If reading is fuel for children as they grow, then Maya Smart has handed you a can of gas with her new book Reading for Our Lives: A Literacy Action Plan from Birth to Six . Maya is an author and literacy advocate, and her book is an essential tool for all new parents. She and Julie talk about building literacy at an early age, the importance of spaced learning, and the ways that parents can build easy habits into their days that will benefit the rapidly growing brains of their children. Maya st...
Sep 08, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Artist, designer, and illustrator Regina Shklovsky always loved art but had never imagined it as a career path–until the right class taken at the right time opened up a world of possibility. She joins Julie to share how she got started in graphic design, and then book design, and eventually book illustration (which she knew she wanted to do at age seventeen). She also talks about learning to design for a client versus her own projects, how to grow your interests by engaging (take a class!), and ...
Sep 01, 2022•45 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Kerri Sullivan isn’t an exceedingly wealthy secret ghostwriter, but she’s a woman with vision and the plans to make them reality. Her current day job is as a public librarian, but her love for her home state led her to start the Instagram account, Jersey Collective, which would eventually become the roots and inspiration for her anthology, New Jersey Fan Club: Artists and Writers Celebrate the Golden State . She talks to Julie about the fun and complexities of developing and editing an anthology...
Aug 25, 2022•42 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Traci Thomas has produced nearly 250 episodes of her incredible podcast, The Stacks , and talking to her was a thrill for Julie. Traci is thoughtful and intentional and loves talking honestly about books. She joins Julie in this episode to discuss the satisfactions and occasional cognitive dissonance of interviewing, how someone responding to an idea with “I have follow-up questions” is a friendly sign to pivot, and why she holds deep hatred for the phrase “ everyone should read this book.” Trac...
Aug 18, 2022•58 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Shelli R. Johannes may wear lots of hats, but she’s always the best dressed in the room (even on Zoom). Julie talks to Shelli about her co-authoring experience, the importance of having excellent communication and pre-set boundaries when disagreements arise, her two new books coming this year, and how she was excellent at Fortnite mobile but her skills aren’t as strong on the PC. Shelli also shares about her journey from a degree in Marketing to writing dark YA, to now penning and co-writing bri...
Aug 11, 2022•48 min•Season 2Ep. 5
In addition to hosting the hilarious podcast with Red Scott, Failure to Adapt , Maggie Tokuda-Hall is an author of all types of books. She joins Julie in this episode to share about the experience of writing her first novel, The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea , its upcoming sequel, and her most recent picture book, Love in the Library . Maggie talks very frankly about her commitment to education around the real-life events in Love in the Library , and she shares a key piece of writerly wisdom e...
Aug 04, 2022•37 min•Season 2Ep. 4
As an army brat, Madeline Martin learned to love libraries early on: they were a place where her literary besties awaited her — their lives comfortingly similar even as Madeline's shifted. She joins Julie to discuss her love of exhaustive research and its central role in all of her books, both romance and historical fiction. Madeline also outlines the unique challenge of writing romance, especially when balancing reality and fantasy (because characters in romance novels don’t have morning breath...
Jul 28, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Vicki Lewis may not be a librarian, but she plays one on stage in Between the Lines , the new musical based on the novel by Jodi Picoult and her daughter, Samantha Van Leer. In this episode, Julie and Vicki discuss the ongoing joy of Vicki’s role as the voice of Deb/Flo in Finding Nemo, the meditation and centering of singing, and how reading about those who have walked through hard times can serve as a comfort in our own struggles. This once shy, sarcastic young girl has blossomed into an actor...
Jul 21, 2022•50 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Gregory Maguire is a New York Times best-selling author and is, in Julie’s unbiased opinion, downright charming. In this episode, he speaks with her about trusting his own writing voice, the importance of understanding the life cycle of emotions, and his belief that books are for consolation, not bibliotherapy. We store up truths and stories in our hearts for the hard times that will inevitably come. You don’t want to miss this deeply thoughtful conversation. Purchase Ask a Librarian merch here ...
Jul 14, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Freya Sampson wisely heeded the voice that told her the chance to be a writer would pass her by if she didn’t grab hold of it. The author of The Last Chance Library and The Lost Ticket joins Julie in this episode to talk about that career pivot, writing a truly awful first draft to get it out of the way, and an important reminder for all writers: the book you hold in your hands wasn’t a magical one-step process. Julie’s chuffed to end season one laughing with this delightful guest. Purchase Ask ...
Jun 16, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Kim Michele Richardson loves Kentucky, and the author of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek and The Book Woman’s Daughter has written to share and honor the stories of courageous people from her home state. She joins Julie in this episode to talk about her first dates with her husband, her writing process, and the tremendous perseverance of the Pack Horse Librarians and other women throughout history (and Julie includes Kim Michele in that list, to be sure). Purchase Ask a Librarian merch here ...
Jun 09, 2022•26 min•Season 1Ep. 19
Over the years, Eva Jurczyk has noted women’s comments about becoming invisible at a certain age. She used her book, The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, to explore a piece of that theme: an invisible person, after all, makes a fantastic snoop. In this episode, she and Julie talk about how Eva fell in love with the world of rare books, the difference between a forgery and a facsimile (and whether there should be a difference), and the joy and energy she derives from working with...
Jun 02, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 18
In the second episode of this series with Alan Gratz, Alan tells Julie about two of his upcoming titles. Captain America: The Ghost Army is his upcoming graphic novel, and Two Degrees is the latest in his series of social thrillers released with Scholastic, a middle-grade prose novel about climate change. Julie and Alan discuss the importance of Ban This Book , Alan’s title that came out in 2016 and has proved (unfortunately) somewhat prescient. To be a free and open society, argues Alan, we mus...
May 26, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Alan Gratz has been putting fictional children in danger since 2006. In this episode, the first of two, Alan joins Julie to talk about the winding road he traveled to writing social thrillers – compelling page-turners that also say something about the world in which children are growing up – and why he’s convinced of the importance of directness, even when he’s presenting hard events and truths to middle-grade readers. Purchase Ask a Librarian merch here . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy ...
May 19, 2022•32 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Lydia Sigwarth is an author and children's librarian in Platteville, Wisconsin, and her debut picture book, Dear Librarian , is the less commonly told story of a portion of her childhood in which she and her family experienced homelessness. She joins Julie to talk about how that experience led her to become a librarian, about the books and musicals she loves (deep dive alert), and the things she loves about her job. She and Julie also discuss their recently -hatched plans for a multi-level marke...
May 13, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Matt & Melissa Hammersley are the founders of Novel Effect, an award-winning mobile app that follows along during story time with interactive music, sound effects, and character voices creating magical moments when you read aloud with your child. They join Julie in this episode to speak about the app’s origin story, its success, and the vision of connection that guides all they do. Matt & Melissa also get a chance to talk about what it’s like to mix work and family, and the most importan...
May 05, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Marie Benedict is a writer with a specific mission: to follow her historical women wherever they may take her. A New York Times best-selling author of fourteen books, Marie is a former litigator whose passion for history and research led her to her current career. Marie joins Julie to talk about working with her co-writer soulmate, Victoria Christopher Murray, her melancholy (but hopeful) stories, and the important legacies of the women in her books that deserve to be known. Hosted on Acast. See...
Apr 28, 2022•49 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Zeno Alexander is the author of The Library of Ever and The Rebel in the Library of Ever , two top titles on Julie’s list of middle-grade books. Since Zeno is busy tending to his extinct plants, Stephen Messer joins Julie in this episode to talk about pen names, his inspiration (and admiration for) Lenora, the main character in his series, and why mistakes – in writing and life – are not only unavoidable, but necessary. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Apr 21, 2022•43 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Kyle Lukoff is a librarian, a former bookseller, and an author of books for young people. He’s seen a lot in his writing career: his middle-grade novel Too Bright to See is a Newberry Honor Book, but his title Call Me Max has been banned in schools around the country. He joins Julie to talk about his latest middle-grade release, Different Kinds of Fruit , his forthcoming picture book for babies, and the strange feeling of suddenly being paid to tell people the same things you used to tell them f...
Apr 14, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Julie Fogliano is the New York Times best-selling author of books for children (and apparently she’s been writing poetry this whole time)! Julie F. joins Julie C. to talk about how she got her start in writing picture books, the joys of working with illustrators, and why she loves writing for people who are young enough to still be amazed by the world. They also discuss what to do about young readers who refuse all books except for those with work by Raina Telgemeier (though we don’t blame them)...
Apr 07, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Book expert Melissa Taylor believes in reading –– for adults and children. Melissa is a writer, former teacher and literacy trainer, and she’s the creator of the award-winning blog, Imagination Soup. Listen in as Melissa tells Julie about her review process, her favorite genres, and how she reads (and keeps track of) hundreds of books per month. Melissa also shares a favorite mentor text for budding young writers, and the importance of helping them specifically name what’s working in their writi...
Mar 31, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Bookstagrammer and library trustee Kari Sweeney joins Julie to talk about Bookstagram and how she’s used it to become a better reader. A passionate library advocate, Kari also shares about her role as a library trustee, how she managed to read over two hundred books last year, and how audiobooks can be perfect for logging precious ten-minute chunks of reading time (when it comes to reading, little by little adds up to a lot)! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Mar 24, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Kristin O’Donnell Tubb is a prolific author (and fan) of middle-grade fiction. Kristin joins Julie on this episode of the podcast to talk about her published books, including her Story Collector series set in the New York Public Library, her upcoming title, The Decomposition of Jack , and all the wonderful features of middle-grade fiction. Listen in to hear about her writing tips (some are six seconds), her fastidious research, and the other authors she admires. Middle-grade fiction: it’s not ju...
Mar 17, 2022•34 min•Season 1Ep. 7
New York Times best-selling author Michelle Knudsen contains multitudes, as Julie discovered while reading Evil Librarian after years of adoring Michelle’s charming picture book, Library Lion (chosen by Time Magazine as one of the top 100 children’s books of all time). In this episode’s conversation. Michelle talks with Julie about her many other titles, her complicated relationship with spiders, her best advice for young writers, and their shared belief that books may end, but stories go on. Ho...
Mar 10, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Author and librarian Christine McDonnell joins Julie to talk about her recent picture books, When the Babies Came to Stay and Sanctuary . Christine shares stories from her years in the New York Public Library system, her teaching work with Rosie’s Place, and why she believes deeply that libraries should be a safe place where anyone is welcome, anytime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 03, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Best-selling author Fiona Davis writes edifying historical fiction about iconic buildings in NYC, and Julie has read 83 percent of her books (one more to go)! In this episode, Fiona and Julie discuss the layers of history in the 42nd Street Branch of the New York Public Library, where Fiona gets her ideas, and their shared desire to become Rockettes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 24, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Archivist Emily Urhin joins Julie to talk about her work at the Fred Rogers Center in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. Julie is a forever fan of Fred Rogers, and she and Emily discuss the Center, its resources for researchers, and what Emily really loves to find among all the papers she sorts through. Julie and Emily also take a moment to talk Fred Unboxed, messy desks, The Monkees, and being the keeper of such an important legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Feb 17, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Librarian, literary critic, and best-selling author Nancy Pearl joins Julie to discuss her first job, what she’s reading now, and the experience of writing her novel, George & Lizzie. Nancy also shares her thoughts on the conversations worth having as libraries enter another age, and the importance of prioritizing libraries and ensuring they stay devoted to their original purpose. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Feb 10, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Best-selling author Mac Barnett writes for children––not to children––and Julie is a super-fan. Mac joins Julie to discuss the importance of picture books, the ways we interact with those reads as we grow, and the unique process of writing a picture book when creating alongside an illustrator. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 03, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 1
