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A Lit Life

Latest Podcast Episodes & Posts

Spooky Summer Camp: Camp Twisted Pine by Ciera Burch

November 14, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m talking with Ciera Burch about her new middle grade novel: Camp Twisted Pine. This spooky middle grade novel invites readers into Camp Twisted Pine, a summer camp in New Jersey with a spooky secret....
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Boost Your Immunity by Reading & Writing

November 12, 2024 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Are you wondering how to stay healthy this holiday season and give your immune system a needed boost? Look no further than your favorite books and notebooks. Today, I’m diving into the benefits of reading and writing on our immune systems. We’ll talk about 5 indirect effects of reading and 3...
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The Importance of Self-Care: The Big Squeeze with Molly Harris

November 11, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m talking with Molly Harris about her debut picture book: The Big Squeeze. The Big Squeeze is about a little sponge with a big job: she washes and mops and scrubs away all the messes in the kitchen. But what happens when the...
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Celebrating 15 Years of The Global Read Aloud with Pernille Ripp

November 8, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
Today is a special day on the KidLit Love podcast because I’m talking to Pernille Ripp, creator of the Global Read Aloud. The Global Read Aloud is a powerful experience that unites classrooms together with a single goal: to read the same book as a global collective. I’ve been a part...
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Magical Expeditions: Majestica with Sarah Tolcser

November 7, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m talking with Sarah Tolcser about her new middle grade novel: Majestica.  This middle grade novel is about two girls, a magical hotel and an expedition gone wrong and has received rave reviews, including a starred review from Kirkus.  Come listen as we...
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5 Ways to Practice Gratitude in Our Notebooks

November 5, 2024 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Any time of the year is the perfect time to start a gratitude practice, but November offers a particular invitation to count our blessings, be grateful for what we have in our life and seek joy. Today, I’m sharing ways that we can show up to our notebooks in five different...
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The Power of Comics & Graphic Novels: Let’s Go, Coco! With Coco Fox

November 4, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m talking with author Coco Fox about her debut middle grade graphic novel: Let’s Go, Coco! This powerful graphic novel is about an eleven year old girl who will stop at nothing to make new friends on her basketball team…but shouldn’t true friends...
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Halloween Fun: A Bite Above the Rest with Christine Virnig

October 31, 2024 in Kidlit Love Podcast
It’s the PERFECT day to talk about Christine Virnig’s new middle grade novel debut: A Bite Above the Rest. Why? It’s Halloween! This Halloween-themed book is sure to delight readers at this time of the year AND at any other time, too. It’s about a boy who moves to a Halloween-themed...
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ABOUT

Stephanie

A book-loving, notebook-hoarding bookologist on a mission to change lives one book and one notebook at a time.

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Stephanie's books

Paperweight
Paperweight
by Meg Haston
I read this hauntingly beautiful book on the recommendation of my teenage daughter. She told me it was powerful, told me I wouldn't want to stop reading it...and she was right. Meg Haston invites readers into the mind of Stevie, causing ...
The Gifts of Imperfection
it was amazing
The Gifts of Imperfection
by Brené Brown
I haven't stumbled across anything written by Brene Brown that I did not love and this book is no exception. Written so conversationally as if Brene was literally speaking directly, and only, to me, I could'n help bu be personally moved ...
I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life
it was amazing
I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life
by Anne Bogel
True to its title, this book was simply delightful. I felt like I was talking with a long-lost friend, a fellow book-lover whose life was just as entangled with the plots, settings and characters of fictional books as they were those in ...
Some Places More Than Others
it was amazing
Some Places More Than Others
by Renée Watson
It was almost like I was reading a book that was written just for me, even though the daily lives and locations of the characters were vastly different. The theme of love, self-worth and family connection was prevalent on each and every ...
Touching Spirit Bear
it was amazing
Touching Spirit Bear
by Ben Mikaelsen
This book shook me to my motherly core. I read this with my 13-year old twins as part of a school assignment and was swept into Cole's story of literally fighting for survival and for love. My children were drawn to Cole's story of survi...

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I’m trying a new reflective writing technique: 100 I’m trying a new reflective writing technique: 100 I statements. Let’s see what appears on the page…

Thanks for the inspiration @xmaslen01 ✏️📓
This book was a gorgeous exploration into love, lo This book was a gorgeous exploration into love, loss, family and the complications among them. Tasked with clearing out her family’s home after both her parents passed, Plum wades through the objects of the home and the emotions of her heart. It’s filled with lyrical writing and an invitation to consider our own roots, our own stuff and our next moves.

#ALitLife
#Memoirs
Surprise! I’m here with a bonus episode to close Surprise!

I’m here with a bonus episode to close out the end of National Library week with a delightful middle grade biography of an important bookish figure: Ursula Nordstrom.

Plus, for the first time ever, I invited an additional guest on to share the book love with me. Come listen!

@mother_goose_librarian
#KidLitLove PODCAST LINK IN BIO!
#ALitLife
#MiddleGrade
A Note From My Nudge Notebook… This week, I was i A Note From My Nudge Notebook…

This week, I was inspired to write a really terrible first draft of a picture book inspired by a conversation with my father and grandfather AND the writing advice from inside this incredible middle grade biography by Nancy Hudgins: BOOKS GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU. Ursula Nordstrom will now stand on my writing shoulders forever.

What acts of inspired action are you taking from the books you’ve read this week?

#NudgeNotebook
Middle grade novels hold a unique kind of magic an Middle grade novels hold a unique kind of magic and Ann Braden unlocks that magic with every novel she writes.

Her newest book is no exception.

HIJACKED BY GOATS is a heartfelt middle grade novel that delicately captures Josie’s inner world and the sheer number of compulsive and overwhelming thoughts that battle for her attention. Officially diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Josie progresses through residential treatment and outpatient therapy as she navigates recovery and a kinder way of treating herself.

Ann delicately captures the challenges Josie faces, the overwhelming thoughts and feelings that won’t let her rest and the brave choices she makes to move through them with the support of new friends, family and knowledgeable professionals.

While every middle grade reader might not be able to relate to Josie directly, they WILL be able to relate to going through something hard, wishing away particular thoughts or feelings or knowing someone who is struggling with their mental health. So will every adult reading this book, too.

This book so beautifully captures the entirety of the human condition and invites every emotion to the table, holding out a hand to those that need it and providing a window of empathy to those that need that, too.

It’s an incredible book and I’m forever grateful for having read it.

@annbradenbooks
#KidLitLove
#ALitLife
#MiddleGrade
#OCD
#Bibliotherapy
This. I know this face. I’ve made this face. I now This. I know this face. I’ve made this face. I now have better words to explain the significance of it and the love it holds. Thank you, Ann. ❤️

HIJACKED BY GOATS by Ann Braden

Coming September 2026
Full review coming soon.
@annbradenbooks
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