Episode 46: What books were you reading when you were seven years old?- With Katrina Moore

Welcome to another great episode! Today, authors Grace Lin and Katrina Moore answer this kid question, “What books were you reading when you were seven years old?”

TRANSCRIPTS:

Grace Lin: Hello. I'm Grace Lin, children's book author and illustrator of many books, including the middle grade novel When the Sea Turned to Silver and the picture book, A Big Mooncake for Little Star. Today, I'm here with Katrina Moore, the picture book author of One Hug, illustrated by Julia Woolf, and Grandpa Grumps, illustrated by Xindi Yan. Hi, Katrina.

Katrina Moore: Hi, Grace. Thanks for having me.

Grace Lin: Thanks for coming on. Are you ready for today's question?

Katrina Moore: I am. I'm excited.

Grace Lin: Okay. Today's question is from a person named Josie, and Josie asks...

Josie: What books have you been reading when you were seven years old?

Grace Lin: What books were you reading when you were seven years old?

Katrina Moore: Oh, that's a great question, Josie. When I was seven years old, one of the books that I remember hearing for the first time was Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola. And when I heard that book, my second grade teacher read it to me, and when I heard that book, I thought, wow, that's magical. I loved Strega Nona and how she was sassy. And I loved Big Anthony and how he made mistakes, and I loved pasta and all this pasta overflowing. And so that book really made me fall in love with reading. So that was probably one of the first books that I remember really, really loving.

Katrina Moore: And then also Roald Dahl. I loved Roald Dahl books, and I kind of found those on my own in the library, but I really loved all the quirky characters, and I especially loved Matilda and how she was so little. I was really teeny when I was growing up, too, and so I loved how she was so tiny and she didn't have this great family life, but then she connected with her teacher, and she just was so brilliant. And then she was also magical and she found her magic and used it to do good and kind of get revenge, which I thought was really, really cool.

Grace Lin: Aw, that's nice. Have any of those books influenced the ones that you have been writing?

Katrina Moore: Absolutely. So I have a chapter book series that's not yet announced, but it definitely has to do with magic and it has to do with also being tiny. And so those were some of my early inspirations.

Grace Lin: When will it be announced? Do you know?

Katrina Moore: Soon, very soon.

Grace Lin: So we'll all just be on pins and needles waiting for it, then.

Katrina Moore: Oh, I know. And you know, everything in publishing takes so long, as you know. And so I'm very excited to announce it. I'm really, really excited for the series. And then the books will actually come out, the first two will be in 2022, winter 2022.

Grace Lin: Winter 2022. And those have been very much influenced by Strega Nona and Matilda. That's so exciting. Were any of the books that you read when you were seven, did they influence One Hug or Grandpa Grumps?

Katrina Moore: You know, they did, but I think that, I guess they inadvertently didn't, because when I was growing up, I didn't find a lot of books that I saw myself in as a character, or that really felt super close to what my life was like. And then it wasn't until I was older, as an adult, actually, that I discovered actually your books, Grace, and Lisa Yee’s books, And I think The Ugly Vegetables, I think was the first book of yours that I came across, and I came across it as an adult. And then I said, "Oh my goodness. Yes, I see my culture represented here. I see a contemporary Asian American represented here."

Katrina Moore: And I went on your website and I found one of your essays. And it was, I think it was like, Why Can't Snow White be Chinese, or something like that. And in your essay you so beautifully stated what had been going on in my mind that I couldn't articulate and I couldn't connect with to words, that I hadn't seen myself represented accurately in literature. And that was a big inspiration for me becoming a writer. I was a teacher at the time, and I thought, wow, maybe I can do this. Maybe there's a place for my words and my voice and my story, to then connect with other little children, as well.

Grace Lin: Aww, that's so nice to hear. I'm so glad that you did. Oh, that's really lovely. It's so interesting, because this question was so specific about what you were reading when you were seven. And one of the books that I was reading when I was seven were the "B" is for Betsy books, by Carolyn Haywood. And those were actually very, very influential in my writing as well, because in "B" is for Betsy, and Betsy's Play School and Betsy's Winter House and all these, it's like this whole series about Betsy. And she's just this girl who just goes to school, and all the adventures she has with her friends. And they're very just sweet everyday stories.

Grace Lin: And it was the same thing. I loved everything about those books, and I saw so many of the things in my life in those books, but I didn't see me, because I was Asian American and there was no Asian Americans in that book. And so that was what really inspired me to write The Year of the Dog, which I wanted to kind of be just like the "B" is for Betsy, with everything that I loved, but also myself. So it's so fun to hear that that influenced you, as well. What a nice circle.

Katrina Moore: Yeah, I know. And it's really great to see how many more books are available now, because now I'm sharing all sorts of books. Josie, I'm so glad that you asked, because, in addition to writing books, I also teach and I teach seven year olds. I teach second graders. And so the books that I'm sharing with them today are ones that I wish I had when I was seven years old, because even though there were really great books then, there are so many more today, and books that I'm sharing, I just shared The Proudest Blue with my second grade class before we were all out of the classroom.

Katrina Moore: And I had a student raise their hand immediately and say, "My mom wears one of those, and I never saw it in a book," and it's just things like that, that really, you don't even think. I mean, it's just a beautiful story, but then for someone to recognize themselves in that story or someone they love in that story, and have never seen them in a book before, I think it's really important that we all can do that.

Grace Lin: Yeah. It's just nice to have that extra layer. And it's also nice for people who always see themselves, as I've said many times in many lectures, it's always nice for people who always see themselves to realize that there are others out there who can be heroes in the story, as well.

Katrina Moore: Absolutely.

Grace Lin: Well, thank you so much, Katrina. That was such a great answer to this question. And thank you so much, Josie, for asking it.

Katrina Moore: Thank you. Thank you, Josie, for your great question.

Grace Lin: Bye.

Katrina Moore: Bye.

Today’s BOOK REVIEW comes from Eleanor! She’s reviewing “Katie Woo Has the Flu” by Fran Manushkin and illustrated by Tammie Lyon.

Have you ever read a funny book? Do you like funny books? Well, Katie Woo Has the Flu it's a funny book. It's by Fran Manushkin. One funny part is when Katie draws a picture of herself with her friends' names on her sleeves. One time Katie dreamed that her class sang her welcome back song and the teacher played the tambourine.

Thanks so much Eleanor!

More about today’s authors:

Katrina Moore writes in New Jersey.  She holds a M.A. in Teaching and has been an elementary teacher for ten years. Her mission is to create books that children will hug for ages. She is the author of the picture books, ONE HUG, illustrated by Julia Woolf (HarperCollins/Tegen Books, Dec. 2019), GRANDPA GRUMPS, illustrated by Xindi Yan (Little Bee Books, April 2020), and the forthcoming SOMETIMES LOVE, a powerful and poetic exploration of love---from giving, to growing, to sometimes letting go, illustrated by Joy Hwang Ruiz (Penguin/Dial, Summer 2022).
​When she is not writing or teaching, she is cooking without a recipe, painting outside the lines, or snuggling up with her two kids, husband, pups, and of course, a cozy book.  Connect with her on twitter @kmoorebooks or at www.katrinamoorebooks.com.

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.