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The Reading Tub, Inc. is pleased to announce its Author Showcase for the Spring Quarter, 2009. This quarter, our featured guests are multiple award-winning author Debbie Dadey; debut author Corey Rosen Schwartz, whose first book garnered attention by the Eric Carle Museum; Laurel Snyder, whose picture books and chapter books enjoy both popular and critical acclaim; Michelle Shillings, whose first picture book filled a huge void in literature about divorce for children; and Robert McCarty, who cross-promotes his books for reluctant readers and reading therapy dogs.
"One of my favorite features on the Reading Tub® website is the Author Showcase. When I start my research, I’m always amazed by those first glimpses at the story-behind-the-story,” says Terry Doherty, Executive Director of The Reading Tub, Inc. “There is never a shortage of questions I’d love to ask. I always learn something new, so even after four years every interview is lots of fun.”
The Spring showcase is the second for 2009. The Featured Author Program is an initiative to introduce parents, teachers, librarians, and the public to authors and new books that they probably don't know about. "There are more than 20,000 books for kids produced each year. Very few of these authors are invited to the talk shows, but they have great books that deserve a voice, too," says Doherty. “By presenting interviews with authors passionate about reading and kids, we believe that adults get a more complete picture of what goes into the books their kids love.”
The Reading Tub, Inc. (thereadingtub.com) is a 501(c)(3) public charity promoting literacy for children. The organization's goal is to help every child be a successful reader by showing families how important – and easy – it is to read with kids at home.
Debbie Dadey is the award-winning author/co-author of wildly successful chapter-book series like Adventures of the Bailey School Kids and historical fiction books, too. She has been writing for kids for more than 10 years, and is about to launch her newest series, The Keyholders. As a former elementary school teacher and librarian, she knows what kids like, so she builds those elements into her stories.
As a young boy, Robert McCarty loved to read. Books expanded his imagination and, as an adult, he transformed what he saw in his mind's eye to film and video. He has always loved telling stories - either as a director/producer or as Dad, the guy who made up stories as a way to spark a love of reading in his kids. Although he didn’t envision the story as more than one book, Planet of the Dogs is becoming a popular fantasy adventure series for students from first grade to middle school.
If you ask her, Corey Schwartz will tell you she'd rather be scuba diving. In the meantime, she spends lots of afternoons in the park with her kids, always open to new ideas for books. Corey is creating wonderfully inventive picture books and enjoying the opportunity to let her children inspire her. Her debut picture book Hop! Plop! earned a 2006 Picture Book of Distinction from the Eric Carle Museum. As Corey explains in our interview, a notable first book doesn’t make it easy to get the second book published.
In 2003, Michelle began searching for children's books to help her son understand his parents' separation. She was surprised to find that while there are lots of books for parents that had advice for helping your kids, there weren't any for kids themselves. She knows how much that book would have helped her ... so she created it! Having found a niche, she wants to continue to create books to help kids of all ages connect with their feelings through books.
Laurel Snyder is a master of words and imagination. As a poet and a children's book author she combines her love of language, a wry sense of humor, and her little-kid sensibilities to create books that engage readers of all ages and interests. Laurel is a member of the class of 2K8, a group of 27 new authors whose first middle-grade and young adult books debuted in 2008. Laurel’s middle-grade novel Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains was recognized as a Smithsonian Notable Book for 2008. Her newest book Any Which Wall (May 2009) has already been listed as a Junior Library Guild Selection!
The Author Showcase continues to be a very popular venue for the Reading Tub, Inc. and a very worthwhile outlet for the authors who participate. To learn more about the Author Showcase, visit the Reading Tub® website. Once there you can learn more about all of the authors and literacy advocates, read reviews of their books, and read our interviews.
Visit the website to meet these authors and learn more about the showcase program.
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