Hot fun in the summertime* means I will dig into manuscript edits for the third, and final, book in the Merci Suárez series this week. I can’t even believe I am typing that sentence. What an incredible journey. Wish me luck – and please, if you haven’t done so, please leave a review of Merci Suárez Can’t Dance on Amazon, Goodreads, or any other places you review books.
I also have two exciting events this Thursday, June 17, both public, that will honor amazing women.
First, at 2 p.m. EST, I will record a conversation about the Pura Belpré award as part of the lead-up to the American Library Association’s 2021 virtual conference, where this year’s closing speaker is former President Barack Obama. I’ll let you know when it goes live.
The Pura Belpré award is 25 years old this year, and celebrations of both the librarian and the award abound. You can check out a fantastic collection of essays written by current and former medal and honor winners in the May issue of The Horn Book Magazine. My own essay, “What the Pura Belpré Award Means to Me” is a call to arms about what I’d like to see come next for this award, and for Latinx children’s and YA lit, in general.
The fun keeps going at 6 p.m. EST on June 17 as the She Persisted series continues its tour. Through the virtual magic of Loyalty Bookstores in DC, I will join Chelsea Clinton and the ever-fabulous Rita Williams Garcia as we talk about our titles in the series. (Confession: I am so curious about whether or not RWG was an athlete herself at one time.)
The series has added some terrific assets, including videos of the authors answering questions about the women they wrote about. Here’s my Q&A about Justice Sotomayor to give you a taste. Materials are available for all the titles.
That’s all for this week. I hope you’re somewhere enjoying your summer, too. *Maybe Sly and the Family Stone can help?
