Posts Tagged Diverse Middle Grade Books

Diversity in MG Lit #43 March & April 2023

By on May 8, 2023   /   Diversity  
cover art Indigo and Ida

Diversity in MG Lit

It’s the beginning of May, but March and April were big months for diversity in MG Lit book releases, so I’m going to recap and highlight a few standouts and ask you to mention those I’ve missed in the comments. As usual I’m going to focus on debut authors and diverse representations that most need amplification.
book cover The StorytellerHappy to see a debut MG book from acclaimed Cherokee author Brandon Hobson, The Storyteller. Ziggy is already dealing with anxiety and the disappearance of his mother only makes things worse. In a search for answers about where his mother (and so many other Native women) have gone Ziggy is drawn to a nearby cave and the story tradition of the Cherokee for answers. (Scholastic Press, 4/18/23)
book cover Good DifferentBooks about neurodivergent girls are few and far between. I was thrilled to find Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt. Selah is an autistic seventh grader learning to embrace her inner dragon while still taking responsibility for her actions. The novel in verse format gives Selah’s story an engaging pace and emotional power. (Scholastic Press, 3/7/23)
book cover Parchute KidsTwo graphic novels caught my eye this month, both with Asian-American protagonists. Squished by Megan Wagner Lloyd and Michelle Mee Nutter is about the second oldest daughter finding some autonomy and space to make her art in a family of seven siblings. A large family is its own culture beyond race and ethnicity. I belong to a big family and found lots of scenes here that resonated. (Graphix 3/7/23) Parachute Kids by Betty C Tang is about being left in America with siblings or relatives while parents remain behind in an Asian country. (Graphix 4/4/23)
book cover BoundlessTwo stories about African-American athletes will appeal to sports fans. Colin Kaepernick Change the Game by Eve L Ewing and Orlando Caicedo is a graphic novel (Graphix 3/7/23). Track and field fans will devour the story of national champion, world champion, and four time Olympian, Chanunté Lowe in her debut MG biography Boundless. (Scholastic focus 3/7/23)
book cover Once There Wasbook cover The Scroll of ChaosAnd finally there are four notable additions to the genre of MG protagonist meets magical creatures and discovers hidden powers. They are Once There Was by Kiyash Monsef (S&S 4/423), Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind (Labyrinth Road RH 4/4/23), Hamara and the Jungle of Memories by Hanna Alkaf (HC 3/28/23), and The Scroll of Chaos by Elie Chapman (Scholastic Press 3/7/23)
As always this is only a small sample of the diverse books published in March and April. If I’ve missed something, do mention it in the comments.
Back to Top

Diversity in MG Lit #43 February 2023

By on February 15, 2023   /   Book Lists, Diversity  
This spring marks my sixth year of doing the monthly round up of new MG titles which are diverse in race, gender and/or sexual identity, ethnicity, religion, and disability. In that time there has been a substantial increase in the number of diverse titles in Middle Grade publishing. We’ve seen a particularly dramatic increase in the number of diverse authors attending the national conferences as featured speakers and winning national literary awards. Consider for example that in the last 6 years every single winner of the Newbery medal has been a diverse person. And eighteen of twenty-one honor winners have represented some aspect of diversity. In the bookseller conferences that I attend regionally in the Pacific Northwest and nationally somewhere between 50% and 90% of featured authors have been diverse. Impressive progress.
I love digging into the diverse ARCs that come to me at the bookshop and looking for new points of view at trade shows and on the on line resources available to me as a bookseller. In the last six years my own life has changed dramatically too, leaving me less time for writing blog posts. I will continue to do the diverse books roundup every other month. I’ll shift my focus slightly to newer voices and less frequently represented identities.
Here are this month’s new titles.
book title No Matter the DistanceNO MATTER THE DISTANCE by Cindy Baldwin is her fourth book and the one that deals most directly with her own disabling condition, cystic fibrosis. The story starts on familiar MG terrain–Penny’s best friend is moving away. But then Penny finds a lost dolphin in the river behind her house and forms a strong bond with her. But the young dolphin can’t survive for long in the river. How Penny finds the strength to help her new friend to her home in the ocean is gorgeously told in blank verse. Equal parts friendship story, gripping adventure, and medical drama. On sale 2/21/23 from Quill Tree HC.
I love to celebrate a debut! THE PEARL HUNTER by Miya T. Beck is fantasy set in pre-Shogun era Japan. Pearl diving twins Kai and Kishi are identical in appearance but miles apart in personality, When one is stolen by a ghost whale the other searches the ocean for her with the help of sea dragons and supernatural foxes. This is the best fantasy book cover I’ve seen in a while. Kudos to the team at Balzer&Bray HC and congratulations Miya on her debut. On sale 2/7/23.book title The Pearl Hunter
Another debut this month is IT’S BOBA TIME FOR PEARL LI! by Nicole Chen. It’s a charmer. It’s about a seventh grade Taiwanese American girl who hatches a grand plan to save her favorite Boba Tea shop from going out of business. In my experience, the soda fountains and pizza parlors which featured so prominently in my teenaged years have been replaced by the sushi bar and the boba tea shop for kids today. It’s a story that I think will resonate with many. I hope we see more of the enterprising Pearl Li. Quill Tree HC On sale 2/28/23book cover It's boba time by pearl li
Here’s another recent development which makes me very happy. In the promo material that came along with the ARC for those last two debuts, the book was compared not to a white author with whom their work shares a few thematic threads and not a high profile diverse author with whom their book shares no themes in common. They are being compared to diverse authors who a good fit in terms of character identity, theme, tone, and setting. Hurray! Thank you to the hard working publicity teams who make it happen!
book cover the many fortunes of mayaTHE MANY FORTUNES OF MAYA by Nicole D. Collier is her second MG novel. There are plenty of books about kids and sports, what I appreciated so much about this one is its willingness to really interrogate the role of luck, talent, ambition, fortitude, practice, and the support of friends and family in whether we succeed or fail. Themes that will be familiar to more than just young athletes. Verisify HC. On sale 1/24/23
Janae Marks newest novel is ON AIR WITH ZOE WASHINGTON. I appreciate all three of her books for casting light on a subculture so often overlooked–the families of incarcerated and exonerated people. In this third book, she tackles the difficult road back to full employment for exonerated people. Happily for this story it involves both baking and BBQ. Katherine Tegan Books. On sale 2/14/23
book cover For LambI have admired the work of Lesa Cline-Ransom for many years. Her newest book is a YA novel. Set in 1930 in Mississippi it deals directly, honestly and sensitively with the lynching of black women. I mention it here because it is well within the grasp of mature MG readers and it gives important context to current events. FOR LAMB by Lesa Cline-Ransom Holiday House On sale 1/03/23
New from the very prolific Christina Soontornvat is LEGENDS OF LOTUS ISLAND: THE GUARDIAN TEST. It’s a short and sweet fantasy adventure in which Plum and her friends go to the Guardian Academy and learn to communicate with animals, meditate and fight to protect the natural world. Budding eco-warriors will love it! Scholastic Press, on sale 2/7/23
As always this is just a fraction of the new diverse titles coming out in January and February this year. Please mention any I have missed in the comments below.
Back to Top

Interview with Supriya Kelkar, author of THAT THING ABOUT BOLLYWOOD!

By on May 31, 2021   /   Author Interviews, Fiction  

Hello Mixed-Up Filers!

We are in for a treat today!  Today we have Supriya Kelkar, author of That Thing About Bollywood which is out now from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 

JR: Hi Supriya, and welcome to Mixed-Up Files!

SK: Thank you! It is so great to be back!

 

JR: First off, for those who don’t know, what can you tell us about the book and where the idea for the story came from?

SK: Yes! Bollywood is the nickname for the Hindi film industry. It is one of the largest film industries in the world. I grew up never getting to see myself in an American book, TV show, or movie so Bollywood gave me a little of the representation I was looking for. It was a space where my food and cultures and clothing, all of which were mocked daily in my small town that didn’t appreciate diversity, were celebrated. And it was a place where people who looked like me were heroes. I learned Hindi by watching 3 Hindi movies a week and even went on to become a Bollywood screenwriter as an adult, working on the writing teams for several big Bollywood films, including India’s entry into the Oscars, and another film which was the top grossing Bollywood movie of all time at that moment in time.

So as an adult, I tried for a very long time to put my love for Bollywood into a book. One day I realized most Bollywood films from the 80s and 90s were very obvious about what the characters were going through. Feelings were loud, things were exaggerated and colorful. So I thought what if there is a classic-Bollywood loving kid who is the opposite of that, not very good at showing her feelings?

And that’s how the idea for That Thing about Bollywood came to be. It is the story of Sonali, a Bollywood-loving kid who isn’t very good at expressing herself and showing her true feelings. One day a life-changing event causes her to get a magical condition called Bollywooditis, which makes her express herself in the most obvious way possible, through Bollywood song-and-dance numbers. As the magic spreads, Sonali must find out what is causing it and how to stop it before all her true memories and the feelings associated with them are gone forever.

 

JR: That really does sound amazing! Last time you were here, I told you that absolutely love Bollywood movies! What is it about the genre that makes for good storytelling?

SK: Bollywood, like many kinds of world cinema, is escapism at its finest. It’s full of joy and drama, striking colors and incredible dances. I think it can be a powerful way to tell really serious stories too, and sometimes the musical format can help deliver messages from your theme really easily.

I used some of that theory when it came to writing That Thing about Bollywood too. The fun of seeing your main character bursting out in big song-and-dance numbers let me go into really serious issues too like changing families and health issues.

JR: Last time you gave us some of your favorites, have there been any newer Bollywood films that you’d like to add to the list?

SK: I did not do a very good job at keeping up with the newer Bollywood movies over the past year and the ones I did see were not my favorites. But I did spend that time introducing my kids to older Hindi movies. The one movie we watched over and over again was Lagaan, streaming on Netflix. It was my favorite movie back in 2001, and was nominated for an Oscar. It is a historical epic with songs and dances and colonization and decolonization and my kids love to see it.

JR: I’m going to have to check that out! In your book, you deal with some heavy topics, like divorce. Was that tough to tackle and find the right balance for a Middle Grade audience?

SK: It was initially when I was outlining the book and thinking about its structure and the scenes. But when I started writing, the magic of Bollywooditis let me give readers a break when things were really tough in Sonali’s parents’ marriage, and those magical elements really helped me explore Sonali’s feelings in a way that felt right for a middle grade audience.

JR: I usually break out into song as well when dealing with tough topics. How much of you is in Sonali?

S: I am very much the opposite of Sonali, in that my emotions are very obvious to anyone who sees me. I will say at times I felt embarrassed of how easily I would cry when I felt for something I was going through, or even when I would cry because I’d really deeply feel what someone else is going through. I can still remember being a kid and having to sing prayers at a family friend’s grandparent’s memorial service. I don’t think I’d ever even met the grandparent because they lived in India. But something about seeing our family friends upset led me to sob throughout the singing. I remember some adults laughed in surprise, wondering why I was so upset, before trying to comfort me. I could still get a little embarrassed thinking about that moment as an adult, but thanks to writing this book and going on Sonali’s journey with her, I know that you are entitled to your feelings and it’s actually a great thing to care so deeply for others and have empathy.

JR: I agree. If you could escape into one film, which would it be?

SK: Could Jurassic Park be a Bollywood musical? I’d like to think it could be. I’d love to sing and dance about my feelings while dealing with those dinosaurs.

JR: I’ll count it as a musical for this. Many authors use local flavor to influence some of their books. Does where you live now lend anything to your books?

SK: It does! I grew up in Michigan and still live there so I loved setting American as Paneer Pie there and making the fictional town there as close to my hometown as possible. Similarly, because I lived in L.A. for a while and traveled there a lot for work and vacations, I felt like it was the perfect setting for That Thing about Bollywood because there are already magical elements about L.A. thanks to Hollywood, and it seemed like the best place for Sonali’s Bollywooditis to manifest.

JR: Read on your site that you have a purple belt in karate. How up to date is that?

SK: This question made me laugh for a really long time! It is sadly not very up-to-date. But it was clearly a bragging point in my childhood bio from 1989.

JR: I still would fear you! In that same vein, would you describe yourself as the toughest MG author out there?

SK: Well I didn’t see any other MG authors saying they could sing-and-dance their way out of dino trouble, so maybe?

JR: TRUE! What are you working on next?

SK: I’m working on my next middle grade novel, several picture books including my 2023 release, My Name, and I’m working on my illustrator debut for American Desi, a book by Jyoti Rajan Gopal that comes out in June 2022 from Little, Brown.

 

JR: I can’t wait to see all of them! Any upcoming appearances?

SK: I was at Books of Wonder in May and there is a replay of the panel in case you miss it, Cafe Con Libros on June 1st, and at Nerd Camp KS, Nerd Camp PA, and Nerd Camp CT this summer!

JR: You Aare definitely busy! How can people follow you on social media?

SK: Instagram: @supriya.kelkar
TikTok: @supriya.kelkar Twitter: @supriyakelkar_ 

 

JR: I’d like to once again thank Supriya for joining us here at Mixed-Up Files, and everyone else, make sure you go out and get a copy of THAT THING ABOUT BOLLYWOOD!

 

Until next time, Mixed-Up Filers, have a great start to summer!

 

Jonathan

Back to Top