Children's Lit Newsletter 5/02/26

Book Clubs will be via Zoom. Club minimum is 6 students. I'm happy to add extra sections if necessary. We will meet 5 times, and for the first time in 6 years, I'm raising the prices (from $25/meeting, to $30, so don't panic) :-) There are five Wednesdays in May - we will probably focus on just one book and I'm hoping to have an author visit for both book clubs (author visit may be at a different time from regular meeting - that has yet to be scheduled). PLEASE DO SHARE THIS INFO and feel free to have people e-mail me at sharonlevin at mindspring dot com I will be responding to e-mails in June, but sending this now, since I know parents are making summer plans.

FROM THE PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE (AKA RANDOM PENGUIN) WEBSITE:

This searing and intimate novel in verse follows a sixteen-year-old girl coping with sexual abuse as she grapples with how to reclaim her story, her anger, and her body in a world that seems determined to punish her for the sin of surviving.

“This is more than a story about sexual violence—this book is about race, sexuality, love, and how anger can be a catalyst for healing.”
—Gabrielle Union, bestselling author, actress, and producer

DEAR MEDUSA was one of our finalists when I was on the LA Times Young Adult Book Award Committee. It is absolutely incredible, and fascinating to discuss.

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Participants will be guided in discussion regarding the Myth of Medusa, the reclaiming of Medusa by Sexual Assault survivors and current literature (Children's, Young Adult, Adult) that are reframing the myth.

We will meet at Reach and Teach and goodies will be provided. There will also be a same day discount in the store. https://shop.reachandteach.com/

$45 fee includes the paperback edition of the book, which will be available for pick up at the store. If you want the book shipped to you, there will be a shipping charge of $6.75

There are a TON of great panels, activities, meet and greet (meets and greets?) etc. These books are all fabulous and the authors are going to be FANTASTIC!!

Rerunning the review with a giveaway from the publisher!!

https://airtable.com/appeNPLdZS3Wt6kje/shrYnCQeUxRS2kaVY?prefill_Giveaway%20Projects=Bringing%20the%20Beach%20Home%20%7C%20Sharon%20Levin%20Giveaway&hide_Giveaway%20Projects=true

This book gently addresses hard issues, like divorce, shared custody, and trying new things.

Okay, I went to the publisher's website, and they just said it so darn well, that I'm copying and pasting.

QUICK NOTE: I forgot to reach out to the author and publisher until today regarding a giveaway, so there may be one next week.ff

What You’ll Love Inside:
Nature as Comfort: Shows how the peace of the natural world can ease anxiety and foster connection.
Creating with Our Feelings: Encourages emotional expression through imaginative, hands-on projects.
Visual Beauty: Lush, expressive illustrations and a cover rich with detail and texture bring the beach—and Rowan’s journey—vividly to life.
Family-Centered Resilience: Highlights the strength of family bonds and offers an empowering lens for children navigating shared custody or life’s many changes.

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Lazily yours, Sharon

And to new rave reviews!!

Day of Delight is being republished this month by Kalaniot Books. Illustrated by Caldecott Honoree, Brian Pinkney, the book tells of one Sabbath day in the life of a Jewish community in the high mountains of Ethiopia. This book was selected as an Association of Jewish Libraries Holiday Highlight and just this week got a great review in the School Library Journal: "An important and resonant work, offering young readers a window into a specific cultural experience and a universal message about family, faith, and tradition. Ideal for classrooms, libraries, and shared reading. This is as a meaningful contribution to children’s literature and cultural storytelling."

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I remember being lucky enough to meet Maxine Rose Schur when SACRED SHADOWS came out. I've been a huge fan of her writing ever since! So excited to see this wonderful book coming back into the world.

In April and May, join Redwood City Public Library for One Book, One Coast, which unites libraries and communities across California, Oregon and Washington around a shared book and conversation. The 2026 selection, They Called Us Enemy, is George Takei’s graphic memoir of his childhood incarceration during World War II. Read along to learn how shared books and stories build stronger communities.

Read along and attend the programs happening in May to join the discussions it inspires. Save these dates:

Morrish Collection: SAT MAY 9 at 1pm

Seeds of Activism: THU MAY 14 at 6:30pm

Book Bites: TUE MAY 26 at 12pm

Live-stream with George Takei: SUN MAY 31 at 2pm

I'm leaving this in because this book is a MUST HAVE. I took an old college friend with me, who was at the front lines in the 80's and this book and the authors really resonated for him. (Yet another friend who doesn't think he reads Young Adult, until I show him how fabulous YA books are.)

From the Random House Website:

A thoughtful, poignant look at the AIDS crisis in the United States that includes primary source interviews, history, medical research, and cultural touchpoints.

The AIDS crisis in America is complex and composed of countless individual stories of grief, love, and advocacy. Its history shows the power of youth activism, how creativity and community can be vehicles for social change, and how bigotry and misinformation led to inequality in care.

The early days of the AIDS crisis saw LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities making strides in the fight for equality. As many people in positions of power were slow to act or actively didn’t pay attention until their own communities were affected, the fight for equality turned into a fight for their lives. Grassroots efforts filled in gaps where mainstream medicine and politics failed, and over time, a cultural shift of awareness emerged, which led to more research and more treatments. And while the disease has transitioned from a death sentence to one that people can live full lives with, there are still people dying of HIV/AIDS today because they can’t access the care they need. The fight may have begun decades ago, but is not yet over.

Award-winning author David Levithan and University of Cambridge PhD Gabriel Duckels detail a brief history of the epidemic, touching on key moments and figures, such as Ryan White, ACT UP, Larry Kramer and Anthony Fauci, Pedro Zamora from MTV’s The Real World, and the Names Quilt. Threaded throughout are poems, essays, and other creative works, in addition to first-person interviews and narratives. The most important takeaway is that we must remember. We need to know what happened and why. Our voices are powerful, and they can make a difference.

Children/YA book author Dashka Slater and illustrator/author Lisa Brown in conversation

Jewish Arts and Bookfest
Sunday, May 3, 2026

at UC Berkeley’s Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, 2121 Allston Way, Berkeley, CA

What do Frog and Toad, Curious George, Shrek, and the Wild Things have in common?

They were all written and illustrated by Jews. Join children’s book creators Lisa Brown and Dashka Slater for a conversation about groundbreaking picture book artists like Maurice Sendak, Ezra Jack Keats, and William Steig, and how their backgrounds, whether by design or not, influenced their thoughts about visual art, writing, and childhood.

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HOW I WISH I COULD BE AT THIS!! The amount of growing AntiSemitism in this world is terrifying (and shocked me out of my complacency). This discussion is going to be AMAZING!! Two brilliant and talented Jewish Women in Conversation.

About Lisa Brown

Lisa Brown is a New York Times bestselling illustrator, author, and cartoonist of more than twenty books. Her award-winning picture books include: The Airport Book, The Hospital Book, The Moving Book, Mummy Cat by Marcus Ewert, and The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming, by Lemony Snicket, and is the creator of the “Baby Be of Use” series of board books for McSweeney’s. Her comics include The Phantom Twin, a graphic novel for young adults, and Long Story Short, a literary comic strip collection. She writes essays and book reviews for New York Times and other publications, and is senior adjunct faculty at the California College of the Arts. Lisa lives in San Francisco, where she chairs the board of 826 Valencia and drinks too much coffee.

Photo Credit: Kristen Sard

About Dashka Slater

New York Times-bestselling author Dashka Slater has been described as a “triple threat” for her success in journalism, adult fiction, and children’s literature. The author of many books of fiction and nonfiction for children, teenagers, and adults, her work has been translated into more than fifteen languages and has sold more than a million copies. She has received numerous awards for her writing, including the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award gold medal for Accountable, the 2023 Kurt Vonnegut Speculative Fiction Award for her short story, The Jeanines of Summer, and the 2018 Wanda Gág Read Aloud Award for her picture book, Escargot.

Her books for younger children include the beloved Escargot picture book series, The Feylawn Chronicles middle grade fantasy series, and The Antlered Ship, which received four starred reviews and was named one of the best picture books of the year by Amazon.com. Her New York Times best-selling young-adult true crime narrative, The 57 Bus, has received numerous accolades, including the Stonewall Book Award, and was named to Time magazine’s list of the 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time. Her latest nonfiction narrative, Accountable, was the first young adult title to ever receive the prestigious J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize from the Columbia Journalism School and Harvard’s Neiman Foundation for Journalism and received numerous additional awards.

Photo Credit: Amy Sullivan

I try (when I have time/energy/spoons) to visit store websites and pull event information. However, the best way to get your events in is to e-mail me directly with FOR THE NEWSLETTER as the subject line. There are over 2000 subscribers to this newsletter - plus it gets posted on Facebook, Twitter (I said what I said), BlueSky and my local NextDoor. I am happy to spread the word, it's just easier if 'the word' (not the religious one) comes directly to my inbox

I'm only as good as my sources, so please do feel free to share events, good news, etc.! Please e-mail me at sharonlevin at mindspring dot com and put For the Newsletter as your subject line.

I'm always happy to feature giveaways. There is NO paid advertising in this newsletter - I do not require anything to feature a giveaway. I'm just happy to do it.