Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for November 11, 2025

 A huge thank you to all the Veterans who have kept our country safe and free. There is one American hero who has often gone unrecognized. Everyone knows the name Paul Revere, who rode his horse for 20 miles to spread the warning that the British were coming. But few know the name of the 16 year-old girl who rode twice as far through enemy infested territory in the Hudson Valley in 1777 to warn her father's regiment of a coming British raid. There are over a dozen children's books written about her, and a statue of her on her horse stands in Carmel, New York. She is portrayed brandishing the stick she used to smack highwayman that got in her way. This is Sybil Ludington, who was personally thanked by George Washington for her service.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for November 4, 2025

 As an unemployed commercial artist from Indiana, he really wanted to illustrate children's books. He took his portfolio to New York City where fifteen editors turned him away. One told him his work wasn't very good, that no one would want him to illustrate books, and maybe he should try writing his own. So, he did, naming a character after his own little girl and featuring a large animal. His series has sold over 126,000 books. This is Norman Bridwell, author/illustrator of the Clifford the Big Red Dog series featuring the character Emily Elizabeth.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for October 28, 2025

 This Caldecott-winning Australian author/illustrator, now living in New York, writes books with very simple storylines: a family lives in a farmhouse and moves on, a family lives in a lighthouse and moves on, but her illustrations are rich and full of details. She was influenced by the crowded pages of Richard Scarry's books, Her work and travels for Unicef and Save the Children inspired her 2020 book If You Come to Earth, reminding readers everywhere that "the world is wide and diverse and wonderful and belongs to all of us." This is Sophie Blackall.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for October 21, 2025

Check out my facebook page for the link to the op-ed piece written by Tacoma author Mary Boone. She had an author visit canceled because her book about a woman who rode her bike around the world in 1895 smacked of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. I met Mary in September at a Highlights workshop in Pennsylvania, and she is hardly a radical, but a respected author of 70 books for children. I feel badly for the kids her visit might have inspired.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for October 14, 2025

Now that the Dept. of Education has gutted the Office of Special Ed., books that help kids understand their differences, like these by two Colorado authors, are more needed than ever. Bitsy Bat is an autistic kindergartner who feels she just doesn't fit in because she does things differently from her classmates--hangs upside down, fingerpaints with her toes, etc. She has a meltdown but learns there are ways that she shines, such as being a friend. Sonia has ADHD and becomes more and more frustrated as she tries to bake her mom a birthday cake, but she uses tools to calm herself, such as breath blasters, self-talk and senses scanners. Both books contain helpful information in the back to help kids cope. Bitsy Bat stars in a series written and illustrated by Kaz Windness and Sonia and the Super-Duper Disaster is by Rachel Funez.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for October 7, 2025

 The 15 most banned books in U.S. schools

Follow this link to the 15 most banned books of the year. The book that's been on banned book lists for 50 years is Forever by Judy Blume, who wrote it at her teen daughter's request.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for September 23, 2025

 This British author hoped to become an actress and graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London but found she couldn't make enough to support herself. She turned to journalism and became the first female reporter on British television. Her next career was as a teacher on a kibbutz in Israel. In 1981 she wrote the first in a series of books about a boy and a plastic toy that comes to life. She went on to write books for adults and plays for television, radio and stage, sometimes reading the radio parts herself, finally satisfying her dream to be an actress. This is Lynne Reid Banks, author of The Indian in the Cupboard.