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Coming soon!
Just a quick update: “Bittersweet” will be available in the United States through Scholastic Book Clubs in November.
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Hello: Halla, Hallo and Hei!
“Bittersweet” has been translated into Swedish, Norwegian and Finnish!
I was thrilled to receive my copies in the mail today (even though I can’t read them!)
Translated title = Sugar Match
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And the Nominees Are. . .
I’m thrilled to report that “Bittersweet” has been nominated for Saskatchewan’s 2017-18 Diamond Willow Award!
10 books are nominated and kids vote for the winner.
Here is a full list of the nominees. . .
Diamond Willow Finalists
Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard: A Peter Nimble Adventure by Jonathan Auxier.
Worms for Breakfast: How to Feed a Zoo by Helaine Becker.
A Boy Named Queen by Sara Cassidy.
Myles and the Monster Outside by Philippa Dowding.
I Am Not a Number by Jenny Dupuis and Kathy Kacer.
Hand in Hand by Jean Little.
Bitter Sweet by Winnie Mack.
Tank & Fizz: The Case of the Slime Stampede by Liam O’Donnell.
Pandas on the Eastside by Gabrielle Prendergast.
Heart of a Champion by Ellen Schwartz. -
A Sneak Peek!
My new book, “Bittersweet” will be available in April, 2016!
When Sam is diagnosed with diabetes, her whole world changes — can she learn to handle it?
Sam is a normal 12-year-old. She loves ice cream, sleepovers, Christmas, and her soccer team (future team captain). What doesn’t she love? Her super-annoying teenage brother, how her little sisters mess up the house and talk incessantly, and especially, how completely weird she is feeling.
Lately, Sam has been crazy hungry and thirsty. She’s tired all the time, and, most humiliating of all, she’s started wetting the bed like a baby.
One day, after a collapse at a soccer game, she wakes up in the hospital to find out she’s got Type 1 diabetes. Suddenly everything is different: not just her diet and the injections, but her relationships with her family and her friends. Will she learn to handle it?
This poignant story of a young girl coming to terms with a serious diagnosis, is a hopeful tale about overcoming life’s hurdles.
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New York visit
I’ve just returned for a trip to New York, where I met with the editor who worked on the paperback edition of “After All, You’re Callie Boone”. It was great to be able to thank her in person for all of her efforts (Especially the new cover! See below this post. . .)
I had a great time seeing the sights, including one very famous building:
The beautiful New York Public Library
I even came across a kids’ orchestra from California, in town to play a concert at Carnegie Hall. They sounded great as they made their way past Radio City Music Hall.
Soundtrack of the city
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A new look for Callie!
She’s coming out in paperback in the U.S. this June, with a brand new cover. Go, Callie!
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School visit
I just paid a pre-St. Patrick’s Day visit to St. Alphonsus Parish School in Ballard, Washington, where I spoke to a group of 3rd to 8th graders about writing and publishing.
I was lucky enough to be allowed to drop in on Miz. Schmutz’s class, who read me poems they’d written themselves. Very cool!
Couplets and quatrains and haiku, oh my!
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And a little extra. . .
Maya and her mother (my best friend Kate)
Nine year-old Maya even wrote an introduction rap for me:
My name is Maya and I’m here to say,
You’ve got to read a little bit each and every day.
Reading is good, just for your brain
So you don’t have to go out in the rain.
Her books are really cool and fun
But just you wait, I’m not done.
I know this author real, real good
So I asked her to come to our neighborhood.
My mom and her have known each other for so, so long
I hope you liked my funny song.
Please will you welcome Wendy Smith
Because her books are not a myth.
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Nomination News
“After All, You’re Callie Boone” has been nominated for the South Carolina Children’s Book Award!
Twenty books per age category are chosen by librarians, then it’s up to students to read and vote for the winners.
Good luck, Callie!
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A visit to Toronto
I recently visited Toronto, Canada. It’s the home of Scholastic Canada, the publisher of “After All, You’re Callie Boone” as well as the books I’ve written for boys under the name W.C. Mack (“Hat Trick” and “Line Change”).
I wanted to share a picture of myself in front of their office, where I met editors, designers, marketing wizards and all kinds of folks who love books as much as I do.
Anyway, the Scholastic building looks like just the kind of place I would have imagined as a kid, when I first started to dream of being a writer.
Who doesn't love a big red dog?
