Things to know: The Wisconsin governor’s wife, Jessica Doyle, runs a book club for the students of Wisconsin called Read On Wisconsin.
Things to be excited about: She’s chosen my Dr. Kate: Angel on Snowshoes as her January 2011 pick!
Photographic proof of the aforementioned excitement with official letter announcing said news :
(taken by 8-year-old directly upon return from afternoon at pool, so blurry and bedraggled)
And finally, my illustrious company:
Book Selections
September
Preschool: My Garden by Kevin Henkes
Primary: Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton & Tom Lichtenheld
Intermediate: Justin Case: School, Drool and Other Daily Disasters by Rachel Vail
Middle School: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt
High School: Hate List by Jennifer Brown
The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir by Kao Kalia Yang
October
Preschool: Boo to You! By Lois Ehlert
Primary: Z is for Zombie by Merrily Ruther
Intermediate: American Chillers: Wisconsin Werewolves by Johnathan Rand
Middle School: Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth
High School: Stitches by David Small
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
November
Preschool: What can you do with a Paleta?/ Que puedes hacer con una paleta?by Carmen Tafolla
Primary: The Village Garage by G. Brian Karas; Horse Song by Betsy and Ted Lewin
Intermediate: Going Home, Coming Home by Truong Tran
Middle School: Out of my Mind by Sharon M. Draper; Red Glass by Laura Resau
High School: Rush by Jonathan Friesen
December
Preschool: What Will You Be Sara Mee? By Kate Aver Avraham
Primary: Tiger and Turtle by James Rumford
Intermediate: Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman
Middle School: The Reinvention of Edison Thomas by Jacqueline Houtman
High School: Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America by Firoozeh Dumas
January
Preschool: Yes Day! By Amy Krouse Rosenthal & Tom Lichtenheld
Primary: Beautiful Moon/ Bella Luna by Dawn Jeffers
Intermediate: Dream: A Tale of Wonder, Wisdom & Wishes by Susan V. Bosak; Dr. Kate: Angel on Snowshoes by Rebecca Hogue Wojahn
Middle School: My Life with the Lincolns by Gayle Brandeis
High School: Bruiser by Neal Shusterman
February
Preschool: I Can Help by David Hyde Costello
Primary: My People by Langston Hughes
Intermediate: Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Myers
Dyamonde Daniel by Nikki Grimes
Middle School: Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
High School: Shooting Star by Fredrick McKissack Jr.
March
Preschool: Pouch! By David Ezra Stein
Primary: Book Fiesta! By Pat Mora
Intermediate: Trickster: Native American Tales, A Graphic Collection by Matt Dembicki
Middle School: Shooting the Moon by Frances O’Roark Dowell
High School: Liar by Justine Larbalestier
April
Preschool: Never Smile at a Monkey by Steve Jenkins
Primary: A Whiff of Pine, a Hint of Skunk: A Forest of Poems by Deborah Ruddell & Joan Rankin
Intermediate: Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry with a Beat by Nikki Giovanni
Middle School: All the Broken Pieces by Ann. E. Burg
High School: Partly Cloudy: Poems of Love and Longing by Gary Soto; Crossing Stones by Helen Frost
May
Preschool: A Beach Tail by Karen Lynn Williams
Primary: What if? By Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Intermediate: Top of the Order by John Coy
Middle School: More About Boy by Roald Dahl
High School: Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork
Summer
Preschool: Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd
Primary: Pigs to the Rescue by John Himmelman
Intermediate: Volcano Wakes Up! By Lisa Westberg Peters
Middle School: Albert Einstein: Giants of Science by Kathleen Krull
High School: Candor by Pam Bachorz; Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Working full time in a school means it’s hard to visit other schools and events as an author. At least during the school year. But I’ve squeezed in a couple this spring.
Eek! There’s an interview with Don and me about our 
Our local public library is in the midst of a huge fund-raising effort. 3.2 million dollars to expand and remodel, with the bulk of it going to a new children’s section. Beside the obvious library and reading connection for me, I moved to this town when I was in second grade. The same year that the existing building was opened. We’ve grown up together; it’s one of my all-time favorite places to be. When I go there, even now, it’s like visiting old friends because I always remember how excited I was as a kid to find the next book in Ramona or Anne or Meg or Nancy’s adventures.
Well, a few weeks back, all the schools in the area were contacted to see if they would like to involve their students with raising funds at their school. I thought this was a great idea. Our school already does a lot of community service–and since much of the money will go to improving youth services, this was a great concrete way for our students to see their results. Then I found out that what the public library had in mind. They’re organizing a penny drive called the Big Penny. And I got excited because it was so similar to the manuscript on