For Librarians

The Best Middle Grade Podcasts and What You Get From Them

By on September 17, 2025   /   Articles, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, For Writers   /   2 Comments

Why we love podcasts about kids books?

Podcasts are the perfect way to consume quality material while running errands, cleaning, driving, getting ready for work, etc. We build connections, learn, are entertained, expand our thoughts and opinions, and get inspired to be and do better. With so many great hosts out there it is so fun to feel like you are in the room with these creators hearing them talk about things that interest you. And what interests us? Children’s books, of course! Especially middle grade books which are filled with hope, intense emotions, and are wonderfully fun!

The Best Podcasts Focusing on Children’s Books

There are so many amazing podcasts out there, but when I first went searching for podcasts where they talk to authors of children’s books I had a surprisingly hard time finding what I was looking for. Not because they didn’t exist, but because what came up in my searches were usually read alouds for kids, instead of podcasts for adults looking to dive further into children’s literature. Where were the podcasts for parents, teachers, and librarians who wanted to know about the important books published for kids? Why these books were written? What inspired these authors? And deeper discussions about these amazing books?

This incredible list is part one of two parts that I am posting as I have over twenty amazing podcasts to share with you. Some of these podcasts are aimed specifically by writers. And some of them are for anyone with an interest in children’s literature. Many of these are interview format, but some are solo episodes with the podcast host. It was hard to put it in any kind of order so when all else fails, go by alphabetical order, right? I hope you will find some awesome new podcasts to add to your listening list and don’t forget to come back for more in our upcoming part 2 article of The Best Podcasts Focusing on Children’s books.

 

BackStory Podcast from StoryCon Logo

BackStory is a podcast presented by StoryCon and hosted by New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen. Each episode is presented in two parts. First, our extraordinary host Jennifer A. Nielsen gives us a teaser of the upcoming interview with an author, she doesn’t say who she will be interviewing, but gives us some of their backstory, just enough to get us interested in what is to come. Then in part two we find out who that author is and get to dive further into their BackStory and hear more about the creation of their amazing books! Check out her most recent interview with wildly successful author of The School for Good and Evil Series, Soman Chainani

Book Friends Forever B.F.F. Podcast Logo

Book Friends Forever is hosted by two best friends, award-winning author/illustrator Grace Lin, and one of NYC’s top editors, Alvina Ling. In these very authentic and raw conversations between friends you will discover some fascinating secrets of the children’s book publishing world. Just like you were listening in on any old conversation between two close friends, you will get a wide range of topics, for example this most recent episode, Chop Suey, discusses “a bunch of different pieces of publishing news, including the launch of Google’s Gemini Storybook App, the cancellation of the NEA Creative Writing Grant, the creation of a new MFA program of writers of young people’s literature… Children’s Literature Specialist Alison Morris joins them to discuss two recent studies on the decline of pleasure reading, and about how Gen Z isn’t reading to their kids as much as previous generations.”

BookHuddle With Readgab Podcast Logo

BookHuddle with Readgab is hosted by children’s literacy advocate Karen Reeder. In each author interview we discover not only a bit about why the author created their story but we also get to dive into time relevant themes that we experience in the book. Listening in on these chats gives us food for thought for ourselves as well as ways that we can bring up these important topics with the kids in our lives. Whether you are a parent, educator, librarian, or simply a lover of kids books, you will love listening in on these powerful conversations. Most interviews are with middle grade authors, but there are also some with authors of picture books and other individuals having to do with children’s literacy. In their most recent episode author Mari Mancusi and Karen explore how Misunderstandings Have Higher Stakes When Dragons are Involved!

The Bookish State Podcast Logo

The Bookish State is a brand new podcast hosted by New York Times bestselling author and illustrator Grace Lin and teacher librarian Melissa Thom. The pair discusses tips and tricks for teachers and librarians by focusing on different state children’s book award lists. Season one features titles from the Connecticut Nutmeg book award list. They only have two episodes out, but it will be fun to listen in as this unique new podcast grows.

 

 

The Book of Life: Jewish Kidlist (Mostly) Podcast LogoThe Book of Life Podcast focuses mostly on Jewish Kidlit, but sometimes we get to dive into some young adult or adult books which also feature Jewish literature, music, film, and web. The host is Heidi Rabinowitz. The podcast is updated semimonthly and has been around for 20 years now, which is amazing! One of my personal favorite children’s books is Max in the Land of Lies so this is a definite must to check out from their list of interviews. Listen in as Adam Gidwitz discusses his Holocaust historical fantasy novel.

 

The Children's Book Podcast Stories Worth Noting with Matthew C. Winner logoWhile The Children’s Book Podcast was featured in a previous article, I would feel remise is I did not mention it as it has been around for so long and is so popular and I wouldn’t want seekers of kidslit themed podcasts to miss out on this one! Host Matthew C. Winner is a writer and children’s librarian who is “Celebrating the power of storytelling to reflect our world, expand our perspectives, and foster connections between readers of all ages. They feature interviews with authors, illustrators, and everyone involved in taking a book from drawing board to bookshelf.” In this recent episode Diana Rodriguez Wallach discusses her recent book, The Silenced, and reading through a different cultural lens.

The Children's Book Review: Growing Readers Podcast LogoThe Children’s Book Review: Growing Readers Pocast is of course focused on growing readers of all ages. In this most recent episode host Bianca Schulze chats with graphic novel creator Stan Yan about why represenation matters and the importance of not only advocating for others, but also for yourself. The Many Misfortunes of Eugenia Wang was a book Grace Lin recommended for me to read and I can’t wait to read it and then listen to this podcast episode.

 

The Creative Life Podcast with Sara Zarr LogoThis Creative Life podcast is hosted by author Sara Zarr who writes both middle grade and young adult books. Her podcast focuses on life between the process of writing lines down on paper. She does both solo and interview episodes. So when you have a pile of chores, but you want to also keep your mind on writing you might check out an episode like this one What Counts as Writing.

 

KidLit Craft Podcast LogoKidlit Craft is another great podcast for writer’s of kids books. They take a look at “mentor texts to figure out the mechanics of how writers do what they do, so we can improve our writing.” Cohosts Anne-Marie Strohman and Erin Nuttall focus on just one novel per season with each season containing at least twelve episodes so you really do get a deep dive into each book they focus on. Episodes last anywhere from 8 to 45 minutes. You might want to check out this episode from season 2 about Complicated Family Relationships from the book Thieve’s Gambit.

 

Kidlit Happy Hour Podcast LogoKidlit Happy Hour podcast is hosted by New York Times bestselling author Joanna Ho and author Caroline Kusin Pritchard. On the show they talk about the craft, the industry and the creative life of the children’s book world. They recognize that storytelling happens in many spheres so they include a myriad of topics and guests so that listeners can further their enjoyment of and/or expand their talent in the beauty of kid’s books. In this recent episode the hosts are joined by the talented Dan Santat to discuss The State of Publishing and Hope.

 

From The Mixed-UP Files has created lists about podcasts in the past but it has been over 5 years and while some of those podcasts are still creating wonderful content, I wanted to introduce you to these other amazing new podcasts out there as well. Don’t forget to watch for our upcoming part 2 of this article because we have at least ten more to share with you! If you want to read our previous articles you might check out

Share in the comments your favorite podcast to listen to or which one you look forward to listening to next.

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The World Book

By on August 21, 2025   /   Articles, Book Lists, books, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers  

“What’s your favorite book?“

That’s one question that often gets asked to authors during author visits or events.

That is a tough question for me.

To some, though, it’s an easy question, and many of the authors list their favorite book titles without hesitation. I’ve always been envious of the people who express such resolution and love for a book or books, especially when it comes to naming the books from one’s childhood.

I had a tough time learning to read. It was a struggle. I’d look at the page of text and see an overwhelming mishmash of words and letters. I’m sure that now I would have been diagnosed early and prescribed a program for my reading disorder, but those things were rare in early 1970s education. Especially in a lower-middle-class Catholic school, and even more so for an early elementary school kid who seemed to keep his head above water in class.

I was lucky, though. I had parents and a few teachers who noticed my problem and put me on the road to reading. My most vivid, non-recess, non-field trip, non-playday memories of first and second grade are when my teacher or a volunteer aide would pull me aside to another room and work with me on the Controlled Reader projector.

 

In a dark, quiet, and empty classroom, I learned to focus on the left word of a sentence and move slowly to the right. I practiced and practiced from one filmstrip to the next on moving my eyes from left to right. I worked on image strips to practice moving my eyes right to left. I practiced all this without moving my head. And guess what?

Things got better!

Reading was possible.

(There’s a really cool 2018 Wired story by writer Lisa Wood Shapiro on how she works to overcome her dyslexia and how technology is helping people become readers.) 

We didn’t have a boatload of books around the house when I was growing up. I learned to be a better reader through the assistance of my teachers and parents, but still struggled through the middle grades to be a bonafide reader. I loved The Jungle Book. The Disney movie captivated me from a very early age. We had a series of illustrated classics with about twenty pages of text per illustration. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, Treasure Island, a few other titles I can’t remember, and The Jungle Book.

I loved that book.

But I never read that book.

I picked the book off the shelf a thousand times. I looked at the pictures a thousand times. Each time I tried to read that book but I reverted to seeing each page as an intimidating blob of letters and words. Frustration would set in, and I’d snap the book shut and return it to the shelf.

I know I should have said something to my parents or teachers. I should have sought help. But I was a big, shy kid and didn’t want to trouble anyone with this embarrassing problem.

Then something wonderful happened. A salesman came around the house and convinced my parents to buy a set of the World Book encyclopedia. My parents made a difficult decision to spend money we didn’t have on this set of books. They even splurged on the annual yearbook!

I found my reading life in those encyclopedias. Schoolwork forced me to open them, but the magic of information given in short bursts of text and pictures contained within was pure magic. Something clicked in my reader-brain. I figured it out.

I slowly became a better reader and a smarter kid. The set of World Book encyclopedias led to the Guinness Book of World Records, which led to comics, which led to the Hardy Boys, which led to eventually reading The Jungle Book. And you know what? It was as fantastic as the story I held in my head all those years.  

So next time I’m asked at an author event what my favorite book was, I have an answer.

The World Book.

Hands down.

After my Dad died and my Mom was preparing to move out of their house, she called and asked me what I wanted of their stuff. I know her idea of “stuff” meant furniture, dishes, etc., but without hesitation, I said I would like to have the World Book encyclopedias and yearbooks they’d used for the previous twenty years as a decoration on top of their kitchen cabinets.

My Mom laughed and thought I was joking, and she thought that until her eventual death. She’ll never know how important those books were to me and how huge a role they played in making me who I am today. I probably never really knew how much of a sacrifice it was for my parents to invest in buying this set of encyclopedias and the annual yearbook every year. These books are history. Part of our history.

I’m a firm believer in letting kids read what works for them. I’ve cut my reading teeth on baseball box scores, cereal boxes, baseball cards, etc. 

Reading is reading is reading is reading.

Reading is indeed a superpower.

 

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Diversity in MG Lit #53 May and June 2025

By on June 19, 2025   /   Book Lists, Diversity, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, independent bookstores  

Last week it was my great pleasure to attend the Children’s Institute, the annual

logo for Children's Institute 2025 in Portland

meeting of children’s booksellers. This year it was in Portland Oregon. It was my 4th Children’s Institute. As always I was inspired by the passion of children’s booksellers for the art of getting each child the just-right book. The kindness and generosity of booksellers makes me proud to count myself among their number.

And in the very same week there was another bit of good news from my home state. The Oregon Legislature passed a bill that makes it illegal to ban a book written by or about a person from a protected class as recognized by the Oregon constitution. These classes include race, ethnicity, immigration status, disability, and LGBTQ+ which accounts for all the books currently the focus of book bans.

Booksellers are brilliant at many things. One of the most important superpowers of the indies is the ability to boost the visibility of a debut authors. Online algorithms and big box stores are great at showing readers a book they’ve already bought, but terrible about helping readers find the vibrant new voices. Every year a committee of book sellers reviews all the debut titles and choses a dozen or so to include on the Indies Introduce lists in both adult’s and children’s books. Here is a link to this year’s Indie Next list for kids. And remember if you don’t see a title you want on the shelf at your local indie, ask them to order it for you. It’s easy, usually fast and if you pick up the book at the shop you don’t have to pay for shipping. Thank you Indie Bookstores!
Here are a few of the books that were featured at Children’s Institute.
book cover Scarlet Morning by ND StevensonScarlet Morning by ND Stevenson (Quill Tree Books HC) is the authors first venture into prose novels. It has so many elements that MG readers are going to love: pirates, a mysterious book, friendship, treachery, a daring voyage and a search for hidden truth. Best of all it has lots of lively black-and-white spot illustrations throughout to bring the adventure to life. It will publish in September.
book cover for The Golden Necklace by Mitali PerkinsThe Golden Necklace: a Darjeeling Tea Mystery by Mitali Perkins (Charlesbridge) will be available in October. It is set on a tea plantation in Nepal. Our heroine Sona is determined to win a scholarship to the best school in her community and also to solve the mystery of a missing inheritance so that her brother will not be blamed for the crime. This one has a handful of full page illustrations that bring the countryside of Nepal to life.
book cover Chloe Vega and the agents of magicChloe Vega and the Agents of Magic by Leslie Adame (Harper) is a debut title. Like so many mixed status immigrant families, Chloe Vega worries about her parents. Worries they’ll be deported. Worries that she is a financial burden on them. So when she learns that her parents are heirs to a magical power and have been taken, not by ICE, but by sinister magical forces, Chloe is determined to master her powers and save her family. This book comes out in September
book cover for Folk Remedy by YoshiotaFolk Remedy by Jem Yoshioka (Andrews McMeel) is a graphic novel set in 1920s Japan. It features characters from Japanese mythology. I appreciated the mix of historical and fantastical elements. The art has a muted palate with warm tones and a style that will feel fresh and interesting to readers who mostly look at American-made graphic novels. It will publish in September.
book cover RefugeeRefuge the graphic novel by Alan Gratz (Graphix) This book in prose form has been a best seller for years. It portrays the lives of refugees in 1939, Germany; 1994, Cuba; and 2015, Syria.  Understanding the refugee experience is vital to grasping the politics of our times. This graphic novel will make an important story all the more accessible. It will be available in September.
This list is based on books that were being promoted at the Children’s Institute in 2025. As always if you have a new diverse MG book
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