New Releases

Interview with Author Mike Lowery — and a Giveway of a set of Doodle Adventure Books!

By on June 12, 2017   /   Author Interviews, Book Lists, Fiction, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, New Releases  

I’m so excited to welcome the awesome Mike Lowery to the MUF blog today!

He is celebrating the release of his new book:

The Rise of the Rusty Robo-Cat! by Workman Publishing.

A little bit about the book: Carl the Duck is back and needs help on the very important mission of discovering why the cats around town are acting like jerks. Can you track them down and break the spell they are under? (And maybe draw a space vampire along the way?)    Each page combines hand-lettered text, delightful illustrations, plus prompts and plenty of space for the reader’s own contributions. The book is sturdy paper over board with high-quality cream paper that’s a pleasure to draw on. Kids will love using their imaginations to complete the story, then reading it over and over again.

“Perfect for a summer birthday gift, a travel distraction, or for gathering out on the porch and enjoying a warm evening together.” — Geek Dad

Thanks for joining us today, Mike! Here are a few questions for you

Why do you write graphic novels/illustrated stories for middle grade readers?

I really got into comics and reading when I was around 9.  Later, when I was given the chance to pitch my own ideas for books, I tried to make something that 9-14 year old me would’ve loved.  Also, I like making jokes about pizza and pirates and slugs and silly stuff.

What comes first—the art idea or the book idea? 

All of my projects are usually based on something that I came up with in my sketchbook, so I guess I’d say art idea comes first.

You seem to love random facts—why is that? Why do you think these appeal to kids? 

We used to take a LOT of road trips when I was a kid.  My dad would get audio books on tape, and we’d listen to lots of stand up comedy…and sometimes we would listen to non-fiction interesting facts books.    You could say I started collecting weird facts at a very young age, and never really stopped.  So, it made sense years later to start drawing some of the stuff that I found particularly interesting.

How long does it take you to do the illustrations for a book?

It really depends on the book.  For some stuff it might be just a few months, but the random facts book that I’m working on has taken almost two years!

Where do you come up with your wacky and fun characters? 

Every morning,  before I start drawing for projects that I’m working on, I spend some time just making doodles and sketches in my sketchbook.  Sometimes these doodles turn into funny looking characters and I develop them to have personalities that might be funny in a book.

Why did you decide to invite kids to write in your book?

Again, I wanted something that I would’ve liked as a kid.  I loved drawing, but I didn’t always know what to draw.  I wanted a book for kids that needed a little push to help with drawing, and I’ve gotten to see some really crazy and awesome ideas from the folks who have been filling out the books.

Do you have a  favorite of all of your books?

That’s tough.  I’ll say I’ve had a lot of fun drawing the Doodle Adventures series because I get to draw a grumpy duck named Carl.

Can you give us a hint about the next book you are working on?

Yes!  But just a little hint.  One book is a collection of drawings of random facts, one is about an evil character (who turns out to be not-so-evil).

That sounds really cool! Thanks for being with us today, Mike.

If you want to learn more, please check out this information :

Mike Lowery is the creator of the Doodle Adventures series and The Kid’s Awesome Activity Calendar. He lives with his wife and daughter in Atlanta, GA. Mike shares daily sketches on Instagram @mikelowerystudio. Find out more about him and his work at www.mikelowery.com.

Workman Publishing is offering a FREE SET of Doodle Adventure Series books!

Just leave a comment below to be entered.

Back to Top

New June releases!

By on June 2, 2017   /   Book Lists, New Releases  

June brings the end-of-school-just-can’t-find-a-book-for-summer-reading-club blues. Here are some fun adventures, action-filled fantasy, relationship stories, an inspiring memoir and a chilling nonfiction work to cheer up the middle-grade readers in your life.


Shop Indie Bookstores

The Bravelands, written by Erin Hunter (HarperCollins)

Heed the call of the wild with this brand-new, action-packed animal fantasy series from the #1 nationally bestselling author of Warriors. Enter the Bravelands…and discover the Erin Hunter series you’ve been waiting for.

A lion cast out from his pride.

An elephant who can read the bones of the dead.

A baboon rebelling against his destiny.

For generations, the animals of the African plains have followed a single rule: only kill to survive. But when an unthinkable act of betrayal shatters the peace, the fragile balance between predators and prey will rest in the paws of three unlikely heroes.

Set in an epic new world and told from three different animals’ points of view, Bravelands will thrill readers who love Spirit Animals and Wings of Fire, as well as the legion of dedicated fans who’ve made Erin Hunter a bestselling phenomenon.

Readers everywhere were transported by the 100 cupboard doors leading to 100 worlds of adventure in the bestselling 100 Cupboards series! Now, whether you’re new to the series or can’t wait to know where the cupboards came from, you’ll want to open the cupboard door to this action-packed fantasy where friendships are forged, dark forces are challenged, and the adventure begins!

Shop Indie Bookstores
The Silver Moon of Summer, written by Leila Howland (HarperCollins)

In the third and final book in the middle grade trilogy that Newbery Honor winner Rita Williams-Garcia raved is “brimming with hilarity and sisterly hijinks,” Marigold, Zinnia, and Lily Silver return to Cape Cod for another unforgettable summer.

This summer, the town of Pruet is turning 300, and a huge celebration is planned. On their first night back east, the girls make a promise not to fight with each other, ensuring that this will be the best summer yet.

It shouldn’t be too hard. Each sister, after all, has her own focus during the visit. Marigold makes it her mission to befriend Chloe, the famous director Philip Rathbone’s niece, who is working on the set of her uncle’s upcoming television series. Zinnie is busy creating an attention-grabbing blog to help her chances of becoming editor-in-chief of her school’s literary journal. And Lily has become quite the explorer with her science day camp group. All seems to be going smoothly until Zinnie’s growing friendship with Chloe leaves Marigold feeling hurt. Her little sister is stealing her new best friend—why can’t Zinnie just stop intruding on Marigold’s life?

With the divide between the girls growing deeper, Marigold, Zinnie, and Lily worry it’s impossible for them to go a summer without a big fight. The same silver moon may hang in the night sky each year, but the sisters below it are changing in ways they have yet to understand. If they grow apart, more than a promise could be at risk. But if they grow together…the sky’s the limit.

Shop Indie Bookstores

Let’s Pretend We Never Met, written by Melissa Walker (HarperCollins)

The Thing About Jellyfish meets The Kind of Friends We Used to Be in this sweet, honest middle grade debut.

If it were up to Mattie Markham, there would be a law that said your family wasn’t allowed to move in the middle of the school year. After all, sixth grade is hard enough without wondering if you’ll be able to make new friends or worrying that the kids in Pennsylvania won’t like your North Carolina accent.

But when Mattie meets her next-door neighbor and classmate, she begins to think maybe she was silly to fear being the “new girl.” Agnes is like no one Mattie has ever met—she’s curious, hilarious, smart, and makes up the best games. If winter break is anything to go by, the rest of the school year should be a breeze.

Only it isn’t, because when vacation ends and school starts, Mattie realizes something: At school Agnes is known as the weird girl who no one likes. All Mattie wants is to fit in (okay, and maybe be a little popular too), but is that worth ending her friendship with Agnes?

Shop Indie Bookstores

Run with Me: The Story of a U.S. Olympic Champion, written by Sanya Richards-Ross (Zondervan)

For as long as four-time Olympic gold medalist Sanya Richards-Ross can remember, life has been measured in seconds—the fewer, the better.

The Jamaican-American sprinter has been a star track and field athlete since she first began racing, ranking No. 1 in the world and bringing home Olympic and World Championship accolades. A role model for runners around the world, Sanya’s incredible success is matched only by her spirit both on and off the track.

From her early days running in Jamaica to her final race, Sanya shares the importance of determination, courage and faith. She uses the 4 Ps—push, pace, position and poise—a model created by her coach, Clyde Hart, to approach and tackle every obstacle. In her book, Sanya reveals how these strategies have helped her and will help kids learn how to run their best race in life.

Run with Me is Sanya’s story—her wins and her losses—chronicling her unique triumphs and trials with fame, family and faith. Written purposely for the 8-12 audience, this book will inspire kids to pursue their dreams at full speed.

Shop Indie Bookstores

Pottymouth and Stoopid, written by James Patterson, illustrated by Stephen Gilpin (Little, Brown and Company)

Bestselling author James Patterson’s best book for boys in years! Tired of being bullied, middle-school underdogs “Pottymouth” and “Stoopid” finally fight back with the power of funny.

David and his best friend Michael were tagged with awful nicknames way back in preschool when everyone did silly things. Fast-forward to seventh grade: “Pottymouth” and “Stoopid” are still stuck with the names–and everyone in school, including the teachers and their principal, believe the labels are true.

So how do they go about changing everyone’s minds? By turning their misery into megastardom on TV, of course! And this important story delivers more than just laughs–it shows that the worst bullying doesn’t have to be physical…and that things will get better. A great conversation starter for parents to read alongside their kids!

Official Notice to Parents:
There is no actual pottymouthing or stupidity in this entire book!
(Psst, kids: that second part might not be entirely true.)

Shop Indie Bookstores

The Door Before, written by N.D. Wilson (Random House Children’s Books)

Readers everywhere were transported by the 100 cupboard doors leading to 100 worlds of adventure in the bestselling 100 Cupboards series! Now, whether you’re new to the series or can’t wait to know where the cupboards came from, you’ll want to open the cupboard door to this action-packed fantasy where friendships are forged, dark forces are challenged, and the adventure begins!
 
Hyacinth Smith can see things that others miss, stop attack dogs from attacking, and grow trees where no trees have grown before. But she’s never had a real home. When her father tells them they’ve inherited a house from their great-aunt, Hyacinth sees trouble brewing. Their great-aunt has been playing with forces beyond her control, using her lightning-tree forest to create doors to other worlds. When one door opens, two boys tumble through . . . bringing with them a battle with the undying witch-queen, Nimiane. Hyacinth, together with the boys, must use her newfound magic and all of her courage to journey straight into the witch’s kingdom in a daring plan to trap evil and kill the immortal.

Shop Indie Bookstores

Sputnik’s Guide to Life on Earth, written by Frank Cottrell Boyce (HarperCollins)

Award-winning author Frank Cottrell Boyce returns with another one-of-a-kind story of heart, humor, and finding one’s place in the universe.

Prez knows that the best way to keep track of things is to make a list. That’s important when you have a grandfather who is constantly forgetting. And it’s even more important when your grandfather can’t care for you anymore and you have to go live with a foster family out in the country.

Prez is still learning to fit in at his new home when he answers the door to meet Sputnik—a kid who is more than a little strange. First, he can hear what Prez is thinking. Second, he looks like a dog to everyone except Prez. Third, he can manipulate the laws of space and time. Sputnik, it turns out is an alien, and he’s got a mission that requires Prez’s help: the Earth has been marked for destruction, and the only way they can stop it is to come up with ten reasons why the planet should be saved.

Thus begins one of the most fun and eventful summers of Prez’s life, as he and Sputnik set out on a journey to compile the most important list Prez has ever made—and discover just what makes our world so remarkable.


Shop Indie Bookstores

The Day the World Went Nuclear, written by Bill O’Reilly (Henry Holt and Company)

Autumn 1944. World War II is nearly over in Europe, but in the Pacific, American soldiers face an enemy who will not surrender, despite a massive and mounting death toll. Meanwhile, in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer and his team of scientists are preparing to test the deadliest weapon known to mankind. Newly inaugurated president Harry Truman faces the most important political decision in history: whether to use that weapon.

Adapted from Bill O’Reilly’s historical thriller Killing the Rising Sun, with characteristically gripping storytelling, this story explores the decision to use the atom bomb and the end of World War II in the Pacific.

 

Back to Top

Our Mighty Girls (and a mighty giveaway, too)

By on May 19, 2017   /   Book Lists, Fiction, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, For Writers, Giveaways, MUF Contributor Books, New Releases, Writing  

Last month fellow MUFer Sarah Aronson and I were happy to learn that a panel we proposed for this year’s National Council of Teachers of English (aka NCTE) was accepted. The topic is “Our Mighty Girls”, and we’ll be talking about how young middle grade series featuring strong female heroes can help build empathy and demonstrate peaceful problem-solving to all readers. Unless the conference’s organizers decide to give us a half a day or so, I’m afraid we’ll be hard pressed to say all we want!

Our two fellow panelists are:

Kate Hannigan, author of

Cousins Willow and Delia lead a diverse cast of characters who solve their challenges with smarts, humor, compassion and yes, sweets!

And Crystal Allen, author of

Mya, a true free spirit, longs to be a cowgirl. She meets issues of bullying, name-calling and miscommunication with enough spirit for ten kids and a heart big enough to both learn and forgive.

Sarah’s delightful new series  

debuts this month, and features a main character who knows what it’s like to work hard, be patient and never give up if you want to reach your goal.

The third book of my CODY series

is just out (more about that at the end of this post!)

Writing our proposal got us thinking about how many wonderful series there are for young middle graders, and how they pave the way for longer, more complex books without skimping on character development or rich themes.  Readers become long-term friends with these characters, and grow along with them. Two of my current-and-all-time-favorites are hilarious, heart-tugging “Clementine” by Sara Pennypacker and Marla Frazee, and droll, outside the box “Ivy and Bean” by Annie Barrows and Sophie Blackall.

And, to give away my age once and for all, here are three I loved when I was eight or nine:

Best friends forever and ever!

Who didn’t want to be Pippi? Or at least her friend?

Need I say more? That name has become synonymous with childhood.

Which are your favorites, old or new?

*********

I started writing my CODY books as a sort of antidote to my heavier-duty middle grade novels. I wanted to write funny. Simple. I wanted to stay in the light, away from the dark. But as I got to know Cody, a girl who feels empathy for everyone and everything (including skunks and Madagascar hissing cockroaches), I  realized it was going to be more complicated than I thought. Children feel things through and through. They feel joy in their toes, sorrow in their bellies, confusion prickling their skin. This might be truest of all for the younger middle grade reader.

So even when I’m writing about things that seems simple on the surface–a lost cat, a mean teacher, a first sleep-over, a big brother who’s sad–I try to honor how large they loom in Cody’s budding life. Funny and happy as she mostly is, Cody puzzles her way through all sorts of dilemmas. In the newest book, she learns what it means to wrestle with a conscience. Whew. It’s mighty hard.  But then, Cody is a mighty girl.

To celebrate  all the Mighty Girls, I’m giving away  a copy of the new CODY as well as the first two books, “Cody and the Fountain of Happiness” and “Cody and the Mysteries of the Universe”. Leave a comment below to enter. (U.S. readers only, please).

Back to Top