Where the Books Are

I was so excited that Red was named an Indie Next Pick for January/February 2024 in large part because I love indie bookstores. Growing up, we didn’t live close to many independent bookstores and now that I’m in the Greater Boston area, I’m so fortunate to have so many good choices nearby.

To celebrate being on the Kids Indie Next List, here are some of my favorite indie bookstores.

  • Brookline Booksmith was my local bookstore when I lived around Coolidge Corner and I’d move back in a heartbeat if only for this store. Not only do they have rows of books, great recommendations, and gifts, but they also have a used section downstairs. The best of both worlds!
  • Across the river in Cambridge is Porter Square Books, which similar has fantastic stock and always has excellent staff recommendations. They also have a great coffee bar in the store, which means you can buy a book and a coffee and read at the counter and have the best time ever.
  • The first bookstore I found when I moved to Boston was Trident Booksellers and it’s been a favorite ever since. With a full cafe inside, you can browse the stacks while you wait for your table at brunch.
  • When I think about Wellesley Books, I think about the fantastic events they’ve organized over the years. Even though they were farther away for me for a while, I would make the trip to see authors like Shannon Hale, Suzanne Collins, and John and Hank Green. (Bonus: there’s the reason my dear friend/writing group member Allison and I reconnected after meeting as teens in a summer writing program!)
  • A new addition to the Boston area is All She Wrote Books, an intersectional, inclusive feminist and queer bookstore that supports, celebrates, and amplifies underrepresented voices. Their staff recommendations are stellar and they highlight local authors.
  • Just south of Boston, Buttonwood Books in Cohasset and the Blue Bunny Bookstore are bright spot for readers with fantastic children’s sections.
  • Even farther south, in Rhode Island, are Barrington Books, which has been an indie favorite in the area since the 1980s. More recently, co-op bookstore Heartleaf Books opened in Providence and I can attest to the fact that the store t-shirts are super comfy.
  • Way out of the Boston area, Women & Children First in Chicago has been a favorite since Walt lived in Andersonville and I’d visit him. They have a great selection and have been an inclusive space in the Chicago area since 1979.

Big thanks to the American Booksellers Association for including Red as an indie pick. Check out these great indies if you’re in the area and share your favorite indie bookstores in the comments!

Housekeeping

It’s been a while since I’ve posted here and I’m excited to share a few things:

  • I have a new book coming out on January 30, 2024! It’s about faith and abuse and community and finding your voice.
  • It’s gotten some very nice reviews so far.
  • It’s also been named an Indie Next Pick for January/February–yay indie bookstores!
  • For Boston-area folks: I’m going to be having a launch party at Brookline Booksmith. Come for the book talk, stay for the hugs.

I’ll be sharing updates/thoughts/fun stuff periodically here. If you just want the occasional update, you can also sign up for my newsletter.

The internet landscape is so different from when I first started blogging. (Okay, the whole world is so different from when I first started blogging.) But being here gives me very You’ve Got Mail vibes in the best bouquet of sharpened pencils kind of way, and I hope you feel that, too.

Top Ten Tuesday: Hidden Gems

I don’t always participate in Top Ten Tuesday, but when I do, it’s because I want to rave about books! This week’s theme is hidden gems, aka books we love that we think everyone should love but for some reason have not hit the bestseller lists or gotten the big movie deals. In no particular order, here are some of the books I’m always shoving into friends’ hands:

Feeling Sorry for Celia by Jaclyn Moriarty
I read this as a teen and immediately made my close friends read it, too. Told in letters (some of which are from imaginary organizations), it’s a clever, funny, touching look at the evolving nature of friendship.

Girl Mans Up by M-E Girard
Admittedly, this one started slow, but it’s such a great story of a gender-non-conforming teen. All the relationships felt so real to me, and I especially appreciated Pen’s struggles with her traditional Portuguese family.

A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban
This middle-grade novel about a girl with grand piano dreams and an organ reality hit me right in the feels. It’s a thoughtful, fun, and funny story about family, friends, fear, and surprising yourself.

Good Enough by Paula Yoo
Such a sweet, funny, touching story about a girl dealing with family pressure to excel, major crushes, and a secret love of pop music. Patti’s church group friends are my fav.

A Greyhound of a Girl by Roddy Doyle
This is one of my favorite family stories, about four generations of women helping one to pass onto the afterlife. Doyle has such a way with voice and dialogue.

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen
This story about a competitive high school runner who learns to run again after losing her leg in a car accident feels so genuine, both in terms of the emotional stakes and of the information about what it actually takes to go through rehab and run with a prosthetic.

The Light Fantastic and Breakfast Served Anytime by Sarah Combs
This is a two-for, because Sarah Combs is one of my all-time favorite writers and humans. Both of her books are packed with gorgeous writing, touching stories, deep sadness, pure joy, and characters you just want to hug.

The Montmaray Journals by Michelle Cooper
A historical, epistolary series about a royal family at the edge of WWII? Sign me up. Cooper does a fantastic job creating a memorable set of characters and gives a fascinating look at the rise of hate, fear, and war (which, sadly, feels too close to today’s vibe) and what good people can do to stand against it.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken
This was one of my very favorite books when I was 10/11-years-old. After reading The Secret Garden and A Little Princess, I randomly stumbled across this one in the library and it hit all those good Victorian feels–even governesses, plucky orphans, and a whole forest of hungry wolves.

Wildlife by Fiona Wood
I feel like if you squished together Feeling Sorry for Celia and Breakfast Served AnytimeWildlife is what you’d get, which means I am 100% its target audience. Wildlife examines toxic friendships, grief, and finding the people you need, all set at an outdoor education program in Australia. (What is it about Australian YA that I just love?!)

Underrated books that you love? Share them in the comments! Also make sure to check out everyone else’s Top Ten Tuesday hidden gems via That Artsy Reader Girl.

Families Belong Together

If you’re like me, the news about immigrant families being separated and children being detained in horrifying conditions makes you ill to think about. This is a human rights violation happening on our watch. While I’m not an immigration lawyer or social worker, I can take a small part in this effort to reunify families and make sure these abuses never happen again.

Right now, in partnership with Kid Lit Says No Kids in Cages, the children’s and YA lit community has come together in a giant auction of tons of literary items, all raising money for groups such as the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, and more. Auction items include:

I’m taking part in two raffles–one that includes a signed copy of The Chance You Won’t Return and one that includes a query critique by yours truly.

See Writers for Families Belong Together for more information on how to donate and bid/enter raffles, and to scope out all the amazing items. This is an enormous, deeply upsetting problem and one we all need to address. I’m so glad to be taking part in this auction, and hope you take a moment to review the items. (Or donate in general!)

Where the Books Are

Recently, I had a conversation with someone who had two kids who were both readers, but she wasn’t sure how to keep finding books they might like. “It’s hard to tell from an Amazon review,” she mentioned. Which got me thinking about the places I find books to add to my (never-ending) reading list. In no particular order:

Book blogs/social media
This is probably where I find the most books. I follow a lot of book/writing-related blogs, which often post reviews, lists of book recommendations on a particular theme or topic, or interviews with writers about their work. Some favorites include:

I follow these (and others) on Feedly and, when I see a good review or description that sounds interesting, add to to my list.

Browsing bookstores/libraries
This used to be the primary way I found books. From the time I was an early reader through high school, I’d go to the library or local bookstores and spend time scanning the shelves for titles that sounded interesting. I still love doing this, although most of my library browsing tends to be through their online catalog of available audiobooks to download.

Award lists
I don’t pay a ton of attention to year-end book lists (like “best of 2018”), but I do keep an eye out for which books win major awards. In the children’s literature/YA sphere, that includes ALA Youth Media Awards, the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature, and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards. These might be more popular/well-known books that I already kind of have on my radar, but the awards make me feel like I should check them out to get a sense of what’s being recognized in the kid/YA lit sphere.

Professional publications
Getting a good review from professional review organizations like School Library Journal, Kirkus, or Publishers Weekly can be a big boost for books in the market. It’s also a place I tend to read book reviews. I don’t put a ton of weight into whether a book gets a great review or not, but if I like the sound of a book overall, I’ll check it out.

Recommendations from friends
This one is actually a little iffy, because lots of times I get weirdly defiant when people tell me I have to read a certain book. Even if it’s a book I know I’d enjoy, a lot of times I’ll stubbornly feel like You can’t make me! I also tend to pick books from my reading list based on feel (like “I want something fun and scifi next”) vs. recent recommendations, so I don’t usually circle back to friends’ recommendations until later. But there are a few people I 100% trust with book recommendations and am always happy to get their suggestions–even if I don’t always end up reading them right away.

Books by friends
This is total literary nepotism, but I’m way more likely to read a book if I know and like the person who wrote it. Again, it may not happen right away, but friends’ books are always on my list. I’m also way more likely to buy friends’ books, when I can afford it, vs. getting them from the library, which is how I read pretty much everything else.

Books similar to what I’m writingA lot of times, especially in the early phases of a project, I’ll search for books similar to what I’m

writing to get a sense of what’s already out there and what other authors have already done. Sometimes this is in tone (quirky, funny, sad, etc.) or topic (books about military families, books about teens in theatre, etc.) or just genre (sci-fi, fantasy, contemp, etc.). I know a lot of people don’t like to work this way, in case they get too bogged down in other people’s stories, but I find it immensely helpful and inspiring.

Where do you find your next read? Share your recommendations in the comments!

Friday Fifteen

Happy Friday, guys! It’s been a while since my last Friday Fifteen, but I’ve been busy with the work life and the writing life, and the throwing the squeaky toy for Bodo the Dog life. Fortunately, this is the Friday before Marathon Monday, aka the best day of the year, so I’m super excited to head into the weekend. Let’s get things started with a few book reviews in fifteen words or fewer.

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen
A fantastic look at disability, friendly, struggle, and strength. As a runner, I’m a fan.

Summerlost by Ally Condie
A sweet and sad and real middle grade about loss and family. Loved the setting.

Paperweight by Meg Haston
A sensitive, real portrayal of a girl battling an eating disorder. Recovery is complex here.

Writer Life Update – Agent News!

Exciting writer news to share! Over the last few months, I’ve been querying agents and looking for new representation. As I’m sure a lot of you know, querying is…a lot. It’s a lot of time trying to find agents who you think might like your stuff; a lot of time crafting your submissions and pitches; a lot of time waiting; a lot of rejection.

But. I have good news to share!

I’m now represented by the wonderful Laura Crockett at Triada US!!!

I’m so excited to be working with Laura. She’s super enthusiastic about my projects, has such a thoughtful approach to manuscripts and the market in general, and from our first conversation I got such a great vibe from her.

I need to put together a big post about my querying process soon, but I’m so happy that this news is now official. I’m psyched to be part of #TeamTriada and kick of 2018 with lots of new writing energy!

2018 Bookish Resolutions

The other day I looked at how I did with my 2017 bookish resolutions,.Today, let’s look at bookish resolutions for 2018.

Reading Resolutions

  1. Finish more book series that I’ve already started: I KNOW, I always have this one on the list. I’ve got a couple of series that I definitely want to get through, or make progress on. I will couch this by saying that there are also some series I’m meh about that I don’t have to return to, so no guilt there.
  2. Read more diversely: another resolution from last year that I’d like to continue. Making conscious choices to fill my reading list with writers of different backgrounds was really valuable for me as a reader, and I hope to do even more of this in 2018.
  3. Set aside more time to read before bed: it’s way too easy to futz on my computer or phone and not have enough time to read in bed, which is the coziest. I need to start getting ready for bed earlier and make sure I have that good reading time.
  4. Read more nonfiction: I started this in 2017 by accident, and have enjoyed listening to nonfiction audiobooks more than I anticipated. I’d like to make this a specific goal in 2018, especially if it combines with “read more diversely.”
  5. Read more fiction for adults: outside of nonfiction 95% of my reading is YA/MG. I’d like to get a few more titles for grown-ups in there, because it’s probably good to know what the grown-ups are reading, too.

Writing Resolutions

  1. Revise my current WIP: I’m starting on some more revisions for a WIP I’ve been working on for a while and really like. I’m hoping to get it in a really good place for early 2018.
  2. Start a new WIP: it’s been a weird time for me writing-wise, and I’m not sure what I want to work on next. I want to get in a place where I’m confident and excited about a new project, and can throw myself into it.
  3. Find the fun: again, it’s been a weird time. I want to find the joy in writing and to remind myself that I like spending time with my characters.
  4. Get off social media more: as much as I love the internets and honestly do love the bookish people I’ve met through Twitter, I need to take more of a step back from social media. It’s not good for my writerly soul at this point. (Outside of that–I do want to blog more. I feel like 2017 left me thinking “how can I blog about books when the world is so messed up?” But the awfulness of the state of the world doesn’t mean we can’t also enjoy the things we love.)
  5. Separate writing from publishing: the real big one for me this year. when I first started this list, I thought of resolutions like “get an agent” or “get a book deal” before I realized that those were not writing goals, those were publishing goals. And ultimately, those are out of my control. I need to remember that the writing is not the publishing. The only thing I have control over is the writing, and that’s the thing I like. Who knows how the rest of this is going to go, but at least I can keep writing.

Sending you all good reading and writing vibes for 2018, too. Let’s make this a year of strength and creativity and care.

2017 Bookish Resolution Recap

I’m going to spend the entirety of January writing “2017” on things before remember it’s 2018, so it seems like a great time to look at my 2017 reading/writing resolutions and my progress (or lack thereof).

  1. Finish more book series I’ve started: I have this on the list every year and made some minor progress toward finishing some book series that I’d started. I completed the entirety of Jenny Han’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before series, and the Tiffany Aching section of Discworld (a series that I’m already continuing into 2018).
  2. Read more diversely: I made a particular effort in 2017 to read authors of color and LGBTIQIA+ authors, which included some fantastic books.
  3. Listen to more audiobooks: I nailed this resolution! I ended up doing most of my reading via audiobook and am a major audiobook evangelical now.
  4. Explore more picture books: I didn’t do much on this end. Most of my reading comes from the library, and I feel a little weird scanning through the picture books without a particular purpose.
  5. Read more poetry: Yeah, didn’t do much on this end, either. I think I’ll be better off if I try to check out literary magazines for their poetry than devote myself to collections.
  6. Turn off the internet more: This ended up being more like ‘go to coffeeshops where you don’t know the wifi info’ than ‘turn off the internet more.’
  7. Write when I think I don’t have enough time: I did manage to sneak in some shorter writing time, and I think this is going to be especially helpful in 2018, when I have more non-writing job hours.
  8. Revise projects that aren’t finished: I revised a couple of projects and set another side for the time being. (I still like it, but it’s missing some major components and I just don’t know how to fix that yet.) I’m doing some additional revising on one of the projects now.
  9. Stretch my writing muscles: I didn’t end up being as stretchy as anticipated. For now I’m still solidly in the contemporary YA vein, which I like.
  10. Have fun: This one was probably the hardest goal, and one I’m still trying to manage. I’ve really questioned whether or not I can enjoy writing outside of publishing, and how I see myself as a writer without requiring other people externally validate that identity. But the writing itself–once I’m in it, it’s where I like to be. So it’s something I’ll need to keep addressing in 2018.

Did you make writerly/readerly resolutions in 2017? How did you do with them? Share in the comments, and be on the lookout for a future post about 2018 resolutions!

Friday Fifteen

Happy Friday the 13th, guys! This morning I got to take Bodo the dog on a walk that partly included a nearby cemetery, so I’m feeling the spooky vibes this morning. Here’s to a good fall-y weekend, and some micro-book reviews.

I’ll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Touching and well crafted, but I kept thinking–is this really YA?

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Funny, smart, and thoughtful. One of my new favorite YA contemps.

The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas
Couple twists didn’t quite work, but a fun thriller, with a female relationships at its core.