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<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nAmalie\u2019s A Walk Between Raindrops <\/em>is a YA novel about two sisters who win an all-expense paid, fourteen-day trip to the best amusement parks in the country to ride rollercoasters. The sisters have a strained relationship, but they attempt to heal their relationship over the course of this trip. Here is what Amalie sent me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Walk Between Raindrops received a star from <\/em>Kirkus Reviews, which called it “a superior, sisterly road drama with a last-act surprise.” Any Charlotteans who’ve spent time at Carowinds will recognize the scenes taking place at the Carolina theme park, along with other parks along the east coast like Kings Dominion, Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and Six Flags. I spent my childhood riding coasters all over the country, but despite the number of coasters I\u2019ve sampled over the years, the Fury and Intimidator are definitely at the top of my list (although these days amusement park rides require Dramamine.) Please don’t ask me to ride the Nighthawk with you, though. Once was enough, thanks anyway.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After a ten-year stint writing for young adults, I recently sold a middle-grade series to Pixel + Ink who will be publishing the first book in the series, <\/em>Team Canteen and the Magic Boa, in Fall of 2024. For more information about my books, visit my website: <\/em>https:\/\/www.amaliejahn.com\/<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n Rebecca\u2019s The Metamorphosis of Emma Murry<\/em> is a middle-grades mystery with an environmental theme. Here is what Rebecca sent to me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n My family moved to Charlotte twenty years ago. When we relocated here, our daughters were seven and four, and then our twins were born two weeks later. We love the Charlotte area; it\u2019s been a wonderful place to raise our family.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m a reading specialist, and I started teaching reading in schools and private clinics in 2009. A few years later, I took a children\u2019s literature class at UNC Charlotte just for fun and loved it so much I enrolled in the graduate program to study children\u2019s literature and creative writing. I\u2019ve been so fortunate to be able to do what I love\u2014teach kids to read and write books for them. It\u2019s so fun! There\u2019s a very supportive writing community here. I\u2019m a member of Charlotte Lit and our local chapter of the Society of Children\u2019s Book Writers and Illustrators where I facilitate a monthly critique group. Without the opportunities provided by these groups and UNC Charlotte, I would not be a children\u2019s author today.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Metamorphosis of Emma Murry is set in one of my favorite places\u2014Black Mountain, North Carolina. In the story, thirteen-year-old Emma learns there\u2019s a proposal to destroy the community monarch butterfly garden to build a ski resort, so she and her best friend Sophie rally their middle school environmental club to protest. But when it turns out homegrown celebrity Chester Scott and his teen son Jeb are the ones behind building the resort, Emma decides to make friends with Jeb to try and change their minds.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Then when a mysterious death threat is left at the Scotts\u2019 house, Emma and Jeb team up to investigate, and begin to uncover supernatural secrets on the mountain. Meanwhile, Emma\u2019s decision to befriend the enemy tests her friendship with Sophie, and Emma soon finds everything she loves in jeopardy \u2014her friendships, the butterflies, and her family.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The chapter heading illustrations were drawn by my daughter Gracie, who studied art in Charlotte at both the Holt School of Art and Braitman Studio. She graduated from Central Academy of Technology and Arts in 2021. Recently, the novel won a Gold Mom\u2019s Choice Award and three Purple Dragonfly Book awards. You can learn more about the book at my website <\/em>https:\/\/www.rebeccalaxton.com\/<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n Anna\u2019s Give Me a Sign<\/em> is a YA romance novel. Here is what Anna sent to me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I recently got to do a launch event at Park Road Books for my debut <\/em>Give Me a Sign, and was so glad to be welcomed to the Charlotte community! This spring, we moved here to be closer to my partner\u2019s family.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Give Me a Sign is a YA contemporary romance novel following seventeen-year-old Lilah as she becomes a counselor at a summer camp for the deaf and blind. Wearing hearing aids, she\u2019s always felt caught in between hearing and deaf, not sure where she belongs. Pitched as Jenny Han meets CODA, this story is all about love, identity, and Deaf pride.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n It was such a delight to write a story like this, full of representation I didn\u2019t have growing up. There\u2019s something truly universal about the \u201cstuck in the middle\u201d feeling that a lot of readers can relate to, even if they\u2019re not deaf themselves, so it\u2019s great to see the positive reception this story is getting. Currently I\u2019m putting the finishing touches on my next YA novel, <\/em>On the Bright Side, which releases summer 2024! Those interested can find out more at <\/em>http:\/\/annasortino.com\/<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Amalie, Rebecca, and Anna are all part of a community of children\u2019s and YA authors. For readers who are interested in joining this community, the South Boulevard Branch of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library has an upcoming event just for you. Meghan Anderson, one of planners of the event, sent me the following information:<\/p>\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n