BookHuddle with Readgab

LIberty Biscuit and Little Pearl by Melanie Sue Bowles 

Find author Melanie Sue Bowles

Chapters
00:00 Meet middle grade author Melanie Sue Bowles
03:50 What is Liberty Biscuit about?
07:53 How did Melanie create the story?
10:27 A happy/strong family that has weaknesses
13:05 A mixed race family in a story
15:40 How did Melanie end up with rescue horses on her farm?
16:55 Real horses and donkeys Liberty Bisc...

Do you remember the moment you fell in love with reading? Or a magical moment in a story that stuck with you forever? In this episode I talk with author Jessica Khoury about creating her newest book, Monster and Apprentice, how the story developed, how she discovered its themes, and all of the magical moments that go along with a writer's journey. 

Jessica Khoury is the author of many books for teens and young readers. ...

Nancy Hudgins is a nonfiction middle grade author of Books Good Enough for You: The Storied Life of Ursula Nordstrom. You will likely be familiar with many books that Ursula edited during her long career championing children's books: Goodnight Moon, Charlotte's Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harriet the Spy. Nancy puts together a wonderful history about Ursula in a way that reads like someone is telling you a selection of stories....

No one likes to fail. It isn’t fun. But it is how we grow. The way authors Kate and Nate illustrated this powerful theme while providing an entertaining story fascinated me and I am so thrilled that they joined me in this podcast episode to discuss it. I love all that I learned about their creation and the thoughts that went into Confessions of a Mango. There is so much more to the story than the importance of failure and I h...

Maria Dolores Aguila is both a picture book and middle grade author of historical fiction. Her novel in verse, A Sea of Lemon Trees won both a Newberry Honor and Pura Belpre Honor. Find out how this book has changed her and more in today's episode. 

Find author Maria Dolores Aguila
https://mariadoloresaguila.com/
https://www.instagram.com/maria.d.aguila/
A Sea of Lemon Trees by Maria Dolores Aguila The Corrido ...

When Diane Debrovner decided to write a middle grade book about a character with blind parents she decided that she would like a coauthor and so she approached her friend Stacy Cervenka. Stacy adds her unique perspective with her blindness and the experiences she knows about many other individuals. Diane also brings us an animal's point of view as many chapters in the book are told from the persective of a guide dog. While we somet...

Caldecott Award Winning author and illustrator Matthew Cordell talks about the importance of curiosity and how this trait features in his newest picture book, 102. I was so surprised to discover that the brilliantly illustrated picture book was drawn with a multi-color pen. Learn more about this fascinating creator in today's interview. 

Find Matthew Cordell
https://www.matthewcordell.com/
https://www.instagram.co...

Have you ever wondered about the greatest aspects about being an author? Or about the lowest moments? While discussing PJ Gardner's newest book I thought it was the perfect time to delve into some of these questions since the title of this book is: Worst in Show.

Find author PJ Gardner
https://www.pjgardnerswitzer.com/
https://www.instagram.com/pjgardnerswitzer/
Worst in Show by PJ Gardner https://www.amazon.com/Wor...

Chapters
00:00 Meet illustrator Carmen Mok
02:48 How did Carmen Mok get into illustrating books
05:15 What made Carmen want to stay in illustration?
08:39 Carmen’s process from start to finish for when her illustrations are in a published work
12:16 How the art directors feedback effects Carmen’s illustrations
13:53 After Carmen receives the manuscript what does she do to enhance the story through illu...

Bring on the high stakes tension! April Henry is a New York Times bestelling author of young adult and adult fiction books. In this episode we discuss her 32nd book, In the Blood. What is it like to go all in researching for these thrillers and what are some of April's experiences with writing them. 

Find author April Henry
https://www.aprilhenry.com/
https://www.instagram.com/aprilhenrybooks/

In the Blood ...

Do your readers love fantastical shapeshifter books? Werewolves? Vampires? Sharks? Malia Maunakea joins us to talk about her newest middle grade fantasy based on Hawaiian legends. The Shark Prince is about a boy cursed to transform into a shark. You decide if it is a curse or a blessing. 

Find author Malia Maunakea 
https://www.maliamaunakea.com/
https://www.instagram.com/maliamaunakea/
https://www.tiktok....

Philip Stead is best known for his writing and illustrating of picture books, but after a little convincing from others and a lot of creativity on his part he recently published his first middle grade novel. "A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic or Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm a Story Out of Order" quickly became a New York Times bestseller for children and in this episode you get to hear about how he came up with this ...

Poetry is not something that should be dreaded by students or adults. John shares how poetry can be found in multiple forms and can be a benefit to children and teens in many ways. Not only has John written a number of beautiful picture books, but John has a New York Times bestselling novel in verse, Louder than Hunger. 

Find author John Schu
https://www.johnschu.com/
https://www.instagram.com/mrschureads/?hl=en

Join Shakirah and I discussing one of my favorite books of the year, Here Lies a Ghost. The mystery of the moving coffins of the Chase Vault is one of the top 100 greatest unsolved mysteries in the world. Middle grade author Shakirah Bourne shares with us how she went from a young girl exploring the vault to a writer who crafted a ghost story that includes real people from history. After this interview go get your copy of Here Lies...

There is so much going on in this discussion because there is so much going on in the incredible book, The Blue Dress, by Rebecca Morrison. We talk about body image, being your authentic self, being an immigrant, complicated mother/daughter relationships.

Find author Rebecca Morrison
https://www.rebeccakmorrison.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccamorrisonwriter/?hl=en 
Facebook: https://www.facebo...

Weird books are some of the best books! Michael Buckley shares his experience writing The Weirdies series in this author interview on BookHuddle where we learn to embrace and love the weird!

Find middle grade author Michael Buckley 
https://www.michaelbuckleywrites.com/
https://www.instagram.com/whatsupbuckley/

Chapters
00:00 Meet author Michael Buckley
02:50 What is The Weirdies by Michael Buckley ab...

Jen takes us behind the scenes in her writing the Isle of Ever and book 2, The Curse Breaker. We get to hear all about how it came together and maybe you'll have some questions at the end so maybe you should follow Jen Calonita on her socials and read all of the books in the Isle of Ever series. 

Find author Jen Calonita 
https://www.jencalonitaonline.com/
https://www.instagram.com/jencalonita/
https://www...

In our lives we are always growing, always changing, and yet some aspects of us stay the same. We are never defined by just one thing; there is never just one thing going on in our lives. It is hard to explain A Scar Like a River with just one word. If I had to, I would say it is heavy or emotional, but I would hope that the hearer would remember that either of those words can mean so many things. A Scar Like a River is about a gir...