Congratulations to Samantha Clark on her gripping debut novel, The Boy, The Boat and the Beast (2018, Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster). This is a one-of-a-kind story that skillfully keeps the reader emotionally invested all the way through to the unexpected ending. I asked Samantha about her writing journey. Middle …
Congratulations to Mae Respicio Koerner on her debut novel, The House that Lou Built, a warm middle grade book perfect for summer reading. What kid wouldn’t like a tiny house all their own to escape their hectic family life. Even better, ambitious #stronggirl, Lou is determined to build it herself. …
Tomorrow, May 8, is the official launch of Inventors at No. 8 A.M. Morgen. To help celebrate the big day, the Mafia was lucky enough to have A.M. answer a few question as part of our 4-1-1 series. Enjoy this today, tomorrow you should buy the book! Middle Grade Mafia: Where do …
We love celebrating books here at the Mafia! I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Tania Unsworth about her book BRIGHTWOOD. Middle Grade Mafia: What was your inspiration for BRIGHTWOOD? Tania Unsworth: I’ve always been fascinated by the way children can normalize any situation – however strange – simply because they …
I’m so excited to announce the launch of Time Tracers by Annabeth Bondor-Stone and Conner White. It’s a fun, fast-paced middle-grade adventure with an awesome main character, Taj Carter. We asked Annabeth and Conner about their own writing adventure. MGM: What was the inspiration Time Tracers? AB: We started with …
Happy book birthday to Anne Nesbet and her middle grade historical fiction, The Orphan Band of Springdale (Candlewick, 2018). We asked Anne about her writing journey. Middle Grade Mafia: What was the inspiration for The Orphan Band of Springdale? Anne Nesbet: My mother’s extended family all come from a small …
The Mafia recently had the pleasure of promoting the launch of The Super Life of Ben Braver by Marcus Emerson. Marcus’s other books have been wildly popular with MG readers (Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja, Recess Warriors and Secret Agent 6th Grader), so Ben Braver is sure to be another hit. …
Welcome to Middle Grade Mafia’s Author 411. Today, we welcome Shannon Hitchcock, author of THE BALLAD OF JESSIE PEARL (2013) and RUBY LEE & ME (2016). Her new book, ONE TRUE WAY, has a release date of February 27, 2018. Middle Grade Mafia: What is the inspiration for ONE TRUE WAY? Shannon …
The Middle Grade Mafia is always happy to be shine the spotlight on debut authors and today we are excited to bring you Kamilla Benko, author of THE UNICORN QUEST. Please visit her Twitter page to congratulate her and wish her book a Happy Book Birthday! To purchase a copy …
If you’re looking for a good MG mystery, look no further than Laura Marx Fitzgerald’s first two novels. The characters are smart and savvy and the plots are unique page-turners. Nevermind that the reader is also learning about art history which Laura studied at Harvard and Cambridge Universities. I asked …
