tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42674538851068743712024-03-13T10:28:10.439-05:00Author Of . . .The writers behind great children's stories—from picture books to middle-grade, novels to nonfictionKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-64724613198247584602020-12-14T06:42:00.003-06:002020-12-14T08:03:43.036-06:00Suzanne Slade Scores Another Nonfiction Winner with 'Swish!'Chicago's favorite rocket-scientist-turned-children's-author Suzanne Slade has another fantastic nonfiction picture book hitting shelves, and illustrated by the wonderfully talented Don Tate, it's an irresistible book to add to your shelf. Telling the true story of the endlessly entertaining Harlem Globetrotters, it examines the team that changed basketball forever.Both Suzanne and Don are Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-2098912423498294702020-12-07T11:43:00.004-06:002020-12-07T11:46:19.381-06:00Doug Cenko Takes Off with 'Little Monster Trucks GO!' and MoreThis is the perfect time of year to get your hands on Chicago author-illustrator Doug Cenko's picture books and boardbooks. Charming illustrations and engaging storylines make his titles the ones kids return to again and again. And they show that Santa's got good taste when he's thinking about the youngest readers.Doug's newest title, Little Monster Trucks GO! (Blue Manatee Press, April 2020), Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-35707718652872698562020-11-30T08:48:00.005-06:002020-11-30T08:52:02.256-06:00Tossing Glitter for Alex Willan's 'Unicorns,' 'Jasper' Sequel, and 'Revver'I was lucky enough to meet Chicago author-illustrator Alex Willan a few years back. It was at the 2016 Los Angeles conference of SCBWI, and when I saw his work, I knew he was destined for big things. Fast-forward to 2020, and Alex is celebrating the release of his second and third picture books AND his first middle-grade venture.With the charming Unicorns Are the Worst! (Simon & Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-22678404718116126792020-11-23T11:50:00.000-06:002020-11-23T11:50:01.018-06:00Lisa Katzenberger's 'Regular Average Ordinary Day' Worth CelebratingChicago-area children's author Lisa Katzenberger is active with SCBWI-Illinois and beyond, and her picture book career is taking off! Lisa's clever and oh-so-engaging National Regular Average Ordinary Day, illustrated by Barbara Bakos, published this past June with Penguin Workshop, her Triceratops Would Not Make a Good Ninja, illustrated by Steph Calvert, from Picture Window Books hit Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-82217580169590980382020-11-16T12:59:00.003-06:002020-11-16T13:27:27.762-06:00Amy Alznauer Inspires with 3 New Picture Book Biographies We can all agree that 2020 has been A Year. But for Chicago author Amy Alznauer, there have been some fantastic bright spots to celebrate. A Northwestern University lecturer in calculus and number theory, Amy saw not one, not two, but THREE of her picture books publish this year! Perfectly suited to her field of expertise, Amy's first title was the picture book biography The Boy Who Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-78110725042271862822020-11-09T16:47:00.002-06:002020-11-09T16:47:56.318-06:00Big Rewards in Alice McGinty's Lyrical, Lovable 'Story for Small Bear'Alice McGinty knows what she's doing. An award-winning author of more than 40 children's books, the longtime Regional Advisor for SCBWI-Illinois, and a writing instructor for teens and adults, Alice has storytelling down pat. And her latest title, A Story for Small Bear (Schwartz & Wade Books, October 2020), about a playful bear cub getting ready for hibernation and leaving just enough time Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-43386898723086995072020-11-02T08:46:00.004-06:002020-11-02T08:58:28.734-06:00More Exciting Adventures from Liesl Shurtliff in 'Forbidden Lock'Chicago children's author Liesl Shurtliff is one of the busiest writers I know in children's lit. When she's not working on a new book, she's speaking to students in classrooms all over the country about the power of storytelling, or she's racing around town with her own bustling brood.A New York Times bestseller for Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin (Knopf, 2013), which was followed by Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-7802285544359098462020-10-26T07:42:00.004-05:002020-10-26T07:45:10.907-05:00Carol Coven Grannick Takes the Spotlight with 'Reeni's Turn'Carol Coven Grannick has been an encouraging, uplifting force for other authors in the Chicago children's writing community, so the publication of her debut novel Reeni's Turn (Fitzroy Books, September 2020) is an exciting moment for cheering on one of our best cheerleaders. Aside from contributing a column for Illinois children's book creators via SCBWI's Prairie Wind, Carol’s poetry and Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-54405361587875223792020-10-19T09:24:00.001-05:002020-10-19T09:24:20.083-05:00'How to Find a Bird' Proves the Perfect Pandemic Book for KidsWho knew how much joy birds could bring? Hummingbirds flitting around my back garden were a daily highlight this summer. Oriole-spotting seemed to be the pandemic favorite for those of us who weren't baking sourdough bread. A friend in Austin can't get enough of the owl that's come to roost in her back yard.Birds are everywhere, Jennifer Ward tells readers in the delightful How to Find a Bird&Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-40405831849922493692020-10-12T05:48:00.002-05:002020-10-12T05:48:01.747-05:00Rebecca Siegel Explores Space Race in 'To Fly Among the Stars'Chicago-area author Rebecca Siegel takes a hard look at the space race in her non-fiction middle-grade To Fly Among the Stars (Scholastic Focus, March 2020). In fascinating detail, she contrasts the experiences of the all-male Mercury 7—the seven superstar test pilots of NASA's astronaut class—with those of the 13 female candidates who were accomplished air racers, test pilots, andKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-3855392214296594432020-10-05T05:00:00.015-05:002020-10-05T07:21:37.985-05:00Sally Walker Takes Readers into Chicago Fire with 'Fiery Night'Sally Walker is the real deal. One of Illinois' finest children's authors, Sally has written more than 60 nonfiction books ranging from the history of climate change to the Mason-Dixon line, how Winnie the Pooh came to be to how Bessie Coleman took to the skies. And because of the high quality of Sally's research and writing, her titles earn recognition, making state recommended-reading lists, Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-82001285394693849692020-09-28T09:04:00.004-05:002020-09-28T09:04:52.593-05:00Celebrate Autumn with Wendy McClure's Adorable 'It's a Pumpkin!'We're almost to October, that glorious time of year when pumpkin spice fills the air and we embrace all things gourdlike. Well, at least I do. Can't get enough of them—pumpkins on the porch, gnarly goosenecks on the coffee table, acorn squash in the oven. Gourdgeous! That's why I fell madly in love with Wendy McClure's adorable new picture book It's a Pumpkin! (Albert Whitman, September 2020Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-66093318549491507002020-09-21T08:32:00.005-05:002020-09-21T08:32:37.905-05:00Keir Graff Cobbles Together More Hilarity with 'Tiny Mansion'Chicago author Keir Graff has taken us a lot of places with his middle-grade novels, and I am especially excited about the setting for his latest effort, The Tiny Mansion (Putnam's Books for Young Readers, September 8, 2020). While Keir has other titles on the shelf, both for young readers as well as adult (as part of a writing duo under the pen name Linda Keir), his not-exactly-a-series runKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-88881147539755149072020-09-14T06:19:00.001-05:002020-09-14T06:44:38.646-05:00Amy Timberlake's 'Skunk and Badger' an Immediate ClassicNewbery Honor-winner Amy Timberlake's new read aloud is part Frog and Toad, part Odd Couple, and all kinds of wonderful. Skunk and Badger, publishing tomorrow with Algonquin Young Readers and illustrated by Caldecott-winner Jon Klassen, has already chalked up multiple starred reviews and was called "exceptionally sweet" by Kirkus. Amy's story is perhaps the book for our tumultuous time, as Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-40613914415779936342020-08-31T05:59:00.001-05:002020-08-31T05:59:01.634-05:00Emily Ecton's 'Great Pet Heist' a Laugh-Out-Loud CaperI've long been a fan of the hilarious Emily Ecton, a former Chicagoan and wonderful member of the local children's writing community who now calls Virginia home. Pick up any of her eight middle-grade novels (The Ambrose Deception, Project Jackalope) and you'll see her humor showcased throughout, as well as her sheer sense of fun. Emily's latest, The Great Pet Heist (Atheneum Books for Young Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-23798866100109862072020-08-24T06:30:00.005-05:002020-08-26T10:58:25.419-05:00Lori Degman Shows Off Rhyming Skills in 'Travel Guide for Monsters'Anyone with an interest in rhyme should race to their bookstore right now and pick up one of Lori Degman's wonderful picture books. This Chicago-area author knows her way around stressed syllables and similar sounds, as she demonstrated in Just Read (Sterling, 2019) illustrated by Victoria Tentler-Krylov and Cock-A-Doodle-Oops! (Creston Books, 2014) illustrated by Deborah Zemke. Lori isKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-81089121285744445202020-08-17T07:17:00.000-05:002020-08-17T07:17:14.743-05:00'Me & Mama' Author-Illustrator Cozbi Cabrera Does It AllThere seems to be nothing Chicago multimedia artist Cozbi Cabrera cannot do. Her talents range from gorgeous illustration to lyrical written word to delicate textile art. Just glimpsing her website, visitors get an immediate sense that she is a special creative force to behold. In 2020, Cozbi has two children's books hitting shelves—Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks, written by Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-69934487391360057202020-08-09T19:40:00.002-05:002020-08-15T14:26:34.763-05:00Patricia Hruby Powell's 'Lift as You Climb' Spotlights Ella BakerLots of Illinois authors have new books hitting shelves right now. And while so many important national issues are rightly demanding our attention, it can feel like new picture books or novels serve little purpose. But they do. Now more than ever, it's important that we talk to young readers about American history, about the brave members of society who fought for justice and pushed the national Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-49320720262397699992020-06-26T15:18:00.002-05:002020-06-26T15:20:33.211-05:00Things I Tried to Bring to 'The Great Chicago Fire' Graphic Novel
When I was presented with writing the script for The Great Chicago Fire: Rising From the Ashes, I was a little intimidated. Chicago school kids study this topic inside and out. They become experts. Their teachers are already experts. Stacks of books have been written about this subject. What could I possibly bring to this that hasn't already been done?
As I began compiling research intoKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-73788533868069936972020-06-24T17:59:00.001-05:002020-06-24T17:59:08.028-05:00Remy Lai's 'Pie in the Sky' a Sweet but Sad Graphic-Novel Hybrid
One of my favorite recent reads is Pie in the Sky by debut author-illustrator Remy Lai. Winner of the SCBWI Sid Fleischman Humor Award and an NPR "Best Books of 2019" selection, Pie has received all kinds of love since its publication last year from Henry Holt. A hybrid graphic novel blended with traditional novel, it's like a perfect cake: the emotional content is challenging, Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-19327857694228993162020-06-19T18:06:00.002-05:002020-06-19T18:06:37.191-05:00Cindy Copeland's Graphic-Novel Memoir 'Cub' Celebrates Journalism
I grew up reading newspapers at the breakfast table each morning, starting on the funny pages and gradually working my way into the news sections. When I reached high school, I knew that my natural nosiness about other people, knack for eavesdropping, and love of language and wordplay were a good combination for working on the school newspaper. On to college to study journalism formally, and Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-46800991370121138772020-06-18T16:16:00.005-05:002020-06-18T16:33:07.986-05:00Heartbreak, Hope of a Better Life in Graphic-Novel Memoir 'Stars'
World Refugee Day is coming up this Saturday, June 20, and for parents and teachers who want to better understand the refugee experience as they talk with their kids, there are plenty of books to turn to. Among the best I've seen is the new nonfiction graphic novel When Stars Are Scattered (Dial, 2020), written by Somali refugee Omar Mohamed in collaboration with Victoria Jamieson, the Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-29953652757764384432020-06-17T13:21:00.001-05:002020-06-18T16:28:44.582-05:00'Go With the Flow' the Graphic-Novel Period Book We All NeedLily Williams and Karen Schneemann are the brilliant team behind Go With the Flow (First Second, 2020), the informative graphic novel that examines periods in all their embarrassing, confounding glory. While the four friends featured in the story are sophomores in high school, this book is the perfect thing to hand to middle-schoolers who want to learn more about the mysteries of Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-56429937542914070402019-05-28T06:54:00.001-05:002019-05-28T06:56:58.510-05:00South Side Kids Tangle with Mummies in Malayna Evans' 'Jagger Jones'
Adventure books are always a draw. Throw in a little history, and who can resist? So when I heard about Malayna Evans’ debut middle-grade, Jagger Jones and the Mummy’s Ankh (Month9Books), part of a three-book series hitting shelves today, I was especially intrigued by the Chicago angle. Malayna studied ancient Egyptian history at the University of Chicago, and the book features two South Side Kate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4267453885106874371.post-75546869132001443282019-03-04T06:00:00.000-06:002019-03-04T06:00:06.070-06:00Mysterious Fantasy in Melanie Crowder's Latest, 'Lighthouse'Maybe you already know Melanie Crowder for her award-winning middle-grade books. Or you discovered her much-acclaimed young adult titles. Whether it's Audacity, Three Pennies, An Uninterrupted View of the Sky, A Nearer Moon or Parched, she's established herself as a deft and versatile writer who's not afraid to tackle challenging, emotion-packed storytelling. Melanie's latest, the mysteriousKate Hanniganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14412793482696435963noreply@blogger.com0