Middle Grade Reading for March
On my blog, Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, I've recently interviewed some authors of new middle grade novels, and I'd like to share some excerpts with you! To start with, Kara Thom's new novel is called Sweet, Tart . When I asked her about the inspiration for the book, she said: "I mention in my author’s note at the end of the book that, like Halle, I witnessed a racehorse break down at a track. It was hard to “unsee” and to process the emotions I turned to writing. What followed was a narrative poem. Then an essay. Then, about six months later, I started a story for children." She added: "I started what-ifing. What if the stables that used to exist near my home were still there? And what if that racehorse had been born and raised there? And what if a young girl went to inquire in person? And what if? And what if?" Alaba Onajin is the author and illustrator of the new graphic novel Koroba: The Case of the Missing Kolo . He said of the inspiration beh...
