Kids Article

One of my very favorite series growing up was Sydney Taylor’s ALL OF A KIND FAMILY, about five Jewish sisters growing up at the turn of the 20th century in New York City’s Lower East Side. The stories are delightful-- vivid and funny and warm, with clear Jewish representation and plots that are about everyday life adventures, not issues. I read them over and over. So imagine my excitement when I saw that one of my favorite authors for young people, Emily Jenkins, had been asked to write the  ALL OF A KIND FAMILY HANUKKAH picture book!

I’ve been a huge fan of Leila Sales’ writing since I picked up a copy of THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE, about about a girl DJ, the power of music, relationships, and more. Sales’ voice grabbed me then and hasn’t let me go since. So what a true pleasure to be able to interview her about writing, life, Twitter-dragging, moral grey areas, and her newest and very timely YA IF YOU DON’T HAVE ANYTHING NICE TO SAY about girl who thoughtlessly says something truly awful on line and has to deal with the public and personal fallout. Here’s what Leila had to say:

I recently had the privilege of meeting author Elana K. Arnold at the Austin SCBWI conference. She was giving one of the keynotes and I was presenting a breakout session, and somehow we sat together at dinner. The ensuing conversation over chips and guacamole and margaritas about literature and life and feminism and fairy tales and more was so fascinating that I asked her right then if I could interview her. And then I read DAMSEL. It is a powerful novel, skillfully written and raw in its emotions even as Arnold uses fairy tale narrative structure.

One of the picture books I’ve been eagerly anticipating is finally here: Caldecott’s Medal winner (WOLF IN THE SNOW) Matthew Cordell’s KING ALICE, about a little girl and her family stuck indoors on a snowy day. When Alice’s dad suggests she create her own book to combat snow day boredom, all sorts of imaginative shenanigans ensue!

So imagine my delight when I was able to interview Matthew Cordell about his books, his family, winning the Caldecott and more! Here’s what Matthew had to say:

It’s my great pleasure today to get to chat with debut author Rachel Toalson, one of our wonderful Texas authors of books for young adults. She’ll be in store on Sunday, 9/23, discussing and signing her novel THE COLORS OF RAIN, which is set here in Houston, in the tumultuous 1970s.

One of the things I love best about my colleagues here at Brazos is that every day, we challenge each other to broaden our reading. Whether it’s Sara encouraging us to read Women in Translation or Mark getting excited about Latin American novels in translation or Keaton putting strange and wonderful literary gems in our hands or dozens of other moments, we collectively explore the world through the books we discover--and are able to pass on to our customers.

It’s always a pleasure when Houston YA author Caroline Leech drops by. She’s amazingly talented. She’s got this delightful Scottish accent. Her Scotland-set historical novels are engaging, fun, romantic and lush with details that make you feel like you’re wandering the Highlands. Also she says things like “Putting tablet in your coffee is like putting gravy on haggis” and who doesn’t adore someone who can come up with a sentence like that?

One thing that both Laura and I are always keenly aware of when buying and merchandising for and in the Kids’ Room and YA section is making sure that we represent the diversity of our world as widely as possible. In kidlit we are fond of saying that books should be both mirrors and windows, and we take this idea very seriously here. Of course this philosophy holds true for all books, but we’re particularly focused on it for children’s books.

The world-famous Waldo comes to Houston in July and will be hiding out in 22 local businesses all month (starting July 1). Drop into any of the locations to pick up your Find Waldo Passport and get it stamped every time you find him. Once you have collected ten stamps, you can come to Brazos Bookstore and get a “I Found Waldo!” button and $1 off coupon for any of the Where’s Waldo books we have on display.

I have known author Samantha Clark for a number of years now. Our paths cross regularly in a number of ways: We are both members of Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (Sam is the Regional Advisor for the Austin chapter); We both attend many of the same writer’s conferences and retreats. I’ve watched with eager anticipation her journey to publication with a fabulous and thrilling middle grade novel called The Boy, the Boat, and the Beast, which debuts at the end of this month.