Discussion Guide (PDF)

By Cynthia Leitich Smith
for Cynsations

Check out the book trailer for Wish Girl by Nikki Loftin (Razorbill, 2015, 2016)--now available in paperback. From the promotional copy:

Peter Stone is a quiet boy in a family full of extroverts, musicians, and yellers. The louder they are, the more silent Peter is . . . until he practically embodies his last name.

When his family moves to the Texas Hill Country, though, Peter finds a peaceful, mysterious valley where he can, at last, hear himself think. There, he meets a girl his age, Annie Blythe, a spirited artist who tells Peter she's a "wish girl." 

But Annie isn't just any wish girl: she's a "Make-A-Wish Girl." And in two weeks she has to undergo a dangerous treatment to try to stop her cancer from spreading. Left alone, the disease will kill her. But the treatment could cause serious brain damage and take away her ability to make art.

Together, Annie and Peter escape into the valley, which they begin to think is magical. But the pair soon discovers that the valley—and life—may have other plans for them. Sometimes wishes come true in the most unexpected ways.


Trailer: "Wish Girl" by Nikki Loftin from Dave Wilson on Vimeo.

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Are you aware of the Cozy Classics board book series? How about the felted board book versions of the original Star Wars movies? The other night I had dinner with Cozy Classics creator Holman Wang and we talked about his process. Turns out, the felted characters are needle felted entirely. A lawyer by trade, Holman learned how to felt through YouTube videos. Now what goes around comes around as you watch this oddly soothing time lapse YouTube video of his process. It’s an old video (as the dates at the end attest) but that doesn’t make it any less neat.

And as for the aforementioned Star Wars books, here’s Holman himself talking about his various techniques:

Also at that dinner, someone in attendance mentioned that Larry Wilmore on The Nightly Show had covered A Birthday Cake for George Washington. Come again? Yes, you truly know that a book has left our little orbit when it ends up a discussion topic on a Comedy Central evening show. I wouldn’t exactly call this one workplace appropriate, but I would call it funny. Nice too that while he talks about the book he does not speculate about the creators.

Book trailer time. N.D. Wilson has always created the best book trailers. Remember the one he did for Ashtown Burials? Or Boys of Blur?  Well, the latest premiered on Entertainment Weekly very recently:

Thanks to Aaron Zenz for the link.

So I ask James Kennedy the other day to name his favorite 90-Second Newbery Film Festival co-hosts.  And he rattles off a bunch of names but one that he was particularly impressed by?  Nikki Loftin, author of Nightingale’s Nest.  Don’t believe me?  Then check out this killer opening Nikki and James did together.  That woman has pipes!

Of course, I already had insider knowledge to Nikki’s singing prowess.  Two years ago she created a video for Jules Danielson and myself and . . . well, if you just can’t get through your day without seeing a children’s author belting out classic Rogers & Hammerstein on a roof, then are YOU in luck!

And finally, for our off-topic-but-not-really video, I bring you information from beyond the grave.  We all know Michael Jackson, and many of us know Bob Fosse.  Now see how eerie it is when you put one on top of another.  If The Little Prince movie did nothing else, it gave us this:

 

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This week I am celebrating three middle grade book birthdays! Hurray for MG!

Nikki Loftin and fellow Austinite Jo Whittmore are having a joint launch this Saturday at The Book People in Austin.

This week Nikki released her third MG novel, WISH GIRL. In this lyrical novel, a boy struggling with the overwhelming noise in his life meets a “Make A Wish” girl who is dying of cancer, and through their friendship, he finds the strength to live.

Read the beautiful summary on Nikki’s website. Kirkus gave WISH GIRL a starred review!

 

Jo Whittmore is celebrating her new her fourth book with Aladdin Mix!

COLONIAL MADNESS is the story of a girl who hopes to win a new home and debt-free life for her and her mother by accepting the challenge of a deceased relative: live for two weeks as in colonial times.

This fun book received great reviews from Kirkus, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist.

 

I’m also celebrating the launch of a magical MG, Abi Elphinstone’s debut THE DREAMSNATCHER! Head over to Abi’s website for a sneak peek.

From the publisher: Twelve-year-old Molly Pecksniff wakes one night in the middle of the forest, lured there by a recurring nightmare—the one with the drums and the rattles and the masks. The Dreamsnatcher is waiting. He has already taken her dreams and now he wants her life.

Because Moll is more important than she knows… The Oracle Bones foretold that she and Gryff, a wildcat that has always been by her side, are the only ones who can fight back against the Dreamsnatcher’s dark magic. Suddenly everything is at stake, and Moll is drawn into a world full of secrets, magic and adventure.

Is this a gorgeous trailer or what?

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Happy Book Birthday

to

Nikki Loftin’s

WISH GIRL!

Shout out your congratulations to Nikki on facebook and twitter then take a look at her interview on Middle Grade Mafia!

 

Now for this week’s events:

February 24, Tuesday, 6:30 PM
Murder By the Book
Sophie Jordan & Victoria Scott, YA Authors

Sophie Jordan will sign and discuss her newest young adult novel UNLEASHED  (Harper Teen) and Victoria Scott will sign and discuss SALT & STONE (Scholastic).

UNLEASHED is the romantic, high-stakes sequel to Sophie Jordan’s bestselling UNINVITED. Davy has spent the last few months trying to come to terms with the fact that she tested positive for the kill gene HTS (also known as Homicidal Tendency Syndrome). She swore she would not let it change her, and that her DNA did not define her . . . but then she killed a man.

Now on the run, Davy must decide whether she’ll be ruled by the kill gene or if she’ll follow her heart and fight for her right to live free. But with her own potential for violence lying right beneath the surface, Davy doesn’t even know if she can trust herself.

SALT & STONE is Victoria Scott‘s sequel to FIRE & BLOOD. In FIRE & FLOOD, Tella Holloway faced a dangerous trek through the jungle and a terrifying march across the desert, all to remain a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed for a chance at obtaining the Cure for her brother. She can’t stop–and in SALT & STONE, Tella will have to face the unseen dangers of the ocean, the breathless cold of a mountain, and twisted new rules in the race.

But what if the danger is deeper than that? How do you know who to trust when everyone’s keeping secrets? What do you do when the person you’d relied on most suddenly isn’t there for support? How do you weigh one life against another?

The race is coming to an end, and Tella is running out of time, resources, and strength. At the beginning of the race there were one hundred twenty-two Contenders. As Tella and her remaining friends start the fourth and final part of the race, just forty-one are left . . . and only one can win.

February 28, Saturday, 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Houston Authors Bash
FREE! But registration is required: Eventbrite

The Houston Authors Bash is a book signing event bringing indie and traditionally published authors together. This is a fundraising event brought to you by Wines and Labels Productions. The event will include over 100 authors, including local YA/MG favorites Rose Garcia, Dax Varley and RL NOLEN!  You can bring your own books to sign, but the authors’ books will also be for sale at the event. If you are bringing your own books, please know that you can bring one book for each one that you buy at the event.

 

 

 

 

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Cory Putman Oakes is a children’s book author from Austin, Texas. Her middle grade debut, DINOSAUR BOY, hits shelves in February, 2015 with its sequel, DINOSAUR BOY SAVES MARS, to follow in February, 2016.

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You know, it’s been a while since I showed you some of the fan-freakin’-tastic Wild Things videos we’ve been playing on the old Wild Things: Acts of Mischief in Children’s Literature website.  I know some of you haven’t gone over to it lately so I’ll make it easy for you.  Here’s a quickie synopsis of everyone since the last time I wrote them up on this blog.  In order:

Dan Santat on Beekle:

Tom Angleberger on The Qwikpick Papers:

Andrea Davis Pinkney on The Red Pencil:

CeCe Bell on El Deafo:

Duncan Tonatiuh on Separate Is Never Equal:

Barbara Kerley on A Home for Mr. Emerson:

Kate Milford on Greenglass House:

Nikki Loftin on Nightingale’s Nest:

Sergio Ruzzier on A Letter for Leo:

And finally, Candace Fleming on The Family Romanov:

There are a couple more coming and then we’ll be kaputski!  Woohoo!

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In celebration of the 95^th annual Children’s Book Week, authors and illustrators showed up at local indie bookstores nationwide to read stories aloud. I’m so glad I had the chance to see the four Texas authors—Crystal Allen, Nikki Loftin, Kathy Duval and Varsha Bajaj—at Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston as they shared their favorite picture books. This event was big fun! All four authors were amazing laugh-out-loud readers and the diversity of the books they selected added so much flavor to the event. Kathy Duval shared SOPHIE’S SQUASH, written by her friend Pat Z. Miller. Nikki Loftin read one of her favorite books from her own childhood, FREDERICK, while Crystal Allen chose a new favorite MY COLD PLUM LEMON PIE BLUESY MOOD and Varsha Bajaj read a book her children had loved, SIXTEEN COWS.

I barely had time to run home and get a few errands done before it was time to be back at Blue Willow for the launch of Joy Preble’s new YA novel, THE A WORD. As usual for Joy’s events, it was a packed house. I think nearly every YA author in Houston (and one from Austin!) was there. After Joy’s lively discussion and book signing, we all headed to Ooo La La for cupcakes, gelato and coffee. A yummy day!

The only downside was that with everything else that was going on, I missed the Houston YA/MG Writers meeting where Jessica Capelle was talking about world building. The good news is that this summer, Jessica will be giving a full day workshop on this topic at Houston’s new hot spot for writers, Writespace.

Coming up this week…

May 20, Tuesday, 5:00 pm
Blue Willow Bookshop
Jarrett Krosoczka, PB Author/Illustrator

Award-winning picture book creator Jarrett Krosoczka will sign his books, including PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLYFISH, his latest picture book—a funny and touching story of friendships old and new, and about being brave enough to apologize. Peanut Butter and Jellyfish are best of friends and swim up, down, around, and through their ocean home. Crabby is their neighbor. He is not their best friend. But when Crabby gets in trouble, will Peanut Butter and Jellyfish come to the rescue? You bet they will!

Wednesday, May 21, 5:00 p.m. 
Blue Willow Bookshop
Chris Gall, Author/Illustrator

Illustrator and author Chris Gall will discuss and sign his newest picture book for kids, DOG vs. CAT. Dog and Cat do not get along. But when they’re forced to share a room, they agree to be on their best behavior…until Dog won’t stop “sniffing.” Cat won’t stop “primping.” Dog won’t stop “howling.” Cat won’t stop “scratching.” And when it comes to the litter-box…sharing is “not” an option! What will it take to bring Dog and Cat together? Find out in Chris Gall’s comic clash that brings out the best (and worst) in two very different pets.

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Wow, what a turn-out debut YA author Kristin Rae had for the launch of her teen romance, WISH YOU WERE ITALIAN! Blue Willow Bookshop was packed with friends, family and YA fans. I was thrilled to see so many members of the Houston SCBWI, the Houston YA/MG Writers and the Houston Writers Guild show up for this event. I even spotted author Lindsey Lane, an author from Austin whose debut YA novel EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN comes out this September.

There’s so much going on this week, starting tonight with another event featuring Kristin! Please remember to check the sponsoring bookstore’s or organization’s website for the latest, most accurate information on these events.

May 13, Tuesday, 6:00 p.m.
Three YA Authors: Lindsey Leavitt, Emery Lord and Kristin Rae

Barnes & Noble, The Woodlands
Join three exciting teen authors, Lindsey Leavitt, Emery Lord and Kristin Rae in the First Loves YA Event as they discuss and sign their books upstairs in the seating area.

May 17, Saturday, All Day
Central Library
Books Alive! 5th Annual Children’s Book Celebration

Children of all ages are invited to enjoy all the fun and exciting activities scheduled for the Houston Public Library’s Books Alive! 5th Annual Children’s Book Celebration.

The Children’s Book Celebration kicks off with a full day of exciting performances, hands-on arts and crafts activities, and special appearances. The highlight of the celebration is the appearance of Jennifer Holm, the author and illustrator of the Babymouse graphic novel series

May 17, Saturday, 10:00 a.m.
Blue Willow Bookshop
Indies First Storytime, Four Children’s Authors

Four Texas authors will help us celebrate the inaugural Indies First Storytime by reading their favorite picture books. Crystal Allen, Varsha Bajaj, Kathy Duval and Nikki Loftin will join us – you should too!

May 17, Saturday, 10:00 a.m.
Barnes & Noble, Deerbrook Mall
George Arnold, Children’s Author

Come meet local multi-genre author George Arnold, author of the Cats of the C.I.A. series. Mr. Arnold is a well-known author of young reader and mystery novels. Each title is packed with his signature humor.

May 17, Saturday, 2:00 p.m.
Blue Willow Bookshop
Joy Preble, YA Author

Joy Preble will discuss and sign her newest novel for teens, THE A-WORD. It’s been almost a year since fifteen-year-old Jenna’s stoner brother, Casey, died and returned as her guardian angel, along with his twenty-something “angel boss,” Amber Velasco. Almost a year since Casey and Amber used up their one-time-only angel power of flight to save Jenna from the evil Dr. Renfroe. Now Casey’s wonders why he’s still hanging around—not that he minds protecting Jenna, but there’s got to be a bigger picture, right? Something to distract him from his doomed relationship with cheerleader Lanie Phelps, who has no idea her boyfriend is, well, dead. After all, he can’t use his angel wings anymore. Neither can Amber. Enter Bo Shivers, Amber’s “angel boss.” Whiskey-guzzling, handsome and unpredictable, Bo lost his angel wings in an earthly flight a long time back, and he’s been a thorn in Angel Management’s side ever since. But Bo knows something big is coming. Something worth forfeiting his wings for Jenna… something that might change everything for everyone.

Saturday May 17, 5:00 p.m.
Barnes & Noble, College Station
J. White, MG Author

Join author J. White for a discussion of his debut novel THE THICKETY: A PATH BEGINS.  A dark, forbidden forest. Vicious beasts. Deadly plants. An evil spell book. Secrets. Mysteries. Demons and witches both fair and foul. Welcome to the world of The Thickety.

When Kara Westfall was six years old, her mother was convicted of the worst of all crimes: witchcraft. Years later, Kara and her little brother, Taff, are still shunned by the people of their village, who believe that nothing is more evil than magic . . . except, perhaps, the mysterious forest that covers nearly the entire island. It has many names, this place. Sometimes it is called the Dark Wood, or Sordyr’s Realm. But mostly it’s called the Thickety. Illustrated by Andrea Offermann.

May 20, Tuesday, 5:00 p.m.
Blue Willow Bookshop
Jarrett Krosoczka, PB Author/Illustrator

Award-winning picture book creator Jarrett Krosoczka will sign his books, including PEANUT BUTTER JELLYFISH, his latest picture book—a funny and touching story of friendships old and new, and about being brave enough to apologize. Peanut Butter and Jellyfish are best of friends and swim up, down, around, and through their ocean home. Crabby is their neighbor. He is not their best friend. But when Crabby gets in trouble, will Peanut Butter and Jellyfish come to the rescue? You bet they will!

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Yesterday brought exciting news:  New York Public Library’s Youth Materials Collections Specialist, Betsy Bird has tagged Austin author Nikki Loftin‘s new MG magical realism novel NIGHTINGALE’S NEST as a 2015 Newbery contender! Says Bird, “Honestly, it’s like nothing else I’ve seen in quite a while.”

And there’s more good news; Nikki will be the keynote speaker at the Houston Writers’ League Agents and Editors Conference next month, April 11, where she will also be leading a breakout session on writing successful query letters. Sign up!

 

AND! Besty Bird has also predicted the picture book GRANDFATHER  GANDHI by author Bethany Hegedus (founder of Austin’s The Writing Barn), co-author Arun Gandhi and illustrator Evan Turk, as a 2015 Caldecott nominee!

Read about both of these nominations as well as the books Betsy Bird thinks will be their main competition so far on Fuse Eight’s Newbery / Caldecott 2015: Spring Prediction Edition.

In other news, have you seen Lynne Kelly’s new site for CHAINED? It’s full of fun information like deleted scenes of Hastin telling folktales to his little sister Chanda, a book trailer, and a curriculum guide full of great classroom ideas.

Doris Fisher’s new nonfiction picture book ARMY CAMELS: TEXAS SHIPS OF THE DESERT has been getting some good buzz! It’s been included in librarian/teacher Michael Sullivan’s list of Best Boy Books. Author JoAn Martin gave it a 5 Cart Review on publisher Pelican’s site.

My D4EO Literary agent-mate Alison Kemper is having a blog tour for her debut YA DONNA OF THE DEAD from Entangled Teen. In this campy humor-meets-action vein of the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, a teen girl has to face the obliteration of the human race from a virus that makes people act zombie-like, with only the help of a rag-tag group of high school classmates, including her long-time crush. (Coming soon: DWIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD!)

Hop over to The Reading Diaries, The Library of the Seen, The Happy Booker, The Bookworm’s Blog, and Addicted Readers for reviews, excerpts and giveaways!

There are so many exciting upcoming conferences and workshops; unfortunately, I can’t go to all of them. I can’t even go to most. But I can go to some! I will of course be at the Houston SCBWI Conference on April 26-27, and I might be at the Houston Writers’ Guild Conference on April 12. I really want to go to the Writing For Young Readers Conference in Utah this June, then there’s the enticing Full Novel Revision Week in August at The Writing Barn, and I’ve already committed to the Florida SCBWI Conference next January (TBA) to meet and hang out with Verla Kay (yes, I’m name-dropping ) and many other SCBWI Blue Board friends. I hope to run into some of you at one of these awesome writers’ events!

 

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Nightingale’s Nest
By Nikki Loftin
Razorbill (an imprint of Penguin)
$16.99
ISNB: 978-1-59514-546-8
Ages 10-14
On shelves now.

Magical realism in children’s novels is a rarity. It’s not unheard of, but when children’s authors want fantasy, they write fantasy. When they want reality, they write reality. A potentially uncomfortable mix of the two is harder to pull off. Ambiguity is not unheard of in books for youth, but it’s darned hard to write. Why go through all that trouble? For that reason alone we don’t tend to see it in children’s books. Kids like concrete concepts. Good guys vs. bad guys. This is real vs. this is a dream. But a clever author, one who respects the intelligence of their young audience, can upset expectations without sacrificing their story. When author Nikki Loftin decided to adapt Hans Christian Andersen’s tale The Nightingale into a middle grade contemporary novel, she made a conscious decision to make the book a work of magical realism. A calculated risk, Loftin’s gambit pays off. Nightingale’s Nest is a painful but ultimately emotionally resonant tale of sacrifice and song. A remarkably competent book, stronger for its one-of-a-kind choices.

It doesn’t seem right that a twelve-year-old boy would carry around a guilt as deep and profound as Little John’s. But when you feel personally responsible for the death of your little sister, it’s hard to let go of those feelings. It doesn’t help matters any that John has to spend the summer helping his dad clear brush for the richest man in town, a guy so extravagant, the local residents just call him The Emperor. It’s on one of these jobs that John comes to meet and get to know The Emperor’s next door neighbor, Gayle. About the age of his own sister when she died, Gayle’s a foster kid who prefers sitting in trees in her own self-made nest to any other activity. But as the two become close friends, John notices odd things about the girl. When she sings it’s like nothing you’ve ever heard before, and she even appears to possibly have the ability to heal people with her voice. It doesn’t take long before The Emperor becomes aware of the treasure in his midst. He wants Gayle’s one of a kind voice, and he’ll do anything to have it. The question is, what does John think is more important: His family’s livelihood or the full-throated song of one little girl?

How long did it take me to realize I was reading a middle grade adaptation of a Hans Christian Andersen short story? Let me first tell you that when I read a book I try not to read even so much as a plot description beforehand so that the novel will stay fresh and clear in my mind. With that understanding, it’s probably not the worst thing in the world that it took a 35-year-old woman thirty-nine pages before she caught on to what she was reading. Still, I have the nasty suspicion that many a savvy kid would have picked up on the theme before I did. As it stands, we’ve seen Andersen adapted into middle grade novels for kids before. Breadcrumbs, for example, is a take on his story The Snow Queen as well as some of his other, stranger tales. They say that he wrote The Nightingale for the singer Jenny Lind, with whom he was in love. All I know is that in the original tale the story concentrates on the wonders of the natural world vs. the mechanical one. In this book, Loftin goes in a slightly different direction. It isn’t an over-reliance on technology that’s the problem here. It’s an inability to view our fellow human beings as just that. Human beings. Come to think of it, maybe that’s what Andersen was going for in the first place.

It was the writing, of course, that struck my attention first. Loftin gives the book beautiful sequences filled with equally beautiful sentences. There’s a section near the end that tells a tale of a tree that fails to keep hold of a downy chick, but is redeemed by saving another bird in a storm. This section says succinctly everything you need to know about this book. I can already see the children’s book and discussion groups around the country that will get a kick out of picking apart this parable. It’s not a hard one to interpret, but you wouldn’t want it to be.

As for the characters, there wasn’t a person here that I couldn’t recognize as real. I was quite taken with the fact that Loftin continually sidesteps a lot of the usual middle grade tropes. Gayle’s nasty foster brother Jeb, for example, could easily have been labeled the typical bully type character for this book. Bullies in children’s books, after all, have a tendency to be one-note characters. Jeb, in contrast, is capable of talking like a normal human being from time to time. He’s a horrible human being at other times, but at least you get the sense that he’s not just a walking two-dimensional caricature. It makes a difference.

The ending is going to be problematic for some folks. It is not, I should say, unsatisfying. I think even people who don’t have a problem with what it says will only have a problem with HOW it goes about saying it. But the end of the book goes so far as to make it clear that this story really doesn’t take place in the real world in which we live. The characters face real world problems, but that doesn’t preclude the presence of something magical. “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio . . .” and all that jazz. For some readers, this may feel like a kind of betrayal. As if the author didn’t have the guts to stay in the real world from start to finish, but instead had to rely on something otherworldly for her climax. I don’t see it that way. Loftin’s choices seem very deliberate here, from page one onward. Just because something is magical, that doesn’t mean you can’t interpret the book in other ways. Don’t like the supernatural element at the end? Then why are you assuming it’s real? After all, we’re getting this whole story through Little John’s perspective. Who’s to say he’s the world’s most reliable narrator? Just because a book is written for children, that doesn’t mean you have to take it at face value.

In any case, I don’t believe the magic detracts in the least from what Loftin is saying here about the banality of poverty. This isn’t a book that romanticizes what it’s like to be poor. It’s just Little John’s everyday existence, to a certain extent. And with the introduction of The Emperor, readers get to see firsthand how money, or the lack thereof, has a lot to do with self-worth and what you have to do with your pride and sense of self-worth when you’re indebted to another person. Little John witnesses firsthand his own father’s humiliation at the hands of the Emperor, and then finds himself in possession (in a sense) of something The Emperor wants. But rather than give him power, this just focuses the rich man’s attention on the boy, making him easy prey. Better that you never have something the wealthy think that they need. And as Little John says at one point, “What was right didn’t have a thing to do with what was.”

Reading the book, I found it enormously painful. But I at least had the wherewithal to realize that it was uniquely painful to me as a mother. Any parent reading this is going to instantly fret and worry and think about Gayle’s position in her foster home. But for kids reading this book they’re going to identify with Little John and Gayle as children, not as parents. This is a book about terrible decisions made, for the most part, by good people. This can, at times, make the story emotionally hard to follow, but I like to think Ms. Loftin had things well in hand when she came up with her tale. There’s a great comfort in knowing that even when you screw up royally, you can still find forgiveness. If kids take nothing else away from this book, I hope that they understand that much. Smart and beautiful by turns, The Nightingale’s Nest does one thing that few will contest. Once you’ve read it, you’ll have a hard time getting it out of your head.

On shelves now.

Notes on the Cover: It was indeed the cover that I noticed first about this book. Unfortunately the name of the artist has been difficult to find, but it’s lovely isn’t it? The girl, clearly Gayle, could be floating or flying or just lying on the ground, depending on how you look at it. Of course, most notable is the fact that she appears to be African-American. There’s been a lot of talk over the last few years about showing black faces on our book jackets, so I applaud Razorbill for having the guts to do a cover that isn’t a silhouette. That said, I did notice that at no point in the novel does the book specifically say that Gayle is dark-skinned. In fact, it doesn’t really describe her skin at all. We get a sense of how soft her hair is and how beautiful her voice, but nothing much more beyond that. Could this be one of the very few cases in which a kid’s race isn’t mentioned in a book and yet that kid isn’t just assumed to be white? If so it’s a big step forward in the world of book jackets. Someone should conduct an interview with Razorbill’s art director about the decision to go with this cover. I’d love to know if this is indicative of books in the future. If so, it’s a trend I’ll be watching with great interest.

Source: Galley sent from the publisher for review.

Like This? Then Try:

• Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

• The Season of Secrets by Sally Nicholls

• Skellig by David Almond

Other Blog Reviews:

• Views From the Tesseract
• Nerdy Book Club
• Bird Brainz
• Charlotte’s Library
• Bookanistas

Professional Reviews:

• A star from Kirkus
• Publishers Weekly

Interviews:

• Seattle Mystery Bookshop speaks with Nikki about her work.
• Charlotte’s Library does the same.
• One at The Book Cellar.
• And there’s yet another with BookPeople Teen Press Corps.
• One more – Imaginary Reads.

Misc: Finally, you can read an excerpt over at I Read Banned Books.

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A couple weeks ago, Cyn, Chris Barton, and Tim Tingle were featured authors at an event at the LBJ Library sponsored by Reading is Fundamental.  Here are some pics:

Tim and Chris watch while Cyn displays JINGLE DANCER

Day Glo Brothers, Saltypie, and Jingle Dancer

Chris, Cyn, and Tim sign their books

Joy Hein, Kathi Appelt, and Cyn like Ike.

Monkey in the middle

Then, last week, we attended a gathering at BookPeople for the release of the late Bridget Zinn's POISON.  To celebrate, a group of Austin authors signed copies of the book, which are now available at BookPeople!  To buy a copy, click here.

P.J. Hoover, Susan Kralovansky, Nikki Loftin, Cory Oakes

Liz Garton Scanlon, Me, and Cynthia Levinson

Cyn and me.  Photo courtesy Cory Oakes

Title Page!

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Congratulations to the randomly chosen winner of the Advance Readers’ Copy of Nikki Loftin’s debut middle grade novel  THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY…

ROBIN!

Five more lucky winners will receive a bookmark:

Christine Sarmel
Dianna Brown
Marty
Joanna Labow
Anne Bingham

Thank you to everyone who came here to read Nikki’s post and to everyone who went to The Splendid Academy’s site to to leave their suggestion for Splendid Academy’s menu or just to have a look around. As soon as I gather all the winners’ email addresses, I will send notes to get your mailing addresses.

THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY launches tomorrow! Congratulations to Nikki on her outstanding debut!

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Hey everybody! We have a super-special treat today! Debut author Nikki Loftin, whose middle grade novel THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY launches August 21, is joining us to talk about something that concerns many writers—building a website for middle grade fans. Take it away, Nikki!

The worst words in the entire world, to a reader who’s gone down the rabbit hole into the world of a wonderful book, are “The End.” I remember feeling as a child that sinking sensation as I got closer and closer to the end of a favorite novel, knowing the magic would end soon, and I would have to step back into reality.

I hated that. I wanted the story to keep going. I wanted to read the biographies of the characters, I wanted to know what they were eating for dinner the day after the story ended, what they did with their friends, who they spoke to… So many of these characters became my friends. When the story ended, it was almost like they’d moved away.

(Of course, when I was child, there was no such thing as the Internet, with its sites for fan fiction and Pottermore-ish places to keep the dream alive. Hold on for a second while I yell at some kids to get off my lawn. There, I’m done.)

I thought—hoped—that some kids would fall in love with my characters and the world of Splendid Academy enough to have that same longing feeling. And I wondered if I could provide something to extend the magic of the story, just a bit, with a website for Splendid Academy. I reserved the domain name of my school, put up some placeholder pages, and started thinking.

What kind of site did I want? What could I offer my readers that would be fun for them, yet easy for me to maintain so I could, you know, have time to write more books?

The site I wanted would be partly for marketing—anything promoting your book serves that sort of purpose. But I really wanted it to be something for my readers. So I started jotting down notes about what I would have wanted as a kid, if I had just finished reading The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy.

I wondered if this was all a waste of time. Then, a lovely publicist/creative genius named Kirsten Cappy, from Curious City, met with me in the spring and helped me solidify some of my ideas, and she mentioned that librarians love to be able to send avid readers to book-related sites—and book clubs can use them as a part of their discussion. (She had me at “librarians love.”)

The first thing I settled on was a page with staff bios. I tried to write each one with enough detail so that readers who had finished the book would get the hidden jokes (and hidden threats), but kids who hadn’t read it yet wouldn’t see spoilers. Since the site ostensibly is written by the principal and teachers of the school, any reference to the book would have to be hidden—although to be fair, I did decide to put a very visible button to take potential buyers straight to a site where they could buy a copy!

I thought a series of letters from the principal would be fun to write, with the occasional note from one of the other teachers, and maybe even a “guest blog” from some of the secondary characters to add to the fun.  Of course, with a book involving enchanted food, a school menu would be a must. (The most recent post is a call for readers to comment on the site for the chance to have their favorite food added to the upcoming menu. I’ll also have kids at the launch party in a few weeks write down their favorite foods, so I can post them there as well.)

I have thoughts about adding a quiz for prospective students, as well as adding “lesson plans” featuring the many fairy tales I reference in the book…  but I’ll have to see how much time it takes. A writer’s first job is writing, after all—and if all goes well, I’ll have kids emailing me to “hurry up and write another one!”

And that’s probably the very best way to please your audience.

NOW FOR THE CONTEST!!!

For a chance to win an Advanced Readers’ Copy of Nikki’s debut novel THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY, you can help Nikki build her website! Go to SplendidAcademy.com and leave a comment about your favorite food! (Remember, this place has gourmet fare, so don’t be shy about asking for the good stuff!) Nikki is also giving away some cool bookmarks to reward even more yummy suggestions for the school menu. The contest will run one week and we will announce the winner on Monday, August 20.

THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY

Coming from Razorbill, August 21, 2012

When Lorelei’s old school mysteriously burns down, a new one appears practically overnight: Splendid Academy. Rock-climbing walls on the playground and golden bowls of candy on every desk? Gourmet meals in the cafeteria, served by waiters? Optional homework and two recess periods a day? It’s every kid’s dream.

But Lorelei and her new friend Andrew are pretty sure it’s too good to be true. Together they uncover a sinister mystery, one with their teacher, the beautiful Ms. Morrigan, at the very center.

Then Andrew disappears. Lorelei has to save him, even if that means facing a past she’d like to forget – and taking on a teacher who’s a real witch.

What Lorelei and Andrew discover chills their bones—and might even pick them clean!

Don’t forget! Go to SplendidAcademy.com and leave a comment about your favorite food!

(And isn’t that a fantastic cover? Illustration by Alexander Jansson, cover designed by Emily Osborne.)

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THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY, by Nikki Loftin (Razorbill/Penguin, August 2012)(ages 8-12). When eleven-year-old Lorelei's school burns down, she and her brother transfer to Splendid Academy, a new school which appeared practically overnight.  With gourmet meals, bottomless bowls of candy, no rules about texting or talking in class, and the best playground ever, it seems to be the perfect school. 

But there's a dark secret at Splendid Academy, and Lorelei and her new friend Andrew are determined to uncover the truth.  But who will believe that the school is a front for a witch?

THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY is a deliciously dark debut, offering an engaging heroine, a nicely creepy villain, and piles and piles of marzipan.  A splendid 21st century update to the tale of Hansel and Gretel.

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Nikki Loftin and Coelophysis

Nikki Loftin lives just outside Austin, Texas, and writes middle grade novels.  Her first novel, THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY, which she describes as "CORALINE meets HANSEL AND GRETEL," will be published in Summer 2012 by Razorbill/Penguin.

She recently took a trip to New Mexico and took a couple photos of the Ghost Ranch Coelophysis.   

Coelophysis, a small Triassic theropod, is the state dinosaur of New Mexico and appears to have been a cannibal.

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Before I show you this week’s events line up, including the book launch for Christina Mandelski’s THE SWEETEST THING, I have a few more things to share from the Houston Writers Guild conference this past weekend. When you’re tired of reading my two posts on this conference but still want to hear more, check out these posts:

Josh Getzler

Nikki Loftin

S. L. Hennessy

Sarah Warburton

I think I mentioned on my last post that I was on the Young Adult track for this conference, which means I got to hear Elaine Scott, Nikki Loftin, Kimberly Morris and C.C. Hunter (aka Christie Craig).

Elaine Scott, who spoke on writing nonfiction for kids, told us how she got into the business and her bold approach to an agent during Elaine’s first writers’ conference, which resulted in her signing with that agent. Along with giving us complete details on how to write a nonfiction book proposal, Elaine gave us some tips on writing a successful nonfiction book for kids:

• You don’t have to write what you are an expert in—research and make contacts.
• Don’t forget you are telling a story.
• Look at School Library Journal to see what librarians are looking for, but don’t forget that your passion for the topic is essential to its success.

Nikki Loftin, whose debut novel The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy pitched as Coraline meets Hansel and Gretel, about a young girl whose seemingly delightful new school hides frightening secrets, will be published by Razorbill in 2012. Nikki talked about her path to publication and emphasized the importance of a perfect query letter, (even suggesting you trick friends into reading your query by making it a find-the-hidden-mistakes game) and the importance of not querying before your manuscript is ready. Nikki left us with these querying tips:

• Be bold.
• Be resilient.
• Be nice.
• Be brave.
• Then write your next novel.

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