Speaking to students at South High School in Worcester, Massachusetts last week, I realized that I wrote KEESHA’S HOUSE before many of them were born. I was happy to realize that it is holding up through time.

This weekend I will be speaking about HIDDEN to middle school students in Kansas who voted for it to win the William Allen White Award. I’m looking forward to meeting the students and others in Kansas, and to seeing the home of William Allen White. I love the fact that so many states have awards for children’s literature and often name them in honor of those who helped bring children and books together.

I’m looking forward to the publication of SWEEP UP THE SUN, a new collaboration with Rick Lieder, with a publication date of March 10, 2015. This one features birds–in flight and at rest–with a poem celebrating birds and speaking to all the ways we go out into the world to explore.