Episode 13: What book are you reading now? with Jarrett Lerner
*Please note that these episodes were all all recorded pre-pandemic!
Welcome to Episode 13: What book are you reading now? With author Jarrett Lerner!
TRANSCRIPT:
Grace Lin: Hello, I'm Grace Lin, children's book author and illustrator of many books, including the middle grade novel "Where the Mountain Meets The Moon" and the picture book, "A Big Mooncake for Little Star." Today, I'm here with Jarret Lerner, the author of the EngiNerds series. Hi, Jarret.
Jarret Lerner: Hi. Thank you for having me, Grace.
Grace Lin: No problem. Well, we have a question for you today. Are you ready for it?
Jarret Lerner: I'm ready.
Grace Lin: The question is-What book are you reading now?
Jarret Lerner: Ah! This is my favorite question, so much so that I recently made a whole bunch of stickers and pins with the question on it, so other people will ask other people this question and start discussions. Currently, I'm actually rereading a bunch of books that I loved in 2019. I love rereading books that hit me especially hard to go back and find where the magic is in them. I'm rereading a graphic novel right now called "Red Panda & Moon Bear" by Jarod Rosello, and I just finished reading "Pie in the Sky" by Remy Lai, which was fantastic. I also recently finished reading "Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles. All spectacular books from 2019 that I love so much I had to reread it.
Grace Lin: Oh! That's so awesome. The book that I'm reading now is the YA version of "Stamped From The Beginning" by Jason Reynolds and Ibram Kendi.
Jarret Lerner: Oh! I can't wait.
Grace Lin: Yeah. It's really, really good.
Jarret Lerner: Yeah.
Grace Lin: I'm hoping to do a book club on it or something, it's going to be really exciting.
Jarret Lerner: That's great.
Grace Lin: Yeah. I'm thinking I might do a book club on my other podcast "Book Friends Forever" with my good friend, Alvina Ling, we might do a book club on just on that book because it's so good. The other book that I've been reading, like slowly rereading because it was just so beautiful was "Stargazing" by Jen Wang.
Jarret Lerner: Yes.
Grace Lin: It's a graphic novel.
Grace Lin: It was just so beautiful. There's so much to see in each picture, so I'm slowly rereading that too. Those are great books.
Jarret Lerner: Yes.
Grace Lin: I hope you guys got some good book recommendations and the next time we see you we'll ask you what you're reading, so thanks so much.
Grace Lin: Wasn't that great? If you'd like to learn more about today's author, please go to our website kidsaskauthors.com for more information. Special thanks to Porter Square Books for helping to facilitate this interview. Also, thanks to High Five books and the Art Always Bookstore and Ms. Carlton's 2nd grade class at Jackson St. School for their help with our kid questions and reviews.
Grace Lin: Grownups, remember. If you know a kid that has a question, a book review, a short story, a poem, or even a joke they would like to share on this podcast, please submit it to kidsaskauthors.com. If you'd like to reach me, you can sign up for my author newsletter by clicking on the little link icon at the top of kidsaskauthors.com or you could follow me on Twitter and Instagram where I use the handle @PacyLin. Also, if you enjoy this podcast, please spread the word. Tell your friends and colleagues to listen and, of course, please leave a review on iTunes. That really helps me know that you like what we're doing, so we can keep doing it. Now, we'll close this episode with a kid book review.
Our book review today comes from France! She is reviewing, Spark and the League of Ursus.
I'm France and I'm going to review Spark and the League of Ursus by Robert Repino. Have you ever wondered if your favorite stuffed animal was actually alive? This book reveals the heroic purpose of teddy bears for even the most skeptical kid. I love how the story's main character, a teddy bear, named Spark loves and protects her kids. This story is full of surprises, creepy monsters that reek of oil on children going missing. The curious and determined Spark sets out immediately to find the missing children. Will Spark be able to save her kids from the monsters and discover the secrets of the missing children? Readers who like scary stories will love the adventure and enjoy the satisfying, but not too spooky, ending.
More about today’s author:
Jarrett Lerner is the author of EngiNerds and its sequel, Revenge of the EngiNerds, as well as the author of the forthcoming Geeger the Robot early chapter book series, the third book in the EngiNerds series, and the author-illustrator of the Hunger Heroes graphic novel series (all published by Simon & Schuster/Aladdin). He cofounded and helps run the MG Book Village, an online hub for all things Middle Grade, and is the co-organizer of the #KidsNeedBooks and #KidsNeedMentors projects. He can be found at jarrettlerner.com, on Twitter at @Jarrett_Lerner, and on Instragram at @jarrettlerner. He lives in Medford, Massachusetts, with his wife, his daughter, and a cat.
Grace Lin, a NY Times bestselling author/ illustrator, won the Newbery Honor for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and her picture book, A Big Mooncake for Little Star, was awarded the Caldecott Honor. Grace is an occasional commentator for New England Public Radio , a video essayist for PBS NewsHour (here & here), and the speaker of the popular TEDx talk, The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf. She is the co-host of the podcast Book Friends Forever, a kidlit podcast about friendship and publishing (geared for adults). Find her facebook, instagram , twitter ( @pacylin) or sign up for her author newsletter HERE.
Special thanks to the High Five Books & Art Always Bookstore, Ms. Carleton’s 2nd grade class at Jackson Street School for their help with our kid questions and reviews. Also, special thanks to Porter Square Books for helping to facilitate today's interview.
