Hello dear friends! January is racing to a close and I wanted to award the THREE giveaways I offered in my last post.
Question #1: When did I purchase the outfit I wore for our Fall 2025 family photo? This was obviously a really challenging question – partly because I didn’t provide the answer in the post. Many of you guessed the 80s or 90s when there was a resurgence of pleated mini skirts. And some of you guessed that I bought it when I was in college, which would have been 1963-1967. I actually purchased it in 1968 when my husband and I, on summer vacation after our first year of teaching, took a trip to Gananoque, Ontario and the Thousand Islands. The skirt has weathered exceedingly well, I think…and me, too, I hope.
Since no one guessed the actual year, I put names of folks who came pretty close into a hat and picked out:
SUSAN SCHIPPER – Congratulations, Sue…I’ll email you and we can see what manuscript you’d like to send me for feedback.
Question #2: When was the first #50PreciousWords, how many entries did we get, and who won? The answers for this question were mentioned in the post and lots of folks got that answer correct…so I had to put those names in a hat and picked two winners of the 30-minute Ask Me Anything chat who are…
ROSE CAPPELLINI – Congratulations, Rose. I’ll email you and we can set up a time to chat.
ROBIN CURRIE – Congratulations, Robin…I’ll email you and we can set up a time to chat.
Question #3: Who is the editor and who is the illustrator for ONE GIRL’S VOICE? The answers for this question were also found in the post – and LOTS and LOTS of folks got this one right…I shuffled up their names to find the winner of a signed copy of one of my books and picked out…TWO WINNERS…
VICKI HAMMOND – Congratulations, Vicki…I’ll email you to get your mailing address and to see if you want me to personalize it. By the way…our wonderful #50PreciousWords logo was created by Vicki back in 2018, I think…huge thanks, Vicki!
LINDA HOFKE – Congratulations, Linda…I’ll email you to see if you want me to personalize it to your niece.
That’s it for the giveaway…but I also wanted to share that we’ve got SO MANY INCREDIBLE PRIZES lined up for #50PreciousWords this year! Please let writer friends know about the contest…the Heads-Up-The-Contest-Is-Coming-Soon post will go live on February 7th…so please stay tuned!
And please stay tuned for a COVER REVEAL on February 4th for my upcoming book, PIPPA’S HANUKKAH HUNT (illustrated by Jill Weber & published by Holiday House) which launches September 29.
And there’s more…a Triple Book Birthday post on February 2 for THREE brand-new Board Books from three dear friends.
And don’t leave yet…I’ll be finding out the results of the SCBWI Golden Kite Awards on February 6th and will include that info in the Heads-Up contest post. I’m honored that ONE GIRL’S VOICE: HOW LUCY STONE HELPED CHANGE THE LAW OF THE LAND, illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon and published by Calkins Creek/Astra, is a FINALIST! And it has won other accolades as well during last year. But one thing it has not received are…
REVIEWS! Yes, sadly, even though this amazing book has been out since last February, it only has 35 Amazon reviews. That’s right…35. Even though I have almost 2000 blog followers and almost 4000 Facebook friends plus I host a contest that attracted almost 600 submissions last year. Believe me…I totally understand how busy our lives can get. But if you can find a few minutes and you love the book, I’d really appreciate your help. The review doesn’t have to be long-winded…just a sentence or two. Here is the link for the Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/One-Girls-Voice-Helped-Change/dp/1662680457/?
And as always, thank you for spending your precious time with us. Your support means the world to me.
Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, dear friends! Today’s author is a wonderful kid lit friend of mine…and we are both part of the New England SCBWI chapter. I love her books…and she has graciously offered a choice to whoever wins the giveaway: either a copy of JOAN MITCHELL PAINTS A SYMPHONY or a Picture Book Critique (nonrhyming under 600 words). So, please make sure you leave a comment.
JOAN MITCHELL PAINTS A SYMPHONY: LA GRANDE VALLÉE SUITE
Written by Lisa Rogers
Illustrated by Stacy Innerst
Published by Calkins Creek/Astra (February 25, 2025)
Synopsis: Celebrate the creative process of pioneering American abstract painter Joan Mitchell in this beautifully illustrated STEAM picture book, perfect for all kinds of young creators.
It’s 1983, and American artist Joan Mitchell is in her studio outside Paris, transforming her emotions and memories into a symphony of colors and shapes. Inspired by her friend’s description of an idyllic hidden valley in France, Mitchell creates 21 massive paintings—her Grande Vallée series —bursting with vibrant, energizing hues. But she doesn’t paint the valley’s flowers and meadows. She paints a feeling about them—abundance, freedom, liveliness—creating a harmonious blend of drips, splashes, and brushstrokes in rainbow colors. When the paint dries, it’s time to share her valley with the world.
This inspiring, poetic picture book about an influential yet lesser-known American artist provides a snapshot of a creator who deserves as much acclaim as better-known Abstract Expressionists like Jackson Pollock or Willem de Kooning. Author Lisa Rogers shares both the despair and delight Mitchell experienced throughout her career, while acclaimed illustrator Stacy Innerst’s bright artwork captures the movement and energy of Mitchell’s work, as her paintings develop from page to page.
Celebrate the creative process of pioneering American abstract painter Joan Mitchell in this beautifully illustrated STEAM picture book, perfect for all kinds of young creators.
From Astra: Celebrate the creative process of pioneering American abstract painter Joan Mitchell in this beautifully illustrated STEAM picture book, perfect for all kinds of young creator
Why I Love This Book 1. I love books that celebrate creativity! 2. I love books where the text and art work so perfectly together! 3. I love books filled with glorious illustrations – how wonderful for kids to see Joan Mitchell’s abstract paintings come to life in these pages!
I was chatting with Lisa and mentioned that we all love to hear about the path to publication for our Perfect Picture Book Friday books…and she graciously stopped by. ME: Welcome, Lisa! Can you share a bit about why you wrote this story and how it came about?
LISA: Thank you so much for featuring JOAN MITCHELL PAINTS A SYMPHONY, Vivian. I’m thrilled to share about the spark for this book!
Since childhood, I’ve loved poring over paintings – from illustrations in my poetry and folktale books to the art in museums. I’m fascinated by how each individual brings something unique to their art, and how that act of personal creation can speak to others.
I didn’t know much about Joan Mitchell’s art when I was researching her life and work for my book DISCOVER HER ART: WOMEN ARTISTS AND THEIR MASTERPIECES. I read an essay about her inspiration for a series of 21 monumental paintings – a special valley in France that was a safe place for Mitchell’s dear friend and composer Gisèle Barreau. Mitchell became entranced with the idea of this valley. She began creating enormous abstract paintings using her own memories and emotions of places, people, poetry, and music that she loved—and even her dogs, who lounged in her studio while she painted!
I’ve long been interested in what sparks creativity, and in this book I focused on Mitchell’s process. I viewed a retrospective at the Baltimore Museum of Art that included some of her Grande Vallée paintings, and even after the manuscript was finished I went to New York to see another exhibition. Each time, I was struck by the beauty and power of her energetic brushwork and brilliant color palette.
Illustrator Stacy Innerst studied Joan Mitchell’s work while he was in art school, and he used acrylic paint to create the glorious illustrations in the book. You can almost feel the texture of the paint he used. The brilliant color jumps off the page. I love that he chose to end the book with an image of two children taking in a Mitchell painting. I hope that young readers take the time to not only study the illustrations but seek out Mitchell’s paintings in museums or online.
I have been awed by the power of abstract art—and I hope young readers will feel that power, too.
ME: WOW…thank you so much, Lisa. I loved hearing your path to publication for this book. And thank you for providing the painting activity! It’s a great way for readers to create their own abstract art!
RELATED ACTIVITY:
Paint like Joan Mitchell!
Inside spread from book: Text by Lisa Rogers and art by Stacy Innerst
Materials: Paper bags, cut and unfolded to the largest possible size, or large pieces of watercolor or drawing paper.
Acrylic or watercolor paint or pastels, markers, crayons, paint pens –whatever is on hand.
Large brushes
List of emotions. Some examples: happiness, sadness, excitement, calmness, love. Add your own emotions to the list.
Steps:
Spread the paper out on a protected surface. Play some music that you like. Close your eyes and think of a place or person or animal that is important to you. How does that place or person or animal make you feel? Let your mind drift as you put yourself in that place or with that person or animal.
Open your eyes and choose a color that expresses how your place, person, or animal makes you feel. Make a few strokes that represent the feeling they give you.
Leaving some open spaces, try another color and make more strokes. You are expressing a feeling, so there is no wrong way to paint it. You might make different kinds of strokes for different emotions. You might use different colors for different emotions.
Try making drips, or layering one color partly over another. Remember to leave white space.
Keep painting until you feel like you are done. No one can decide that except for you!
Keep all of your work, even if you don’t like it at first. Try another painting. Maybe you will create a series, just like Joan Mitchell!
This is a great activity for kids…but also for adults. Next time you are feeling stuck with your writing, why not try painting?
Thank you all for stopping by and spending your precious time with us. Please make sure you leave a comment to be entered in the FABULOUS giveaway! And please remember that the best way to tell an author or illustrator that you love their work is to: Busy their books Review their books Tell friends about their books (please share this post on your social media) Ask local libraries to purchase copies of their books!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I’ll be in Massachusetts at two school visits and then, on Saturday, at the Silver Unicorn Bookstore in Acton MA at 11am – if you are local to that area, please stop by for a fabulous story time! And then pop in to the blog on the last day of March for the #50PreciousWords Prize Winners and Honorable Mentions reveal!!!
FOR WRITERS, ILLUSTRATORS, PARENTS, TEACHERS, LIBRARIANS, AND BOOK LOVERS EVERYWHERE
TODAY’S GUESTS
BETH ANDERSONVIVIAN KIRKFIELD
Welcome, everyone! I hope you are all safe – the world is a sad and scary place sometimes, but it’s important to continue to connect with people and projects that give us joy, even in the midst of troubled times…maybe especially in the midst of troubled times. And when I discovered that one of my dearest kidlit friends and long-time CPs, Beth Anderson, had a new book launching right around the time my latest book was launching, we knew we needed to do something special.
Both books are nonfiction picture books. Both books focus on women who refused to accept the role society offered them. Instead, both women used their skills, courageously making their voices heard..and making a difference of global proportions.
Kate WarneLucy Stone
So, please grab your coffee, tea, hot cocoa, or beverage of choice and sit back to enjoy a conversation of sorts between book creators and their characters.
VIVIAN: Hi, Beth. I’m so glad you are here – and although your character, Kate Warne, and mine, Lucy Stone, can’t be here in person with us, I know they are here in spirit. So, I’m curious. Why did you feel kids needed to know about Kate? How will young readers relate to her hopes and dreams and the path she decided to take to become a Pinkerton detective?
BETH: Thanks so much, Vivian. I’m excited to chat about these amazing women. Kate’s story interested me for so many reasons! It was a detective story! With a gutsy woman who blazed an unusual path. It’s about a piece of history, the Baltimore Plot, which I’d never heard of before. And, it features a favorite person from history, Abraham Lincoln. Like me, I think kids will connect to the secrets, a dangerous plot, and be fascinated by this exciting peek “behind the scenes” that lets us know how complicated, and surprising, history can be.
Kids need to know about Kate because she’s a “regular” person like most of us. She put herself out there, not seeking fame and fortune, and took risks for others—and she impacted history. This event shows how important us regular people are, which can inspire hope, courage, and action when we look at the world today.
So now, I’m curious about your choice. Why did you choose Lucy Stone to write about? Why do you feel kids need to know about her?
VIVIAN: I absolutely love history…and I love discovering people who made a difference, but who might not have been recognized for what they did. I uncovered some information about Lucy Stone when I was researching Annie Londonderry and then someone, I think it was you, told me that there was going to be a Lucy Stone History-At-Play. I saw the performance by Judith Kalaora, who painstakingly researches famous women in American history and then creates fascinating performances, dressed in authentic costumes. The Lucy Stone performance inspired me to find out more. From the performance, it sounded like she was the one who inspired Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony to fight for women’s rights. And like you, Beth, when something sparks my curiosity, I have to find out more. I think many kids are like that – and I hope that ONE GIRL’S VOICE will spark the curiosity of many young readers. I believe kids will relate to her because there are many spreads/scenes that take place when she is still a child, railing against the rule of the day in the 19th century, that women should remain silent – and Lucy was determined to make her voice heard – and she did!.
It’s interesting, Beth, that both women lived around the same time. There is a lot of information about Lucy and her early and later life. She was born in 1818 in Massachusetts and died in 1893, but…not much is known about Kate. She was born about 1833 and died in 1868. Their lives intersected in time, if not in person. We don’t know if they ever met, right? Also, how did you craft a story without access to a lot of information?
BETH: That’s true. There is a lot more information about Lucy Stone than there is for Kate Warne. It’s hard to understand how she came to be who she was without knowing much about her childhood. Since this event involves Lincoln and Pinkerton, we have some sources that share Kate’s role. But it’s also interesting to note that some sources mention the plot and Pinkerton, but don’t mention Kate, an example of women often being left out of history. To tell her story, I needed to research far and wide to understand the challenges of her situation and the risks she took.
With such limited information on Kate’s life, it’s impossible to know if she ever knew about or met Lucy Stone. But…I can’t help but think that given the character traits we see in Kate’s actions, she would have read newspapers and followed the news on the fight for women’s rights. Who knows, maybe that inspired her to apply for a “male” job! Since Kate’s actions to save Lincoln remained a secret so she could work as a spy during the Civil War, Lucy couldn’t have known about Kate before her death. If they had met, I think they would have had great respect for each other and cheered each other on.
What do you think?
VIVIAN: Oh, I agree, Beth. Even though they were very different, they both supported equality for all. Kate guarded President Abraham Lincoln with her life, aware that this man was a force for good in the country. And Lucy devoted her life to fighting for abolition, equal rights for women, and equality for all. What I love is that both of them can be role models for young readers, especially girls who can see how important it is to question the status quo…that we can make change happen by our actions. And it’s crucial for boys to grow into men who respect the intelligence and capabilities of women. As Lucy Stone said when she addressed the New Jersey legislature in 1867 regarding woman suffrage, “Why should not a woman be President of the United States? The names of Elizabeth of England, of Catherine of Russia, of Isabella of Spain, of Maria Theresa of Austria – each of these proves woman’s capacity to govern. Are American women alone incompetent for great responsibilities?”
Do you think Kate would have agreed with Lucy’s statement about the ability of women to handle great responsibilities?
BETH: Most definitely! And she proved it! And though Kate could never talk about her work, she had to use her voice and persuasive skills, like Lucy, when she convinced Allan Pinkerton to hire her as a detective. And Pinkerton quickly became a firm believer in the capabilities of women! He created a division of female detectives and put her in charge. I also think it’s crucial for kids to see history through the eyes of people who experienced it – to see how they responded to the challenges they faced.
VIVIAN: Oh yes! That’s so true, Beth. We can read facts about history, but it’s so much more powerful and relatable when we see it through the eyes and actions of the true life characters in these nonfiction picture book biographies. Children can observe how Kate foiled the assassination attempt – and all the planning that she had to do and the courage she had to muster to infiltrate the enemy’s strongholds to learn what was going on. They can watch how Lucy met opposition with calm and steadfast purpose and how she never gave up her battle to secure equal rights for everyone, even when her own life was threatened.
And now dear friends, Beth and I have a couple of special treats for you.
There is a GIVEAWAY! One lucky reader is going to WIN a copy of HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT: Kate Warne and the Race to Save Abraham Lincoln, illustrated by Sally Wern Comport (Calkins Creek/Astra Books for Young Readers) AND a copy of ONE GIRL’S VOICE: How Lucy Stone Helped Change the Law of the Land, illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon (Calkins Creek/Astra Books for Young Readers). All you need to do is COMMENT on this post OR on Beth’s post: . And if you comment on BOTH POSTS, you get TWO chances to win the double book giveaway! When the winner is chosen on February 21st, Beth will announce and contact the winner and the publisher will send out the books (U.S. addresses only, please) so you’ll have them in time for Women’s History Month!
But that’s not all, folks! Teacher guides are so important because these books are perfect for using in multiple grades and across various curriculum content areas. Beth’s guide for HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT is already up on her website: Learn more about HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT and download the EDUCATOR GUIDE here: https://bethandersonwriter.com/hiding-in-plain-sight-kate-warne-and-the-race-to-save-abraham-lincoln/
And my educator guide will be on my website soon.
And we are not done yet! After all, this is a Will Write for Cookies post, true? I love to bake and in my research, I discovered that Lucy Stone did, too. Just because she traveled from coast to coast by stagecoach, train, and horse and buggy, speaking out for abolition and women’s rights – and was the first woman from Massachusetts to secure a four-year university degree, doesn’t mean she wasn’t handy around the kitchen. I discovered she has a recipe in THE WOMAN SUFFRAGE COOKBOOK, originally published in 1886 by Hattie Burr. It’s a recipe for YEAST…because in the 1880’s, folks didn’t buy their yeast in little foil packets. So, if you are adventurous in the kitchen and want to give it a try, here is Lucy Stone’s recipe for Home Made Yeast:
Boil a heaping quart of loose hops (or if they are pressed, 2 ounces) in one gallon of water, strain it, when it is cold, put in a small handful of salt., and a half pound of sugar, then take a pound of flour and rub it smooth with some of the liquor, after which make it thin with more of the same liquor and mix all together, let this stand for 24 hours; then boil and mash three pounds of potatoes and add to it, let it stand 24 hours more; then put it in a bottle or tight vessel, and it is ready for use. Shake the bottle before using. It should be kept in a warm place while it is making, and in a cool place afterward.
Beth says we should call it ‘Rise to the Challenge’ yeast – in honor of the brave women in our books. You could use it to prepare cinnamon rolls or any other recipe that calls for yeast. I hope you let me know if you try it. It’s quite labor-intensive, as were most chores that women had to do in those days. There were many similar cookbooks that were published like this one, as a fundraiser for the suffrage movement…and they also served as a mode of communication for women back in the day before the internet and cell phones. I’m excited to read this one from cover to cover to check out the conversations.
Beth and I hope you all enjoyed this conversation between creators and characters. And we hope you’ll do all the things that help books become a success: Buy them: HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT:
One Girl’s Voice: Tell friends about them Ask your local library to purchase copies
Beth’s book is already proudly sitting on shelves in your local indie bookstores. And mine will be arriving on February 11th – which is my ACTUAL birthday…how cool is that! Plus there are several book events coming up in March for me: March 8 at 1:30pm-3pm: G. Willikers Books and Toys in Portsmouth, NH March 29 at 11am-11:45am – The Silver Unicorn Bookstore in Acton MA
We invite you all to celebrate these wonderful books with us! If you are a teacher or librarian looking for an engaging author visit, please reach out. If you are a writer of narrative nonfiction, each of these books could serve as a mentor text. And if you are a parent of young readers, we hope you’ll share these role models in history with your kids.
Have a great weekend, everyone! And don’t forget to leave a comment here and on the post on Beth’s blog for a chance to WIN this cool book pairing!
VIVIAN KIRKFIELD - Writer for Children 