A Bit About the Author – By Word of Beth

A Bit About Author Beverley Brenna

If you’ve been around my blog for any length of time, you’ll know that I love to post about author Beverley Brenna. She’s a Canadian author of picture books, middle grade novels, and YA novels. One of her YA novels was a Prinz honor book a few years ago. She’s versatile, writing thoughtful, insightful books as well as funny ones. Full disclosure – Bev is my cousin, but I’d love her books even if I didn’t know her at all. Bev also writes short stories, plays and poetry for all ages. She is a professor who teaches prospective teachers and researches children’s literature. She is an amazingly caring, encouraging person who has certainly given me solid encouragement throughout my own writing journey. To get to know her better, check out the “About Me” page on her website. I strongly urge you to click the little box on that page that says “Hope Houston Interviews Bev for RiverVolta.” It’s an excellent interview and will teach you about the writing process (not just Bev’s writing process, but things you can use in your own writing). As I said at the beginning of this post, she has written several books for various age groups. You can find a full listing, by age group/writing category, on her website at this link. As I looked through all the information on her website, I found this delightful list of 50 family games to play (with a couple of added crafts). They’re sure to enhance your own family nights. Here are some more links to dip into. Don’t feel you have to read them all – I promise there won’t be a test. 😉 I hope you’ll come back tomorrow, though, when I post about her most recent middle grade novel, Because of That Crow. I’ve posted about some of her books, and would encourage you to check these out (both check the posts out, and potentially check the books out of the library – or buy them, of course!) Fox Magic, middle grade novel The Bug House Family Restaurant, poetry for kids Wild Orchid and Waiting For No One, young adult novels Falling for Henry, middle grade time slip novel (note: this post was written in anticipation of the book’s publication) The Keeper of the Trees, middle grade novel I’ve interviewed Bev for this blog, as well. The first interview Wednesday Worthy Interview about Wild Orchid and Waiting for No One Interview with Bev about her Prinz Honor book, The White Bicycle Hope to see you again tomorrow!

A Bit About Author Rajani LaRocca

2 Comments / A Bit About the Author, A Word With Beth, Just Want to Say / By Beth

This year, when I share a book recommendation here on By Word of Beth, I plan to do a separate post the day before to introduce you to the author, so you’ll know a bit about the person before you read about the book. When I’m recommending a picture book, I’ll post about both author and illustrator. For my first such post, I’m featuring an author I’ve been lucky enough to hear speak (online, at least) more than once: at a couple of her book launches, and most recently at an online event called “What’s on Your Bookshelf? A Celebration of Children’s Literature” last Saturday. Rajani LaRocca is a medical doctor and prolific, award-winning writer of children’s books – picture books and middle grade novels. Her debut novel, Midsummer’s Mayhem, and her debut picture book, Seven Golden Rings, illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan, indicated that she was an author to follow. In 2021 alone, she has had seven (!) books published: picture books Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers, with illustrations by Chaaya Prabhat published by Charlesbridge in April; Where Three Oceans Meet, with illustrations by Archana Sreenivasan, published by Abrams Books for Young Readers in August; My Little Golden Book About Kamala Harris, with illustrations by Ashley Evans, published by Golden Books in August; and The Secret Code Inside You: All About Your DNA, with illustrations by Steven Salemo, published by little bee books in September; and middle grade novels Red, White, and Whole, a verse novel published by Quill Tree Books in February and Much Ado About Baseball, published by Yellow Jacket in June. And that’s just one year! She has several books announced for publication in the next couple of years, which is exciting for her readers, for sure. Here are some links to dip into. Don’t feel you have to look at every one, but if you want to, be my guest! I hope you’ll come back tomorrow for my post about Rajani’s middle grade novel Much Ado About Baseball! You can learn more about Rajani and her books on her website, and sign up to follow her blog. Here’s the link. Not surprisingly, there have been many articles written about Rajani and her books. Here’s just a sampling: A Q&A with Rajani by Pooja Makhijani, from Publishers Weekly, September 14, 2021 A post by Rajani on Writer’s Digest online, July 13, 2021, entitled How I Managed to Get Six Books Published in 2021. A wonderful article about the scope and breadth of Rajani’s work, from the International Examiner, September 16, 2021 and An excellent interview in the Boston Globe, September 17, 2021. There are many, many more, as well as videos and podcasts, which you can access at the Interviews/Press page on Rajani’s website. Check out Rajani’s YouTube channel for trailers, unboxings, and more, here. Hope to see you tomorrow!