And the winner is....

Thanks to everyone who entered the World's First Humongous Middle Grade Teacher-Love Book Giveaway!

The winner is Leigh Anne Eck, a 6th grade teacher from Indiana.

We hope to make this an annual event.

Teachers, thanks for all you do.

One Witch at a Time

I absolutely loved The Brixen Witch by Stacy DeKeyser.

Click HERE for proof.

And NOW.....

here's One Witch at a Time. 

Man, that Stacy can tell a tale!

While The Brixen Witch was a clever spin on the Pied Piper story, One Witch at a Time is a clever twist on Jack and the Beanstalk.

Such a fresh idea.

Masterfully written.

To quote the jacket flap:

 Magic and mayhem make for a funny, fast-paced adventure in this twisty tale of witchery times two!

A Valentine's Day Gift for Teachers

Middle Grade Authors Love Teachers.

Why?

Because we know that....

So to thank you for all you do to help spread the love of reading to young people, a group of middle grade authors wants to give you a Valentine's Day present:

A WHOLE BUNCH OF SIGNED BOOKS

Yes, this is the world's first super duper giant #MGAuthorsLoveTeachers book giveaway.

Wanna win SIXTEEN SIGNED BOOKS?

Just leave your name and email address in the comments here...

OR

Share or RT this post on Twitter with the hashtag #MGAuthorsLoveTeachers

That's it!

You'll be entered in the drawing.

But hurry.

The drawing will end at 11:59 p.m. on February 18. 

(School librarians eligible, too, btw.)

Oh, and one more thing:

Here are the books, donated and signed by the authors (who love teachers):

The Gossip File by Anna Staniszewski

The Way to Stay in Destiny by Augusta Scattergood

On the Road to Mr. Mineo's by Me (Barbara O'Connor)

Blue Birds by Caroline Starr Rose

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Paper Things by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Hot to Outswim a Shark Without a Snorkel by Jess Keating

Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah by Laurie Ann Thompson; Illustrated by Sean Quails

Random Body Parts: Gross Anatomy Riddles in Verse by Leslie Bulion; Illustrated by Mike Lowery

Beetle Busters: A Rogue Insect and the People Who Track It by Loree Griffin Burns; Photographed by Ellen Harasimowicz

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Mark of the Thief by Jennifer Nielsen

Wish Girl by Nikki Loftin

Why'd They Wear That: Fashion as the Mirror of History by Sarah Albee

One Witch at a Time by Stacy DeKeyser

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

AND guess what??

YA Authors Love Teachers, Too!

They're having a huge giveaway, too!

Go HERE to enter.

A very special THANK YOU to author Lynda Mullaly Hunt for organizing this wonderful Valentine's Day Teacher Book Giveaway. 

P.S. Books will be mailed separately by each author. Winners will be announced on Feb. 19 on Lynda's blog. 

Memory Lane

Ever since I sold my first book a million trillion years ago (okay, okay...1991), I've kept scrapbooks of book-related stuff.

I call them my Ego Books because during those times when I'm feeling insecure and inadequate, like a has-been and a loser (You know you've been there, right?), I can whip one out and thumb through it and I sometimes feel better about myself. (Saves me a ton of money on therapy.)

I read the nice letters folks wrote and see how blessed I am to have lovely, supportive friends and to have achieved some wonderful goals, I'm back in my groove.

So I recently decided to look through them.

Here are some of the highlights from the first one, which is 1991 to 2000.

This is my very first acceptance letter. It was for a biography of Maria Montessori. I remember that day so well. I was over the moon excited:

 This is a letter from David Freaking Small, y'all!! He did the cover art for my first novel, Beethoven in Paradise. I wrote him a note thanking him, and he wrote me back. I love that he told me how lucky I was to have "that great lady, Frances Foster" as my editor and FSG as my publisher.

This is my very first review of my very first novel (Beethoven in Paradise). It's a little hard to read because it was faxed to me. (Remember fax machines?) It's a Kirkus POINTERED review, which back in the day, was their version of a starred review. (Anybody remember those pointered reviews?):

This is a note from my son telling me I did a good job. Awwww. Better than a starred review!

This is a letter from Cynthia Freaking Rylant, y'all!!! We corresponded after I sent her a copy of my second book, Me and Rupert Goody:

This is Cynthia Freaking Rylant telling me that my novel "was lovely." Swoon. (I cropped out her signature cause I don't like to post that on the internet, but trust me, it's her. In fact, she signed it CYNDI RYLANT.

And this is from School Library Journal. Me and Rupert Goody was named a Best Book of 1999. I was beyond thrilled for that!

So, those were good years and I am blessed.