2023 HCBF Archives - Page 3 of 5 - Hudson Childrens Book Festival

Venkatraman, Padma

Venkatraman, Padma

Padma Venkatraman is the author of BORN BEHIND BARS (Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin Random House) as well as THE BRIDGE HOME, A TIME TO DANCE, ISLAND’S END and CLIMBING THE STAIRS. Her novels have been shortlisted for over 20 state awards, received over 20 starred reviews, appeared on numerous best book lists, such as the ALA Notable, NYPL Best Book, Kirkus Best Book, Booklist editor’s Choice and Junior Library Guild selection. Her poetry has been published in Poetry magazine and elsewhere. When she’s not writing, she loves speaking to others about her love for books and her passion for diversity, equity and inclusion and has presented keynote addresses, conducted writing workshops and attended festivals and conferences around the world. Arrange for a visit via https://theauthorvillage.com/presenters/padma-venkatraman/; follow her on twitter (@padmatv); (@venkatraman.padma) on fb and ig.
www.padmavenkatraman.com

Awards
Padma Venkatraman is the winner of a WNDB Walter Dean Myers Award, SCBWI Golden Kite Award, three South Asia Book Awards, 2 Nerdies, 2 Julia Ward Howe awards and many more.

3 Fun Facts

1. Before becoming an American, Dr. Venkatraman spent time under the ocean and in rainforests, served as chief scientist on oceanographic research vessels where she was the only BIPOC female.
2. Padma Venkatraman also worked previously as a teacher and diversity director.
3. She was born in India and moved abroad on her very own, at the age of 19.

Laiz, Jana

Jana Laiz is a writer with a purpose. The author of the triple award-winning novel, Weeping Under This Same Moon, Moonbeam Silver Medal Winner, The Twelfth Stone, Elephants of the Tsunami, “A Free Woman On God’s Earth, The True Story of Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman, The Slave Who Won Her Freedom, Thomas & Autumn, Simon Says ~ Tails Told By The Red Lion Inn Ambassador, Billy Budd in the Breadbox, The Story of Herman Melville & Eleanor, and Blanket of Stars, Jana believes that honoring diversity can change the world. She is the very first Writer-In-Residence at Herman Melville’s beloved Arrowhead. www.janalaiz.com

ForeWord review Gold Medal Winner
Moonbeam Children’s Book awards Silver medalist
International Reading Association Notable

3 Fun Facts

1. I have a Pitbull
2. I play the Irish penny whistle and the harp
3. I was the Jacks Champion in high school

Albee, Sarah

Sarah Albee is the New York Times bestselling author of nonfiction books for kids. Her latest title is called Troublemakers in Trousers: Women and What They Wore to Get Things Done. Other popular titles include Fairy Tale Science; Accidental Archaeologists: True Stories of Unexpected Discoveries; North America: A Foldout Graphic History; Dog Days of History; Poison: Deadly Deeds, Perilous Professions, and Murderous Medicines; Bugged: How Insects Changed History; Poop Happened: A History of the World from the Bottom Up; and Alexander Hamilton: A Plan for America. She lives in Connecticut with her family. www.sarahalbeebooks.com

Awards
– Eureka! Gold and Silver medals
– Bank Street Best Books
– NCSS Best Books [National Council for Social Studies] – Nerdy Book Club awards
– Starred reviews
– Connecticut Book Award Winner

3 Fun Facts

1. Sarah wants kids to love history as much as she does. Many of her books are a mash-up of history and science.
2. Sarah once played semi-pro basketball in Cairo, Egypt.
3. Sarah’s first job was working at Sesame Street.

Demas, Corinne

Corinne Demas is the award-winning author of thirty-eight books, including numerous picture books (The Perfect Tree, Saying Goodbye to Lulu, The Littlest Matryoshka, The Disappearing Island,, novels (The Road Towards Home), and a memoir (Eleven Stories High, Growing Up in Stuyvesant Town). She is the co-author, with Artemis Roehrig, of The Grumpy Pirate, Are Pirates Polite?, Do Doodlebugs Doodle? Amazing Insect Facts, Does a Fiddler Crab Fiddle?, and Do Jellyfish Like Peanut Butter? Amazing Sea Creature Facts. She is a professor Emerita of English at Mount Holyoke College and lives in Western Massachusetts and on Cape Cod. www.corinnedemas.com

Awards
Two National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowships, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellowship, ASPCA Henry Bergh Children’s Book Award (Saying Goodbye to Lulu), Finalist, Massachusetts Book Award, (The Disappearing Island), California Reading Association Silver Eureka Award (Do Doodlebugs Doodle? Amazing Insect Facts) Best Fiction for Young Adults nomination Young Adult Services Association , ALA, MassBook Awards “Must Read” YA list, Society of School Librarians International Book Awards Honor Book (Everything I Was), Selected for “Books for the Teen Age” by The New York Public Library (If Ever I Return) Selected by the Children’s Book Committee at Bank Street College of Education (starred )“Best Children’s Books for the Year” (The Disappearing Island) and The Boy Who was Generous with Salt), Wyoming Library Association’s Buckaroo Book Award Winner, Best Book Award Gold Seal from the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio (Saying Goodbye to Lulu

3 Fun Facts

1. I have two miniature donkeys
2. Two of my picture books have a character name Nina.
3. I once found a note in a bottle that had washed up on the beach.

Roehrig, Artemis

Artemis Roehrig is the author (with co-author Corinne Demas) of three nonfiction picture books with Cornell Lab/Persnickety Press: Do Doodlebugs Doodle? Amazing Insect Facts, Does A Fiddler Crab Fiddle?, Do Jellyfish Like Peanut Butter? Amazing Sea Creature Facts and two rhyming picture books with Scholastic: Are Pirates Polite? and The Grumpy Pirate (out in June). Artemis is also the author for Storey Publishing’s Tattoos That Teach series. When she isn’t busy with her two kids or finishing her YA manuscript, she works with invasive insects for the Department of Environmental Conservation at UMass Amherst. www.artemisroehrig.com

California Reading Association Silver Eureka Award for Do Doodlebugs Doodle? Amazing Insect Facts

3 Fun Facts

1. I have four pet tarantulas.
2. I have been playing the violin since I was four and a half.
3. I didn’t go on an airplane until I was 18.

Ignatow, Amy

Amy Ignatow is the author and illustrator of The Popularity Papers, The Odds Trilogy, and she is the author of Jedi Academy: The Christina Starspeeder stories, The Cutest Thing Ever, and Symphony For a Broken Orchestra. Her first series, The Popularity Papers, is currently being adapted for television. Amy lives in Philadelphia with her family.

3 Fun Facts

1. I once played an entire game of Pictionary with Lemony Snicket on my team without knowing who he was
2. I’m excellent at cutting bagels
3. This is not my natural hair color

Sementilli, Isabella

My name is Isabella Sementilli and I am 19 years old. In 5th grade, I was the victim of a bully who pulled out my chair as I went to sit down. I suffered a concussion, fractured tailbone and back and neck injuries. I was diagnosed with two rare and debilitating headache disorders- effects from the concussion. Since I could no longer tap dance or play tennis, I learned to knit and bake. I created my own cookie-Iznettes®.

When I wasn’t baking, I started to write about what happened to me. I would also doodle pictures to go along with what I wrote. I put it all together-creating my book-The Short Story of One Tough Cookie : A True Story.

I want to share my story so what happened to me, doesn’t happen to anyone else. I also started a Never Crumble!® line-t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, healing bracelets, and a Izzy Never Crumble!® doll!! I donate from the sales of my merchandise to anti-bullying and brain injury awareness organizations locally and nationally.

I have received numerous awards including- the Ruth Bader Ginsberg Agent of Change Award from NYSMCJ, the Neil & Jane Golub Making a Difference Award from the Anti-Defamation League, the Literary Champion Award. I was also featured in Cricket Media, Highlights Magazine -“Kids Changing the World: Cookies for a Cause.”

I live in Niskayuna with my mom Pola, dad Guy, and my chocolate lab Luca.

3 Fun Facts

1. I am a bartender at my dad’s Italian restaurant
2. I have two USA Registered Trademarks
3. I collect rosary beads

Johnston, Jeffry W.

Johnston, Jeffry W.

Jeffry W. Johnston is the author of the Edgar-nominated FRAGMENTS and the In the Margins Top 10 Book award winner of THE TRUTH, and both were Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers selections by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). His most recent teen mystery/thriller, FOLLOWING, was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection. He is never without a book to read and is passionate about movies, TV binging, and baseball. His website is at jeffrywjohnston.com

Awards
– FOLLOWING: Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
– THE TRUTH: In the Margins Top 10 Book Award winner; YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers
– FRAGMENTS: 2008 Edgar Award nomination for Best Young Adult Mystery; YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers

3 Fun Facts

1. I lived in England for a year when I was in 5th grade.
2. My father was an anthropologist, and my sister is an archeologist.
3. I’m a big movie fan and my favorite movie is IT’S A WONDEFUL LIFE.

Lerangis, Peter

Peter Lerangis’s books have sold over 6.5 million copies and been translated into 35 languages. His nine N.Y. Times bestsellers include the entire Seven Wonders series and his 39 Clues contributions. His YA novel Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am, won an ALA Schneider Award, and his latest adventures are the Max Tilt and Throwback trilogies. He’s also performed on Broadway, run a marathon, rock-climbed in Yosemite during a 6.1 earthquake, and graduated Harvard with a degree in biochemistry. www.peterlerangis.com

Awards
– ALA Schneider Award for best book depicting the disability experience
– ALA Quick Picks
– Multiple Junior Library Guild Awards
– ALA Best Books
– New York Public Library Best Books
– Bank Street Library Best Books

3 Fun Facts

1. My left pinkie has camptodactyly, which means it can’t straighten, and I have worked it into the plot of a book.
2. I sang and acted in a Broadway show.
3. The letters of my full name can be rearranged into Sergeant Peril.

Grimes, Nikki

New York Times bestselling author Nikki Grimes has received the 2022 CSK Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, the ALAN Award for young adult literature, the Children’s Literature Legacy Medal, the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children, the Coretta Scott King Award for Bronx Masquerade, and five Coretta Scott King Honors. Her recent titles include Printz Honor and Sibert Honor Ordinary Hazards, ALA Notables Legacy:Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance and Southwest Sunrise, Kirkus Best Book Bedtime for Sweet Creatures, Kamala Harris:Rooted in Justice, Playtime for Restless Rascals, and Garvey in the Dark. Ms. Grimes lives in Corona, California. www.nikkigrimes.com

3 Fun Facts

1. Once sang on the stage of the Stockholm Philharmonic in Sweden.
2. In Sweden, I was known as a singer who also wrote.
3. In addition to writing, I also paint. The first time I exhibited my watercolors, I won a blue ribbon.