This Week at Book Riot & Around The Web

February 10, 2017 |

What a week, y’all. I’ve been fighting off a cold and trying to both nurse that and not fall down into full-on sickness because I’ve got so much I need to get done. But that said, I managed to get quite a bit of writing done and tackle the to-do (including writing and scheduling out a ton of posts here!). Over on Book Riot this week…

A round-up of middle grade and young adult books by/about/set in the countries impacted by the president’s travel ban.

30 pairs of excellent bookish earrings.

This week’s “3 On A YA Theme” explored YA books with bipolar disorder (which are well-done).

Elsewhere around the web:

At The Book Smugglers, I wrote about my influences and inspirations behind Here We Are, and there’s a giveaway of a finished copy to US residents. There’s a comment that I absolutely love down there, about how this helped a reader better understand where I’m coming from in the other venues where I write. That was really nice to hear.

The New York Public Library called Here We Are one of the hottest YA books of 2017 so far.

Foreward Reviews interviewed me about Here We Are.

If you’re in the Milwaukee, Madison, Chicago, Tucson, New York City, Providence, Manchester (VT), Rhinebeck, Austin, or San Antonio areas, you should come see me and fellow contributors!

This Week Around The Web

February 3, 2017 |

Over on Book Riot this week:

Recommended recent and upcoming books that feature stories and lives of fat girls. Fiction and non-fiction, prose and comic form. These three books are so different and so wonderful.

A look at YA authors who have adapted their own books into comics.

Feel like taking part in a low-pressure Instagram/Bookstagram challenge? I set one up at Book Riot and it’s so nice to have an entire social media feed filled with nothing but happy pictures of books. Join in whenever you want to this month.

More things from around the web, this time having to do with Here We Are: Feminism For The Real World:

The last two posts at Teen Librarian Toolbox for their Social Justice in YA Lit project went up. You can check out interviews with Sarah McCarry and Daniel José Older. You can catch up on the whole series of interviews here.

Jim Higgins at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote an excellent review of the anthology (& it was so neat to pick this up in print and hold!).

Shelf Awareness awarded Here We Are its FIFTH starred review.

Jen Doll at New York Magazine (!!) called Here We Are one of the 11 great books for “stoking the feminist fire” in young readers. I’m on a list with The Baby-Sitters Club, y’all.

I’m going to make this plea regularly, but if you read and love my book, would you drop a short review on Amazon and/or Barnes & Noble? Algorithms on consumer sites are set up such that more reviews lead to better findability for readers. I’ve set my own goal of copying over reviews to those sites once a month, so I can put my own money where my mouth is.

Snag a Feminist T-Shirt, Mug, or Sticker & Support Good Causes

February 2, 2017 |

As part of the promotion for Here We Are: Feminism For The Real World at ALA Midwinter, Algonquin gave out out some excellent t-shirts that looked like this (with a standard collar, unlike my DIY boatneck):

A number of people asked if they could buy one of those shirts, since they weren’t able to attend ALA. So, with permission of Algonquin, they’re available.

You can pick up a standard crewneck t-shirt, a mug, or a sticker from teespring through Friday, February 3, end of the day — and if there’s more interest, I am happy to extend the sale longer. All of the proceeds from the sales will be split between two excellent causes: Girls Write Now and We Need Diverse Books.

As of this post, about $200 will be split and donated. I’d love to be able to hit $500. I think that’s totally possible.

This Week Around The Web

January 27, 2017 |

Over on Book Riot this week…

I wrote about growing up as a library kid and the fond memories of being a kid of the library.

This week’s not-so “3 On A YA Theme” looked at YA spy stories.

And a round-up of 28 awesome bookish coffee mugs (including the Poe one I own and never can get enough of!).

With release week, there’s been a ton of other stuff around the web I’ve been a part of. Here’s a round-up of those pieces (note how patient the bunny is being in the above photo — usually he’s game with photos but he was not interested that night!):

At the Teen Librarian Toolbox blog, I’ve done a week-long series for their Social Justice in YA Lit project, which has included interviewing four of the contributors of Here We Are about their essays and about feminism and social justice more broadly. They also all include a tiny excerpt from the finished pieces. Since I’m writing this post pre-Thursday, not all are up yet, so I’ll share the rest next week. But you can read my take on how I’m an activist, Alida Nugent on using humor to do good work, and Brandy Colbert on finding her voice in feminism and on social justice. Amanda MacGregor also posted a really thoughtful, wonderful review of the anthology.

I was interviewed by Nadya Sarah Domingo for Teen Vogue and you can read her take on the book and our conversation here. That was such a delight, I can’t even explain. Great questions, great conversation, and what an honor to be featured on the leading source of actual news in the US right now.

Kayla Whaley, one of the contributors to Here We Are, wrote an unbelievably thoughtful post for the B&N teen blog about the anthology.

There’s more to come, some that I know about, and some that I don’t. Thanks for being along for the ride. I will ask this frequently, in part because it’s a thing I am resolving to be better at myself, but if you read and loved the book, can you drop a quick review on Amazon? Consumer reviews help the book land in the site’s algorithm, making it easier for other readers to discover the title. It doesn’t need to be long or intense. I appreciate it so, so much.

Here We Are: It’s Yours <3

January 24, 2017 |

Here We Are: Feminism For The Real World officially releases today. To celebrate the book, and to celebrate every day we wake up and do the thing again and again, enjoy the whole damn cake.

Thank you for all of your amazing support and enthusiasm. Buy the book for yourself, for people you know, for your libraries and classrooms.

If this weekend’s marches around the world say anything, it’s that there’s still work to do. I like to think this book will help new feminists, as well as seasoned ones, find that hope, that courage, and that enthusiasm to keep on fighting.