I am thrilled tell you that I got to work with the legendary Nancy Paulsen again for my next middle grade novel. That novel, Pixie Pushes On, publishes on January 14, 2020, and tells the story of a young girl in the 1940’s and the bittersweet lessons she learns from farm life as well as life without her sister who is hospitalized with polio.
But don’t think for a minute it’s all doom and gloom. I’ll leave that explanation up to these phenomenal authors who were kind enough to read my novel and give me a blurb:
“Pixie is full of heart! A laugh-out-loud book that also wades into poignant life lessons. A must read!” — Lynda Mullaly Hunt, author of Fish in a Tree.
“Pixie has bad luck–and is bad luck if you ask her. But she also has grit and gumption, so when her bad luck doesn’t let go, she opens her eyes and her heart wider. Her world changes when she changes how she looks at her world. I loved Pixie and her story — a story filled with humor, hope, and everyday heroes.” — Lynn Plourde, author of Maxi’s Secrets.
My head is still spinning at being on the receiving end of those amazing comments from two writers I respect and adore.
Writing Pixie Pushes On was so special to me. You see, my mom and dad both grew up on farms and would tell me stories about their childhoods. From my perspective as a city-kid, I was amazed at these tales. But it wasn’t until I was writing this story that I sat down and asked them detailed questions I never thought to ask before about the logistics and particulars of their lives during that time. This coincided with my dad being in the hospital and I swear I could see both him and my mom grow visibly younger while recounting the long-lost days of their childhoods. It was such a gift to us all. And now that my dad has since passed away, those days, those memories are more precious than ever.
And today, I am so happy to share with you the beautiful cover for Pixie Pushes On. It warms my heart. The illustrator, Matt Saunders, captured so beautifully the nostalgia of the novel. I hope you agree. Thank you, MG Book Village, for hosting my reveal — and thanks for all you do for the writing/reading community.
I can’t wait for everyone to meet Pixie. I hope she means as much to you as she means to me. In the meanwhile, I’ll tell you what I always tell my students during a school visit — if you are lucky enough to have a grandparent, great-grand parent — or any older person in your life — ask them about their childhood — and listen — really listen, before it’s too late. I promise you won’t regret it.
A young girl learns bittersweet life lessons on the family farm after her sister gets polio, in this poignant and funny novel set in the heartland in the 1940s.
Pixie’s defenses are up, and it’s no wonder. She’s been uprooted, the chickens seem to have it in for her, and now her beloved sister, Charlotte, has been stricken with polio and whisked away into quarantine. So it’s not surprising Pixie lashes out. But her habit of making snap judgements–and giving her classmates nicknames like “Rotten Ricky” and “Big-Mouth Berta”–hasn’t won her any friends. At least life on the farm is getting better with the delivery of its newest resident–a runt baby lamb. Raising Buster takes patience and understanding–and this slowing down helps Pixie put things in better perspective. So too does paying attention to her neighbors, and finding that with the war on she’s not the only one missing someone. As Pixie pushes past her own pain to become a bigger person, she’s finally able to make friends; and to laugh about the fact that it is in places where she least expected it.
MG Book Village 