Posts Tagged Giveaways

STEM Tuesday– The Impacts of Our Changing Climate– Interview with Christy Mihaly

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

Today we’re interviewing Christy Mihaly, author of Barefoot Books Water: A Deep Dive of Discovery. It’s a fascinating look at the many ways water forms the basis of life on our planet and how climate change impacts that. Kirkus Reviews said, “Oceanic in scope—but clear and refreshing.

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Christine Taylor-Butler: Christy, you write for children but before that change in career you went to law school and spent several years helping to protect the environment as an environmental lawyer. Those are tough issues. How did you develop the passion for that work?

Christy Mihaly: I’ve always loved being in nature. My grandmother was a serious backyard naturalist who shared her love of birds with me—I remember she had a record (vinyl!) with recordings of bird songs and would play it and listen to the calls and tell me which was which bird. She constantly worried about threats to wildlife and the need to protect wild places; she cared deeply about environmental protection.

In school I loved studying biology, ecology, and natural science, and grew to be a committed environmentalist. I remember collecting trash in a local park on the first Earth Day. I was active in the Girl Scouts, which gave me the opportunity to explore some of Earth’s wild places. As a teen one summer I spent ten challenging days paddling along the Allagash Wilderness Waterway in Maine with a Girl Scout camp. Then, this east coast girl was accepted for a national scout program in Wyoming, and visited Grand Teton National Park. Wow! I was stunned by my first glimpse of the beauty of the west.

My college major was policy studies with a concentration in environmental studies. I remember an ecology course in which we modeled different and related animal populations, demonstrating the interdependence of the species. I learned more about various challenges facing the environmental movement. Then when I took an undergraduate course in environmental law, I was hooked. I was fascinated with the various creative ways that people were using legal theories to defend wilderness and people’s right to a clean and healthy Earth. I realized: This is what I want to do!

CTB: Your family relocated to Spain for a year which was full immersion. What was it like navigating local customs and getting up to speed on the language quickly?

Christy: Yes, that was ten years ago. And oh my gosh, what a pivotal year. It was challenging, stimulating, and inspiring! And exhausting, did I mention exhausting? When we first arrived, I felt like a complete outsider, a bumbling incompetent. I’d taken Spanish in college but I remembered only the basics. So had this horrible sense of being inarticulate. People looked at me as if they thought I wasn’t too bright.

Plus everything – from the traffic circles to the laundry to the supermarket check-outs – was different from what I was used to. I just had to laugh at myself and hope that if I smiled enough, people would be patient with me. I asked questions. I met people. One day as I was riding the metro, a young woman introduced herself to me and we ended up becoming good friends. Slowly, things got better. One day the kind woman at the bakery where I shopped said, as she counted my change, “Your Spanish is getting better.” How exciting was that!

It was a year of bonding for the family as we went through all this together. We leaned on one another as we explored the country. My daughter progressed from knowing basically no Spanish to being the most fluent Spanish speaker in the family. And I loved that she got to live in a new culture, and to realize deeply that just because we do things a certain way in the United States does not mean our way is better.

CTB: While in Spain, you say your head was swimming with ideas for children’s stories and you sold your first story. What was it about?

Christy: I had left my lawyer job with the idea that it was time to get into gear on my long-deferred plans to write for kids. I didn’t know how I would get started, but yes, living in a new place triggered questions about everything. Curiosity is probably one of the most important qualities we bring to our writing – and suddenly I was curious about so many things. And I thought American kids might also find so much of Spain intriguing.

So … that year I published my first piece of writing for kids. It was unpaid and appeared in an online magazine that no longer exists. I was thrilled! It was a short story based on our experiences in Spain. I wrote it as an epistolary tale, in e-mails between a girl in the U.S. and her best friend who moved to Spain.

That year also led to my first paid article. It was in AppleSeeds magazine (also discontinued, is there a pattern here?). I submitted a query, which was accepted, about the Pinzon brothers of southern Spain. As every school child in Spain learns, the Pinzon brothers were a prominent seafaring family in the fifteenth century, and without their expertise and leadership on the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, Christopher Columbus’s explorations wouldn’t have succeeded. I researched the heck out of that 200-word article, traveling to Palos de la Frontera to attend the “Pinzon Days” festival, reading (in Spanish) materials collected in the local library, and studying artifacts in the museum that is the former home of the Pinzon brothers. I also took tons of photos, some of which I submitted for the illustrator’s reference. I was having fun and learning so much.

CTB: Once you returned to Vermont, you kept writing and sending out stories.

Christy: I did. I joined SCBWI (Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators). I signed up for conferences. I attended workshops. I wasn’t sure I considered myself a writer yet. I still needed to figure out how to make a living at this writing thing. I needed to learn more about the craft and the trade. Gradually, I did.

CTB: Now you have two books out that include discussions of climate change: Barefoot Books Water: A Deep Dive of Discovery, and Diet for a Changing Climate, which you co-wrote with Sue Heavenrich.

Christy: I’ve found that if I’m writing about environmental topics, I can’t avoid addressing climate change. That was certainly the case in the most recent book, Water. I couldn’t write a comprehensive guide to the planet’s water without touching on both the ocean’s role in climate, and the effects of climate change on the ocean, rainfall patterns, and water supplies.

Sue Heavenrich and I visited STEM Tuesday to talk about DIET with Mary Kay Carson, here: https://fromthemixedupfiles.com/stem-tuesday-sustainable-living-interview-with-author/.

In addition to the two climate-related books you mention, I’ve written about climate change in several books for the educational market. For example, in my series “Shaping the Debate,” one of the titles is “Defining and Discussing Climate Change.” (Rourke Educational Media, 2019.) And in writing series nonfiction about national parks, animals, and renewable energy, I have had to deal with climate change and its impacts.

CTB: Barefoot Books Water: A Deep Dive of Discovery is done in multiple own voices from all over the world. That’s pretty innovative (and much needed perspective). Where did the idea come from? Did you get to travel to any of the places covered in the book?

Christy: The publisher, Barefoot Books, conceived of “Water” and went looking for a qualified author. They publish many multicultural picture books and they’re well known for their beautiful, oversized nonfiction books like Barefoot Books World Atlas and Barefoot Books Solar System. They wanted to add Barefoot Books WATER to this line.

I am so glad that Emma Parkin, the brilliant and delightful editor for the project, got my name. We had a Skype call and immediately hit it off. I was intrigued with her ideas. As Emma explained, although there are many children’s books about the ocean, marine animals, and other water-related topics, Barefoot Books wanted to create something that centered water’s role on Earth.

I shared with Emma my work on water conservation projects from Tahoe to Vermont. My experience meshed well with the notion of a compendium for kids exploring the power and wonder of water. I wanted to write something lyrical and poetic as well as scientifically accurate.

Together we developed a vision for this book to include science and social justice, history and stories. I loved the idea of including tales from global storytellers, traditional stories and legends to highlight the magical, mystical side of water. I also love the “behind the stories” feature included in the book’s back matter, which tells kids the story of each author, their backgrounds, and their thoughts about water.

But no, I couldn’t travel while writing this book. I wrote it entirely during the pandemic, starting in March 2020.

CTB: Kirkus Reviews gave it a starred review, calling your approach “intriguing.” They particularly loved your use of alliteration citing the passage “Glaciers are “massive, mountainous mounds of ice..”) Water is such an essential part of life on Earth. What surprised you most when researching this book?

Christy: I was surprised how difficult it was to explain some water basics – its molecular structure and why it’s so good at dissolving things, for example – simply, accurately, and clearly for our target audience. Luckily we had expert reviewers, both in child development and science.

Another surprise: I loved learning how some marine animals can drink salt water without getting dehydrated because their kidneys are adapted to handle the salt.

Sometimes, I knew a general fact (e.g., manufacturing uses a lot of water) but was surprised by some of the specifics (1 cotton t-shirt: 660 gallons; 1 smart phone: 3200 gallons).

And I was surprised and saddened to read recent research about the effects of climate change on the ocean … and how changes in ocean currents (the global conveyor belt) are disrupting weather patterns.

CTB: You include activities for readers to try while explaining conservation and the impact of climate change on water sources. What process did you use for your research that might help young readers understand how authors approach writing nonfiction?

Christy: My first step in this project was reading broadly. As I read, I looked for facts and aspects of water that would be most interesting to kids. What would make kids wonder? What would surprise and intrigue them? And what are the concrete details that really bring the story home?

In deciding what to include and how to present it, we gave a great deal of consideration to the book’s design. The artist, Mariona Cabassa, and the entire team at Barefoot Books deserve credit for this. We had extensive discussions about the most engaging ways to present information.

For example, how to show the quantity of water on the globe: 326 million trillion gallons. We looked at illustrations of buckets, swimming pools, and the like, but finally decided that for a figure that large, just showing it with all those zeroes was effective: 326,000,000,000,000,000,000. We went through a similar process for many aspects of the book. And we created the friendly talking-water-drop character to provide quick fun facts throughout the book. This was one way we sought to make the book accessible to younger kids as well as middle grade readers.

As I researched, I flagged topics that kids could explore through hands-on activities. For example, try dissolving different substances in water; or get outside with a magnifying glass and see what life you can find in a pond or a puddle. In one activity, I asked kids to think about the work involved in carrying a family’s water. The activity suggests filling a water bucket to carry and figuring out how many buckets of water their family would need in a day. Here’s an extension of that activity, for a class or other group of kids, building on information in the book which appeared on author Patricia Newman’s LitLinks blog. This gets more deeply into the social justice theme of the book. (And the inequity of the world’s global water supply is of course exacerbated by the climate crisis.)

Finally, I find that when kids see a problem, often their instinct is to act, so I spent a lot of time thinking about what water-steward steps we could suggest for kids to take. Those are sprinkled throughout the book.

CTB: What do you want readers to come away with after reading this book?

Christy: An appreciation for the magic of water! This ordinary everyday substance is in fact so extraordinary. And how vital it is to all living things. And I hope kids will feel a desire to protect this treasure for everyone. My approach was to focus on how wondrous water is, but without glossing over all the water-related challenges.

This is similar to what Sue Heavenrich and I did in our Diet for a Changing Climate book. We wanted to help young readers think actively about the climate crisis but without overwhelming them. Our approach was to encourage kids to think creatively and notice how their choices about what foods were on their plates could help make real change in the world.

CTB: What’s next on your horizon? Any new books coming out we should watch for?

Christy: Yes! Thank you for this question – I’m expecting three books in 2022. (And one of them relates to climate change.)

The Supreme Court and Us, coming March 1, is a kid-friendly introduction to the U.S. Supreme Court, its history and role. (Illustrated by Neely Daggett, pub. Albert Whitman.)

Patience, Patches shows up in April. This fictional tale, narrated by Patches the dog, follows the disruption (and rewards) when a baby joins the family. (Illustrated by Sheryl Murray, pub. Dial/PRH.)

Ultimate Food Atlas: Maps, Games, Recipes, and More for Hours of Delicious Fun. A Nat Geo Kids book that the talented science writer Nancy Castaldo and I co-wrote, it’s due to release in September. It’s stuffed with fun facts about food, geography, and agriculture … and we talk about climate change, too.

CTB: I want to thank Christy Mihaly for being such a passionate advocate for the environment and for young readers. Enjoy!

Win a FREE copy of Barefoot Books Water:

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!

Christy Mihaly is a nature lover, former lawyer, and poet. She has written more than 25 children’s nonfiction titles on topics from hayfields to free speech to food. A graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of California, Berkeley, Christy is passionate about environmental education, has chaired the board of the Vermont River Conservancy, and is a regular volunteer in local elementary schools as an environmental educator and reading mentor. She writes for kids because she believes that our best hope for the future is raising young people who love to read, and giving them the knowledge and skills to lead.

Christy’s books have been included on the Green Earth Book Award shortlist, Bank Street Children’s Best Books, and Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selections. She lives in Vermont, where she enjoys walking her dog in the woods and playing cello (though not simultaneously).

To learn more about Christy and her books, please visit www.ChristyMihaly.com. You can follow her on Twitter @CMwriter4kids 

Christine Taylor-Butler

Your host is Christine Taylor-Butler, MIT nerd and author of more than 90 books for children including Save The Tigers part of a new animal conservation series by Chelsea Clinton. She is also the author of the middle grade sci-fi/fantasy series The Lost Tribes. Follow @ChristineTB on Twitter and/or @ChristineTaylorButler on Instagram

STEM Tuesday– Invasive Species– Interview with Author Lisa Amstutz

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 Lisa Amstutz, author of Invasive Species. The book is part of the “engaging and informative” Ecological Disasters series, according to School Library Journal.

Mary Kay Carson: How did you come to write Invasive Species?

Lisa Amstutz: This book was an assignment from an educational publisher as part of their Ecological Disasters series. Because of my background in ecology, this one felt like a great fit, and I was excited to dig in! For those who aren’t familiar with this market, some educational publishers hire writers to produce series for them instead of reviewing projects submitted by authors/agents, as most trade publishers do. These series are designed in-house and are highly targeted to the school curriculum. Authors are given a set of guidelines that includes things like word count, reading level, a general outline, number of sidebars, etc.

MKC: The book is so well researched! Did you discover anything especially surprising?

Lisa: The thing that surprised me most was how many invasive species were imported on purpose. For example, the nutria was brought to the United States between 1899 and 1930 by fur farmers. When the market collapsed, farmers released the animals into the wild. Kudzu, aka ‘the vine that ate the South’, was imported in 1876 as an ornamental plant and even promoted by the Soil Conservation Service to prevent soil erosion from the 1930s to 1950s. Today, both are damaging ecosystems. Hopefully we’ve learned our lesson when it comes to moving species out of their natural habitats.

MKC: Do you have a least-liked invasive species? 

Lisa: The brown marmorated stinkbug (at left) is my current nemesis, as it has an annoying habit of moving into my house in the winter!

MKC: For whom is the book written? How does the writing style reflect that?

Lisa Amstutz is the author of ~150 books for children. She has also written for a variety of magazines and newspapers. In 2021, she joined Storm Literary Agency as an associate literary agent. Lisa’s background includes a B.A. in Biology and an M.S. in Environmental Science/Ecology. She specializes in topics related to nature, sustainability, and agriculture. Lisa lives on a small farm with her family. Find her online at www.LisaAmstutz.com

Lisa: Because it is targeted to schools and libraries, this book provides a broad and straightforward overview for kids exploring this topic on their own or for a research project. Photos and sidebars add interest. As always, I tried to use engaging language, concepts kids can relate to, and fun facts to hook the reader and draw them into the topic.

MKC: Do you choose to write about STEM books? Is STEM your background?

Lisa: I have a B.A. in Biology and an M.S. in Environmental Science/Ecology. After working in my field for a few years, I realized I liked writing about science even better, and as a bonus I could work from home. I love exploring new topics and sharing that excitement with kids. I’m also passionate about helping readers connect with the natural world and learn to care for it.

MKC: Could you give us a peek into your process by sharing where you are right now on a current project and how you’re tackling it?

Lisa: I’m at the very beginning stages of a new project at the moment. After choosing a topic from my long and very random list of ideas, I’m currently gathering information and resources online and through my local library. For a longer project like this one, I use Scrivener or OneNote to easily record and categorize information. I always footnote as I go, so it’s easy to go back and double check facts. For me, this part is the most fun—I love learning new things!

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Win a FREE critique by author and agent Lisa Amstutz!

The lucky winner receives one critique (query letter, picture book manuscript, or first 10 pages of a longer manuscript or project). Enter by leaving a comment below. The randomly-chosen winner will be contacted via email.

Good luck!

Your host is Mary Kay Carson, author of Wildlife Ranger Action Guide, The Tornado ScientistAlexander Graham Bell for Kids, Mission to Pluto, and other nonfiction books for kids. @marykaycarson

STEM Tuesday– Tectonics: Volcanoes, Ring of Fire — Interview with Author Katie Coppens

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 Katie Coppens, author of Geology is a Piece of Cake. It’s a “truly delicious, hands-on way to study science in action,” says Kirkus Reviews.

Mary Kay Carson: Tell us a bit about Geology is a Piece of Cake. How did the book come about?

Katie Coppens: I’m a middle school science teacher who uses analogies to help my students understand concepts. One of the analogies my students have enjoyed is learning the difference between a rock and a mineral through cake; where minerals are like the ingredients for cake and the cake is like the rock. Year-after-year, I kept expanding cake examples to a range of concepts in geology, such as fossil formation and plate tectonics. My students benefited from these analogies and the ideas kept coming. Then, I thought of the title for a possible book, Geology is a Piece of Cake, and it all went from there. I started writing, baking, taking photos of cakes, and developing recipes for kids to do that have geological thinking embedded into them. Using this hands-on method is fun and helps concepts resonate!

MKC: Care to share a favorite research experience?

Katie: My children were two and four years old when I wrote the book. For months, I was baking and testing recipes and my kids and I developed a love of baking together. They also became accustomed to having cakes for dessert because it was important to taste test the cakes that had recipes in the book. When I finished writing, my kids were disappointed that the daily desserts stopped. They were delighted when I wrote the companion book Geometry is as Easy as Pie, which teaches math concepts through pie and pie recipes.

MKC: How would you describe the book’s approach?

Katie: Cake is a great hook for kids (and adults!)! It’s a hands-on, delicious way to better understand geology. In addition to teachers’ use in the classroom, parents have also enjoyed making the recipes with their child and learning together. Out of all of the cakes, I think the extrusive molten lava chocolate cake (at left) is the most fun. It represents an extrusive igneous rock and when you cut into it, the chocolate lava flows out!

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

Katie: I was imagining my 6th grade students with every step of writing, which is why I dedicated the book to them! I kept thinking about the questions they ask and they were my inspiration behind writing the book in a question and answer format. One of my favorite moments as an author is when readers reach out to me and with this book, I’ve received emails with photos of the cakes kids have made with their geological thinking! I have a YouTube channel that includes a fun video that some of my students made when they baked a cake from the book.

MKC: Do you choose to write about STEM books?

Katie: I’ve been a teacher for 20 years and have written eight STEM-themed children’s books. I’m also an advisor of my school’s STEM club. My favorite part of STEM is that it encourages creative and critical thinking!

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Katie Coppens is an award-winning middle school science teacher who lives in Maine with her husband and two daughters. She’s written eight STEM-themed books for kids and writes a column for the National Science Teaching Association’s Science Scope magazine called “Interdisciplinary Ideas.” Her goal in both teaching and writing is to encourage curiosity and make learning fun. For more information on her books, go to www.katiecoppens.com or follow her @Katie_Coppens on Twitter.

Win a FREE copy of Geology is a Piece of Cake!

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 Wildlife Ranger Action Guide, The Tornado ScientistAlexander Graham Bell for Kids, Mission to Pluto, and other nonfiction books for kids. @marykaycarson