when they believed that … Continue reading SPOOKED! How a Radio Broadcast and THE WAR OF THE WORLDS Sparked the 1938 Invasion of America by Gail Jarrow
Recommended: THE LYING WOODS by Ashley Elston
Publisher’s Description Owen Foster has never wanted for anything. Then his mother shows up at his elite New Orleans boarding school cradling a bombshell: his privileged life has been funded by stolen money. After using the family business, the single largest employer in his small Louisiana town, to embezzle millions and drain the employees’ retirement accounts, Owen’s father vanished without a trace, leaving Owen and … Continue reading Recommended: THE LYING WOODS by Ashley Elston
Windows & Mirrors: GIRLS OF PAPER AND FIRE by Natasha Ngan
Welcome to Windows & Mirrors, where we feature books that provide us windows to lives outside our own and mirrors to our shared common human experiences. Today we are featuring GIRLS OF PAPER AND FIRE by Natasha Ngan. In the kingdom of Ikhara, social standing is determined in large part by which caste people are born into. At the top are animal-like demons and at … Continue reading Windows & Mirrors: GIRLS OF PAPER AND FIRE by Natasha Ngan
Tackling the Terrifying. How to Write Scary
I love the kinds of stories that make you look in the dark corners of your room or order a clear shower curtain so you know if a knife-wielding man dressed as a woman is going to stab you. (True story – I watched the movie Shutter Island while on the treadmill. I couldn’t stop looking behind me. You can see how that’s not a … Continue reading Tackling the Terrifying. How to Write Scary
DACTYL HILL SQUAD: An action-packed middle-grade alt.-history fantasy set smack dab in the middle of Civil War times.
Welcome to Windows & Mirrors, where we feature books that provide us windows to lives outside our own and mirrors to our shared common human experiences. Today we are featuring DACTYL HILL SQUAD by Daniel José Older. Dactyl Hill Squad is an action-packed middle-grade alt-history fantasy set smack dab in the middle of Civil War times in 1863 New York *WITH DINOSAURS*! Magdalys, a twelve-year-old … Continue reading DACTYL HILL SQUAD: An action-packed middle-grade alt.-history fantasy set smack dab in the middle of Civil War times.
October Four on 400 Feedback
Thank you to all the brave souls who entered this month’s Four on 400 contest! Sharing your writing takes courage, and we appreciate your enthusiasm for our contest.Below, we’ve posted the first 400 words from this month’s winner, along with feedback from at least four of our members. We also encourage our readers to share their (constructive) suggestions and encouragement in the comments section below. Upper Middle … Continue reading October Four on 400 Feedback
Windows & Mirrors: CARLOS SANTANA Sound of the Heart, Song of the World by Gary Golio, illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez
Publisher’s Book Description: Discover the childhood story of Carlos Santana in Gary Golio’s Sound of the Heart, Song of the World, featuring illustrations by Rudy Gutierrez, the internationally celebrated artist who created the iconic Carlos Santana Shaman CD cover. Carlos Santana grew up surrounded by music. His father, a beloved mariachi performer, teaches his son how to play the violin when he is only six … Continue reading Windows & Mirrors: CARLOS SANTANA Sound of the Heart, Song of the World by Gary Golio, illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez