Super Star Children's Book Reviews: Jade Braves the Dark

Welcome to the monthly children’s book review feature with a focus on diverse books here at Bird Meets Worm! My team of reviewers—Joan Charles, Laurie L. Young, Sarah Orgill—and I are so excited to be championing books celebrating everything from gender diversity, people of color, the LGBTQ community to ethnic, cultural and religious minorities, people with disabilities and developmental challenges to controversial topics, unique family situations and anything and everything I did not include. It is to say we take a rightfully broad view of diversity! We aim to shine a light on books that bring both familiar experiences to those who do not often see themselves represented in books and new experiences to those looking to expand their worldview. Here at Bird Meets Worm we believe in the power of story to build empathy and thus a better world for you and me and everyone. Look for a new review on the second Wednesday of every month.

JADE BRAVES THE DARK
Written by Valdene Mark • Illustrated by Sawyer Cloud
Picture Book (ages 4-8) • 34 pages
Published by Sugar Apple Books • 2020
ISBN-13 9781735124421

Jade Braves the Dark is an endearing picture book exploring a young girl’s fear of the dark. Jade’s mother tucks her in with a goodnight kiss, and as soon as she is alone, Jade feels the darkness creeping into her room. Jade tosses and turns, clutching her doll, but can’t fall asleep as she wonders about naughty fairies and monsters under her bed. Questions flood through her mind until she suddenly sees the brilliant, smiling moon shining through her room, illuminating her bed with sparkles and light. Comforted, the moonlight and darkness play together; Jade snuggles down and drifts off to sleep.

Jade’s fear of the dark is, of course, a very real fear for many young children. This book will provide a welcome place for parents to begin discussing these fears, and help little minds navigate their worries. Jade is a brave young girl and watching her overcome her fears will serve as inspiration for children.

Cloud’s luminous illustrations shine throughout, as does Mark’s delightful rhyming story. Jade Braves the Dark would be a wonderful addition to any children’s bookshelf, particularly for little ones who are wary of the dark.

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Reviewed by: Sarah Orgill

Super Star Interviews: Charise Mericle Harper

Welcome to my monthly interview feature! I’m so excited to be interviewing all the fabulous artists, illustrators and designers I’ve meet over the years (both personally and virtually!) and sharing their artwork and experiences here on Bird Meets Worm. Look for a new interview on the first Tuesday of every month.

This month I'm thrilled to pieces to be chatting it up with the super funny, bestselling author-illustrator, Charise Mericle Harper! Her hilarious NEW graphic novel, So Embarrassing: Awkward Moments and How to Get Through Them, releases next week and we're so excited! Charise is a veteran talent in children's book publishing, having created numerous series, including Just Grace, Fashion Kitty and the Next Best Junior Chefs! She lives in Oregon. You can enjoy more of her work here.

Oh, geesh!!! We've definitely all been there! Ha!

Q: Your brand NEW graphic novel for kids, So Embarrassing: Awkward Moments and How to Get Through Them, releases in just one week with Workman Publishing! (Congratulations! That’s SO super star!) Give us the full scoop on this title: how you came to be writing & illustrating it, your working relationship with your publisher & which chapter is your most favorite.

A: Thank you! It is SO super to be here! Workman is a new publisher for me and they have been great. I knew it was going to be a good relationship, because my editor Chris Duffy, is someone I’ve known for years. I did comics for him when he was the comics editor at Nickelodeon Magazine, and then again when he was editing SpongeBob comics. I can honestly say—Chris is the nicest guy! It was so much fun to work on this book together. Now that the book is finished, I miss our weekly chats—fingers crossed we find a new big idea to work on together.

My favorite chapter? That’s hard. I have to sit with something for a while, before I can look at it without thinking of all the hours of drawing. I spent a lot of time in my studio (a revamped food truck) working on this one. I tried to make each chapter a little different—use a different storytelling method, change the characters up, change the art style etc. It was like building a jigsaw story puzzle, and then being lucky, and having all the right pieces at the end. My favorite character in the book might be the dog. If my dog could talk, it would be fun to have this kind of interaction with her—but she’s definitely more bossy than the dog in the book!

(Psst! You can pre-order your copy of So Embarrassing here today:)

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So embarrassing! So funny!

                              
Q: Graphic novels are the culmination of a LOT of specific book skills coming together in harmony: writing, illustrating, hand-lettering and graphic design. Dish with us a bit about your process for developing So Embarrassing from initial ideas to sketches to finished product.

A: I’ve been reading graphic novels/comics since I was a kid. My dad is French and we had a big collection of Tintin and Asterix comics. They were drawn in a way that was easy to understand and had the added bonus of being funny! I learned to read French by practicing with those books. I’m sure they influenced me. Putting words and pictures together makes sense to me. My favorite part of elementary school was always drawing the picture to go with a story and that was how I started my career. I worked as an editorial illustrator, then had a weekly comic strip in a paper in Chicago, and finally my own published picture book. This was not fast, it took years and years. So that’s the skill process—lots of learning time. I did not go to school for art. I have a very dusty, unused marketing degree.

The technical side of making this book is pretty straightforward. I sketched everything on an iPad Pro with an apple pen. I use the program Procreate—love it! Once the sketches were approved, I switched to Photoshop and used my Cintiq to do the lettering, line work and coloring. My original sketches are always detailed, so all the thinking and deciding work happens in the beginning. When I’m doing the finishes, I can let me brain wander, so I listen to audio books and podcasts.

As to the topic of embarrassment, I have a lot of experience with this feeling. I’m an avid blusher (not by choice) and have felt the force of embarrassment more than a few times. I wanted to make a book that was informative and fun to read. This book is full of silly stories of embarrassment, but there are facts and helpful hints too. Embarrassment is not age-specific, the same things that embarrassed me as a kid, still embarrass me today. Bird poop on my head, falling in public, forgetting someone’s name—it’s all awful, but it happens to everyone and that’s what I wanted kids to know. In the moment, you might feel light the spotlight is pointed directly at you, but you are not alone! Embarrassment happens to everyone. And here’s a secret, people love to share their personal stories of embarrassment—it’s a great way to connect with others.

Embarrassment = Hazard of being human!

                                           
Q: Humor and big laughs play a leading role in many of your children’s book titles, including So Embarrassing. Tell us a bit about creating FUNNY books and who/what/where inspires your sense of humor.

A: I’m going to have to go with my parents for this one. My father was a hard man to live with, but he had a sweet spot - humor. From pretty early on, I noticed that a funny story could change the mood in a tense household. It was like a super power. What do you do if you find a super power? Use it as much as possible! I grew up practicing the art of storytelling. My dad’s favorite stories were always the ones involving personal embarrassment or inept criminals. I still have a sweet spot for them. My mother is from England, so we watched a lot of British comedies on TV. I guess if you mix all that together, you find the origins of my sense of humor.

I feel so lucky. My job is to draw and write things that make me smile and sometimes laugh out loud.

So embarrassing! So silly!

                           
Q: As an author-illustrator, you’ve created a wide variety of successful book series from Fashion Kitty to Just Grace! What advice would you give to fellow author-illustrators about how to approach developing a book series?

A: When I pack my luggage for school visits, I always add two jars of dried beans. One jar is four-fifths empty, the other is full to the top. At the school visit I hold up the full jar and say—this is how many books I have written. Then, I hold up the mostly empty jar and say—this is how many books I have published. Then I finish with this confession. My job is writing bad books. Look at all these beans. I’m really good at it, but sometimes I make a mistake, and I write a good book. Guess who loves mistakes?

Every author has a different process; mine is write, write, write, until I get something right. I don’t seem to have the ability to discern the difference between a good idea and a bad idea, until I get to the end of the idea. I wish it worked the other way around—I’d save a lot of time.

Neither Fashion Kitty or Just Grace started out as a series. I wrote one book and sent it out. It was my publishers who said—let’s make more. And that is definitely a nice thing to hear.

How fun is this?! Love it!

Q: I love your fabulously unique and fun embroidery artwork! Dish with us a bit about this creative outlet and how it relates to your children’s book work!

A: I’m impatient by nature. A big fiddler. I can’t just sit still and watch TV; I have to be doing something. That’s how the embroidery started. It was a way to make myself sit down and stay in one place. I find it extremely relaxing and satisfying. It’s nice to make a physical thing that I can see, touch and feel. I make all my books using technology, which I love, but it’s different than painting or drawing on paper.

I also like that there’s no reason to make the embroidery. It’s not an assignment or project. Once I finish a piece, I just stick it in the closet. The fun of the embroidery is the making part, not the looking part when it’s done. Plus, it takes the pressure off, knowing that I don’t have to hang it on the wall. Most of my embroidery pieces have words and pictures mixed together. I can’t seem to give up the words.

Nothing like a cool dip in the creek!

Q: Describe your most perfect Sunday.

A: My fantasy Sunday would be to explore a new town that had an amazing flea market, go for a nature walk, and then eat outside at cozy and not fancy restaurant.

My most perfect current Sunday is to go for a hike, pick up some yummy dinner and bring it home. I live in Oregon (5 years now) and I still can’t believe how pretty it is. On my daily dog walk, I cross through my small town, pass a pond with ducks, herons and the occasional nutria (looks like and swims like a beaver, but has a rat type tail), and then end up on a rocky beach along the river. My corgi likes to go in the river. She only goes up to her belly, but I can tell, it’s her favorite part of the day—not including dinner.

I’d say, except for the new town and flea market, I’m pretty close to fantasy.

Thanks SO much for chatting it up with us here at Bird Meets Worm, Charise! And congratulations on your fabulous new book!!

Vote! Vote! Vote!

Whether you're voting in-person or via absentee ballot, let's rock the vote this year! © Jane Smith

 

Oh, Dear, the Universe Is Friendly

A little inspiration for you & me! • © Jane Smith

 

Super Star Children's Book Reviews: My Life As An Ice Cream Sandwich

Welcome to the monthly children’s book review feature with a focus on diverse books here at Bird Meets Worm! My team of reviewers—Joan Charles, Laurie L. Young, Sarah Orgill—and I are so excited to be championing books celebrating everything from gender diversity, people of color, the LGBTQ community to ethnic, cultural and religious minorities, people with disabilities and developmental challenges to controversial topics, unique family situations and anything and everything I did not include. It is to say we take a rightfully broad view of diversity! We aim to shine a light on books that bring both familiar experiences to those who do not often see themselves represented in books and new experiences to those looking to expand their worldview. Here at Bird Meets Worm we believe in the power of story to build empathy and thus a better world for you and me and everyone. Look for a new review on the second Wednesday of every month.

                           

MY LIFE AS AN ICE CREAM SANDWICH
By Ibi Zoboi • Jacket Art by Frank Morrison • Jacket Design by Kristin Boyle

Middle Grade (ages 10-13) • 336 pages

Published by Puffin Books • 2020

ISBN 978-0-3991-8736-0

In 1984, twelve-year-old Ebony-Grace Norfleet Freeman has an active imagination, an adventurer's spirit and a deep love for everything to do with space—including Star Trek, Star Wars, and her grandfather. Jeremiah Norfleet was one of the first black engineers to integrate NASA in the 1960's at the Marshall Space Flight Center and has helped raise his granddaughter with stories about the missions he's worked on. Together, they create their own science fictions, where she is E-Grace Starfleet, Space Cadet, and he is the wise Captain Fleet, aboard the Mothership Uhura, fighting the Sonic King on Planet Boombox.

But when trouble arises for her grandfather, Ebony-Grace is sent to a place that might as well be on another planet: New York City, which is the exact opposite of the small-town, Huntsville, Alabama home where she has grown up. Ebony-Grace hasn't seen her father or been to Harlem for a visit in five years. But when a week turns into a whole summer, Ebony-Grace has to find her way on this confusing planet, make friends with the neighborhood kids she sees nothing in common with, and try to understand the dark cloud hanging over her grandfather.

This is a perfect book. The writing is rich and full of all the sights and sounds of New York City, and Ebony-Grace is a character whom readers will instantly love and root for. Her wild imagination is brought to life in comic-book style illustrations that make you want to fight the Sonic King alongside her.

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Reviewed by: Laurie L. Young

Super Star Interviews: Jess Keating

Welcome to my monthly interview feature! I’m so excited to be interviewing all the fabulous artists, illustrators and designers I’ve meet over the years (both personally and virtually!) and sharing their artwork and experiences here on Bird Meets Worm. Look for a new interview on the first Tuesday of every month.

This month I'm tickled pumpkin pie orange to be catching up with the fabulously talented, award-winning author, cartoonist AND zoologist Jess Keating! Her adorable NEW graphic novel series, Bunbun & Bonbon, launched this fall and it couldn't be more exciting! Jess has been featured in the New York Times, CBC, BuzzFeed, Parents Magazine and more. She is the creator of over a dozen fiction and non-fiction books, including Shark Lady, Eat Your Rocks and Croc! You can enjoy more of her work here.

                                

Q: Your NEW young graphic novel series, Bunbun & Bonbon, launched with Scholastic in September! (Congratulations! So exciting!) Give us the full scoop on this adorably sweet & funny project: how you came to be writing & illustrating it, your working relationship with your publisher & what you love best about it all!

A: Thank you so much! It's truly a dream to share Bunbun & Bonbon with readers. The character of Bunbun has been in my head since I was a little girl, so it feels extra special to work on these books. If there was one word to personify the characters of Bunbun & Bonbon, it would be 'joy.' They are two delightfully curious and kind-hearted friends who love to explore their world, make each other laugh and experience the sheer joy of being alive. Everyone needs an adventure buddy, and I wrote Bunbun & Bonbon for every kid who needs a friend and a smile.

Speaking of joy, the icing on the cake to this sweet series is working with the incredible team at Graphix Books! At every turn, I've been amazed by their talent, humor and brilliance. I hope we can make many more books together!

(Psst! You can order your own copy of Bunbun & Bonbon today here:)

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Ooo!!! Isn't Bunbun is cutest?!

Q: You've previously worked on a wide variety of children's book projects—picture books, fiction & non-fiction as well as middle grade novels! (Wowza!) Dish with us a bit about how your new venture into young graphic novels has been both similar and different from your previous book work.

A: You got me! One of my favorite parts about being an author is challenging myself and exploring different ways of telling stories and sharing what matters to me. Fiction and non-fiction aren't usually housed in the same place in libraries, but to me, they're very similar: both are ways of asking and answering questions about what's important to us. They just have a different process to do so.

I've always loved graphic novels and comics, and a lifetime of loving the format has been built right into my bones. The work of writing is always a challenge, but being able to harness both visual and textual elements to tell a story feels very empowering to me! Every format translates into a different writing experience, but comics in particular feels rather like juggling several plates while balancing on a unicycle. There is a lot of information to convey, and it always takes me a moment to flip into "comics mode," if I've been writing prose earlier that day!

And so it begins...(exciting!)

Q: Your background as a zoologist has been a common thread through all your children's book work, both fiction and non-fiction alike! How has it influenced your latest series, Bunbun & Bonbon?

A: My background in science and zoology has influenced so much of who I've become creatively, and I always infuse a great deal of my views on nature and the world into my work. Bunbun & Bonbon really personify my joy and awe of the natural world—they're open, curious and filled with excitement over their next adventure together. If that isn't the perfect recipe for a scientist, I don't know what is!

Above all, I want this duo to represent the possibilities and sense of wonder that we all experience when we see something beautiful and meaningful. To me, that what science—and life—is all about.

I wish my candy would talk to me!!!

Q: Tell us a bit about your typical workday as a creative professional—routines, rituals & practical practices. Set the scene for us, too—what does your creative workspace look & feel like?

A: My typical workday changes based on my deadlines and other commitments, but usually I begin the day by working out and getting out into some fresh air, if possible. I'm a huge fan of fitness and have found that my creativity suffers (not to mention my back!) when I don't stay active. Once I'm feeling awake, I split my time between working on new projects, creating extra content for readers and fellow creatives, and fielding all of the extra little bits of author life that pop up. I truly love what I do, so I often have to pull myself away to maintain some small semblance of balance in my life. I love that feeling of slipping into the flow of making books.

My workspace is a combination of digital and traditional outlets, with lots of mementos from nature mixed in with sketchbooks, paints, pens and my trustly iPad. I like to be surrounded by reminders of the outside world, so I often collect shells, rocks, animal skulls and the like, which all find their way around my desk. These objects are also handy as standby show-and-tell moments for virtual school visits.

SO fun! What a perfectly adorable beginner's comic!

Q: You are passionate about helping others tap into their creativity! You live this passion through the books you create, the classes you teach and the virtual pep talks you give. What are your top 3 best most super star tips for staying creative during these strange times we are all living thru?

A: Sharing the ins and outs of creative living never gets old to me, and I'm fortunate to have so many talented people in my life to join in. My top three tips to tap into your creativity would be:

1) Don't wait for anyone to give you permission! Most people know when they're having an intuitive hunch to begin exploring something creative, but often, we talk ourselves out of it. If you feel a yearning to create anything, go for it and don't expect permission from anyone but yourself.

2) Embrace your weird! This goes double for your interest! In our online world, it's very easy to compare ourselves to others and wish that we were different from what we really are. But those differences truly are the key to finding your creative voice. All that stuff that makes you weird? Lean into it! Not only will it separate you from a crowd, but you'll also feel immense relief to not be forcing yourself into a box that doesn't work for you.

3) Be intentional and get it on paper. This works for literally every creative problem you could be having. If you need help finding time for creativity, write it down and ask out loud for help. If you're not sure what to do next, write it down and ask out loud for help. No matter what you're dealing with, being specific and deliberate is the key. This isn't magical thinking—this is getting your brain on board with your goals. It works! (For more on this process, readers can download my free creativity minibook online here!)

Q: Describe your most perfect Sunday.

A: My most perfect Sunday would be spent on a boat in Arctic waters with orca whales spyhopping beside me! I was fortunate enough to see these creatures on a trip to Iceland a couple years ago and it's stuck with me ever since. (Plus, can you tell I'm ready for cooler weather?!) I'd love to spend a day in nature like this with a sketchbook and hot cocoa beside me.

Thank you so much for having me, Jane! As always, people can reach out to me on Twitter @Jess_Keating or Instagram @JessKeatingBooks—I'd love to hear about your creative projects and goals! Take care, all!

My pleasure! Thank you, Jess, for chatting it up with us here at Bird Meets Worm! Congratulations on your fabulous new series, Bunbun & Bonbon! Hooray!

Happy Book Birthday to Hello, New House

I'm thrilled to share that my NEW picture book, Hello, New House, releases today with publisher Albert Whitman & Company! It is now available EVERYWHERE books are sold!!! Hooray! Happy reading!

Shop Hello, New House here:

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