Posts Tagged Giveaway

STEM Tuesday– Tiny Worlds (Microscopic/Nanotech)- Interview with Author Nicola Davies

By on July 30, 2019   /   Common Core & NGSS, STEM Tuesday, Tiny Worlds/Microscopic/Nanotech  

Welcome to STEM Tuesday: Author Interview & Book Giveaway, a repeating feature for the fourth Tuesday of every month. Go Science-Tech-Engineering-Math!

Today we’re interviewing Nicola Davies about her book TINY CREATURES: The World of Microbes. School Library Journal calls it a “look at these minuscule organisms and the effect they can have on everything from our bodies to the soil to the clouds in the sky.”

Mary Kay Carson: How did you come to write Tiny Creatures?

Nicola: There are so many things in children’s lives that are related to microbes from always being told to ‘cover your mouth when you sneeze,’ ‘wash your hands before dinner,’ and having to be vaccinated, to favourite foods like cheese and yoghourt. Microbes are everywhere, an incredibly important part of all our lives, so it made sense that even the smallest children should know about them. Also, I loved the idea of invisible, magical worlds when I was little and in microbes we have one all around us, all the time!

MKC: You dug up lots of fascinating facts about microbes during your research! What especially surprised you?

Nicola: As a biology student long ago I was fascinated by the forms of microscopic plants, such as diatoms and unicellular animals like euglena and amoeba. Since then the technology of micro photography has advanced and there are even more beautiful photographs of these astounding mini life forms; looking at those was a real delight.

Nicola Davies is an award-winning author and a zoologist whose seemingly boundless enthusiasm for studying animals of all kinds has led her around the world. Fortunately for young readers, she is just as excited about sharing her interests through picture books. When not swimming with whales, sharks, or sea lions, traveling game reserves in Kenya, or off on other scientific expeditions, Nicola Davies gives writing workshops for students, writes books, and once she made a chair. She lives in Wales. www.nicola-davies.com

But I think the most amazing statistic I learned was the contribution to the oxygen in the air we breathe made by marine diatoms. One in every five breaths that you take is essentially provided by these beautiful, microscopic little plants. It was yet another example of how all life on earth is connected in a complex network, a network which supports us all and which we damage at our peril.

MKC: Do you have a STEM background?

Nicola: My life’s passion is zoology, although admittedly usually I am concerned with multicellular organisms. I did a Natural Sciences degree at Cambridge and did post grad study on bats and whales.

MKC: How would you describe the approach you took on this book? 

Nicola: Simple and accessible. I knew it wasn’t necessary or possible to put the whole of microbiology into a picture book, but I wanted to provide readers — both children AND their parents — with a seedbed of knowledge that would let them understand some of the basic things they may encounter in everyday life. I also wanted to inspire a sense of wonder and also of humbleness- we think our sense tell us everything we need to know but there is so much that we don’t see. It’s important to remember that real knowledge and understanding come first from admitting that you don’t know everything! My job as STEM picture book author is to make sure that at the end of the book, my readers understand a little and want to understand a lot more. My books aim to be a gateway into a world of lifelong learning and dialogue with the world.

 

Win a FREE copy of Tiny Creatures!

Enter the giveaway by leaving a comment below. The randomly-chosen winner will be contacted via email and asked to provide a mailing address (within the U.S. only) to receive the book.

Good luck!

Your host is Mary Kay Carson, author of The Tornado Scientist, Alexander Graham Bell for Kids, Mission to Pluto, Weird Animals, and other nonfiction books for kids. @marykaycarson

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STEM Tuesday — Epic Achievements and Fantastic Failures — Interview with Anna Crowley Redding

By on May 28, 2019   /   Common Core & NGSS, Cross-Curricular, Epic Achievements and Fantastic Failures, STEM Tuesday  

Welcome to STEM Tuesday: Author Interview & Book Giveaway, a repeating feature for the fourth Tuesday of every month. Go Science-Tech-Engineering-Math!

Today we’re interviewing Anna Crowley Redding about GOOGLE IT: A History of Google. The book received a starred review from Booklist, saying, “Redding does an admirable job of chronicling Larry and Sergey’s amazing successes and will inspire young people to follow in their ingenious footsteps.”

Mary Kay Carson: How did Google It come to be?

Anna Crowley Redding: This book was the brainchild of my incredibly talented and brilliant editor, Holly West. We are both excited about technology and the human stories behind tech. The more we talked, the more excited I became and dove into the research immediately. We knew from the start that this should be a fun look at exactly how this company came to be and that, of course, begins with the dreams, ideas, hard work, and failures of two students. Starting with that focus in mind, I have to say it was really delightful peeling back the onion layers of Google. That’s not to say that there aren’t serious or poignant parts of this story, there truly are. And exploring those aspects really allowed the book to demystify this huge company and the people behind it. From losing a dad, to coming to this country as a child refugee, to constant rejection, and then controversy, the personal struggles and triumphs are as much a part of the story as the technology.

MKC: Do you have a favorite aha! discovery or surprise finding you’d like to share from your research?

Anna: As far as aha! moments, there were many, but two stand out. First, reading about artificial intelligence and machine learning changed the way I think about our future and it changed the way I teach my own children about the future. As a society, we are the candlemakers standing at the dawn of electricity. That’s how big these developments are and it made me realize anew the importance of critical thinking, communication, and flexibility. These are the skills every child needs for our future. While a big change like that can be scary to think about, it can also be super exciting and fascinating. Another bit of research that changed the way I think was learning about failure, Google’s failures as a company, and the failures of people who work there… and most importantly, how THEY view failure––as a key ingredient to success. When you look at failure as an intellectual exercise, as a tool for improving your effort, as getting you closer to the solution for the particular problem you are trying to solve, well then it becomes far less personal and emotional. Your journey becomes very much about the process itself instead of a focus on instant perfection. One of Google’s attitudes about this is: fall in love with the problem, not the solution. This changed the way I approach my work, parenting, and just about everything else. It’s a concept I also actively teach my kids.

MKC: Why do you choose to write STEM books?

Anna: My background is in journalism, starting with television news. And as a TV news reporter, so much of current events touches STEM. From stories on ice-storms, plane crashes, environmental pollution, medical stories, crime, public policy and more––they all involve STEM. And using technology itself to gather and report the news is essential. That experience has kept me perennially interested in all things STEM. As an investigative reporter, that’s where I fell in love with research. The process of digging and digging is something I truly enjoy. And the common thread with every story is storytelling itself… how do I take these facts, this science, or tech and talk about it in a way that is as compelling as it is informative. As far as choosing STEM topics for writing books, I love stories about big thinkers and risk takers and naturally STEM fields are full of those stories. Sometimes when we think about STEM, it can be easy to focus on the STEM topics or products themselves, rather than how people connect to these subjects. The human aspect of STEM is what I find endlessly fascinating. Enormous problems are being solved and that requires personal and intellectual bravery. I find that very moving. It really is rewarding to tap into that part of STEM. And hopefully, in taking that angle, young readers can see themselves in these fields, in these careers, solving the problems they deem worthy.

Before diving into the deep end of writing for children, Anna Crowley Redding’s first career was as an Emmy-award winning investigative television reporter, anchor, and journalist. The recipient of multiple Edward R. Murrow awards and recognized by the Associated Press for her reporting, Anna now focuses her stealthy detective skills on digging up great stories for young readers — which, as it turns out, is her true passion. AnnaCrowleyRedding.com

MKC: To whom did you imagine yourself writing to while drafting the book?

Anna: When I was writing this book I thought a lot about my older brother as a kid. His room was full of Star Wars posters and toys. He loved Lost in Space. Every book that Elon [Musk] adored as a kid, so did my brother. So my writing goal was to write a book that my brother might have picked up and been inspired by. For Google It, it was important to recreate the world that needed Google. That meant going back to the past in a relatable and sometimes funny way to think about life before Google. What types of phones did we use? How did we get to the library if we didn’t have directions? It really was a different world, recreating that for young readers in a relatable way was, for me, an essential ingredient in bringing Google’s story to life. Hopefully that will allows students to think about today’s tech and problems the same way and challenge themselves to take these problems on–– (whether political, technological, artistic, whatever they find interesting!)

MKC: You’ve also written a book about Elon Musk, correct? What’s the appeal of entrepreneurs and inventors?

Anna: Elon Musk’s life is fascinating. Young readers are going to love diving into his back story and understanding what drives him and how he got where he is today. In ELON MUSK: A Mission to Save the World, I spend a lot of time on who Elon was as a child and as a reader. The science fiction and comic books he read as a child were his refuge from school bullies, from a complicated home life. Ultimately those stories inspired him to ask big questions, examine the world’s biggest challenges and do something about them. And when I tell you he read, I mean he read every science fiction book he could physically put his hands on. At the comic book shop, he read every comic book in the store! Flash forward to today, Elon has changed the game for electric cars. His company, SpaceX, has revolutionized rocket technology and is making plans to colonize Mars. Even though Elon often courts controversy (or controversy courts him), his work and the way he approaches problem-solving, his tolerance for failure in the course of reaching a goal––is fascinating. I hope that readers will themselves in his story, that they see their own seemingly unattainable dreams as worthy pursuits.

Win a FREE copy of Google It

Enter the giveaway by leaving a comment below. The randomly-chosen winner will be contacted via email and asked to provide a mailing address (within the U.S. only) to receive the book.

Good luck!

Your host is Mary Kay Carson, author of Alexander Graham Bell for Kids, Mission to Pluto, Weird Animals, and other nonfiction books for kids. @marykaycarson

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Hurricane Season with Author Nicole Melleby & a Giveaway!

By on May 8, 2019   /   Articles, Author Interviews, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, Giveaways  

It’s always exciting to share upcoming releases and hear directly from their authors. Today, we’re visited by middle grade author Nicole Melleby and her debut novel HURRICANE SEASON. “This debut novel—about taking risks and facing danger, about love and art, and about growing up and coming out—will make its way straight into your heart.”

Fig, a sixth grader, wants more than anything to see the world as her father does. The once-renowned pianist, who hasn’t composed a song in years and has unpredictable good and bad days, is something of a mystery to Fig. Though she’s a science and math nerd, she tries taking an art class just to be closer to him, to experience life the way an artist does. But then Fig’s dad shows up at school, disoriented and desperately searching for Fig. Not only has the class not brought Fig closer to understanding him, it has brought social services to their door.

Diving into books about Van Gogh to understand the madness of artists, calling on her best friend for advice, and turning to a new neighbor for support, Fig continues to try everything she can think of to understand her father, to save him from himself, and to find space in her life to discover who she is even as the walls are falling down around her.

Nicole Melleby’s Hurricane Season is a stunning novel about a girl struggling to be a kid as pressing adult concerns weigh on her. It’s also about taking risks and facing danger, about love and art, and about coming of age and coming out. And more than anything else, it is a story of the healing power of love—and the limits of that power.

Hi Nicole! We’re thrilled you’ve stopped by. Tell me,  how did you begin writing?

When I was eight, I saw the Nickelodeon movie Harriet the Spy. I was obsessed, I loved everything about it, but I especially loved the main character, Harriet, and the way she always carried around a notebook to write things in. I used to beg my parents to buy me marble composition notebooks just like the one Harriet had every time they went to a store that carried them, and I would fill those notebooks up with everything. I started off by taking notes about the people around me much like Harriet did while spying, and from there I started writing stories instead. I’ve been writing stories ever since.

The movie also gave me this quote, which I’ve kept in mind ever since, and speaks to why I keep writing: “You know what? You’re an individual, and that makes people nervous. And it’s going to keep making people nervous for the rest of your life.”

Interesting quote, and an important one for kids to remember. Thanks for sharing it here!

Your main character Fig’s growth is pivotal as readers venture toward the climax of her story. How did you decide to show this internal growth and understanding of her father and their relationship?

I knew from the start I wanted to do two things with Fig and her father’s relationship: I wanted to show that, regardless of his mental illness and limitations because of it, Fig’s dad is a loving, wonderful father. They love each other; the mental illness doesn’t get in the way of that. And I wanted to have a scene where a young daughter comes out to her father and it’s a non-issue. Fig’s dad doesn’t make a big deal about Fig’s sexuality. He accepts it, full stop.

With those things in mind, I knew that Fig’s growth had to center more around her understanding of her father’s mental illness more than their actual relationship, along with the avenues of help available to them, and how to accept the help provided to her. Throughout the novel, Fig finds comfort in learning about Vincent van Gogh, whose story is all too relatable in how it reminds her of her father. While Van Gogh helps Fig understand how serious mental illness is and how important it is to seek help, she also has to learn that her dad is not Van Gogh—mental illness isn’t one size fits all, and Fig and her dad have to learn together how to deal with their own circumstances.

What was the hardest part about writing Finola (Fig)?

For me, getting inside Fig’s head wasn’t hard—I don’t know what it says about me that my natural voice is that of an eleven-year-old. What was hard was making sure I took the time and did the research to do Fig justice. What would school look like for Fig, how ostracized would she feel because of her lack of cellphone and her dad’s limitations? It’s been many many (many) years since I was in sixth grade. What’s different now that I needed to be cognizant of while developing Fig? What would social service visits be like for her and her dad? What responsibilities would the adults around her have in reporting the strange behavior her dad exhibited? What parts of Vincent van Gogh’s life would really resonate with her (and what parts were maybe too mature for the story I’m trying to tell)? How would an eleven-year-old in 2019 react to the flutters in her stomach from a first crush on another girl?

Much differently than I would have in the year 2000, I’m guessing, and it was important to remember that while I was writing. I’m not writing about my childhood—I’m writing about today’s middle grade readers’ experiences.

This is a very good point to keep in mind for any writer reading this.

As the rawness of mental illness is strongly threaded throughout Hurricane Season, what suggestions can you give to educators on how to breach this subject using Fig’s journey?

My first suggestion is always that educators don’t shy away from discussing mental illness. It exists in so many people and families, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of or to hide away and whisper quietly about. Books like HURRICANE SEASON and Tae Keller’s THE SCIENCE OF UNBREAKABLE THINGS and Cindy Baldwin’s WHERE THE WATERMELONS GROW that show kids dealing with mental illness in their lives in a raw and real way I think is a good way to open up conversations with kids.

I also tried to show that both medications and therapy are useful and sometimes necessary, and I think being able to read about a young character experiencing both helps to put both of those into a context that becomes less scary and unknown.

What do you hope readers gain from reading this book?

I think a lot about the books I read when I was younger, and what characters meant the most to me. Who were the characters that were around when I needed them? Which characters gave me comfort, and why? What do I wish I had been able to read about but didn’t get the chance to growing up that could have been life changing?

With HURRICANE SEASON, I wanted to write a story for readers who needed a character like Fig: someone who is carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders and who is struggling with her love for her father and what his mental illness means for both of them, but is also going through the all too real pains of growing up. I hope that readers find a companion in Fig. I hope they see someone they can relate to, who maybe can be there for them in ways that characters were there for me when I was younger—whether it be a reader struggling with mental illness, or sexuality, or just the beginnings of a first crush or the struggles of sixth grade.

I also hope they gain a love and understanding for Vincent van Gogh!

Can I just say how much I love that you included work from Vincent van Gogh. #love

What do you see as the biggest challenge facing new writers in the constantly evolving publishing world?

With social media right at our fingertips, it’s ridiculously easy to see who sold what book how quickly, who is getting starred review after starred review, who gets to go to the big conferences, who gets to be on the most lists, and so on and so forth. Between that and having Goodreads reviews and Amazon stats a click away, it’s easy to get caught up in your own head about what defines success and whether or not your rejections or disappointments equal failure. Jealousy is human nature, and we’re all going to compare ourselves to others from time to time. The challenge is keeping your head up and focusing on your own path. I think it’s important to just try and remember (which I’ll admit is sometimes easier said than done!) that there are a million different paths in publishing, and most of it is subjective. Give it your all, be resilient, but keep your eyes on your own paper.

Also, protip: When I get a rejection, I sing a silly little children’s song that makes myself feel better. Mostly because by the time I’m done singing it, I’m not taking myself so seriously anymore, and I usually end up giggling.

Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, I should just go eat worms. Worms, worms, worms!

Haha! I’m definitely going to try that!

Care to share what readers can expect from you next?

Yes! You can expect another Algonquin Young Readers middle grade book from me out in 2020—a story about a soap opera loving Catholic school girl with a complicated relationship with her mother and her first crush on a girl.

Fantastic! We’ll be looking for it. Thank you for sharing yourself with our family of readers. All the best to you always, and stop by anytime.

Nicole Melleby is a born-and-bred Jersey girl with a passion for storytelling. She studied creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University and currently teaches creative writing and literature courses with a handful of local universities. When she’s not writing, she can be found browsing the shelves at her local comic shop or watching soap operas with a cup of tea. Find Nicole on Twitter and Hurricane Season here.

 

 

Enter to WIN your very own copy of HURRICANE SEASON!

Giveaway winner will be announced via Twitter on May 14th.

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