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AppearancesAwards and newsLatino LifeThe Writing Life
March 12, 2014

You Want More Diverse Lit: Step 2

You're on a quest for more diverse literature for the young people in your life? Last week, I pointed you to CBC Diversity. Here's the next thing you can do: Make a point to meet the authors, editors, bloggers, and librarians with a passion for that area. Seek them out. Make relationship. We're friendly. Sarah Guillory, Ellen Oh and me. NOVA Teen Book Fest Example: This past week I met Ellen Oh (among other amazing YA authors) at the Northern Virginia Teen Book Festival - and it didn't take long for us two former New Yorkers to start putting our heads together on what we can do in the Mid Atlantic region to promote multicultural lit to all kids. She pubs with HarperTeen, and her latest is Warrior, which features Kira, a dragon-slaying ancient Korean girl on a quest. Ellen is kind of a dragon slayer, too. She's from Brooklyn, by her own admission speaks lousy Korean, and is determined to break stereotypes. Stay tuned. I'm on the road this week to the National Latino Children's Literature Conference held at the University of Alabama. That would be Tuscaloosa…which means cars, planes, vans to get there. It's absolutely worth it, as far as I'm concerned. (Look at the lineup.) It's the brainchild of Dr. Jamie Campbell Naidoo who has published widely on Latino lit, but also on the power of diverse books in general. I'll be talking about YAQUI, the Pura Belpré prize, and what my own plans are to help authors and librarians…
Meg Medina
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GuestsThe Writing Life
November 14, 2013

Strap on some literary walking shoes for a new class at University of Richmond

Meet Angela Leeper, the Director of Curriculum Material Center at the University of Richmond, a native Virginian who relocated to Richmond four years ago. Turns out, that's great news for our city's literary scene. Angela has served on YALSA's prestigious Printz Award and Morris Award Committees; reviews children's and YA lit for Booklist, Kirkus, and BookPage; and is currently collaborating with educators across the state to create the Virginia Readers' Choice for high school. Since moving here, she's not only been absorbing Richmond's  history, but as a children’s and young adult literature specialist, she's reached out to local authors, too. This January, she'll combine both those interests in a course for educators who love kids books, local history – and walking. Children and YA in RVA, a reading and walking tour of children's literature in our city, will be offered at the University of Richmond from January 22 - April 30. Registration is open NOW, so hurry. (See below) It's not everyone who sees a clear path between kids books and a good pair of walking shoes, but exploring her new city sparked the idea. "After many afternoons walking in and around RVA, I imagined how exciting it would be to offer a class like this to educators," she says.  After discovering that no class like it existed, she created  Children and YA in RVA, a professional development course for teachers, librarians, and other educators interested in learning about Richmond’s literature and history – and  bringing that information back to their classrooms. The course will include visits from local historians and authors,…
Meg Medina
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Guests
October 12, 2013

EE Charlton Trujillo and the FAT ANGIE tour

It's National Anti-bullying month, so I have a treat for you. E.E. Charlton Trujillo, author of FAT ANGIE is stopping in Richmond this coming week as she continues her cross country book tour.  Here we talk about her  writing and  film-making –  and how,  in the darkest times,  a book can be a kid's lifeline. How did you find the seed of the story for FAT ANGIE? Imagine. Winter. Four foot snow stacks. Below zero temp and the smell of recycled heat in a mom and pop diner in Madison, Wisconsin. I polished off a scrambled egg something kinda breakfast. Rolled the wheel to my iPod Classic right and landed on Lenny Kravitz’s “Are You Gonna Go My Way.” Something in the shredding of that guitar riff sent me into the what would become FAT ANGIE. I snapped up a pen from a waitress named Grace, grabbed a napkin and connected thought to world. Now, this is what you gotta understand. That song never appears in the book but the energy of note to lyric to note ignited the hostile confrontation, humiliation and revelations of the book. I could see the beginning and the end and it was such a fantastic high. If I ever bump into Lenny on the street/event, I’m gonna say, “You inspired a book that changes lives. Thanks for ripping that sound beast-pretty.” You are also a filmmaker, and I could see its influence on this novel. By that I mean references to “beats,” cutaways, vintage…
Meg Medina
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