SWISH! THE SLAM-DUNKING, ALLEY-OOPING, HIGH-FLYING HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS (+High-Flying Giveaway!)

Who doesn’t love the Harlem Globetrotters? With their precision shots and hilarious stunts, these phenomenal athletes are admired around the world. But there’s much more to this remarkable team than you might think. My new picture book SWISH! THE SLAM-DUNKING, ALLEY-OOPING, HIGH-FLYING HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS (illustrated by Don Tate), which releases …

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FLYING HIGH: THE STORY OF GYMNASTICS CHAMPION SIMONE BILES (+Giveaway)

Whenever words come to me in the middle of the night, I embrace them. I get up, grab the notepad from my nightstand, and scribble everything down fast. For FLYING HIGH: The Story of Gymnastics Champion Simone Biles, I was immersed in research about Simone’s life for several months. And …

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BECOMING A GOOD CREATURE by Sy Montgomery and Rebecca Green

Welp, here it is—Election Day at long last. If, like me, you’ve found this election—and, well, the last four years—incredibly stressful, disheartening, and often infuriating—here’s a book to soothe your spirits. Two books, actually. Becoming a Good Creature, written by Sy Montgomery and illustrated by Rebecca Green (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt …

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Tips for Picture Book Writers Who are Not Illustrators

I have been fortunate to have created books with many wonderful illustrators: Jeff Berger, Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Troy Cummings, Guy Frances, Alison Friend, Goro Fujita, Arthur Howard, Victoria Hutto, Dan Krall, Jeff Mack, Scott Magoon, Dave Mottram, Lynn Munsinger, Mike Reed, Angela Rozelaar, Dan Santat, Bob Shea, Michael Slack, Liz Starin, …

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A chat with the creators of the inspiring NO VOICE TOO SMALL!

A new picture book — out now! — recently caught my eye and my heart. It’s NO VOICE TOO SMALL – Fourteen Young Americans Making History, edited by Lindsay H. Metcalf, Keila V. Dawson, and Jeanette Bradley, who also illustrated the book (Charlesbridge). It’s an uplifting, affecting armful of poetry …

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THE PRESIDENT OF THE JUNGLE + Voting + Giveaway!

Many of us are drawn to writing picture books because we want to have a positive impact on kids. Maybe we hope to encourage a sense of empathy, kindness or self-acceptance, or teach them about a person or issue we find important. But—as my files full of clunky manuscripts attest—good …

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