This week, Dhonielle Clayton and Tomi Adeyemi talk shop at a teen book festival; journalists Katty Kay and Claire Shipman help girls find their confidence; co-authors Jessica Kensky and Patrick Downes tour with a four-legged companion; a YA-focused talk show records a new episode; and author and illustrator team Connie Schofield-Morrison and Frank Morrison promote a literacy program.
Book Talk
In its fifth year, the NoVa Teen Book Festival was held on March 10 at Washington-Lee High School in Arlington, Va. The festival featured 41 authors who spoke in panel discussions, ran small group sessions, and signed books for attendees, as well as a keynote address by author Anna-Marie McLemore. Here, Dhonielle Clayton (l.), author of The Belles, speaks with Tomi Adeyemi (Children of Blood and Bone).
In True Confidence
TV journalists-turned-authors Claire Shipman (center) and Katty Kay (r.) celebrated the release of their middle grade book, The Confidence Code for Girls. The authors’ media tour included appearances on Good Morning America. Kay and Shipman spoke about their book and the launch of their #CaptureConfidence campaign, which encourages girls to share images that express their confidence and authenticity.
Rescue, Jessica, & Patrick
Co-authors and husband-and-wife team Jessica Kensky and Patrick Downes have kept busy touring for their picture book Rescue & Jessica (Candlewick Press), illustrated by Scott Magoon. Joining Kensky and Downes on their tour is black lab Rescue, Kensky’s service dog and the book’s subject. Here, Kensky, Downes, and Rescue visit with kids from Mason Rice Elementary in Newton, Mass.
It’s a Wrap!
YATL, a talk show devoted to YA books and authors, just wrapped its most recent episode. The show is recorded monthly in Atlanta at the Georgia Center for the Book and is available to view on the YATL website and through other social media. The latest installment featured guests (from l.) Rachel Hawkins, Ash Parsons, Ashley Poston, and Marie Marquardt, along with YATL hosts bookseller and author Kimberly Jones and author and photographer Vania Stoyanova. Penguin Teen provided swag to guests, who were also able to purchase books by the authors and have them signed.
Reading Rhythm
The Library of Michigan’s Ready to Read Michigan literacy program selected Connie Schofield-Morrison and Frank Morrison’s I Got Rhythm (Bloomsbury) as their 2018 title, which libraries and classrooms will use to promote literacy skills. The husband-and-wife author and illustrator recently visited 10 libraries in Michigan to support the program and share their book. Here, the pair engages with readers at the Flint Public Library on March 21.
