COVER REVEAL: DIARY OF AN ICE PRINCESS, by Christina Soontornvat

I’m thrilled to welcome Christina Soontornvat to the MG Book Village today to reveal the cover of the first book in her newest series, DIARY OF AN ICE PRINCESS! Christina is also the author of THE CHANGELINGS series, which has been widely celebrated and which Booklist praised for its emphasis on “the importance of family, whether it’s the one you’re born into, the one you find yourself in, or the one you create for yourself.” If you haven’t checked out The Changelings and its sequel, In a Dark Land, hurry up already! But first read the interview below and get excited about what Christina’s got coming next!

~ Jarrett

. . .

First of all, Christina, thanks so much for choosing the MG Book Village to host your cover reveal! We’re thrilled to have you here! But before we reveal the cover, could you tell us a bit about DIARY OF AN ICE PRINCESS?

Princess Lina is a Windtamer, which means she has the magical ability to control the wind and weather – at least she’s supposed to. Somehow Lina’s magic always ends up a snowy, icy mess. Her grandfather (The North Wind) wants her to practice with him, but Lina just wants to be normal. That means going to school on the ground.

Lina convinces her parents to let her go to Hilltop Science Academy on the condition that she keeps her magic a secret. That means no frozen water fountains. No snowball fights at recess. No icicles in the classroom. No problem! Lina just has to stay cool – ack! Not cool. Warm. That’s it. Warm. She just has to keep everything warm and under control…

Did you participate in the cover design process at all?

Yes, I did! The main character of the series, Lina, is mixed race Asian American and it was really important to all of us involved in the book to get her just right. My editor asked me to put together some character samples and notes, not just for Lina but for her entire family. That was really fun! It felt like I was involved in casting a movie. But the overall design, with the clouds and the palace in the background, all came from the design team. I had no idea what Lina was going to look like, or what style she would be rendered in until my editor sent the first image.

Okay, let’s take a look at the cover…

I love it! It’s getting me excited for winter and snow (but not the shoveling of the snow…). What was YOUR reaction to seeing the cover for the first time?

A gasp of delight at seeing Lina! I thought the artist, Barbara Szepesi Szucs, did an absolutely perfect job with capturing her personality. And it meant so much to me to see a character of Asian descent on the cover of a book – a magical princess book, no less! When I was growing up, I never found books with characters that looked like me on the covers unless it was a folktale. I do love folktales, and I do think books that address serious topics around Asian identity and history are important. But I also want the world to have books with Asian leads that are just pure, unabashed fun. That made this cover all the more meaningful for me.

So you loved the whole cover right away, without any reservations?

Ok, I do have to confess that one of my first reactions was…wow, that’s a lot of pink! I’m not a pink person! And here we’ve got pink font, pink spine, pink clouds. But then of course I realized that the pink thing was just my personal hang-up. The color and the aesthetic are perfect for this story. Lina and her best friend, Claudia, both have a love for science and math that plays into book’s plot. I am a big supporter of making STEM accessible for all children, including pink-adoring, tutu-wearing, princess-loving girls and boys. So I am a total pink convert now!

Plus, there’s a dog!

That would be Gusty! He was a late addition who has become one of my favorite characters. And wait until you see Book 2. He’s wearing a snow hat. The adorable factor is out of control.

I can’t wait to see it! And I can’t wait to read Snow Place Like Home! When can readers get their hands on the book?

June 25, 2019!

Christina Soontornvat grew up behind the counter of her parents’ Thai restaurant reading stories. These days she loves to make up her own, especially if they involve magic. Christina also loves science and worked in a science museum for years before pursuing her dream of being an author. She still enjoys cooking up science experiments at home with her two daughters. She is the author of THE CHANGELINGS series, as well as several forthcoming picture books and novels for young readers. You can learn more about Christina and her books on her website at www.soontornvat.com.