Birth date: September 11, 1979
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Website/blog: zoraandme.com
Genre: YA/Historical Fiction
WiP or most recently published work: Zora and Me
Writing credits: Zora and Me (2010)
How frequently do you update your site?
an events page, as we have quite a few appearances coming up over the
next few months.
Is your site designed for reader interaction?
Yes. We have a few interactive elements on the site inspired by
Zora’s childhood, like instructions for making a corn husk doll, which
Zora herself did as a child, and planting an herb garden. The point
of these elements is to try to have our readers recreate little pieces
of Zora’s childhood in the 21st century.
Did you originally set out to write Zora and Me as a mystery? If not,
what did it start out as?
Yes, it absolutely started as a mystery. When Tanya pitched the idea
to me, and I’m not sure who said it first, we immediately came to the
dynamic and narrative construction of the Holmes stories as a model
and a guide. Doyle, of course, uses Watson as the narrator for
Holmes’ adventures. In that way, Holmes is a character in Watson’s
stories, which is just fascinating given the status of Holmes as a
larger than life character.
It's not often that we see books written about phenomenal writers (or
really any important figure in history) solely when they are children.
Why did you decide to write only about Zora Neale Hurston's childhood?
Tanya pitched to me, I was fascinated and excited by not only writing
about Zora but the community she grew up in. In my writing life I
never doubted I would work on historical subjects. The thing I never
imagined is that I would have the opportunity to write about a place
as unique and special as Eatonville. The first incorporated all black
town in the nation Eatonville is a context where race in America could
be discussed in a way that I frankly think is new to children’s
literature.
Top 5 reads you’re looking forward to reading in 2011?
All classics. For some writing I’m trying to wrap my head around,
though not autobiographical in nature like Zora and Me, I can’t wait
to rip into all of the novels by the Bronte sisters.
100 words or less how would you describe your work?
As a portrait of a young black girl as artist couched in a passing
mystery that’s really about friendship.
100 words or less on children and reading:
I grew up with my grandparents who were both readers. My grandmother
read romance novels exclusively whereas my grandfather was a collector
of reference materials ranging from dictionaries to almanacs to sports
encyclopedias. Both of them took great joy in books, and I followed
their example. For one, I wanted to know what they were up to, to
connect with them on equal footing in a way, so I became interested in
what books captivated the
Blog: The Children's Book Review (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Walter Dean Myers, Randy DuBurke, Bryan Collier, Coretta Scott King, Rita Williams-garcia, Award Winners: Books with honors, Book Lists: Specialty picks, Javaka Steptoe, G. Neri, Jen Cullerton Johnson, Sonia Lynn Sadler, Laban Carrick Hill, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Gary Golio, Victoria Bond, Dr. Henrietta Mays Smith, T. R. Simon, Add a tag
By Bianca Schulze, The Children’s Book Review
Published: January 10, 2011
As announced by the American Library Association (ALA) …
Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award
Recognizing an African American author of outstanding books for children and young adults:
“One Crazy Summer,” written by Rita Williams-Garcia is the 2011 King Author Book winner. The book is published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Three King Author Honor Books were selected:
“Lockdown,” by Walter Dean Myers and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers; “Ninth Ward,” by Jewell Parker Rhodes and published by Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.; and “Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty,” written by G. Neri, illustrated by Randy DuBurke and published by Lee & Low Books Inc.
Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award
Recognizing an African American illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults:
“Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave,” illustrated by Bryan Collier, is the 2011 King Illustrator Book winner. The book was written by Laban Carrick Hill and published by Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
One King Illustrator Honor Book was selected:
“Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix,” illustrated by Javaka Steptoe, written by Gary Golio and published by Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent (Author) Award
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