Tag Archives: Kate Dicamillo

The Beatryce Prophecy – an interview with Greg Howard

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Podcast #122

For my one hundred twenty-second Dream Gardens children’s books podcast, I interviewed author Greg Howard about the middle grade novel The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo .

Greg Howard is the author of such middle grade books as The Whispers and Middle School’s A Drag, You Better Werk!. His latest middle grade book is The Visitors, which was published this past year. You can find more information about Greg at www.greghowardauthor.com.

Podcasts are available on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please link, share, comment, write a review or subscribe. Let me know what you think.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: After this podcast , I am going to be taking a very long hiatus from the Dream Gardens podcast. This is my one hundred and twenty second podcast, and like so many before it, I enjoyed making it and I think it’s worth your time to listen to. However, I’ve also got to the point in this podcast where I need to step back for awhile and think about what I want to do going forward. Maybe it will be this podcast with a few modifications, maybe it will be an entirely different podcast. Or something else. I really don’t know, which is why I need the time to think. I am aiming for September as the month to start again or restart or whatever it is I end doing, but it is by no means a date set in stone. But once I’ve figured out what I want to do, I will let you know.

The Tale of Despereaux – an interview with Amy Makechnie

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Podcast #103

For my one hundred third Dream Gardens children’s books podcast, I interviewed author Amy Makechnie  about the middle grade book The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. Or as the full title reads, a story of a mouse, a princess, some soup, and a spool of thread. And so much more.

Amy Makechnie is the author of the middle grade novel The Unforgettable Guinevere St. Claire. Her latest middle grade novel is Ten Thousand Tries. You can find her website at www.amymakechnie.com.

In addition, at the top of the podcast I spoke to Shane Garver, Associate Vice President of Rural Education Programs at Save the Children, about summer reading in rural communities and about their partnership with Scholastic. For more information about Save the Children visit savethechildren.org/usa. For more information about the Summer program you can visit www.scholastic.com/summer

Podcasts are available on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please link, share, comment, write a review or subscribe. Let me know what you think! If you are interested in participating in the Dream Gardens podcast, then send me a request through my contact page.

My next podcast will be with author and illustrator Ben Zhu about the picture book Du Iz Tak by Carson Ellis . It will be published on Monday, July 19, 2021.

Flora &Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures – an interview with Judith L. Roth

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Podcast #097

For my ninety-seventh Dream Gardens children’s books podcast, I interviewed author Judith L. Roth about the middle grade illustrated novel Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo. When a squirrel name Ulysses gets sucked up into a vacuum cleaner and transforms into a flying, poetry-typing super-squirrel, Flora is there to protect him from the evil forces that set out to destroy him–like her mom!

Judith L. Roth is the author of such books as  Goodnight Dragons, Serendipity and Me, and the recently released picture book Venetian Lullaby. Her latest book is another picture book called Hiding Baby Moses. You can find her website at judithlroth.wordpress.com.

Podcasts are available on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please link, share, comment, write a review or subscribe. Let me know what you think! If you are interested in participating in the Dream Gardens podcast, send me a request through my contact page.

My next podcast will be with author Michelle Schaub about the middle grade book Dictionary for a Better World: Poems, Quotes, and Anecdotes from A to Z by Irene Latham and Charles Waters, illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini . It will be published on Monday, April 19, 2021.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963: an interview with Kate DiCamillo

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Podcast #067

For my sixty-seventh Dream Gardens children’s books podcast, I interviewed author Kate Dicamillo about the children’s historical novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. For ten year old Kenny, it isn’t always easy being a member of his family, “the weird Watsons”, especially with his older brother By getting into one mess after another. But when his father takes the whole family down to Birmingham, Alabama, what starts out as just another crazy misadventure takes a horrible turn, and Kenny finds himself in the middle of one the ugliest moments of American history. But even through the worst moments, Kenny finds he can always count on the indestructible love of his family. The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963, winner of both the Newbert and Coretta Scott-King awards, is a big-hearted book that is in turn wildly hilarious and utterly heartbreaking.

Kate DiCamillo is the Newbery-award winning author of such books as Because of Winn Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, Flora and Ulysses, among many others, including my personal favorite, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.  Her latest book is Beverly, Right Here, which is the third book in the Three Rancheros Series. You can find Kate’s website at katedicamillo.com.

Podcasts are available on iTunes, Stitcher, and Spotify. Please link, share, comment, write a review or subscribe. Let me know what you think! And if you are interested in participating in the Dream Gardens podcast, send me a request through my contact page.

My next podcast will be with author Fred Rexroad about the children’s mystery novel The Case of the Missing Message (A Brains Benton Mystery) by Charles Spain Verral. It will be published on Monday, January 6th, 2020.