The wonderful thing about historical fiction is that readers are able to experience many points in time. We’re able to learn what life was like for people decades, even centuries ago, in different regions and countries. But what I love most about this genre is that I always find the characters and their situations are not that different from today. R.L. Toalson’s novel-in-verse, The Colors … Continue reading Book Recommendation: The Colors of the Rain
Publisher’s Description Nita doesn’t murder supernatural beings and sell their body parts on the internet—her mother does that. Nita just dissects the bodies after they’ve been “acquired.” Until her mom brings home a live specimen and Nita decides she wants out; dissecting a scared teenage boy is a step too far. But when she decides to save her mother’s victim, she ends up sold in … Continue reading Recommended: NOT EVEN BONES by Rebecca Schaeffer
Publisher’s Description Aisha Un-Haad would do anything for her family. When her brother contracts a plague, she knows her janitor’s salary isn’t enough to fund his treatment. So she volunteers to become a Scela, a mechanically enhanced soldier sworn to protect and serve the governing body of the Fleet, the collective of starships they call home. If Aisha can survive the harrowing modifications and earn … Continue reading Recommended: HULLMETAL GIRLS by Emily Skrutskie
Dear The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, I’ve been working on a series of posts on books that shaped me, and this month, I want to highlight Dana Alison Levy’s THE MISADVENTURES OF THE FAMILY FLETCHER. The Fletchers are a two-dad, four-son, two-to-four-pet household. The brothers are all adopted. Two are white, one is African-American, and one is Indian. The best part is that all … Continue reading Dear The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher
We are coming to the end of another Poetry Month, and we would be remiss to let it go without highlighting a staggering new work by Nikki Grimes. ONE LAST WORD is an ode to the Harlem Renaissance, but also thoroughly modern. It utilizes the Golden Shovel form, in which a line from a previous poem, or the entire text of a short poem, is … Continue reading Windows & Mirrors: One Last Word
No matter who you are and where you live, you have to admit there are problems in every country and the world. They are individual and global issues, and each one affects us differently. You may be passionate about gun violence, women’s rights, LGBTQ rights, Black Lives Matter, poverty, war, global warming, or hundreds of other issues. Even looking at just one and what it … Continue reading Book Recommendation: How I Resist: Activism and Hope For the Next Generation
I’ve been a fan of Stacy McAnulty’s picture books and chapter books for years now. Last September, I got the opportunity to read the manuscript for her latest book, The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl. I set aside the other books I was reading and devoured it in exactly 1.0000 sittings. Lucy, a.k.a. Lightning Girl, is a once-struck-by-lightning middle-school math savant with a serious case of OCD. … Continue reading Stacy McAnulty Interview: The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl
This story is as beautiful as it’s cover. It sends the reader soaring through the clouds, takes us back down to Earth, and through the trauma of heartache. It is as much a love story about flying as it is about relationships. Grace Lafferty only feels alive when she’s dangling 500 feet above ground. As a post-World War I wing walker, Grace is determined to … Continue reading Book Recommendation: Nothing But Sky
It’s road trip time again! There has been a TON of great stuff flying through cyberspace in the last few weeks. Here are some of our favorite informative, motivating and moving finds: On Craft Whether you’re on Draft 1 or Draft 100, it seems like there’s always room to improve. From the nitty-gritty — like this article on how to avoid transition words — to … Continue reading March Road Trip!
The winners of the Cybils Awards have been announced! If you haven’t heard yet, you must still be busy celebrating Valentine’s Day. The winner for the 2017 Middle Grade Speculative Fiction Category is … WAIT! First, what are the Cybils Awards? They are awards that recognize children’s and young adult authors and illustrators whose books combine the highest literary merit and popular appeal. Second, I had the pleasure of … Continue reading Cybils Awards: MG Speculative Fiction
I’ve been writing love letters to books that shaped me, as a person and as a writer, and for this month, it’s Karen Foxlee’s Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy. I so enjoyed this book, a dreamy and beautiful retelling of the Snow Queen. What I want to talk about today, though, is how it influenced my writing. I write contemporary fantasies, and love to come … Continue reading Dear Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy
We do a lot of book recommendations here on The Winged Pen because between the lot of us, we read all. the. books. From MG fantasy modern classics to hot new releases to Native American literature for young readers. But recently, a fairly intense Mom Taxi schedule left me considering something new: audiobooks. I never got into audiobooks because I mistakenly imagined myself fidgeting while I … Continue reading Learning to Love Audiobooks
