Mary Casanova is back on Realgoodwords

Minnesota children's book and young adult author Mary Casanova is back on KAXE's Realgoodwords this week.  Her new American Girl series of books about McKenna are the 2012 Girl of the Year series.  Here's how it is described:

Ten-year-old McKenna Brooks has always excelled in school and in gymnastics. So when her grades suddenly fall, McKenna begins to doubt herself. With the help of a new friend, McKenna learns to focus on her strengths to overcome her challenges, one step at a time. But just as she begins to shine in school, McKenna is sidelined with a gymnastics injury. Will McKenna be able to springboard to success again? Author: Mary Casanova. Paperback. 128 pages. Ages 8+ 

Mary Casanova is a writer from Ranier, Minnesota who has written many different kinds of children's books - from picture books to books for young adults, Mary has also written many in the American Girl series of books.

Bullying this week on Realgoodwords

Rosalind Wiseman has written on the subject of bullies before, in her bestselling book "Queen Bees & Wannabees" that the movie "Mean Girls" was based on. This time, she's written a novel for young adults. It's called "Boys, Girls & Other Hazardous Materials".

Tina Fey wrote of the new book, "Rosalind Wiseman once again writes with humor, compassion and accuracy about the high school experience. The real-life situations she presents are like watching a train wreck if that train were made out of text messages, make-out parties, and benzoil peroxide, and if train wrecks were surprisingly funny, which they are not. You can't put this book down...or it will talk about you while you are out of the room."

She, along with thriller writer Kathy Reichs (with her first book for young adults "Virals") and local author Duane Schwartz are my guests on this week's Realgoodwords. Check out this video from Rosalind Wiseman.

Remember when you were a kid? When anything was possible?

You can hear Minnesota author Tim Kehoe talk about his book "The Unusual Mind of Vincent Shadow" - a book for kids that reminds adults that's it's not only okay to be creative and follow something that might seem crazy, it's part of what makes our lives good, and unpredictable.

Listen here as I talk to Tim Kehoe, a toy inventor that lucky for us, never grew up himself. He tells us about some of his own inventions like colored bubbles or Zubbles - and about his character, Vincent Shadow, who also is an inventor.

Have you invented anything? Wanted to? What's something that SHOULD be invented, to make your life better or more interesting?

I'm so EXCITED!

I really don't want to quote the Pointer Sisters. I mean really don't want to. As a geeky reader type who lives in Minnesota, this week is one of my favorites. But seriously, I AM so excited for this week's episode of Realgoodwords.

Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee are writers from Minneapolis/St. Paul that are known nationwide. Kate for her books and movies like "Because of Winn-Dixie" and "The Tale of Despereaux" and Alison is a Pulitzer Prize nominee and a #1 New York Times bestselling author. Both of them are nominated for the MN Book Awards happening this weekend in St. Paul.

Even though both of these authors write for kids, I love reading their books and talking with them. They both seem almost magical to me, and I know that sounds silly, but here's what I mean.

*When I talked with Kate she is so quick to point out, even with all her success, that she knows she's lucky she get to do what she gets to do (write books and talk to readers!). She readily admits how HARD it is for her to write, but lucky for me and for her readers, she still abides by her own rule of writing 2 pages everyday. Not at least 2 pages, but 2 pages only! Telling me that makes me think anything is possible.

*When I talked to Alison McGhee about her latest picture book "Song of Middle C" that is about a little girl about to perform at her piano recital, she reminded me that we occasionally need to do things in our lives (adults I'm talking to you!) that we aren't good at. Things we can't POSSIBLY ever be that good at. Like taking up the piano. How liberating, to not expect perfection but only practice.

Hope you get a chance to hear the program this week - Wednesdays from 6-7pm and Sunday mornings from 9-10. You can check the archive later in the week as well....

You gotta see this guy's you tube stuff!

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life--dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge--he follows.

After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues--and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.

Besides his novel, I had the chance to look into John's "web presence", and what a present it was! (okay, kinda lame, forgive me)

One of the things John is known for is the video letters to his brother Hank. They are called the nerdfighters, and you should totally check it out.

Go to where the silence is and say something

Author Amy Efaw (rhymes with Hee-Haw she told me!) told me that her mission statement as a writer came from a NPR report she heard by Amy Goodman where she said: "Go to where the silence is and say something".

In many ways both the authors on this week's Realgoodwords have done that. They are talking about what we are AFRAID to talk about. For Minnesota educator and author Jody Crowe, that silence is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and the link to school shooters. For Amy Efaw, it is young girls getting pregnant, having their babies and leaving them in motels or bathroom stalls or dumpsters.

Here's some startling findings about fetal alcohol syndrome-
A MN study identified women who were at risk for drinking during pregnancy...
the risk factors were:

Single
College educated (most likely to drink)
Working in high level white collar jobs
Younger (college aged) or older (35-45)
Affluent (over $50,000)
Living in the Metro

As Jody said in our conversation, this is clearly NOT just a native American issue.

Amy Efaw's young adult novel "After" is about a teen who has a baby and leaves it in a dumpster. Here's some of the statistics about teenage pregnancy.

Each year almost 750,000 teenage women 15-19 become pregnant.

The U.S. has the highest rates of teen pregnancies and birth among comparable countries.

In a year, over 365 babies are found abandoned.

Both authors on this week's show are saying something. That's for sure.

Kids these days!

On this week's Realgoodwords I'll talk with young adult author Jay Asher. His book, "Thirteen Reasons Why" is a bestseller. The title refers to the 13 reasons why Hannah Baker killed herself. Controversial? Hell yes. Kids though, can't get enough of it. So the question is: books about teen suicide, teen pregnancy, teen drug abuse, eating disorders....teen YOU NAME IT... does it lead to MORE of the "problem"? What appeals to young adults about the darker themes like these? Earlier this year I talked with bestselling author Laurie Halse Anderson about her book "Wintergirls" which had to do with eating disorders. I asked her if there was any worry on her part that her theme/subject matter would actually ENTICE an eating disorder. She told me that if you are prone to an eating disorder - EVERYTHING would spur it on - TV, magazines, Internet....all of these things exist and a book that delves into the issue doesn't mean it is glorifying the problem. Or does it?

We are not living in the days of Nancy Drew and her boyfriend Ned Nickerson anymore. These tough issues that face teens aren't going away.... and some people think that kids need to know it's okay to read REAL stories and communicate about them.

What do you think?

MN author Nancy Crocker

I "met" Minnesota author Nancy Crocker through facebook. I know, I know, the dreaded facebook. What would Mark Bauerlein think? But here's the thing: facebook is not all quizzes to see which superhero you are or that girl you sat behind in Mrs. Kramer's 5th grade math class. It's a good way for authors to get their books out there...and for people like me to find them.

"Billie Standish Was Here" (a finalist for the 2007 MN Book Award) is classified as a young adult book. But that's hooey as far as I'm concerned. A good book is a good book, even if the main character is 11 years old.

Billie Standish is a girl living in rural Missouri who badly needs a friend. When most of her town evacuates when the river threatens to crest, Billie finds what she's been needing in Miss Lydia. So what if she's 70 years older? A friend is a friend. I won't give anything away here, but pretty early on Billie suffers through a shocking event. But this isn't an afterschool special that defines her by this event. Billie grows through this experience. Tune in for my conversation this week on Realgoodwords. Heard Wednesdays from 6-7pm and Sundays 9-10am.

From Booklist
Proving that the heavily mined "child and elderly neighbor change each other's lives" premise isn't completely dry, Crocker's sturdy debut explores the deep and subtle reaches of a friendship that blooms between 11-year-old Billie and her across-the-road neighbor Miss Lydia. Set in a small town several generations ago, this is anchored by three pivotal acts—one driven by hate, one by love, and one a complex combination of the two.The story covers five years of Billie's struggles to get out from under the thumb of her spiteful, abusive mother, and Lydia's efforts to erase the guilt of two terrible secrets as, with agonizing slowness, her aging body fails. Crocker skillfully lays out the heart-deep regard that develops between these two perceptive, spirited females (Lydia is occasionally given to hilariously salty language) as life throws them severe challenges that they weather with each other's help. In Billie, the author creates a narrator whose credible mix of naïveté, resilience, and uncertain but budding sense of self-respect that will speak to young readers. This easily transcends its familiar themes and locale

Writing as a family

On this week's show I talked with Lauren Baratz-Logsted. I talked with Lauren years ago about her books for adults - books that might be put in the "chick-lit" category. It's been probably 4 or 5 years and Lauren has published many books in that time - for young adults and for tweens.

I was fascinated by her new series of books called "The Sisters 8"... stories of octuplets who are turning 8 years old. The girls realize their parents are missing - and find out that each of them
Lauren didn't just come up with this idea on her own. One snowed-in week in Colorado without TV she and her husband and daughter Jackie decided to collaborate on the series.

"The Sisters 8 would make a great read aloud for families to share together. Readers of all ages will enjoy the mystery mixed with humor..." 5 stars, TeensReadToo.com

Also check out the publisher's website for a quiz and paperdolls!

Did you want to be a ballerina when you grew up?

Me neither! Neither did Whoopi Goldberg or the main character in her new book "Sugar Plum Ballerinas - Plum Fantastic". Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson's mother always wanted to be a ballerina and enrolls her daughter in the Nutcracker School of Ballet. Alexandrea Johnson wants to play hockey or be a speed skater.

I had the chance to talk with Whoopi recently while she was on a train from New York to Washington D.C.

Tune in for our conversation this week, Wednesday evening from 6-7pm, CST or Sundaymorning from 9-10am.

A Strength that Goes Beyond Reason

William Durbin transports us to Finland and the land of Sisu in his new novel for young adults "The Winter War".

In 1939 Stalin decided to invade Finland - he thought that Red Army would march into Finland, take over the country in 5 days or - at the most a week - but the Finnish people put on white camouflage uniforms and ended up fighting through one of the coldest winters in Finnish history for 105 days and actually held the Red Army at bay for that long.

If you missed the interview, tune in Sunday at 9am, CST or check the archive. You'll also hear a conversation with Will Weaver of Bemidji about his latest project "Saturday Night Dirt" the book and Team Weaver, the stock car racing team.

Sisu is a Finnish term that could be roughly translated into English as strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity.

I asked author William Durbin to describe the character of the Finns both on the Iron Range of Minnesota and the Finns in 1939 as the Soviet Union invaded. He said "sisu".

"Sisu defines not only the Finns of the Winter War but the Finnish character that first settled in the stump and rock farms up here in Northern Minnesota - with that ability to just work really hard and to do the best they can to survive. That's what the Finns had to do during the Winter War - they were outnumbered 4 to 1 - 100 to 1 in tanks - without aid from NO other countries in the world, and STILL they were able to resist this huge Russian military machine."

I have some Finnish in my heritage, and I'd like to think that some of that Sisu has rubbed off - I see it in my grandma, in my mom - a strength that goes beyond reason.

Then again, my dad, a proud Norwegian-American, had that same strength and spirit. We lost my dad last week and these days have been some of the stump-iest and rock-iest my family has ever seen...

I'm hoping this Sisu will pull us through. That even though we really don't want to go on without my dad, we'll keep on farming - we'll keep on working hard and figure out how to survive, just like our ancestors did.