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The Case of the Disappearing Book: An Interview with Susan Martineau Author of Real-Life Mysteries and Disasters

By on November 21, 2025   /   Author Interviews  

When I brought Real-Life Mysteries and Disasters into my home, it immediately created a mystery of its own. Every time I went to grab the book from where I had left it, the book had vanished! Leave it on the side table and a few minutes later Poof! empty table. Leave it on the chair and next thing I know Puff! nothing there. Since it is exceedingly difficult to interview an author about a book you haven’t read, I had to get to the bottom of this book’s disappearing act. (Plus, if I could discover the source of this vanishing power, maybe I could harness it to clean my house!) Once the book re-appeared, I laid it in the middle of the living room floor like bait in a trap and . . .  Snap! caught my eight year old and my ten year old in the act of swiping it to read. I couldn’t have been happier to discover that the cause of my confusion was my boys’ love of this fascinating book! (And I did harness their powers to clean their rooms.)

Today I’m interviewing Susan Martineau author of Real-Life Mysteries and Disasters an engaging middle grade browseable book that examines evidence of mysterious circumstances and spooky happenings like: Does the Loch Ness Monster actually exist? What made the Black Death so lethal? And was there really a documented case of time travel? My boys were drawn in by the colorful illustrations and case-file design then held captive by the often eerie information.

So, if you are feeling brave. . . let’s investigate!

Emily Starr: What sparked the idea for Real-Life Mysteries and Disasters, and what made you want to dive into these topics?

Susan Martineau: I’ve always loved reading about mysteries and strange or extreme events. My dad was really into all things mysterious, so there were a lot of books in our house for a budding mystery fan like me. The one I remember best is the Reader’s Digest Book of Strange Stories and Amazing Facts. I used to pore over it in fascination and horror (usually when I was supposed to be doing my homework)! I became quite obsessed with trying to work out what had really happened and if any of it was true! It was handy to be taken on holiday to Scotland so I could sit for hours by Loch Ness in Scotland in the hope of spotting the monster. As an adult, I’ve now visited quite a few of the places mentioned in the book. I am disappointed to say I didn’t see Bigfoot when I was hiking in California or Queen Marie-Antoinette at the palace of Versailles in Paris. I still love mysteries, though, and for as long as I have been a writer, I have wanted to write my own book about strange happenings and unexplained events. It was amazing to finally get the chance!

Emily Starr: Fifty mysteries is a lot of rabbit holes to go down! Because many of our blog readers are also authors, can you please share how you managed so much research?

Susan Martineau: It was a huge task, but so enjoyable, and it certainly did lead me down an incredible number of rabbit holes—and some pretty weird and wacky ones at times! Once I’d decided which mysteries and disasters to include, I read as much as I could about each one. I tried to go back to primary sources like eyewitness statements and diary entries where possible. I looked at any videos or photos, and I read the books that some people had written about their experiences. I checked out newspaper reports, documentaries, and other secondary source material, too. The whole time I was asking, “How reliable or credible are these witnesses or reports?” and “What are the theories being put forward to explain these mysteries?” I always tried to find as many sources as I could to corroborate what was being said or written. In the case of the disasters, I also checked what the specialist experts or organizations said or did about the terrible events. It left me in awe of the bravery of some of these people, like volcanologists who put their lives at risk to figure out when a volcano might next erupt.

Emily Starr: Was there any mystery that you felt more convinced was true after you read all of the evidence? If so, why?

Susan Martineau: There is one form of “haunting” that I find especially fascinating and really rather comforting. These are the “friendly ghosts,” or Third Man Syndrome. There are many stories about folks in danger or difficult situations being “visited” by a benign presence (often a deceased loved one) who helps them get through and watches over them. I read a brilliant book by John Geiger called The Third Man Factor as part of my research. I was blown away by just how many people, from NASA astronauts and extreme mountaineers, have experienced this. It may be our own brains conjuring these “ghosts,” but I think there’s something to it, and I want to believe in it!

Emily Starr: How would you recommend educators use your book to teach students about disinformation and misinformation?

Susan Martineau: I love the idea that educators might use my book for this essential critical literacy skill. It’s so important for students to navigate the jungle of content out there on the internet and in other forms, too. I would try to make it fun, though! After sharing one of the mysteries from my book plus case file, maybe the students could choose another mystery or disaster (there are some suggestions for further investigations in the book) and research it. They could then make their own case file, along the lines of the ones in the book. They might draw diagrams or timelines to analyze the information. However, the most important thing is for students to consider WHO is writing or presenting the information, WHY they are writing it, and WHEN it was written. Can the students find the most reliable sources of information and corroborate it across more than one source? It is important to encourage healthy skepticism and enable students to think for themselves. My tips for all budding mystery investigators are: keep an open mind, follow the facts, and try not to be influenced by emotion or fear!

Emily Starr: The book is designed like a series of case files. While making the content look appealing, it also helps young readers to access the text. How did you come up with that organization idea?

I am so lucky to have a wonderful designer and illustrator, Vicky Barker, working with me. I wanted the first double-page spread of each mystery to “tell the story” and get the reader hooked on it without having too much to read. I think Vicky’s artwork really helps get things rolling along. Then I asked her to design a “detective”-style pinboard for the second double-page spread so that it would change the tone and make it like a serious investigation. I love watching detective shows, and I wanted it to look like one of those old-fashioned pinboards with sticky notes and bits of evidence, along with visuals and the main theories that might explain what has happened. It was important to have a “follow the experts” section for all of the disasters, too, as I really wanted to reassure young readers that there are wonderful people out there trying to prevent disasters from happening. The inclusion of “Big Words” is something I love to put into all my books, as I like learning new words myself!

Emily Starr: Were there any mysteries you uncovered that didn’t make the book? If so, could you share one and why it was excluded?

There were so many mysteries on my list, and it’s growing all the time! In fact, I have just published two books in the UK that include many of the stories I could not include this time. Tales of Scary Beasts and Tales of Ghosts and Hauntings also tell the stories of weird occurrences and unnerving mysteries followed by a “let’s investigate” section for each chapter so that readers can flex their critical muscles.

I had some misgivings about including Spontaneous Human Combustion in Real-Life Mysteries and Disasters at first, but it was one of the stories that always fascinated me (such a gruesome child!) as a young Reader’s Digest reader! It made the cut, and I believe that, like me, children have quite an appetite for this kind of tale!

However, there are some very peculiar mystery stories that I feel are not appropriate for young readers. I haven’t included UFO abductions in any of the books. I started to feel a bit uneasy about the accounts I was reading and the unpleasant things that people said happened to them.

Emily Starr: Are there any future projects in the works you can share with our readers?

I’ve been working on new editions of two other books I’ve written recently. How to Question Everything and How to Think Like a Scientist are toolkits for young readers to learn critical literacy skills. It is essential for them to be able to see clearly through the bombardment of information coming at them through social media and other platforms. The new editions include information and advice on AI-generated content. Students need to be aware of how AI is used, and how it is teaching itself to use information and data. I’ve also included some fun activities in both books and hope they can be of use to educators.

My aim is to enable young readers to be nimble, confident, and thorough fact-finders, unafraid of being curious about the wonderful world around them. My motto, learned from my father, is “Be brave and always think for yourself!”

 

Susan Martineau was born in London, but has lived in various parts of the world including Holland, France and Malaysia. She has written over 30 books for children and won the Blue Peter Book with Facts Award for her book Real-life Mysteries. She is fascinated by strange and weird information and tries to shine a light into the most unusual corners of the world, sparking a passion for discovery and curiosity in her readers. Susan spends a good deal of her time lost on the internet or rummaging through libraries researching, unearthing and checking facts for her books. She loves quiz programs and annoys her family by thinking she knows the answers. (Sometimes she does!) Keep your eyes peeled for new titles exploring the world around us.

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Emily StarrAs a former fourth grade teacher and founder of StarrMatica, a STEM publishing company, Emily Starr has developed award-winning K-5 science curriculumand professional learning materials for 20 years. She is a member of the Iowa State Science Leadership Team, a peer reviewer for the National Science Teaching Association’s journal Science and Children, and a frequent presenter at state and national education conferences. Her debut middle grade nonfiction book will be released in 2026 from the Iowa Ag Literacy Foundation.
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When the Hammer Builds the House: Grappling with AI in Kidlit

By on November 20, 2025   /   Articles, For Writers, kidlit, News, Op-Ed  

Two years ago I wrote an article about how to utilize AI as a tool in children’s writing. At the time, ChatGPT was still in its first iterations, and many creatives had only the faintest ideas about generative AI. In the middle grade world, authors were mostly just trying to figure out what AI would mean for them, if anything at all. 

I think it’s safe to say things have changed since then, and I wanted to come back to this topic with fresh eyes to see if the undertones of techno-optimism that permeated my first piece on the subject still resonate the way they did back in 2023. There are, after all, some new realities that authors must face head-on.

For one, it’s simply no longer accurate to say that AI writing is cheesy, formulaic, and easy to spot. Large language models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini have become astonishingly good at mimicking human authors in tone, humor, and even complex themes woven through longer pieces. YouTuber and developmental editor Alyssa Matesic recently did a side-by-side of AI writing and short stories written by professional authors, and the two were startlingly difficult to tell apart.

That also begs the question of how AI models have gotten so good. Since 2023, big tech companies have scraped vast libraries of unlicensed and copyrighted material to train their models. It’s a controversial topic, and too intricate to dive into here, but it has forced many authors to divert attention away from the creative process and think carefully about how to protect their work.

Still, the biggest issue probably isn’t about detectability or fair use, but the mere fact that AI writing exists at all. The very possibility of humanlike AI writing has cast a shadow over the legitimate efforts of human writers everywhere. Even the once-loved em dash has become a symbol of AI skepticism, with many authors consciously adjusting their tone and techniques to look less like the AI that used their writing to develop its own voice in the first place. It’s a strangely ironic dance that creators across all fields have been doing since generative AI exploded onto the scene in the last few years. 

So is it really fair to say that AI is “just a tool” the way I described it back in 2023? It would be a bit like a master craftsman returning to his worksite after a lunch break to find that his hammer had come to life and built the rest of the house without him. It sounds nice, but what if the craftsman actually enjoyed building houses? What if he’d spent his whole life learning to do it well? What if everyone then assumed that all his houses – countless hours of work – had been built by the magic hammer? 

So what is a middle grade author to do in this strange new world? Since this post is just around the corner from Thanksgiving, I’m choosing to slant toward gratitude. Even in this weird and sometimes scary landscape of publishing in 2025, there are quite a few things to be thankful for.

 

Authors are fighting back and winning.

A U.S. federal judge gave preliminary approval to a $1.5 billion settlement between Anthropic PBC and authors who alleged nearly half a million books were pirated to train AI chatbots. It’s a major win for writers wanting more accountability from AI developers.

Readers want human-made books.

As AI writing continues to permeate the book market, consumers are becoming more vocal about their preference for human work. In a recent poll by YouGov, well over half of respondents reported that they’d feel less fulfilled after learning a book they’d read was authored with AI. There are also new projects popping up like the “Human Authored” initiative from the Authors Guild. It’s a promising sign that readers are rediscovering the incredible value of human connection and contribution.

 

As a tool, AI is only getting better.

In its rightful place, AI continues to be a transformative technology that can untether creators and allow them to make and explore more than ever before. As a research tool, for example, AI cites its sources with more accuracy than it did back in 2023, and it can also summarize and synthesize material extraordinarily well. Even for this piece, which is admittedly a bit skeptical of AI’s prevalence overall, I used AI tools to find sources and make connections. I just had to keep that hammer locked up in the toolbox when it came time to write, design the art, etc. Many have equated this dynamic with letting AI “do the dishes”. Artificial Intelligence can handle the chores so creatives can do the fun stuff (although not all the time, as we learned from NEO — skip to 2:55 for a good laugh).

 

So have I changed my mind about AI over the last two years? Should you? These are questions worth exploring, but let’s not spend too much time perseverating on a dynamic that changes almost daily. 

After all, we’ve got writing to do.

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Blasts From the Past: Diverse Historical Fiction

By on November 19, 2025   /   Book Lists, Fiction  

As a kid, I loved reading historical fiction. In my day, most of these stories centered on Europe and a war. I felt transported to other times and places, and was introduced to characters my age confronting challenges of survival. I enjoyed connecting with kids from the past who, with their friends and families, bravely faced difficulties.

Now, we have more novels told by historically underrepresented voices that offer perspectives on a wide variety of events. Rudine Sims Bishop described how books can be mirrors to a readers life, or can build empathy through windows where readers can view lives of others, or may provide sliding doors where readers can step into another world and immerse themselves in a new reality.

Here, I offer six wonderfully written, diverse titles that serve as a portal to another time.

A Sea of Lemon Trees

A Sea Of Lemon Trees by Maria Dolores Aguila, Macmillan, 2025, 273 pp.

This novel in verse is inspired by the true story of Robert Alvarez and the Lemon Grove Incident where one child’s courage to stand up for what is right and the determination of the Mexican community will transport readers to the challenges confronted by Robert in 1931 San Diego. Young Roberto was chosen to speak up about the horribly unfair conditions in the separate school for Mexican immigrants. This is the uplifting story of how his activism brought great changes to the “Americanization” efforts.

 

 

 

 

Zarina Divided

Zarina Divided by Reem Faruqi, Harper Collins, 225, 326 pp.

Zarina’s idyllic life in 1947 Poona, India is abruptly ended when her Muslim family moves to Pakistan during the Great Partition. Lyrical verse paints a realistic picture of Zarina’s hardships, including acts of violence and racism, as she journeys by train and boat to a new home. Just as Zarina begins to settle into her new life, she makes a big mistake. Her family agrees to let her go to boarding school, where a whole new set of challenges confront her. This novel brings a fresh perspective to the religious divide of a country.

 

 

 

Nine Moons

The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli by Karina Yan Glasser, Harper Collins, 2025, 420 pp.

 

Han Yu and Luli Lee live 1200 years apart, yet they both share a goal: they go to great risks to save their families. In 731 a plague threatens Chang An, China, and Han Yu must trek across the Silk Road to fulfill a promise and find a cure. In 1931, New York’s Chinatown, Luli starts up her own bun business to bring her family’s restaurant back from the brink of foreclosure. Big themes and small details – like buns and birds – connect these two stories. The ties that bind Han Yu and Luli across centuries are an unforgettable surprise.

 

Seabird

Seabird by Michelle Kadarusman, Pajama Press, 2025, 199 pp.

Twelve-year-old Katina brings nineteenth century Indonesia (also known as the Dutch East Indies) to life through her letters to her best friend and her passion for learning. Inspired by the real-life Javanese noble turned activist, Raden Adjeng Kartini, this novel depicts how girls were given little freedom. Noble-born Kartini was confined to her house at twelve until she was to be married. Educated, Kartini turned to her best friend, Letsy, who had returned to Holland for help. Through her skills as a writer, Kartini speaks out, and like a seabird, gets free of her cage, and becomes a celebrated advocate for education.

 

 

How to Say Goodbye in Cuban

How To Say Goodbye in Cuban by Daniel Miyares, Random House, 2025, 223 pp.

Readers get a visual and personal view of Castro’s Revolution in Cuba in this emotionally gripping graphic novel. Based on the experiences of the author’s father, readers see the uncertainty and fears Carlos faced as a child while his family was being threatened for owning land. Major events in Castro’s path to power are explained in a straightforward manner. Miyares does an excellent job describing the differing opinions of Castro that the Cubans held.

 

 

 

Will's Race For Home

Will’s Race For Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Little Brown, 2025, 196pp.

This is a Western like no other. It’s 1889, and Will has persuaded his father to allow him to accompany him on the treacherous trek from Texas to Oklahoma. It’s been several decades since the Emancipation Proclamation, yet his father still does not have the right to own land – unless he takes advantage of the Oklahoma Land Rush. The journey is difficult not only because of the difficult terrain, but also because of the racism, poverty, and violence Will and his father experience along the way. Belle the mule, and frequent illustrations add charm to the story.

 

 

 

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