BOOK NEWS — February 15, 2026
I can now say that my debut novel is coming out next month! March 31 is the big day. January and early February have kept me busy as we get closer to the launch date.
Highlights include:
First copy of Tested arrived! I got my first author copy last week. It’s AMAZING. It shimmers. It gleams. It’s the real thing—hard cover, fancy stained edges, metallic paper stock for the jacket. I yelped when I saw my picture on the back flap. The main shipment is still on the way from the printer in China, but so fun to get this first copy in my hands.
World Read Aloud Day 2026. I did my first school visit as an author on February 4, as part of the World Read Aloud Day celebration. In a half hour virtual visit, I met with three classes of fifth and sixth graders at Gideon Welles School in Connecticut. I shared a teaser of Tested and the story of how I went from being a reader to a writer, and we had Q&A time at the end. (I need to decide on my favorite book of all time. That’s a hard question for me—too many favorites!)
Farah Kidwai confirmed as narrator for the audiobook version of Tested. I’m delighted. I had the chance to weigh in on choice of narrator a while back, and I spent an evening listening to audiobook samples. Farah Kidwai was at the top of my list. There’s a real sense of ease in her reading. I’m looking forward to hearing how she interprets Mikayla’s voice and world. (The audiobook releases alongside the hardcover and ebook editions in March.)
Saying “no” to social media. It feels radical, but after some heartfelt discerning and distress, and a reassuring conversation with my editor, I have decided not to enter the social media fray. Perhaps when I have bandwidth for yet another learning curve, I will try it, but for now I’ve got my hands full. I want to focus on being involved in the writing/reading community in ways that I love — school visits, conferences, and staying in touch in other ways.
Save the date! April 12, 2026. Book launch party for Tested at Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro, Vermont. 1 pm. There will be chocolate. More details to come.
FOR READERS
Middle-grade favorite of the month: Ruth Chan’s graphic novel memoir Uprooted. 
Born and raised in Toronto, Ruth has to uproot when her family moves back to Hong Kong when she is 13. Maybe this one resonated for me so much because I moved several times around that age. For a younger audience, the illustrated chapter book Born Naughty: My Childhood in China by Jin Wang and Tony Johnston also stood out. Based on Wang’s childhood in Inner Mongolia, the book gives a glimpse into growing up in a mud hut in a village where water is scarce and wolves are feared — hardships, but also a remarkable sense of freedom, all seen through the eyes of an eight-year-old girl.
On the adult side, I recommend Arundhati Roy’s recent memoir, Mother Mary Comes to Me. She manages to write a memoir that has hard experiences but doesn’t linger in self-pity. It’s beautifully done. I’ve also been enjoying nonfiction/essays from Ursula LeGuin. I finished off No Time to Spare and started on Words Are My Matter. She’s fearless in her opinions about literature and publishing — and she writes about her cute cat, too.
FOR WRITERS
I participated in Storystorm this year for the first time. Organized by author Tara Lazar, it’s a picture book version of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). The goal is to come up with 30 picture book ideas in the 31 days of January. Each day there’s a blog post from a different author, focused on how they generate ideas. I had fun with Sara Weingartner’s brainstorming template (Day 19) and enjoyed Nikki Grimes’ ode to research (Day 30). I haven’t been in a mental space where I could put real thought into creating new material, but even the cursory 10-15 minutes a day that I gave it, I think it helped me almost remember there is a creative side to writing, not just a business side. (And maybe, when I have time to go back and revisit my scrawled ideas, there may be a nugget or two in there.) If you’re in need of a boost about idea generation, all the posts from previous years are available on Tara Lazar’s website. The focus is picture books, but some of the material could be applied to middle grade and YA writing as well.
FOR FUN
It’s been a cold month in Vermont. Wind chill of -10 degrees Fahrenheit out there right now. On one of our warmer weekend days (25 degrees and sunny), with a foot and a half or two of snow on the ground, I went snowshoeing on one of my favorite trails. When it was time to turn around, I found a sunny patch off the trail and took ten minutes to lay in the snow and look up at the winter trees and blue sky. I was bundled up and mainly warm. I couldn’t hear any cars, and no one else was out. It was a lovely moment. And a lovely reminder to stop and rest and appreciate the silence.
