CANR

• Daddy Papa, and Me Tricycle Press (Berkeley, CA), c. 2009
• Mommy, Mama, and Me Tricycle Press (Berkeley, CA), 2009
• Just Like Mama Abrams Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2010
• Miss Tutu's Star Abrams Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2010
• October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard Candlewick (Somerville, MA), c. 2010
• Donovan's Big Day Tricycle Press (Berkeley, CA), c. 2011
• A Kiss on the Keppie Marshall Cavendish Children (Tarrytown, NY), 2012
• A Sweet Passover Abrams Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 2012
• Here Is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays Abrams Books for Young Readers (New York, NTY), 2014

1. Here is the world : a year of Jewish holidays LCCN 2013029463 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title Here is the world : a year of Jewish holidays / by Lesléa Newman ; Illustrated by Susan Gal. Published/Produced New York : Abrams Books for Young Readers, [2014]. Description 1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 27 cm ISBN 9781419711855 Shelf Location FLM2015 216327 CALL NUMBER BM690 .N49 2014 OVERFLOWJ34 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms (FLM2) 2. October mourning : a song for Matthew Shepard LCCN 2011048358 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title October mourning : a song for Matthew Shepard / Lesléa Newman. Edition 1st ed. Published/Created Somerville, Mass. : Candlewick, c2012. Description xi, 111 p. ; 24 cm. ISBN 9780763658076 (hardback) Links Cover image 978-0-7636-5807-6.jpg CALL NUMBER PZ7.5.N49 Oct 2012 LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE CALL NUMBER PZ7.5.N49 Oct 2012 LANDOVR Copy 2 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 3. A sweet Passover LCCN 2011279993 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title A sweet Passover / by Lesléa Newman ; illustrated by David Slonim. Published/Created New York : Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2012. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 29 cm. ISBN 9780810997370 0810997371 Links Contributor biographical information http://www.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy1304/2011279993-b.html Publisher description http://www.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy1304/2011279993-d.html CALL NUMBER PZ7.N47988 Sw 2012 LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE CALL NUMBER PZ7.N47988 Sw 2012 LANDOVR Copy 2 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 4. Donovan's big day LCCN 2009048488 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title Donovan's big day / by Lesléa Newman ; illustrations by Mike Dutton. Edition 1st ed. Published/Created Berkeley, CA : Tricycle Press, c2011. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 28 cm. ISBN 9781582463322 CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Don 2011 LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Don 2011 FT MEADE Copy 2 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 5. Miss Tutu's star LCCN 2009039458 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title Miss Tutu's star / by Leslea Newman ; illustrated by Carey Armstrong-Ellis. Published/Created New York : Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2010. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 28 cm. ISBN 9780810983960 CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Mis 2010 LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Mis 2010 LANDOVR Copy 2 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 6. A kiss on the keppie LCCN 2012000038 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title A kiss on the keppie / written by Lesléa Newman ; illustrated by Katherine Blackmore. Edition 1st ed. Published/Created Tarrytown, NY : Marshall Cavendish Children, 2012. Projected pub date 1210 Description p. cm. ISBN 9780761462415 (hardcover) 9780761462422 (ebook) Item not available at the Library. Why not? 7. Just like mama LCCN 2009039755 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title Just like mama / by Lesléa Newman ; illustrated by Julia Gorton. Published/Created New York : Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2010. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 24 cm. ISBN 9780810983939 CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Ju 2010 FT MEADE Copy 2 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE CALL NUMBER PZ8.3.N4655 Ju 2010 FT MEADE Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 8. Mommy, mama, and me LCCN 2008924688 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Leslea. Main title Mommy, mama, and me / by Leslâea Newman ; illustrated by Carol Thompson. Published/Created Berkeley, CA : Tricycle Press, 2009. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 16 cm. ISBN 9781582462639 (board) 1582462631 (board) CALL NUMBER MLCS 2011/42880 (P) LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE 9. Daddy, papa, and me LCCN 2008924689 Type of material Book Personal name Newman, Lesléa. Main title Daddy, papa, and me / Leslea Newman ; illustrated by Carol Thompson. Published/Created Berkeley, CA : Tricycle Press, c2009. Description 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 15 cm. ISBN 9781582462622 (board) 1582462623 (board) CALL NUMBER MLCS 2012/40860 LANDOVR Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE

• Wikipedia -

  Lesléa Newman
  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Jump to navigationJump to search
  Lesléa Newman
  Leslea Newman 2017.jpg
  Newman at the 2017 Texas Book Festival
  Born November 5, 1955 (age 64)
  Brooklyn, New York City
  Occupation Author
  Lesléa Newman, born November 5, 1955 in Brooklyn, New York City,[1] is an American author, editor, and feminist.

  Contents
  1 Career
  2 Awards
  3 Personal life
  4 See also
  5 References
  6 Further reading
  7 External links
  Career
  She has written and edited 70 books and anthologies. She has written about such topics as being a Jew, body image and eating disorders, lesbianism, lesbian and gay parenting, and her gender role as a femme. Her best-known work is the controversial Heather Has Two Mommies. In 1990, many gay and lesbian couples and their children found the first reflections of their families in this picture book.[2] She was later the subject of another similar controversy in 1997, when her book Belinda's Bouquet was banned by School District 36 Surrey in Surrey, British Columbia, alongside Johnny Valentine's One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads and Rosamund Elwin and Michele Paulse's Asha's Mums.[3] That ban was eventually overturned by the Supreme Court of Canada in its 2002 decision Chamberlain v Surrey School District No 36.[4]

  She also authored The Boy Who Cried Fabulous and Hachiko Waits in 2004.

  Awards
  Her literary awards include Creative Writing Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation, the James Baldwin award for Cultural Achievement, the Dog Writers Association of America's Best Book of Fiction Award, and a Parents' Choice Silver Medal. Nine of her books have been Lambda Literary Award finalists. In 2009 she received the Alice B. Award. Her set of children's picture books Mommy, Mama, and Me and Daddy, Papa and Me were 2010 Stonewall Honor Books as well as her 2013 October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepherd.[5] In 2019, she received a National Jewish Book Award for Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story.[6]

  She was the inaugural judge of the Naugatuck River Review Narrative Poetry Prize.

  Personal life
  Newman is a lesbian.[7]

• Amazon -

  Lesléa Newman is the author of 70 books for readers of all ages including the teen novel in verse, OCTOBER MOURNING: A SONG FOR MATTHEW SHEPARD; the middle grade novel, HACHIKO WAITS; the poetry collection, I CARRY MY MOTHER; the short story collection, A LETTER TO HARVEY MILK; and the children's books, A SWEET PASSOVER, THE BOY WHO CRIED FABULOUS, KETZEL, THE CAT WHO COMPOSED, and HEATHER HAS TWO MOMMIES. Her literary awards include poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation. OCTOBER MOURNING: A SONG FOR MATTHEW SHEPARD was named an American Library Association 2013 Stonewall Honor Book, and A SWEET PASSOVER was named a 2013 Sydney Taylor Honor as well. A past poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts, she is a faculty member of Spalding University's brief-residency MFA in Writing program. Her newest poetry collection, I CARRY MY MOTHER is a book-length cycle of poems that explores a daughter's journey through her mother's illness and death. From diagnosis through yahrtzeit (one-year anniversary), the narrator grapples with what it means to lose a mother. The poems, written in a variety of forms (sonnet, pantoum, villanelle, sestina, terza rima, haiku, and others) are finely crafted, completely accessible, and full of startling, poignant, and powerful imagery. These poems will resonant with all who have lost a parent, relative, spouse, friend, or anyone whom they dearly love.

• Shannon Stocker - http://www.shannonstocker.com/leslea-newman-inherview/

  Lesléa Newman: InHERview
  JULY 11, 2019
  PINIMAGE
  It seems to me that if one is to be a poet, she cannot do so without honesty. The ability to reflect on the world around her is imperative, of course, but also the ability to look within.

  After explaining to Lesléa Newman that I started inHERview because I believe that everyone has a story, it becomes clear that she is a poet’s poet.

  “I completely agree,” she says. “Are you familiar with Muriel Rukeyser? She once said, ‘The world is not made of atoms, the world is made of stories.’”

  It is fitting that Lesléa quickly ties together a concept that is so personal for me with a quote from a woman who is so much like her. Muriel Rukeyser wrote about and fought for equality. Social justice. Judaism. Feminism. So many of the topics that Lesléa has gracefully and powerfully tackled in her own writing.

  “Yes, I’m familiar with her,” I say. “But I didn’t know that quote. I love it.”

  Lesléa’s attention is drawn away for a moment. “Hello, Neshama,” she says, before turning her focus back to me. “My cat is keeping me company in the study today. She’s my dignified duchess.”

  “How old is she?” I ask.

  “Thirteen.”

  “Her name is beautiful,” I say.

  “Thank you! It’s Hebrew for ‘soul.’”

  I quickly feel a kinship with this fellow poet and cat-lover. “So tell me a little about you, Lesléa,” I say. “Am I pronouncing your name correctly?”

  “No.” I hear the smile in her voice; she’s not offended by my mispronunciation. Rather, she sounds appreciative for my question. “It’s pronounced Lez-LEE-uh.”

  “Thank you! So, Lesléa,” I say, careful with my pronunciation, “tell me more about you. Where are you from?”

  “Well, I was born in Brooklyn and grew up both there and on Long Island. In Brooklyn, we lived right across the street from my grandmother, who was very important to me. I eventually went to the University of Vermont and then to Naropa University’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. I had the great fortune to be Allen Ginsberg’s assistant; he was my mentor. I’ve always been enamored of the Beat poets. After I read ON THE ROAD and Allen’s book, HOWL, I thought, ‘This is who I need to study with.’ I went to Boulder, Colorado, and became his student—and I like to think, his friend. We stayed in touch until he died. After living in New York’s east village for a year, I wanted a quieter place to live and write and wound up in Northampton, Massachusetts by happenstance, and I’ve been here ever since.”

  “Are you married? Do you have children?” I often think it should feel strange to ask women I’ve never met such personal questions, but it never does.

  “I live with my spouse of thirty-one years and Neshama. I’m not a mother, but I’m an aunt to a wonderful nephew who just graduated from high school.”

  PINIMAGE
  PINIMAGE
  After we chat for a bit about her nephew and our mutual love of cats (a few of Lesléa’s books feature felines, including KETZEL, THE CAT WHO COMPOSED, THE BEST CAT IN THE WORLD, CATS, CATS, CATS! and the forthcoming WELCOMING ELIJAH: A PASSOVER TALE WITH A TAIL) I ask her to share with me the first pivotal moment that makes Lesléa… Lesléa.

  “I think,” Lesléa muses, “that my first pivotal moment would be when I moved from New York City to Long Island.”

  “Why did you move?”

  “My mother said it was because she wanted her children to know what a tree looked like.” Lesléa laughs.

  “How old were you then?” I ask.

  PINIMAGE
  “I was eight,” she says. “At that age, you have no power. We moved from this urban environment to a suburban one, and it was traumatizing because I loved my maternal grandmother—Grandma Ruthie—more than anybody. The transition was jarring. In Brooklyn, my grandmother lived across the street, so I’d been able to see her anytime. All that changed once we moved to Long Island. My mother didn’t drive and my father worked, so occasionally my grandmother would visit us for a month at a time. It was wonderful to see her, but it was different from being able to visit daily. I have two brothers, so she stayed in my room and really was my first roommate. She embodied the old world to me. She’d been raised in Europe and always said about where she grew up that sometimes it was Russia, sometimes Poland, depending on where the Czar put the border that day. Her father died when she was young, so she and her mother immigrated to America when she was ten. She always said she felt like she never spoke ‘good English,’ even though she spoke it for years.” Lesléa pauses, and I let the silence stay. She continues.

  “She was filled with stories. She worked in a lace factory as a child. Since she was too young to be working legally, the other women really mothered her and hid her when the inspectors came. When she married and stopped working, all the other women in the factory went without lunch one day a week. They pooled their money and bought her a beautiful cut-glass crystal bowl, which I have. On the day that she and my grandfather married, she brought all her presents home and changed out of her wedding dress before they went to a restaurant. But when they returned, all the presents had been stolen…except that bowl, which she had hidden in a closet. After that, she was always hysterical at weddings. She believed no one should put wedding announcements in the papers because it made it clear that no one would be home.”

  “That’s so horrible, but what a gift that you have that bowl!” Despite having seen cruelty first-hand innumerable times, I still feel shocked by such coldness.

  PINIMAGE
  “Yes, it means a lot to me.” Lesléa’s voice is quiet.

  “How long did you stay on Long Island?”

  “Until I was sixteen. I graduated early from high school.”

  “And your grandmother was in Brooklyn that whole time?”

  “Yes,” Lesléa says. “She lived there until she died at the age of ninety-nine, almost thirty years ago, on November 13, 1989.”

  “That must have been very painful for you,” I say.

  Lesléa sighs. “When she was ninety-eight, she had mini strokes and couldn’t live alone anymore. My parents moved her into a nursing home, which destroyed her both emotionally and spiritually. I became her main caregiver and would go once a month to stay in her apartment for a week so I could spend the days with her at the nursing home. It was fitting that when she died, my parents were halfway around the world on vacation so I’m the one who got the call. Even at ninety-nine, she was still able to care for herself. The morning she died, she dressed, bathed, went downstairs and had breakfast, and then put her head on the table and died.” Lesléa pauses.

  “Did she have a heart attack?”

  “Yes, they think so. One of the residents said she was full of the devil and died like an angel. I always loved that. My grandmother was very spirited.” Lesléa’s voice gushes with nostalgia.

  “How so?”

  “I’ll give you an example. When I visited her once at the nursing home, they were giving out ice cream. They got to my grandmother and gave her a piece of sponge cake. When she asked why, they said it was because of her dietary sheet. She argued that she shouldn’t have any restrictions because she didn’t have diabetes and had never had any restrictions before, so she shouldn’t have any now. She told them she wanted two ice creams, one for her and one for me, and they finally gave in. We took them upstairs to her room, where she threw them both away. I asked why and she said, ‘I don’t like ice cream, but they’re not the boss of me. They can’t tell me what to eat. They should be asking me what I’ve been eating all this time that I should live to be ninety-nine.’”

  Lesléa and I both laugh. I can’t help but feel she should’ve been born a redhead.

  “How can you argue with something like that?” Lesléa says. “She was in her nineties! Let me tell you another story.”

  I smile as Lesléa launches into another tale, oozing fondness and love for this wonderful, special spirit who helped shape her.

  “Years before my grandmother moved into a nursing home, she went to the bank. This was back at the time when they would give out a free set of knives or something like that when people opened an account. Well, at this time, they were giving out clocks, so my grandmother said she wanted a clock. The banker said, ‘No, I’m sorry, that’s only for people who open new accounts.’ My grandmother said that didn’t make sense because she’d been a loyal customer for forty years, but the banker told her that was the way it worked. So she said to the bank teller, ‘Darling, I could take all my money out of the bank, walk around the block, bring it back and open a new account, and that would be more work for you and more work for me. Or, you could just give me the clock.” Lesléa chuckles. “She got the clock.”

  “She was your mother’s mother?” I ask.

  “Yes,” Lesléa says.

  PINIMAGE
  “And your newest children’s book, GITTEL’S JOURNEY: AN ELLIS ISLAND STORY is about her to some extent, correct?”

  “Well, Gittel was the mother of my Aunt Phyllis, but she’s not my biological aunt. She’s my Godmother. She and my mother became best friends when they were ten years old. So Gittel is mostly based on my Aunt Phyllis’ mother, but there are some traits from my maternal grandmother’s life in there, too. She’s the one who brought the candlesticks to America with her.”

  PINIMAGE
  “So what is your second pivotal moment?” I ask.

  “There might be moments in between, but definitely coming out as a lesbian was pivotal for me.”

  “How long ago was that?”

  “I was twenty-seven, so that was…thirty-six years ago.” I think of how different the world was back then and can’t help but feel respect for Lesléa’s bravery.

  “Was that scary for you?”

  “I don’t know if it was scary, so much,” Lesléa says. “It was liberating. I’d had a few boyfriends, but I was never happy. I kept thinking it was the wrong guy…I never really thought that it was the wrong gender. When I moved to Northampton, which is a very LGBTQ-friendly town, I was at a bus stop and a woman told me a guy was bothering her, so she asked if we could pretend we were together. I was happy to help a sister out. We got to talking and she was Jewish, from New York, and a poet. She invited me to a party and asked me to bring poetry to read aloud. The women there had such a positive, enthusiastic response to my poetry. I felt like I’d found my people. They understood me better than anyone ever had. I decided it was who I wanted to be.”

  “How did that change your world?” I ask.

  “In every way.” Lesléa’s voice trails off.

  “Did it change your views politically? Your relationship with your parents? How you viewed the world?”

  “Yes, yes, and yes—it changed all of that. This was a long time ago, before there were the initials LGBTQ. It was just ‘gay liberation.’ I’m not sure there were even marches back then. I never thought I’d get married and have children and have a conventional life, but I didn’t know there were any other choices.”

  “How did you meet your wife?” I ask. Lesléa laughs.

  PINIMAGE
  “She was, and is, very well-known in our community. When I met her, she was a deejay. DJ Mary V—she played at all the women’s dances. So I knew who she was. I started teaching women’s writing workshops in my home. She took a class and asked me out, but I said no because I didn’t date my students. The class ended and I thought she might ask me out then, but she signed up for another ten-week workshop. When we finally got to summer and I wasn’t teaching, she asked me out and I said yes. After only a very few dates, and this still surprises me, she proposed. It’s amazing because in 1988, lesbians weren’t getting married. She didn’t plan on proposing, but she said it felt right, and I said yes! We’re wildly different in many ways. She’s from Puerto Rico and is a former nun, and I’m a Jew and a New Yorker. She’s a wood carver and photographer, and I can’t do anything with my hands. She’s a great dancer, too.” Her love for Mary is palpable.

  “And you?” I ask. “Are you also a good dancer?”

  “I like to think so,” Lesléa’s voice smiles. “Mary can make anyone look good on the dance floor.”

  “How did your parents respond when you came out?”

  “They were very upset,” she says, the smile fading away from her tone. “My dad and I never talked about it but my mother was upset. She wrote me this horrendous letter and said, ‘I’m sure you’re under the influence of somebody else, you were always a follower, and if they walked up Fifth Avenue naked with frying pans on their heads you’d be first in line.’ That comment makes me laugh now. How ridiculous is that? But they came around because they met Mary shortly after my grandmother moved into the nursing home, and my whole family was in an uproar. Mary is a gentle soul. When she went out to eat with my family for the first time, she ordered what my mother ordered, even though Mary didn’t like it, and she complimented the dish.”

  “It sounds like a smart way to connect with her,” I muse.

  “Yes—my parents grew to love Mary. It was undeniable how happy—how much happier—I was with her, than when I was trying to live a heterosexual lifestyle. I was finally happily living as my authentic self.”

  “How long did it take for them to come around?”

  “Well, it was funny. They kept saying, ‘Don’t tell your grandmother, this is going to kill her.’ But my grandmother, who was ninety-nine at the time, kept saying, ‘I don’t want to die and leave you alone. A stone is alone, not a person.’ Why aren’t you with anyone?’ I finally thought, ‘I have to tell my grandmother so she can die in peace.’ She was very upset at first—she spit over her shoulder three times—but she had known and liked Mary. So she called me the next morning from the nursing home and said she’d been up all night thinking about it. She said, ‘I don’t want to die being mad on you. If you’re happy, I’m happy. You could marry a dog and I’d still love you.’”

  “So it didn’t even take her a day to be at peace.”

  “Exactly,” Lesléa says. “She put everybody else to shame. My parents were quasi-accepting for a while. My dad would introduce Mary as my roommate.” I can almost hear her eyes roll through the phone. “But they couldn’t help but fall in love with her because she’s such a wonderful person.”

  “So those are two incredibly defining moments,” I say. “What is your third?”

  Lesléa sighs.

  “The third actually includes two moments: the death of my parents. My mom died in 2012 and my dad died in 2017. My mom and I had a pretty strained relationship for most of my life. Around 2002, she collapsed on a cruise ship and was put on life support in California. We were so estranged I didn’t know if I would even go see her. My therapist, whom I’ve known for thirty-five years, said, ‘I’ve never told you what to do, but I’m telling you what to do: you need to go see your mother.’ So I went. My mother had a breathing tube, a feeding tube, hands tied to the bed, and she was heavily sedated. The nurse who invited me in to talk to her said she could hear me but wouldn’t respond. So I went in and said, ‘Mom, I’m here.’ Her eyes flew open.”

  “That gives me chills,” I say. “What did you say to her?”

  PINIMAGE
  “I’d spoken to my therapist about what I’d wanted to say—I’d fantasized about telling her how I felt about all the horrible things she’d said to me over the years. But I didn’t say any of that. I just said, ‘I want you to know I’m happy. I have a wonderful spouse, great friends, a good career, and a full life. You were a wonderful mother. I’m really glad you were my mom.’ I could tell that it took her a lot of energy, but she nodded her head and then went back under. The next day the nurse told me my mother took a turn for the better; they were taking her off the breathing tube. From that moment until she died, ten years later, we had a really great relationship. My mother credited me with saving her life. I wrote a poetry book called I CARRY MY MOTHER that tells this story; there are about sixty-eight poems in it.”

  “So how did she die?” I ask.

  PINIMAGE
  “My mom had COPD and cancer from being a lifelong smoker. She refused cancer treatment because, as she explained, ‘It’s not a tragedy.’ She was old and had had a full life and knew many people for whom cancer treatment was worse than the disease. She was sick for about two years, and I cared for her during that time. I didn’t want to have any regrets. After she died, my dad was bereft. They’d been together since they were teenagers, with a clear division of labor. He worked and made money and she ran the home, so he didn’t know how to do anything. I spent a lot of time in New York putting things in place so he was taken care of. He retired at eighty-nine from practicing law, because he’d been having mini strokes. His brain wasn’t as sharp. Eventually I had to work with the neurologist to have him declared medically unfit to drive, and losing his independence like that just about killed him. He and I were very close and we grew even closer after my mother died. During the last year of his life he moved to be near my brother. I think he probably died of a broken heart because he’d lost so much…his wife, his law practice, his independence, his identity as a New Yorker, his ability to play tennis, and most of his hearing.”

  “Did you ever regret not telling your mom how much she’d hurt you?” As someone who’s estranged from an abusive father, the question is a personal one for me.

  “Never. I cannot say enough about the power of forgiveness. I feel like we forgave each other in that moment. It was all gone. I’ve dabbled in Buddhism, so I tried to forget about the past and the future, and just wanted to be in the moment. When I walked into her hospital room, all I saw was an ill, old woman who needed compassion.”

  I remember my own mother’s apology two months before her death; it gave me tremendous peace. I also think of the abusive father I haven’t spoken to in a year.

  “That’s a powerful gift that you gave one another.” The words catch in my throat.

  “It was. I didn’t suffer when she was gone.”

  After we say our goodbyes, I can’t help but feel a sense of awe for Lesléa’s ability to let it all go. Forgiveness is definitely a powerful force, and I’ve long believed that I, too, have forgiven my parents for the wounds they inflicted on me as a child. In many ways, that forgiveness has allowed me to move on with my life. To heal. To be a better mother.

  But forgiving and forgetting are different things, and it makes me wonder. If we forget what someone has done and we allow them back into our circle, aren’t we opening ourselves up for more abuse? What was it that changed Lesléa’s mother enough to stop inflicting fresh wounds? Was she softened by her near-death experience? Or was it simply a peace within Lesléa that shielded her from further pain? I’m not sure. Whatever the reason, I’m grateful for the closure Lesléa and her parents shared. It was a gift.

  I wonder if that gift will ever be mine.

  The world is not made up of atoms; the world is made up of stories. Circular, honest, unpredictable, unavoidable stories.

  I wonder how mine will unfold.

  PINIMAGE
  I CARRY MY MOTHER

  I carry my mother wherever I go
  Her belly, her thighs, her plentiful hips
  Her milky white skin she called this side of snow
  The crease of her brow and the plump of her lips

  Her belly, her thighs, her plentiful hips
  The curl of her hair and her sharp widow’s peak
  The crease of her brow and the plump of her lips
  The hook of her nose and the curve of her cheek

  The curl of her hair and her sharp widow’s peak
  The dark beauty mark to the left of her chin
  The hook of her nose and the curve of her cheek
  Her delicate wrist so impossibly thin

  The dark beauty mark to the left of her chin
  Her deep set brown eyes that at times appeared black
  Her delicate wrist so impossibly thin
  I stare at the mirror, my mother stares back

  Her deep set brown eyes that at times appeared black
  Her milky white skin she called this side of snow
  I stare at the mirror, my mother stares back
  I carry my mother wherever I go

  -- Lesléa Newman
  “I Carry My Mother” copyright © 2015 Lesléa Newman from I Carry My Mother (Headmistress Press, Sequim, WA). Used by permission of the author.

  Look for Lesléa online at:

  Website: https://lesleanewman.com/

  Twitter: @lesleanewman

  Facebook: Lesléa Newman

• Entertainment Weekly - https://ew.com/books/2019/06/09/leslea-newman-heather-has-two-mommies-book/

  Author Lesléa Newman reflects on her groundbreaking kids' book Heather Has Two Mommies 30 years later
  The trailblazing author speaks about her 1989 children's book that sparked a firestorm of protests, book bans, and even entered the Congressional Record.

  By Lacey Vorrasi-Banis June 09, 2019 at 12:00 PM EDT
  Save
  FB
  Tweet

  More
  Mandatory Credit: Photo by Steven Senne/AP/Shutterstock (6100558d) Leslea Newman Author Leslea Newman, of Holyoke, Mass., displays a copy of her book "Heather Has Two Mommies," in Holyoke. Newman, who wrote the original version of "Heather Has Two Mommies," 25 years ago, about a little girl named Heather and her two happy mommies, has updated the book with fresh illustrations from a new artist Heather Has Two Mommies, Holyoke, USA

  STEVEN SENNE/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK
  Heather Has Two Mommies
  TYPE
  Book
  Thirty years ago a child named Heather was poised to strike a national nerve simply for having two moms and being the protagonist of her own story. In 1989 the world of children’s literature was virtually barren of any LGBTQ family representation when writer Lesléa Newman first co-published Heather Has Two Mommies with a friend, sparking a firestorm of repugnant protests, library book bans, and even entering the Congressional Record. EW caught up with the prolific author to find out how far Heather has come and how far we still have to go.

  ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did passages of Heather wind up being included in the Congressional Record in 1994?

  LESLÉA NEWMAN: Senator Bob Smith of New Hampshire read parts of the book [on the Senate floor] as evidence of the destruction of western civilization as we know it. What really was the worst part of the whole thing is that he read in such a sarcastic voice dripping with hate. It was the opposite of what I was doing.

  Even as a lesbian who went through the experience of conceiving a child with my wife, I was surprised to see that the first few editions mention how Mama Jane and Mama Kate conceived Heather. What made you incorporate that?

  Originally I didn’t have it in, but one editor said, “Children know that two moms can’t make a baby, and you need to address this in the book.”

  Do you think if you hadn’t included Heather’s conception, you still would’ve faced the initial uphill battle you had in getting it published, as well as the vitriol in the ’90s?

  Yes, absolutely because I didn’t send it around with the conception scene in it originally, and nobody really mentioned that throughout all the controversy. A lot of people hadn’t even read the book. It was just the title. That’s all that was needed for people to really lose it.

  Some of those hateful protests included an anti-LGBTQ campaign in Portland, Oregon, where Heather was said to be proof of a “militant homosexual agenda,” copies of Heather started disappearing from libraries across the country, and in Fayetteville, N.C., they attempted to ban the book.

  I remember people blew up the cover on huge placards and carried them around. I remember Fayetteville—they were voting on an $11.4 million bond to build a couple of new libraries in the community, and if Heather Has Two Mommies was gonna be in any of those libraries, they would rather not build the libraries. Like my mother used to say, “This is like cutting off your nose to spite your face.”

  Heather Has Two Mommies Lesléa Newman CR: Candlewick Press

  CANDLEWICK PRESS
  Between the 20th anniversary edition and the current edition, Heather got some significant upgrades: Her moms are married (evident by a visible wedding band), and instead of crying after realizing she doesn’t have a daddy, she just wonders if she’s the only one in her class without a father. Did you initiate that?

  Yes. When going back and re-reading the book, I just realized, well, that’s not anything to cry about. You know what Heather has are two loving parents.

  What would you tell someone who thought that these books are only for LGBTQ families?

  I would tell them that they would be doing their children a favor to expose them to as many different kinds of people and families as possible from as young an age as possible so that they can learn to celebrate, respect, and accept everybody whether they are similar to you or different than you.

  When I take my kid to a children’s bookstore here in Los Angeles and see that in a shop with three massive rooms there’s only a single shelf of one bookcase that holds stories about families like mine, it saddens me that this has been the progress in 30 years. As the trailblazer, herself, how does this make you feel?

  There definitely needs to be more, always needs to be more. I know lesbians who got ten copies of Heather Has Two Mommies at their baby shower, but wouldn’t it be great if they got dozens of books about kids with two moms, and they were all different?

• Windy City Times - http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/10-Questions-for-Leslea-Newman-in-conversation-with-Joan-Lipkin/41886.html

  10 Questions for Leslea Newman in conversation with Joan Lipkin
  2013-03-05

  Leslea Newman shot to fame in 1990 when her children's book, Heather Has Two Mommies, was celebrated in some circles as the first book to show a positive reflection of a child living happily with her two mothers, and banned in other circles who were less than pleased by the existence of the book.
  In the ensuing years, Newman has written or edited more than 60 books, including A Letter to Harvey Milk, The Boy Who Cried Fabulous, The Reluctant Daughter, Nobody's Mother and Write from the Heart. Her most recent book, October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard (Candlewick Press), is a moving and evocative response to Shepard's death, and was more than 11 years in the making.

  Newman will be in Chicago Tuesday, March 12 at 7 p.m. for a reading and booksigning at Women & Children First Bookstore, 5233 N. Clark St.

  Joan: You have a special connection to Matthew Shepard and Wyoming. Can you tell us how you nearly crossed paths right before he died?

  Leslea: I had been asked months before Matthew Shepard's murder to be the keynote speaker for Gay Awareness Week at the University of Wyoming, which was put together by the University of Wyoming's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered Association. One of the last things Matt did on the Tuesday night of his attack was attend a meeting of the LGBT Association to go over the plans for Gay Awareness Week. That weekend, Jim Osborn, president of the LGBT Association called to tell me what had happened to his friend, Matt. Jim asked if I wanted to cancel my appearance. I said absolutely not, and arrived on campus the day that Matt died. I met some of his friends and teachers. When I gave my talk, the students from the LGBT Association were sitting in the front row. There was one empty seat among them and I kept looking at it, and thinking, "Matthew Shepard should be sitting there."

  Joan: That must have been really eerie. Is that what inspired you to write this collection?

  Lesea: On October 12, 2009 The Maramie Project, Part II: The Epilogue was performed in 150 cities including Northampton, Mass., which is where I saw it. That night, I couldn't sleep. The play brought everything back to me in a flash, and I got out of bed in the middle of the night and wrote the poem, "Wounded" which is part of the collection. At this time, I was the poet laureate of Northampton, and I created a project called "30 Poems in 30 Days." I organized 75 poets to write a poem a day during the month of November, and collect monetary pledges per poem (a "poem-a-thon" similar to a "walkathon") to raise money for a literacy organization. After I wrote the first poem, I knew my 30 poems would be an exploration of the aftermath of this hate crime. And when the 30 days were over, I kept writing.

  Joan: You have published it 14 years after his death. How and why did it come together now?

  Leslea: I think it took me over a decade to truly absorb how horrific this hate crime was. I also think I had to grow as a writer, an activist, and a human being in order to have the confidence to take on this project. That's one answer. The other answer is, I never know what I am going to write when I sit down and pick up my pen (yes, I still write with a pen!). And these are the poems that came pouring out of me. Some books have longer gestation periods than others. And this book was one of them.

  Joan: You use many different poetic forms in the book. What are some of these forms and why did you select them?

  Lesea: I kept thinking about all the empty space surrounding this hate crime. Matt being alone on the prairie, which is very spacious, for 18 hours. The huge space he left in the lives of the people who knew him and loved him. In Japanese poetry, which I have studied, there is a quality called "yohaku" which means the empty space in a poem or a painting. I wanted to capture this emptiness by keeping the poems very sparse.

  Some of the forms I used are the villanelle and the pantoum both of which use repetition, as well as haiku, alphabet poem, acrostic, and several imitations. Many of the poems that were not written in a specific form use formal poetic devices such as rhyme and repetition. Because the poems contain such intense emotion, writing them in form was a way to contain that emotion, and to make the process of diving into this intense material more bearable.

  Joan: You also tell the story from the point of view of the fence Matt was tied to. And the truck Matt was kidnapped in, and the stars—which is very intriguing. Can you tell us more about those choices?

  Lesea: When I began to write the collection, I had to ask myself, what did I have to say that could possibly add to the many accounts that have already been written about Matt's murder? The facts were known (as much as we will ever know them). I kept thinking how we will never really know the truth about what happened at the fence that night. Matt can't tell us, and in my opinion, his murderers can't be trusted to tell the truth about what happened. I kept wishing there had been witnesses, and then I realized that there were witnesses: the fence, the moon, the stars, a deer that kept Matt company. As a poet, I used my imagination to create monologues from these points of view to learn something new about the story. The book is not THE truth; rather it is MY truth, my take on this murder and its aftermath.

  Joan: What has the response to the book been? Have you heard from the Shepard family?

  Leslea: The book has gotten a tremendous response, both from adults who remember vividly where they were, what they were doing, and how they responded when Matt was murdered, and from teenagers who were only 2 or 3 years old or not even born when these events took place. It is a very moving experience for me to give a reading from the book and look up and see a row of high school students, both male and female, wiping tears from their eyes.

  I hope that Matt's story inspires people to work harder to erase hate from our damaged world. I am a member of the Matthew Shepard Foundation speaker's bureau and have their full support for the work that I am doing. I recently spent some time with Judy Shepard in Brooklyn, NY, where we saw the Tectonic Theater Project perform both parts of The Laramie Project. I thanked Judy for allowing me to tell her son's story and she thanked me for telling it and told me she had heard many good things about the book. She is an amazing person and her dedication to human rights for all inspires me on a daily basis.

  Joan: I understand that October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard has been recommended by many teachers and Children's Library groups, and given several young adult book awards, including:

  American Library Association Stonewall Honor, 2013

  American Library Association LGBT Round Table Rainbow Book, 2013

  Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People, 2013

  Young Adult Library Services Association Best Fiction Book for Young Adults, 2012

  Poetry Foundation Children's Poet Laureate Pick, November 2012

  Nerdy Poetry Book Award, 2012

  This is not a typical choice of literature for children or young adults. Can you say more about this?

  Leslea: I don't think we give teens enough credit. They are passionate about injustice and are hungry for true stories that will inspire them to make the world a better place. I think teens deserve to know the truth about the world they are inheriting.

  I have been very inspired by their reactions to the book, and to the presentation I give, "He Continues to Make a Difference: The Story of Matthew Shepard." At the end of that presentation, I ask the audience to make a commitment to do one specific thing to make the world a safer place for the LGBTQA community. So many teens have said things like, "I'm not going to use the word 'fag' anymore" or "The next time I hear someone say, 'That's so gay' I'm going to call them out on it." It takes a lot of courage to stand up in front of your whole school and make a statement like that.

  Joan: What are your current and upcoming projects?

  Leslea: I'm very happy to say that I have a few children's books coming out in the near future: Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed which is based on the true story of a cat whose piano solo composition won honorable mention in a contest (really!) and Here is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays. Also I am thrilled that Heather Has Two Mommies, which is currently out of print, is going to be reissued with brand new fabulous illustrations. And currently, I am working on an adult poetry collection about my mother's recent death, with all the poems being written in form.

  Joan: Anything else you would like to share about your life?

  Leslea: For any reader who is struggling, I'd like to say, it does get better! I am proud to be happily and legally (in Massachusetts) married to my beloved and we are about to celebrate our 25th anniversary! And I fully expect that the federal government will recognize our marriage in our lifetime. And also, never underestimate your own power. One simple act of kindness can save a life and make all the difference in the world.

  Joan: Absolutely. So would you say there is life after Heather Has Two Mommies?

  Leslea: Heather Has Two Mommies is almost 25 years old (!) so there is definitely life after Heather!

  Joan Lipkin is the artistic director of That Uppity Theatre Company. A playwright, director and social activist, she divides her time between St Louis, NYC and other parts of the country.

• Ms. - https://msmagazine.com/2011/10/31/queer-history-month-a-chat-with-author-leslea-newman/

  Queer History Month: A Chat With Author Lesléa “Heather Has Two Mommies” Newman
  10/31/2011 by LEAH BERKENWALD
  In honor of Queer History Month, I want to give a shout out to Lesléa Newman, an iconic yet under-recognized gay Jewish writer whose work continues to inform the changing landscape of GLBT rights in the U.S.

  I first met Lesléa at a writing workshop sponsored by my mom’s Sisterhood group at our synagogue nearly three years ago. Bored, underemployed and living in my parents’ basement, I begrudgingly tagged along, knowing I would be the only person in attendance under 40. The workshop turned out to be fabulous, but it wasn’t until we were getting ready to leave that I saw the table overflowing with copies of Lesléa’s books and realized that she was the author of not only the groundbreaking children’s book Heather Has Two Mommies, but the celebrated short story “A Letter to Harvey Milk.” Lesléa Newman’s words and stories were a presence in my life at every stage of my development.

  Newman has written more than 50 books, including children’s books, novels, poetry and short fiction. She has received a number of literary awards, and nine of her books have been Lambda Literary Award finalists. But it is not her achievements that inspire me; it is her bravery, perseverance,and dedication to exploring the intersection of her lesbian and Jewish identities in her writing.

  Ms. Blog: When did you first realize you were a lesbian? When did you come out?

  Lesléa Newman: I came out when I was 27, having had the realization at a party where there was an open poetry reading. I didn’t know when I first got there that all present were lesbians, but it soon became apparent to me. When I read my work, the women responded in such a deep way, I thought, “These are my people.” No one had ever understood my work like that. I identified as a lesbian from that moment on, and have never looked back! This was in 1983, and never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever have the honor of being happily and legally married (we just celebrated our 23rd anniversary). It does get better! And better and better and better.

  When did you begin writing about LGBT issues? Did you feel safe doing so?

  I began writing about LGBT issues immediately. In fact, coming out opened up my writing in a whole new way. My first novel, Good Enough to Eat is about a Jewish woman who is struggling with an eating disorder. In the course of the novel, she comes out, and comes to a peaceful place with who she is in body and soul. I followed that up with A Letter to Harvey Milk, a book that contains nine short stories, each one about a different Jewish lesbian. I wanted to read a book about Jewish lesbians but I couldn’t find one, so I decided to write one. I’m not sure why I never felt afraid to write openly and honestly about LGBT issues. In a way, it’s scarier not to write about these issues. My latest book, a volume of poetry called October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard (forthcoming from Candlewick Press in fall of 2012) drives home the reason we cannot be silent. If one of my books can ever convince even one person that LGBT people have the right to exist and enjoy the same basic civil rights as everyone else–including the right to feel safe in this world– I will feel that I have done my job.

  Are you surprised that Heather Has Two Mommies is still one of the most frequently banned books?

  Ah, Heather. She continues to do her job in the world, which is to make people think. She has been banned and burned, lauded and applauded. I don’t know that anything that happens regarding Heather would surprise me at this point. She’s been through it all! I wrote Heather so that children with two lesbian moms would see a family like theirs depicted in a picture book. The message of the book, which the teacher in the book tells the children, is, “The most important thing about a family is that all the people in it love each other.” I find it amazing that in the year 2011, this is still considered a controversial statement.

  Was there any blowback from the release of your new children’s book about gay marriage, Donovan’s Big Day?

  My subsequent picture books that feature two-mom or two-dad families such as the board books, Mommy, Mama, and Me and Daddy, Papa, and Me, as well as Donovan’s Big Day, have not gotten into the sticky situations that Heather has. I’m not sure why. Maybe the times, they are a-changing.

  What advice do you have for aspiring GLBT writers?

  The same advice I have for any writer: read as much as you can. Write every day. Remain teachable. Never give up. And specifically for LGBT writers: The world needs our stories. Our stories are everyone’s stories. Believe in yourself. Your writing is a gift to the world.

• Only Picture Books - https://www.onlypicturebooks.com/2019/02/11/author-interview-leslea-newman/

  Author Interview: Lesléa Newman
  ON FEBRUARY 11, 2019 BY ONLY PICTURE BOOKSIN AUTHOR INTERVIEWS
  The February 2019 author interview at OPB is with … Lesléa Newman! Her name is well-known here in the halls of the OPB home office since we recently reviewed her new picture book, Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story. But she’s also written 70 other books for adults and children, and has won a host of awards, such as a National Endowment for the Arts poetry fellowship, the Association of Jewish Libraries Sydney Taylor Award, and the Massachusetts Book Award.

  Lesléa lives in Holyoke, Massachusetts. She’s a past poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts, and she’s a faculty member at Spalding University’s low-residency MFA in Writing program.

  And in case you don’t yet own any of her books, here are a few of my favs.

  Website: www.lesleanewman.com
  Facebook: www.facebook.com/leslea.newman
  Twitter: @lesleanewman

  RVC: At what point did you know that you were a writer? Where were the (warning) signs?

  LN: I started writing poems when I was about 8 years old. I always knew I would be a writer; I never wanted to be anything else.

  I was a voracious reader when I was growing up. As a teen, my friends and I all told our parents that after school we went to the library. My friends were all lying. I was the only one telling the truth! I loved going to the library. I still do.

  RVC: Beyond being around books (something all writers love), what did you like most about the library?

  LN: I loved that it was quiet, that I was left alone to wander through the stacks, and that it was a safe space where no one would tease or bully me (I was teased/bullied a lot as a teen). The library was and still is my safe harbor.

  RVC: How does your work as a poet inform your writing of picture books?

  LN: Picture books (even those written in prose) and poetry have so much in common. Both contain few words, so every word has to earn its space on the page. Both are written to be read aloud so one must be aware of the sounds of the words: the rhythm, the rhyme (if there is rhyme), the cadence. In other words, the musicality of the language. And both benefit from literary techniques such as alliteration, repetition, etc.

  RVC: Let’s talk about Gittel’s Journey, which was reviewed here at OPB not so long ago. This is a book that came about from family oral histories. What kind of challenges did you have with using that as source material?

  LN: I felt an enormous pressure to “get the words right” especially as the real Gittel’s daughter is still alive (she is 90) and I very much wanted her to feel good about the book. The book is an homage to an actual person who showed an incredible amount of courage. I hope it conveys that. I hope the children reading the book will get a sense of how brave Gittel had to be to cross an ocean alone and start a new life all by herself, without knowing if she would ever hear from or see her mother again.

  RVC: Since we’re getting specific about your book, let me ask this–you’ve been asked oodles of questions before about Heather has Two Mommies. In retrospect, what’s the best (perhaps unappreciated) craft aspect about that groundbreaking title?

  LN: It’s hard to write a book with a message without coming across as didactic. I did my best!

  RVC: Many of your books have a clear commitment to accurately present Jewish characters, beliefs, and history. What’s the current state of the affairs in kidlit for those topics?

  LN: Jewish children’s literature is alive and well! I’m happy to see that in addition to holiday books, there are books on a variety of other topics. I’m especially happy to see books that focus on diverse cultures. Some examples that I particularly admire are: Chicken Soup, Chicken Soup by Pamela Mayer which focuses on a girl with a Jewish grandmother and a Chinese grandmother; A Horn for Louis by Eric Kimmel which tells the story of how a Jewish family helped Louis Armstrong acquire a horn; and As Good as Anybody by Rich Michelson which is about two social justice icons, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Josua Heschel.

  RVC: How do you feel about #ownvoices when it comes to books on Jewish issues and themes?

  LN: I support #ownvoices — it is very important to hear stories being told by people who are speaking from direct experience. I have never thought about the concept in terms of Jewish issues and themes. As someone who has been challenged and censored, I would never tell other writers what they can and cannot write. What’s important is that a writer has good intentions, does thorough research, hires sensitivity readers, works really hard, and is passionately committed to the story.

  For more about #ownvoices I highly recommend reading Jacqueline Woodson’s essay.

  RVC: How important is the element of play in your use of language? And how much is too much?

  LN: It depends on what I’m writing. I have recently gone back to writing humorous picture books. One in particular, which I just finished, contains a great deal of word play. Alas, since it has not yet found a home, I’m not quite ready to talk about it. Suffice to say that as a poet and picture book writer, my favorite thing to do is play with language. I can tinker with words all day. I don’t know that there can be too much of this. It all depends on the content of the story.

  RVC: What are you currently reading? And please do offer a three-word review for each of those titles!

  LN: Meet the Latkes by Alan Silberberg (picture book) Charming, hysterically funny!

  The Friend by Sigrid Nunez (novel) Poignant, heartbreakingly beautiful.

  A Cruelty Special To Our Species by Emily Jungmin Yoon (poetry) Devastating, important, life-changing.

  RVC: I know the latter two of those, and you’re right–dynamite. Great choices.

  But it’s time to move to the Lightning Round. Zappy-fast answers, please! Ready? If the animal kingdom ever rises up and takes over, which type of animal might make the best president?

  LN: A cat of course. My cat would do a great job.

  RVC: Describe your writing career using only film titles. Three max!

  LN: My Brilliant Career, Almost Famous, Poetic Justice.

  RVC: Most writerly flavor of ice cream?

  LN: Vanilla, because it looks like a blank piece of paper!

  RVC: Three things that are at the core of every picture book you write?

  LN: Respect, acceptance, fabulousness.

  RVC: Last picture book that you read and immediately thought, “WOW, I wish I wrote that!”

  LN: Meet Miss Fancy by Irene Latham, illustrated by John Holyfield.

  RVC: Best compliment you’ve ever gotten from a child reader?

  LN: I love your shoes.

  RVC: Thanks for being a great OPB guest, Lesléa. I appreciate it!

• Lesléa Newman Kids website - https://lesleakids.com/

  Biography

  Lesléa with friend, Miss Truvy
  Lesléa (pronounced “Lez-LEE-uh”) Newman was born in Brooklyn, NY and grew up there and on Long Island, graduating from Jericho High School in 1973 (where she was voted Class Wit!). Right after graduation, she became a published author for the first time; several of her poems were published in Seventeen Magazine.

  Lesléa attended the University of Vermont and graduated in 1977 with a B.S. in Education. After graduation, she moved to Boulder, Colorado to attend Naropa Institute. In 1980, Lesléa received a Certificate of Poetics from Naropa Institute, where she had the great honor of being Allen Ginsberg’s apprentice.

  Before moving to Western Massachusetts in 1983, Leslea lived in Boston and New York and had a variety of jobs including preschool teacher, secretary, waitress, freelance reporter, and sales clerk. She now lives in western Massachusetts, and from 2008-2010 served as the poet laureate of Northampton, MA. Currently she teaches writing for children and young adults at Spalding University’s brief-residency MFA in Writing program.

  Lesléa always knew she wanted to be a writer and has always worked hard towards that goal. She writes in many different forms: picture books, poems, short stories and novels. She has published many books and won many awards (see list of awards and publications). She says this to anyone who wants to be a writer: “Writing is hard work. It is also lots of fun and very rewarding. If you want to be a writer, you must practice your art. Try to do it every day. Do other things that support the writing life: read as much as you can, visit the library, go to readings at bookstores, join or start a writer’s group. Everyone has interesting and important stories to tell. Allow your writing to take you on a journey. Don’t try to control it—let your writing lead you to new and exciting places. The wonderful thing about writing is, you don’t need much: just a pen, a piece of paper, and your own imagination.”

  Listen to a sound file to learn the story of Lesléa’s first name and hear it pronounced correctly.

  Lesléa is a member of the following professional organizations:
  Poets and Writers, Inc., 1980 – present
  Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, 1990 – present
  Cat Writers Association, 2004 – present
  Dog Writers Association of America, 2004 – present
  Lesléa’s teaching experience:
  Faculty Mentor, Spalding University brief residency MFA in Writing program. Currently teaching writing for children and young adults.
  Faculty Member, Stonecoast MFA in Creative Writing Program at the University of Southern Maine, 2005-2009. Teaches fiction (including young adult fiction) at low-residency MFA program.
  Director of Creative Writing, Summer Math Program, Mt. Holyoke College, 1986-1990. Designed and taught creative writing to high school women from around the country.
  Since 1981, Lesléa has designed and taught the following writing workshops privately, and as a guest presenter at universities and other institutions:
  Write From The Heart: a writing workshop in which participants use the tool of writing to explore the emotional truths of their lives.
  Poems From The Heart: a writing workshop for participants who want to write poems or already do.
  A Novel Idea: a writing workshop for participants who want to write a novel, or are already working on one.
  Education:
  University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, 1973-1977
  B.S. in Education
  Major: Creative Writing and Human Services

  Naropa Institute, Boulder, CO 1979-1980.
  Teaching Assistant for the following courses:
  Imagists and East Asian Poetry (taught by Patricia Donegan)
  Literary History of the Beat Generation (taught by Allen Ginsberg)
  Received Certificate in Poetics, 1980.

  Bread Loaf Writers Conference (Poetry taught by Marvin Bell)
  Ripton, VT, 1977.

  Women’s Writing Workshops (taught by Kathryn Machan Aal)
  Aurora, NY, 1984.

  Cummington Community for the Arts
  Fiction taught by Grace Paley, poetry taught by Joan Larkin
  Cummington, MA, 1986.

  Writing Workshop for Women (taught by Joan Larkin)
  Blueberry Cove, ME, 1986 – 1987.

  Frequently Asked Questions About Lesléa Newman
  Where did you grow up?
  Leslea Newman with her grandmothers
  Here I am on the day I graduated from high school with my two proud grandmothers.
  I was born in Brooklyn, NY in a neighborhood called Brighton Beach. I could see the ocean from my bedroom window and the beach was my backyard. In second grade, my family moved to Long Island, to a town called Jericho. Both my grandmothers remained in Brooklyn, so I still spent a lot of time there. I attended Public School 253, George Jackson Elementary School, and Jericho Junior and Senior High School.

  What kinds of books did you read when you were growing up?
  I loved books about animals. My favorite book was called Caroline and Her Friends, by Pierre Probst. All Caroline’s friends were animals: Rusty the Dog, Bruno the Bear, Inky the Cat. I also loved Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne, Black Beauty by Anna Sewell, and The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford. Other favorites are Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh, and Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank.

  Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?
  Yes! Ever since I can remember, I have always wanted to be a writer. I was the kind of kid who was always reading a book (except when my mother caught me reading under the covers with a flashlight and I had to put my book away). The public library was my home-away-from-home.

  Where do you get your ideas?
  From everywhere—from my dreams, from things that happen to me, from things I read in the newspaper, from my imagination.

  Do you write every day?
  I try to stick to a writing schedule of writing every morning, Monday through Friday for several hours. Sometimes, if I am in the middle of something, I’ll write on the weekends as well. Other times, if I am between projects, I’ll take a little time off.

  Couscous the cat with a Macintosh computer
  This is the first computer I ever owned. Couscous the Cat was fascinated by it. Photo © Mary Vazquez
  Do you write on a computer?
  When I start a story or a poem, I begin by writing in a spiral notebook with a Bic medium point pen (either black or blue). Once I have a first draft written, I type it into the computer and edit it. Before I had a computer, I wrote everything out with a pen and then typed up the final draft on my typewriter.

  How long does it take to write a book?
  Each book takes a different amount of time, from several weeks to several years! Every book goes through many drafts. I just wrote the fifteenth draft of a picture book I have been working on for seven months.

  What is your favorite of your own books?
  Whichever one I’m working on!

  Did you go to college?
  I went to two colleges: the University of Vermont, and Naropa Institute in Boulder, CO. I graduated from the University of Vermont with a B.S. in Education. My major was Creative Writing and Social Services. I received a Certificate in Poetics from Naropa Institute, where I apprenticed with the wonderful poet, Allen Ginsberg.

  What kind of jobs did you have before you became a writer?
  When I was a teenager, I delivered newspapers and babysat. When I was in college, I worked in an ice cream shop. After college I worked as a day care teacher, a newspaper reporter, a salesclerk in a clothing store and a secretary. I also taught writing for many years.

  Do you have any pets?
  I have a beautiful 12-pound cat named Neshama (her name means “soul” in Hebrew). Over the years, I have had many cats in my life including Princess Sheba Darling, Precious Sammy Dearest, Couscous Kerouac and P.C. (Perfect Cat). And when I was growing up, I had a Cairn terrier named Angus.

  What would you tell a kid who wants to be a writer?
  Read, read, read! Read every book you can get your hands on. And write, write, write! Make a writing schedule for yourself and stick to it.

  What if I don’t know what to write about?
  There are many, many books of writing exercises—buy one, or take one out of the library and use it as a guide. Or take a writing class or join a writing group. If you can’t find a group, start one!

  What do you do when you’re not writing?
  Like most writers, I love to read. I also love to hang out at home with my spouse and our cat. And I like going to the movies and to the theater. I do the New York Times crossword puzzle every day. I eat dark chocolate as often as possible. And I love to shop!

  Lesléa Newman and Eric Carle
  Lesléa Newman and Eric Carle
  Who are your favorite authors?
  I like so many writers, I can’t name them all, but some of my favorite writers are the women in my writing group: Jane Yolen, Patricia MacLachlan, Ann Turner, Corinne Demas, Ellen Wittlinger, and Barbara Goldin. They are all wonderful writers of children’s books.

  I also enjoy the work of other children’s book authors who live in western Massachusetts, including Rich Michelson, Mordicai Gerstein, Norton Juster, Eric Carle, Grace Lin, Mike Curato, Jeannine Atkins, Lisa Yee, and Lisa Papademetriou.

• Lesléa Newman website - https://lesleanewman.com/

  Lesléa (pronounced “Lez-LEE-uh”) Newman is the author of 70 books for readers of all ages, including A Letter to Harvey Milk; October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard; I Carry My Mother; The Boy Who Cried Fabulous; Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed; and Heather Has Two Mommies.

  She has received many literary awards, including creative writing fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation, two American Library Association Stonewall Honors, the Massachusetts Book Award, the Association of Jewish Libraries Sydney Taylor Award, the Highlights for Children Fiction Writing Award, a Money for Women/Barbara Deming Memorial Fiction Writing grant, the James Baldwin Award for Cultural Achievement, the Cat Writer’s Association Muse Medallion, and the Dog Writers Association of America’s Maxwell Medallion. Nine of her books have been Lambda Literary Award Finalists.

  Ms. Newman wrote Heather Has Two Mommies, the first children’s book to portray lesbian families in a positive way, and has followed up this pioneering work with several more children’s books on lesbian and gay families: Felicia’s Favorite Story, Too Far Away to Touch, Saturday Is Pattyday, Mommy, Mama, and Me, and Daddy, Papa, and Me.

  She is also the author of many books for adults that deal with lesbian identity, Jewish identity and the intersection and collision between the two. Other topics Ms. Newman explores include AIDS, eating disorders, butch/femme relationships, and sexual abuse. Her award-winning short story, A Letter To Harvey Milk, has been made into a film and adapted for the stage.

  In addition to being an author, Ms. Newman is a popular guest lecturer, and has spoken on college campuses across the country including Harvard University, Yale University, the University of Oregon, Bryn Mawr College, Smith College and the University of Judaism. From 2005-2009, Lesléa was on the faculty of the Stonecoast MFA program at the University of Southern Maine. From 2008-2010, she served as the Poet Laureate of Northampton, MA. She has taught fiction writing at Clark University and currently she is a faculty mentor at Spalding University’s School of Creative and Professional Writing.

  Recently published books include the poetry collection I Carry My Mother (Golden Crown Literary Society Award and Massachusetts Center for the Book “Must Read” title); picture books Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed (Massachusetts Book Award, Sydney Taylor Award, and Cat Writers Association Best “Litter-ary” Award); Sparkle Boy (Massachusetts Center for the Book Honor Title); and Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story (National Jewish Book Award). Forthcoming books include the adult poetry collection I Wish My Father (Headmistress Press, 2021) and the picture books Song of Los Coquís/La Canción De Los Coquís (Lee & Low, 2020); What Daddies Do (Abrams, 2021) and I Can Be….Me! (Lee & Low, forthcoming).

• Forward - https://forward.com/culture/426864/giving-voice-to-jewish-characters-in-childrens-literature-a-conversation/

  Giving Voice To Jewish Characters In Children’s Literature — A Conversation with Lesléa Newman
  Arielle KadenJuly 9, 2019Lesléa Newman
  When I was a little girl attending public school in northern New Jersey, I would get excited every time I saw a Jewish person represented in a story. Growing up on a steady diet of Dr. Seuss, “The Black Stallion” and “A to Z Mysteries,” I noticed that there were hardly any Jewish characters in the books I read.

  It was shocking and comforting when I learned that there were children’s stories with Jewish themes, like a book I received as a kid titled “Arielle and the Hanukkah Surprise” — not only did the book have Jewish characters, the main character had my name and even looked like me.

  Lesléa Newman, whose picture book “Heather Has Two Mommies” was one of the first children’s stories to focus on an LGBTQ family, has made it her mission to give underrepresented populations a voice in children’s literature. Her most recent book, “Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story,” tells the story of a little Jewish girl named Gittel who must travel on her own from her quiet shtetl in Eastern Europe to the busy halls of Ellis Island. In the book, readers witness firsthand the experience many children had when they traveled to America alone.

  Cover of book "Gittel's Journey" by the Forward
  Lesléa Newman

  “Gittel’s Journey” cover

  Newman says she was inspired to write a book about a Jewish immigrant after she saw a photo in a newspaper of Syrian refugees sitting in a boat looking afraid, but also hopeful.

  “It just kind of triggered this memory,” Newman said. She remembered the story of her grandmother Ruth who came to America in 1900 when she was 10, bringing only a few items such as a pair of brass candlesticks. She also thought of her Aunt Phyllis whose mother Sadie came to America unaccompanied, holding a piece of paper with a relative’s address that was so smudged it was illegible.

  TOP ARTICLES
  1/5
  READ MORE
  How I plan to survive a three day yontef with kids and
  no screentime

  Because Sadie had no one to meet at Ellis Island, a picture of her was posted in a Jewish newspaper that, luckily, was seen by the family member that she was intending to meet. Both Ruth and Sadie made it off Ellis Island and started lives in America. Their stories inspired “Gittel’s Journey” which Newman said with a laugh, took her sixty years to come up with.

  Lesléa Newman with her Aunt Phyllis, the inspiration for "Gittel's Journey" by the Forward
  Lesléa Newman

  Author Lesléa Newman (right) with her Aunt Phyllis, whose mother Sadie was the inspiration for “Gittel’s Journey.”

  When I asked Newman to describe her writing process, she said she uses a technique called “Windows and Mirrors” — a term coined by Rudine Sims Bishop, a scholar and specialist in children’s literature.

  “The concept is that children need mirrors,” Newman said to me, “so they can see themselves in children’s literature, so they feel validated and that they have a place in the world.”

  She explained that children also needed windows, “so they can look out on the world and see other families that aren’t like them and learn about diversity.”

  Newman, who has written 59 books, including 30 children’s picture books, says she tries to apply this concept in every story she writes. As we discussed her hopes for “Gittel’s Journey,” she told me that she’d like it to inspire children to research their own ancestry and have more empathy towards immigrants.

  “We [the USA] haven’t always been 100 percent welcoming,” she said. “We know that from our history.” Yet Newman also believes that we have welcomed a lot of people and we should continue to do that as much as possible. “Because that is the kind and humane thing to do,” she said.

  Newman says she also deeply appreciates the way a children’s book can change a kid’s life in a different way than a book can change an adult’s. “You know to see yourself in a book is so important,” she told me.

  Arielle Kaden is a writer based in New York City whose work has been featured in the Forward and Columbia Journal. She is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and a recipient of the Fulbright Scholarship. She is currently earning a MFA in Nonfiction Writing at Columbia University and interning for the Opinion Section at the Forward. Follow her on Twitter here.

• Chris Barton - https://chrisbarton.info/2-question-qa-and-giveaway-for-february-2019/

  “Her life is changed forever because of the kindness of strangers she meets along the way.” (2-question Q&A and giveaway for February 2019)

  Welcome to the Q&A and giveaway for the February edition of my Bartography Express newsletter (which you can sign up for here).

  My Q&A this month is with author Lesléa Newman and illustrator Amy June Bates, creators of the new picture book Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story, which is officially published today by Abrams Books for Young Readers.

  Based on Lesléa’s own family history, Gittel’s Journey tells the story of a child’s immigration across the Atlantic — on her own, after a dramatic separation from her mother — and the compassionate welcome she receives from a port worker upon her arrival in America. This second collaboration by Lesléa and Amy has received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and School Library Journal.

  I’m giving away one copy of Gittel’s Journey to a Bartography Express subscriber with a US mailing address. If you want that winner to be you, just let me know (in the comments below or by emailing me) before midnight on February 28, and I’ll enter you in the drawing.

  In the meantime, please enjoy my two-question Q&A with Lesléa Newman and Amy June Bates.

  Chris: Gittel’s Journey isn’t your first collaboration. How have your experiences of making this book and bringing it into the world compared to those of your previous effort together, Ketzel, the Cat who Composed?

  Leslea Newman. Photo by Mary Vazquez.

  Lesléa: I started writing Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed and Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story in the same way I always start writing: from a deep, heartfelt connection to the subject matter.
  Ketzel and Gittel have a lot in common: Both books are based on true stories, both books contain Jewish themes that translate into universal themes, and both books are about finding home.

  In the case of Ketzel, a homeless cat is taken in by composer Moshe Cotel. Because of Mr. Cotel’s kindness, Ketzel’s life is changed and in turn, she rewards him in a completely unexpected and delightful way. In the case of Gittel, persecution forces her to leave her home and journey to a new land. Her life is also changed forever because of the kindness of strangers she meets along the way.

  In terms of writing, the idea for each book came about in a totally different way. Let’s start with Ketzel:

  I found out about this story purely by happenstance. One day I was sitting in my writing room with a blank piece of paper in front of me and not an idea in my head. Bored, I picked up my synagogue’s newsletter from the coffee table in front of me, hoping for distraction. The theme of my Rabbi’s monthly column was the concept of being open to the unlikely opportunities that lie in every moment and which offer delight and surprise.

  As an example, he cited the true story of Ketzel, who ran down Moshe Cotel’s piano keyboard one morning for no apparent reason. Mr. Cotel jotted down what he heard and sent it into a contest, and lo and behold, Ketzel’s composition won honorable mention and Ketzel became world famous! Before I even finished reading the Rabbi’s column, I knew this was a children’s book waiting to happen.

  The story of Gittel is one that I have known all my life.

  My Aunt Phyllis’ mother, the real Gittel, came to America at the turn of the 20th century by herself when she was just a child. She was given a piece of paper with the name and address of a relative written on it and told to hold that piece of paper tight and give it to an immigration officer when she got to the USA. She did so, but to her surprise, all the ink had worn off on her hand and the note could not be read. Her photo was put in the newspaper and her relatives recognized her and came to Ellis Island to claim her.

  In 2015, I kept seeing images of Syrian refugees in small boats washing ashore with fear, relief, sorrow, and hope etched on their faces. I kept thinking of the fact that my own grandparents traveled across an ocean with the same hopes and fears. And that’s when the story of Gittel resurfaced in my heart and my mind and I knew it was time to tell this story.

  I wrote many many drafts of both books and did a great deal of research, so that I could get the details right. The absolutely gorgeous illustrations for both books added so much depth and brought the stories to life in a way that I never could have imagined. I know Amy June Bates worked very very hard on both books, and in my opinion, she is a genius!

  Amy June Bates

  Amy: I love hearing these stories, Lesléa. Lesléa is an amazing genius writer and I have been profoundly lucky to work with her on these two books.
  In the case of Ketzel: The year I illustrated Ketzel, I did two books back to back about stray animals being befriended. Now I have two dogs.

  It’s a funny process illustrating a book, getting into the mind of the characters, sympathizing with them and imagining how they must have felt. One of the things that I love about Ketzel is that the two, they save each other. Moshe saves Ketzel, but Ketzel also saves Moshe. I really feel like that is what animals do for us. Especially when you rescue an animal, it is A LOT of work to rehabilitate an animal, but I also feel like it is repayed in full.

  I took piano lessons for 18 years, and my mother was very happy to learn that I put my piano knowledge to good use. For example, in the spread where Ketzel the cat was across the keyboard, the keys that the cat is walking on are the notes in the music.

  I want to emphasize, however, that dogs should not play the piano. If my dog Chester walked across my keyboard, we would none of us recover.

  Gittel’s Journey is such an important book for this time, and for all times because it is the story of so many Americans, no matter if you immigrated today or hundreds of years ago. Many don’t want to leave their homes, but are forced to leave because of danger or economics. Either way it is difficult and dangerous.

  In light of recent events it is particularly excruciating to think of the fear that Gittel must have felt with no way to communicate or find her mother or family. Terrifying. Her story is everyone’s American story. Every immigrant is America’s story.

  I enjoy illustrating history. I love doing the research. I found travel logs of boats that carried immigrants like Gittel and traced their routes. I could look up a specific steamer, find its brochure with pictures of the bunks and and even menus. Sometimes I do fall down a rabbit hole…but that is the fun of it, I guess.

  Chris: Your dedications for this book each seem so fitting. Amy, you dedicated Gittel’s Journey “For all children who come to this country seeking freedom and safety,” and Lesléa, you went with “For Aunt Phyllis — I love you to pieces!”

  I’m curious — whenever either of you dedicates a book to a specific person, as you both did with Ketzel, when and how do you let them know? Or do you let them discover that for themselves?

  Amy: This is dedicated to the one I love:

  Usually when I do a book there is a sentiment or a feeling, or something going on in my life that connects me to this book at this time and in a specific way. Sometimes that is outside my immediate friends and family, for example in the the case of Gittel’s Journey. I have ancestors that crossed that ocean to escape famine and hunger and economic despair or religious freedom, and I am grateful for their sacrifice, but when I was making this book I was thinking of the people that are going through those same sacrifices right now.

  When I dedicate a book to a specific person, I like to let them find it themselves.

  Lesléa: I never realized how much a book dedication meant until a book was dedicated to me (Cat Talk by Patricia MacLachlan). Usually I know to whom I am going to dedicate a book the moment I start writing it. Though I keep that knowledge to myself until the book is published (which in at least one case took ten years!). Luckily I am very good at keeping secrets! When the book comes out, I send a copy to the person named in the dedication.

  In the case of Gittel, the choice was obvious. The book is about my Aunt Phyllis’ mother, so of course I dedicated the book to Aunt Phyllis, from whom I heard the story. My Aunt Phyllis ends every phone call (and I speak to her almost every night) with the words, “I love you to pieces.” I presented the book to her in person, and when she read the dedication she laughed and then she cried. Being able to give my aunt that much joy is one of the highlights of my literary career.

  By Chris Barton|February 5th, 2019|Abrams Books for Young Readers, Amy June Bates, Bartography Express, Chris Barton, Gittel's Journey, giveaway, Leslea Newman|5 Comments

• Nancy Churnin - https://www.nancychurnin.com/thekidsareallwrite/2019/7/25/6q0zffty1ue8iad0xykexbrm7n79re

  JULY 25, 2019
  LESLEA NEWMAN'S MOVING, DECADES-LONG JOURNEY TO TELLING 'GITTEL'S JOURNEY'
  _GITTEL COVER.jpg
  One of the thrills of being a part of the children’s book community is meeting people like Leslea Newman, who has become both a friend and a mentor who has opened my eyes to the magic of historical fiction for kids. While my first book, The William Hoy Story, How a Deaf Baseball Player Changed the Game debuted three years ago, Leslea broke ground three decades ago with Heather Has Two Mommies in 1989, one of the first popular children’s books to show a family with two moms. Being a voice for those who needed one when voices like hers were being attacked is impressive enough. But Leslea has gone on to create a rich, full body of work that runs a wide gamut of subjects, from the serious to light-hearted.

  If there’s a strand that connects Leslea’s books, it’s her love and support for ordinary people (and cats) who just want to enjoy their lives. While all her books her personal, woven with deep feelings and connection, her latest, Gittel’s Journey, an Ellis Island Story (with glorious illustrations by Amy June Bates), seems to hit the most close to home. This story of a young immigrant who must draw on all her courage when she finds herself alone on a boat making her way to Ellis Island is inspired by the stories of two of Leslea’s relatives.

  As someone whose grandparents made similar journeys to America, I had lots of questions about how this beautiful book came to be and Leslea, being Leslea, graciously agreed to take the time to answer them all. Thank you, Leslea!

  Leslea with her Aunt Phyllis, now 91, whose family stories helped inspire the book, illustrated by Amy June Bates and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers. Photo by Mary Vazquez
  Leslea with her Aunt Phyllis, now 91, whose family stories helped inspire the book, illustrated by Amy June Bates and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers. Photo by Mary Vazquez

  You’ve been a published author for three decades, with more than 70 books to your credit. You write for adults, teens and kids. You write poetry and prose. Did you know right away how you were going to tell Gittel’s Journey — whether it would be historical fiction, fiction or non-fiction, poetry or prose, a picture book or for older readers?

  Leslea: I knew right away that it would be a story for children and that it would be fiction. And of course, since it is based on a true story, it would be historical fiction by default. I didn’t know at first whether it would be a picture book or a chapter book. It turned into a picture book with a fair amount of text. Several members of my writers group suggested that I turn it into a chapter book, but I really felt that it needed a substantial amount of art to support the text. Amy June Bates did an amazing job.

  “You must be very brave, Gittel. Take this.” — from Gittel’s Journey by Leslea Newman, illustrated by Amy June Bates (Abrams Books for Young Readers)
  “You must be very brave, Gittel. Take this.” — from Gittel’s Journey by Leslea Newman, illustrated by Amy June Bates (Abrams Books for Young Readers)

  Do you usually know how you are going to tell a story and who the audience will be?

  I let the writing lead me to where it wants to go. Sometimes I know how a story is going to take form, but more often, I am greatly surprised. That’s the fun part of writing!

  Can you tell us about your journey to Gittel’s Journey? When did you first become aware of the family stories that inspired your book?

  The story about my grandmother Ruth Levin's journey to America and the story of my godmother Aunt Phyllis' mother Sadie Gringrass are engraved on my bones. I grew up with these stories. I have known them since the cradle.

  Leslea and her Grandma Ruthie, who gave her the brass candlesticks that play a key role in the book. Leslea continues to light candles in them on Shabbos. Taken in 1989 by Sue Tyler.
  Leslea and her Grandma Ruthie, who gave her the brass candlesticks that play a key role in the book. Leslea continues to light candles in them on Shabbos. Taken in 1989 by Sue Tyler.

  Why do you think it took you so long to turn this story into a book? How do you feel it reflects on issues that America is wrestling with now? Is it coincidental or intentional that Gittel’s Journey reminds America of young, hopeful immigrants of yesterday at a time when immigrants are increasingly under attack today?

  We are all treasure chests full of stories. Sometimes something triggers one of those stories that has been lying dormant to wake up and demand to be told. In this case, I saw a photo of Syrian refugees on a small boat off the coast of Turkey. Their faces were full of fear, hope, longing, and sorrow. And all of a sudden the stories of my ancestors’ journeys flashed before my eyes. Of course Gittel’s Journey has great relevance to what is going on today. At the start of the 1900’s, there were many issues concerning immigrants just as there are right now. I suppose there will always be people who are generous and welcoming, and unfortunately, there will always be people who are just the opposite. I think that unwillingness to make room for others stems from fear. I hope that kindness will win in the end.

  I am honored to have been the recipient of one of your wonderful critiques. I remember one thing that made me laugh but then think more deeply was your advice to limit if not eliminate the use of exclamation points. The more I thought about it, the more I thought how that fits into the type of people you write about. You don’t tend to write about “exclamation point” people — people who draw a lot of attention to themselves. Instead, from Heather in Heather Has Two Mommies to Gittel in Gittel’s Journey, you write about the quiet beauty of people trying to live their lives with love and hope. What do you — and we -- learn from focusing on everyday people as opposed to famous people?

  We are all people. I don’t think there are “People” with a capital “P” and people with a lower case “p.” Everyone has an interesting story to tell and we can all learn a great deal from each other. The key is listening with an open heart.

  Where do you find the details for your books, things like the heavy woolen skirt and sweater, the two apples, hunk of bread, wedge of cheese, the donkeys and horse-drawn carts, the scratchy straw mattress on the ship? Do you store notes about these details and refer to them while you write?

  I love love love doing research. When I’m writing a story I keep the forward momentum going, so if I need a detail that I don’t have, I leave a blank space and come back to it later. In the case of Gittel’s Journey, I read books that contain oral histories of people who immigrated around the same time as my ancestors, I spent a lot of time on the Ellis Island website, and best of all I went to Ellis Island which has a fantastic museum.

  Leslea’s Ketzel the Cat Who Composed was also illustrated by Amy June Bates. (Candlewick)
  Leslea’s Ketzel the Cat Who Composed was also illustrated by Amy June Bates. (Candlewick)

  Did you have any input into the gorgeous illustrations by Amy June Bates? Were you surprised when you saw them? What feelings did they evoke for you?

  I did not give Amy any input. She had illustrated a book of mine previously (Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed) and she’d done such a fantastic job with it, I knew the art work for Gittel’s Journey would also be quite beautiful. But I didn’t know just how beautiful it would be! Amy surpassed all my expectations. The way she visually captures the emotions of the characters is truly stunning. When I showed the book to my Aunt Phyllis (the real Gittel’s daughter) she was so moved, she cried.

  What has surprised you most on your journey with this book? What has made you happiest? Has any part of it been difficult or sad?

  What has made me happiest is sharing the book with my Aunt Phyllis, her sons, her grandsons, and her great-grandchildren. I am very sad that my grandmother and my parents did not live to see this book.

  The brass candlesticks that Leslea’s Grandma Ruthie brought from the Old Country and gave to her. Photo by Mary Vazquez.
  The brass candlesticks that Leslea’s Grandma Ruthie brought from the Old Country and gave to her. Photo by Mary Vazquez.

  Please share your feelings about the candlesticks that your Grandma Ruthie gave to you that inspired the ones that Gittel brings with her to America. Now, when you light them on Shabbos, do they feel any different now that they are stars of your book? (Do they know they are stars of your book?)

  I love the idea of my grandmother’s candlesticks being “stars.” My grandmother gave me her Shabbos candlesticks when she was 99 years old and knew that she was at the end of her life. I always think of her when I light candles and sing the blessing on Friday night. Having her candlesticks appear in a book doesn’t change that. She has been gone for 30 years and I miss her every day.

  What inspired you to combine the story of your Grandma Ruthie’s candlesticks with the story of your beloved Aunt Phyllis, to whom you dedicate the book: For Aunt Phyllis — I love you to pieces!

  It’s hard to answer this question. Writing is very much an intuitive process, and this just felt right. The more one writes, the more one learns to trust one’s intuition. Either something feels right or it doesn’t. So in this case, I asked myself, what would a mother and daughter bring with them from the Old Country to America? And I wanted them to bring something that reminded them of home and was of great emotional value. So I gave Gittel a doll that belonged to her best friend, and I gave her mother a pair of Shabbos candlesticks. And of course when Gittel and her mother get separated and it turns out that Gittel has to make the journey alone, the candlesticks become even more important, as they are Gittel’s link to her family.

  Sadie Gringrass (the real Gittel), courtesy of Phyllis Rubin.
  Sadie Gringrass (the real Gittel), courtesy of Phyllis Rubin.

  Do you have any presentations or events coming up for Gittel’s Journey? What books can we look forward to next?

  I have made a short documentary called “We Are A Country of Immigrants” which is basically a conversation between my Aunt Phyllis and me about her mother’s journey, what is was like for her to be the child of immigrants, how she feels about what is going with immigration today, etc. Since my aunt is in her 90’s, she can’t travel around with me to speak about the book (though we did have a wonderful event at the Jewish Community Center of which she is a member). I made the film so others could “meet” her. I have some presentations coming up at various schools, synagogues, and Jewish Community Centers in the coming year.

  Leslea’s new book, Welcoming Elijah, A Passover Tale with a Tail is illustrated by Susan Gal and published by Charlesbridge. It comes out in 2020.
  Leslea’s new book, Welcoming Elijah, A Passover Tale with a Tail is illustrated by Susan Gal and published by Charlesbridge. It comes out in 2020.

  And, speaking as someone owned by two cats, can you tell us about YOUR cat and which of your cat books is the favorite in your house?

  I am owned by a beautiful cat named Neshama, which is the Hebrew word for soul. And just as I could never choose a favorite cat (I have had many) I could never choose a favorite cat book. I do have a cat book coming out in January 2020 called Welcoming Elijah: A Passover Tale With A Tail which takes place on the first night of Passover.

  Want to know more about Leslea Newman? You can visit her here:

  Website: lesleakids.com

  Abrams Books: abramsbooks.com

  Twitter: @lesleanewman

• New Now Next - http://www.newnownext.com/heather-has-two-mommies-30th-anniversary-banned-books-week/09/2019/

  How “Heather Has Two Mommies” Paved the Way for LGBTQ-Inclusive Children’s Books
  Thirty years after its publication, author Lesléa Newman reflects on her groundbreaking—and widely challenged—classic.
  by Sam Manzella 9/25/2019

  “If You Can’t Teach Yourself” is a monthly series in which a young woman explores a cultural artifact in furtherance of her queer education. Think of it as your syllabus for Queer Culture 101.

  In the late 1980s, author Lesléa Newman was walking down the street in Northampton, Mass., where she lives, when a lesbian mother of a young child approached her about writing a children’s book about a little girl with two mommies.

  As a Jewish woman who grew up practicing her religion and celebrating Hanukkah in the 1950s and ’60s, Newman remembered just how alienating it felt not to see families like hers reflected in the picture books she read as a child. So she accepted the mother’s proposal, thinking she might be able to create something that could help children from queer families see themselves and their families represented.

  The project would eventually become Heather Has Two Mommies, a lesbian-inclusive picture book regarded as a first of its kind in contemporary children’s literature. Not surprisingly, getting it onto shelves wasn’t easy: Newman reached out to many publishers—mainstream publishing houses, smaller-scale publishers, even LGBTQ imprints—but nobody showed interest. So she and her close friend fundraised the whole endeavor, knocking on doors, collecting $10 donations in envelopes, and keeping copious records. Their grand total: about $4,000.

  The original cover of Heather Has Two Mommies from 1989.
  Newman and her friend co-published the first edition of Heather Has Two Mommies in December 1989, complete with illustrations by Diana Souza. Six months later, Heather was acquired, reprinted, and distributed by Alyson Publications, a small LGBTQ publisher that had previously made waves with Daddy’s Roommate, another children’s book featuring a same-sex adult couple.

  “Looking back, I was very naive,” Newman tells me over the phone. “I didn’t really think anybody would notice it. I mean, nobody wanted to publish it, so I just thought it was going to be this little grassroots publication that would have its happy little life, and that would be it.”

  But reader, “a happy little life” was not in the cards for Heather Has Two Mommies. Because it portrayed a same-sex couple in a positive light, it was challenged widely and aggressively. The book—a heartwarming, innocuous tale of Heather, her two mothers, and their unconventional, but totally normal family life—would go on to become one of the most banned books in the United States in the ’90s. By the time 1999 rolled around, the American Library Association had ranked it No. 9 on its most-banned-books list, with Daddy’s Roommate coming in at No. 2. For perspective, the titles were higher on the list than J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and Madonna’s graphic coffee table book Sex.

  School administrators, librarians, and local lawmakers all tried to get Heather off the shelves, but Newman and her publishers refused to buckle under the pressure. If anything, the uphill battle Newman fought to get Heather published and sold galvanized her. She’s received countless letters and messages over the years thanking her for the book, which for many children of same-sex parents was the first (and sometimes only) children’s book they could find in which they could read about a family like theirs. Since 1989, Newman has published some 70 books for readers of all ages, including more children’s titles with LGBTQ themes such as Sparkle Boy (2017) and The Boy Who Cried Fabulous (2004).

  CandlewickThe 2015 edition of Heather Has Two Mommies.
  Heather was also reprinted and redistributed by Candlewick Books in 2015, with new full-color illustrations by artist Laura Cornell. Newman even had the chance to update it. In the original version of the book Heather begins to cry when she realizes in class that she doesn’t have a daddy, but when Newman revisited the text, she says she thought, That’s really nothing to cry about.

  “Now in the new edition, she’s not really sad or particularly upset,” Newman says. “She’s more just curious, like, Am I the only one here who doesn’t have a dad?” That wasn’t the only change she made. “When the children draw pictures of their families, I had a child in the 2015 edition being raised by grandparents. Since that seems to be so prevalent now, I thought it was important to add that in.”

  The intense pushback Newman received in the ’90s and early 2000s seems somewhat shocking in 2019. As a journalist, I receive several LGBTQ children’s books, middle-grade reads, and Young Adult novels for consideration each month. However, Newman says that in her experience the tides of the publishing industry didn’t really start to turn until the late 2000s and early 2010s, when she was asked by a major publishing house to write a pair of board books for toddlers and very young readers—one about a gay couple, the other about a lesbian couple.

  “It was kind of interesting that my friend and I had gone from begging people for $10 so I could publish Heather Has Two Mommies to a publisher actually asking me to write a book, or two books, that were geared towards kids even younger than kids who were reading Heather,” she says.

  7 Inclusive Children’s Books You Need to Read
  Indeed, flipping through Heather serves as an important reminder of just how far we’ve come. Authors like Newman and Michael Willhoite, who wrote Daddy’s Roommate, helped normalize what so many of us take for granted: ordinary queer couples living their lives and raising children. It’s because of them and the long line of LGBTQ advocates who came before them that queer families seem so commonplace today—and the discrimination that same-sex parents continue to face under the Trump administration seems so appalling. It’s because of them that I can live my life as an openly bisexual adult—and write about it, sometimes rather explicitly—with relatively little fear.

  That’s not to say the fight for inclusion in children’s literature is over. Newman is clear about that. “I think we have definitely made improvements, but we are very, very far from being where we should be,” she tells me. “There still are definitely not enough books that show all kinds of diversity, and we need so many more.”

  She adds that children don’t enter this world with preprogrammed prejudices. Biases like sexism, racism, and homophobia are learned—but they can also be unlearned.

  “If they were not raised in our society or culture, which is impossible, kids would just be whoever they are,” Newman says. “But that’s what I’m trying to do: create a world where that can happen, a world where a little boy who relates to the character of Casey in Sparkle Boy can just paint his nails and wear a sparkly skirt and have nobody bat an eye.”

  The 2015 edition of Heather Has Two Mommies is available wherever books are sold.

• Los Angeles Times - https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-heather-has-two-mommies-20170511-story.html

  Once controversial, ‘Heather Has Two Mommies’ is now collectible
  In this Wednesday, March 11, 2015 photo, author Leslea Newman, of Holyoke, Mass., displays a copy of
  Leslea Newman with her children’s book “Heather Has Two Mommies.” (Steven Senne / AP)
  By CAROLYN KELLOGG
  MAY 11, 201712 PM
  Now a modern classic, the children’s book “Heather Has Two Mommies” is the perfect Mother’s Day book, times two.

  “When the book first came out, we didn’t think it was going to become what it became,” its author, Lesléa Newman, explained by phone from Massachusetts.

  That’s because it almost didn’t happen. “Nobody wanted to touch the book,” she said. In 1988, she’d tried every avenue — mainstream publishers in New York, children’s book publishers, LGBTQ publishers — but all had said no to her book idea about a little girl whose parents are Mama Jane and Mama Kate, a lesbian couple.

  Newman had been inspired to write the book after running into a lesbian mom who told her, “There are no books that show a family like ours.” Despite the rejections, she and a friend, Tzivia Gover, decided to bring out “Heather Has Two Mommies” on their own.

  ADVERTISING

  Ads by Teads
  They crowdfunded analog-style, printing letters and licking envelopes, raising about $4,000; Newman threw in money of her own. They found an illustrator and a printer, got an ISBN number, and “Heather Has Two Mommies” was published by them as In Other Words Publishing.

  “We were not bona fide publishers,” admitted Newman. When the LGBTQ publisher Alyson Books, which had recently published “Daddy’s Roommate,” suggested it take over the publishing role, she was happy to let them.

  As the culture wars of the 1990s heated up, “Heather Has Two Mommies” became a lightning rod. It was banned and challenged, the subject of public debate and railed against in Congress. In a typical 1993 attack, the Rev. Louis P. Sheldon of the Traditional Values Coalition, told The Times that “Heather Has Two Mommies” and “Daddy’s Roommate” would “bring God-fearing people together in a noble crusade” against them.

  By the end of the decade, “Heather Has Two Mommies” was the ninth-most challenged book of the 1990s, landing higher on the list than “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger and Madonna’s “Sex.”

  Yet “Heather Has Two Mommies” persisted, getting into the hands of welcoming readers, librarians and booksellers. It has never gone out of print; a 25th-anniversary edition, with updated text and new illustrations, was published by Candlewick Press in 2015.

  Because of its unique publishing history, it’s not easy to find those first copies of “Heather has Two Mommies.” About half of the original In Other Words printing was spoken for, with the books being distributed to the people who had donated an average of about $10 to help get it published.

  Late last month, a true first edition surfaced on AbeBooks, a website that centralizes sales of used and antiquarian booksellers nationwide. It was listed for $3,000.“The price for this particular copy of ‘Heather Has Two Mommies’ — listed for sale by Nudel Books from New York — indicates that the title now has collectible status. It’s about time,” wrote AbeBooks’ Richard Davies.

  “One key element in a book becoming collectible is cultural impact and ‘Heather Has Two Mommies’ was one of the first to depict same-sex parenting in an era when gay parenting was frequently challenged,” Davies continued.

  I read Newman what Davies had written next: “Although later editions are easily found, first editions of this book are extremely scarce.”

  She laughed. “There were 4,000 of them printed. I have some in my basement. Maybe I should put them up on eBay.”

• Slate - https://slate.com/culture/2016/08/lgbtq-childrens-book-authors-leslea-newman-and-christine-baldacchino-interviewed.html

  Heather Has Two Mommies, and Morris Has a Dress
  By MARK JOSEPH STERN

  AUG 03, 201612:59 PM

  Tina Kügler

  When Lesléa Newman published her children’s book Heather Has Two Mommies in 1989, the very idea of same-sex marriage seemed like a pipe dream. The LGBTQ community was still in the throes of the HIV crisis; few states forbade sexual orientation discrimination; and the Supreme Court had affirmed the constitutionality of sodomy bans, essentially permitting the criminalization of homosexuality. At the time, a picture book about a young girl with lesbian parents felt like a radical act—and the culture, caught off guard, responded with shock and outrage.

  Twenty-five years later, when Christine Baldacchino published Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress, a children’s book about a gender nonconforming schoolchild, the American LGBTQ landscape had changed dramatically. Same-sex marriage bans were falling around the country, a majority of states permitted gay adoption and prohibited gay discrimination, and Time was poised to announce the arrival of a “Trans Tipping Point.”

  Together, Heather and Morris bookend the most important era of LGBTQ history; each filters the most important issues then facing the community through the lens of children’s storytelling. I spoke with Newman and Baldacchino over the phone about their work and their hopes for the genre they helped to pioneer.

  Slate: Lesléa, what prompted you to write Heather Has Two Mommies?

  Lesléa Newman: This has become lesbian lore over time, but it’s actually true. I was walking down the street in Northampton, Massachusetts—Lesbianville, USA—in 1988. And a woman stopped me and said, “I don’t have a book that I can read to my daughter that shows a family like mine. Someone should write one.” By someone, she meant me. I grew up in the 1960s with no books about Jewish kids. I knew how alienating it could be to not see a family like yours in a book. You don’t belong, you think—there’s no place for you, because your family is different, and our culture says difference is inferior rather than wonderful. I took it seriously and felt like maybe I could make a difference in a child’s life.

  Author Leslea Newman
  Lesléa Newman and Heather Has Two Mommies.
  D Dipasupil/Getty Images for PFLAG

  What was the reaction like when the book came out in 1989?

  Newman: From the very beginning, lesbian mothers were thrilled. But there were people who were less than thrilled. The book very quickly became this cultural icon that stood for the destruction of civilization as we know it. It was burned, banned, defecated on, challenged in libraries, returned to libraries with the pages glued shut, read on the Senate floor into the congressional record. Anti-gay protesters blew up the cover and toted it around on placards in protest.

  Christine, what inspired Morris Micklewhite?

  Christine Baldacchino: I worked at a prekindergarten program, and there was one 4-year-old boy who liked to wear this gold dress from the dress-up center with little red shoes. One day, his mother came to pick him up for a dentist appointment and saw him wearing the dress. She told the director that she didn’t want to him wearing the dress because he looked “ridiculous.” Every day after that, for several weeks, the boy asked me where the dress was. Was it getting fixed? Cleaned? Eventually he figured out that the director had removed the dress on purpose so he wouldn’t be able to wear it. Then he told me, “If you bring back the dress, I promise I’ll never wear it again.”

  Newman: You’re breaking my heart! This is the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.

  Baldacchino: I was in this position where I wanted him to have the dress, and I knew what the director had done was wrong—but I was broke! I couldn’t afford to be fired from my job. So instead, I wrote the first draft of Morris Micklewhite. My plan was to write it so I could read it to the class. At first, I wasn’t aiming to get published.

  Newman: Did you read this book to the class that this child was in?

  Baldacchino: I had to have the book approved by the director before I could read it in class, and he rejected it. He told me, “I really don’t like that the kids bully him for wearing the dress.” I didn’t even know what to say.

  When you did publish the book, Christine, what was the reaction?

  Baldacchino: There hasn’t been a lot of controversy. I’ve heard stories here and there. Apparently one boy brought the book home from his school library, and his mom marched him back to school, made him return it, and tried to get it banned. I’ve also spoken at a couple of Catholic schools where they’ll let me read the book, but they’ll say to me beforehand, “Can you curb it away from gender identity and gender issues?”

  Sign Up for the Slate Culture Newsletter
  The best of movies, TV, books, music, and more, delivered three times a week.

  Email address

  Send me updates about Slate special offers.
  Sign Up
  By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use

  Christine Baldacchino and Morris Micklewhite.
  Christine Baldacchino

  Newman: But how would you do that?

  Baldacchino: Exactly! That’s the story! Some schools want it to be more of a broad anti-bullying story. Rather than Morris being himself and the dress being a part of him—which is the message I’m hoping people get from it—they want the book to be about how Morris just likes to dress up for fun.

  Newman: Like, there were no other clothes in the dress-up center that day, so Morris got stuck with the dress?

  Baldacchino: Yeah. You’ll see instructors at some schools visibly bristle when I get to the dress. But it’s unavoidable! It’s his dress! On one page, the dress is at home with him on his bed. It’s in his home—a part of who he is. Focus on the bullying aspect of it? Fine. But not the gender identity thing? I don’t know how I’m supposed to do that! One is intertwined with the other!

  Newman: That’s just absolutely insane. I want to tell you, I am absolutely in love with Morris. It’s a book that has the potential to change children’s lives.

  Lesléa, have you ever had experiences like Christine’s, where schools have tried to muffle Heather’s message?

  Newman: At one school, in Virginia, I got called into the principal’s office! The school had brought me in to talk about another book of mine, Hachiko Waits, about a dog that lives in Japan. At the last minute, they realized, Oh no, she’s also the author of Heather! I was already at the school. They demanded that I not talk about Heather. I told them, “Frankly, I wasn’t planning to. But you can either pay me now and I won’t talk, or pay me and I’ll talk—and I’m not going to make you any promises.” So they let me give my talk.

  Did Heather come up?

  Newman: Believe it or not, a little girl who was in the audience asked me if I had written Heather. I loved that child. I wasn’t going to lie, so I said yes, and we talked about it for a minute. That kid probably got expelled.

  Have you seen kids react poorly to the book?

  Newman: Never. Because kids aren’t born with hatred. They aren’t born with this preconceived notion that this is a family, and this isn’t. That has to be taught.

  Baldacchino: A lot of kids have responded really well to my book. With the few kids who have said they don’t like the book, you can sort of tell, from their language, that they’ve been fed beliefs or prejudices by their parents. One boy said, “I think Morris should meet another boy in a dress and they should drive off a cliff together.” Not just, “I don’t think boys should wear dresses,” but this really violent imagery.

  Newman: A Thelma and Louise image.

  Baldacchino: Exactly. And it wasn’t just that he didn’t like to see boys wearing dresses—he thought they deserved to die. And he specifically wanted the two of them together, so it was clearly not just that he was a boy in a dress, but that he was a gay boy in a dress who should drive off a cliff with another gay boy. It didn’t feel like something this child, or any child, would conceive of on his own. Whenever a child has said to me, “I don’t think he should be wearing a dress,” it’s usually followed by something that sounds like a sentiment they’d heard from an adult.

  That’s an especially odd reaction, because there’s no implication in the book that Morris is gay.

  Baldacchino: Who knows? Maybe he’s just a boy who likes a dress. Maybe he is gay or trans. Right now he’s a 4-year-old boy who wears a dress.

  Newman: That’s a perfect answer. The only label I would put on Morris Micklewhite is Morris Micklewhite. He’s 4 years old! Plus, gender expression and sexuality are two separate things. It’s so interesting that people feel they have to find a label to smack on a kid.

  Lesléa, you mentioned that there were no books about lesbian parents when you wrote Heather. There are certainly more LGBTQ children’s books today than there were in 1989.

  Newman: There are definitely more opportunities, but it’s still very difficult to get a children’s book published with LGBT themes. Publishing is a business, driven by a bottom line—money. A lot of publishers still think of this as a niche market, a small market, and think it’s not going to be profitable. Still, very exciting things are happening. In 2008 I was approached by a publisher and asked to write two books for 6-month-old kids about a kid with two moms and a kid with two dads. It was a huge thing that the press came to me, 20 years after I was begging people to publish Heather. So things are changing. We’re taking baby steps. But are there enough LGBT kids’ books? No. Then again, there can’t be too many.

  This conversation has been edited and condensed.

  Nightlight is Slate’s pop-up blog about children’s books, running for the month of August. Read about it here.

• SANDRA BORNSTEIN - https://sandrabornstein.com/q-leslea-newman-notable-author/

  YOU ARE HERE: HOME / BOOKS / AUTHOR INTERVIEWS / Q & A WITH LESLÉA NEWMAN, NOTABLE AUTHOR
  Q & A With Lesléa Newman, Notable Author
  MARCH 31, 2014 BY SANDRA BORNSTEIN LEAVE A COMMENT

  Share
  Tweet
  Share
  Lesléa Newman
  Lesléa Newman
  Today, I will be interviewing Lesléa Newman, a guest lecturer and the author of 60 adult, young adult, and children’s books. She has received many literary awards including Poetry Fellowships from the Massachusetts Artists Fellowship Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the Highlights for Children Fiction Writing Award, the James Baldwin Award for Cultural Achievement, the Stonewall Book Award, Dog Writers Association of America’s Best Book of Fiction Award, a Parents’ Choice Silver Medal and three Pushcart Prize Nominations. Nine of her books have been Lambda Literary Award finalists. If you want to learn more Lesléa, take a few moments to read through the interview.

  I am certain, you will be able to find something of interest on her Amazon page.

  I received complimentary copies of Lesléa’s two Passover picture books prior to this interview. Commenters to this blog will be eligible for a book giveaway. See Below.

  Welcome Lesléa

  After graduating with an education degree from the University of Vermont in 1977, you headed in a new direction by attending Naropa Institute in Boulder. What prompted you to pursue a Certificate in Poetics? Does your poetry expertise affect the way you write children’s books? How did your apprenticeship with Allen Ginsberg influence your writing?

  Actually I had been writing poetry since I was a small child and studied creative writing at the University of Vermont, so it wasn’t a change in direction. My self-designed major at UVM was creative writing and social services. I was enamored of the Beat poets ever since high school, so when I heard that Allen Ginsberg was teaching at Naropa, I knew I had to go out there and study with him. My poetry affects all the writing that I do; it has taught mer economy of language. And Allen’s voice is never far from my ear as I sit and write. His mantra was: “First thought, best thought” which doesn’t mean there is no re-writing involved. It means that one must try to stay in touch with the aha! moment that sparked the creation of any piece one is working on.

  Your successful and prolific writing career has lasted for decades. How does your early writing compare to the books that you have published in the last decade?

  I sincerely hope that my writing has improved since my first book came out in 1980. I hope I’ve learned a thing or two along the way!

  Your website showcases an impressive list of award-winning books. Your audience includes people who enjoy reading novels, short stories, poetry, non-fiction, humor, anthologies, and children’s books- picture books, chapter books, and young adult. Do you write in multiple genres simultaneously? Which is your favorite format?

  To me, writing is writing. But if I was forced to pick my favorite genre, it would be poetry, my first love. If I am writing a novel, I can’t really work on anything else. If I am writing a picture book, I can also write poetry, and the occasional essay.

  Authors oftentimes rely on their past experiences for writing ideas. How does your background as a Lesbian feminist affect your writing?

  Being a feminist and being a lesbian, and being a Jew, and being a daughter, and being a spouse, and being a human being affects everything I do, including my writing.

  In 1989, you took the bold step of publishing Heather Has Two Mommies. This controversial book was attacked by conservatives and banned in many places. What did you learn from this experience?

  I learned that when one releases a book into the world, the book takes on a life of its own and different people will use any given book for their own agendas. I simply wrote a story for kids with two moms so that they would be able to see a family like theirs portrayed in a picture book. I did not mean to start a riot!

  matzo ball moon book cover

  To date you have published two children’s picture books for Passover. (Matzo Ball Moon (Clarion Books, 1998) and A Sweet Passover (Abrams, 2012). Did any of your childhood experiences influence these Passover picture books or any of your other Jewish related picture books?

  Sweet Passover Book cover

  My childhood has definitely influenced my Jewish children’s books. Passover was a very big deal in my house, and my dad is very pleased that his recipe appears in the back of A SWEET PASSOVER!

  Both Passover books focus on traditional foods. Did you purposely choose food as a way to engage your readers?

  Food was very important in my house, and my maternal grandmother was an amazing cook. I still have her soup pot, and I am now known for my chicken soup (which she taught me how to make). I think many people feel that food is an important part of their heritage, and eating a certain food can bring back childhood memories.

  By including an intergenerational component (grandparents & grandchildren) in the two Passover books, you are highlighting Jewish family life. Is there a particular message about Jewish families that you are conveying to your readers?

  I don’t really write with a message in mind; I write to tell a story. But I do hope that readers of my books will realize how precious family members are, and how important it is for us to treasure one another.

  October Mourning Book Cover

  In 1998, you were the keynote speaker at a Gay Awareness Event at the University of Wyoming. Your talk coincided with the barbaric beating of a young gay man named Matthew Shepard. Over a decade later, you published an award-winning tribute to Matthew. In October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard, you use a creative poetic style to retell this unspeakable story. Can you explain how poetry enhances your message?

  Many nonfiction articles and books have been written about Matthew Shepard’s murder. I wanted to do something different. As a poet, I look at the world in a different way. I thought about the night he was killed and wondered what the silent witnesses—the stars, the moon, the truck he was kidnapped in, the fence he was tied to—could tell me. By speaking in these various voices, my book asks the reader to witness the crime in a unique way, and hopefully will inspire the reader to do something to make the world a safer place in honor of Matt’s memory.

  You have been a faculty member and workshop leader for several notable writing programs. Can you provide 3 tips for people who are interested in writing children’s books?

  Write something every day.

  Read something every day.

  Do something to further your career every day (business-wise).

  After consulting with countless writing students, what is the biggest mistake that novice writers make when writing their first book?

  Many writers are too easily satisfied and don’t realize how important it is to rewrite (and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite). Writing a book takes a very long time. Most of my books go through between 10 and 25 drafts.

  Are you currently writing a book? If so, can you provide a brief overview and an anticipated publication date?

  I have several picture books coming out in 2014 and 2015. HERE IS THE WORLD: A YEAR OF JEWISH HOLDAYS (Abrams, 2014) takes the reader through the first year of a Jewish child’s life and includes an explanation of all the holidays plus a craft or recipe for each. KETZEL THE CAT WHO COMPOSED (Candlewick, 2015) is the true story of a cat whose piano composition received an honorable mention in a contest (really!). HEATHER HAS TWO MOMMIES is being reissued by Candlewick Press in 2015 with brand new illustrations. And I have just completed a poetry collection called I CARRY MY MOTHER which is all written in form and explores my mother’s illness and death and my grief. The manuscript is currently looking for a home.

  Is there anything else that you would like to share with my audience?

  I thank you for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you!

  Thank you Lesléa for taking time to visit my website.

• Huffington Post - https://www.huffpost.com/entry/writing-about-boys-in-skirts-lori-duron-interviews_b_59417252e4b04c03fa261774

  Sparkle Boy: Writing About Boys In Skirts
  Lori Duron interviews Lesléa Newman about her book featuring a little boy who loves things that sparkle, shimmer and glitter.
  06/14/2017 01:34 pm ET Updated Jun 14, 2017
  Sparkle Boy by Lesléa Newman
  LESLÉA NEWMAN
  Sparkle Boy by Lesléa Newman
  One of my favorite authors has a new book out about one of my favorite topics. Lesléa Newman’s Sparkle Boy is about a little boy who loves things that sparkle, shimmer and glitter. He’s a lot like my son C.J. I interviewed Lesléa about her new book and her work over the last 35 years as an award-winning, trailblazing author and advocate for the LGBTQ community.

  Lori Duron: I discovered your work when my brother gave my sons your book The Boy Who Cried Fabulous. As a fabulous, gay uncle, he wanted his nephews to see characters like him in literature. Little did we know that the book would resonate so much with my youngest son, C.J., who is fabulous and gender creative. After I started my blog, I reached out to you to say how much that book meant to us and our son. And I wrote a blog post about it.

  Lesléa Newman: I so appreciated hearing from you! The Boy Who Cried Fabulous resonates with lots of people, including teachers and librarians who love the fact that it contains so many adjectives, which is something I never thought of.

  Lesléa Newman with her new book Sparkle Boy
  LESLÉA NEWMAN
  Lesléa Newman with her new book Sparkle Boy
  Duron: Shortly thereafter we discovered A Fire Engine for Ruthie, about a little girl who likes motorcycles and fire engines. I feel like that book doesn’t get enough attention. I mean, it came out 13 years ago and the protagonist is clearly more than a tomboy ― she’s gender creative. Once again you were ahead of your time. What was the reaction to that book when it was first published?

  Newman: As far as A Fire Engine for Ruthie goes, I wrote that book as a direct response to Charlotte Zolotow’s classic, William’s Doll. The book did well when it first came out, but unfortunately it never went into paperback and is now out of print. (Any takers out there?) Tomboys of all ages really liked that book.

  Duron: And, now, all these years later, you give us Sparkle Boy (out June 15). Thank you for writing this book, it’s so important that gender creative boys like my son see themselves in literature. What inspired you to write Sparkle Boy?

  Newman: I was inspired in part by your book, Raising My Rainbow, which I was moved to tears by many, many times. I also learned a lot, especially about the different journeys each family member takes, in addition to the journey taken by the person in the family who is gender creative. Jessie, the older sister of Casey, who is the “sparkle boy” in my book, starts off in one place emotionally at the start of the story, and ends somewhere else. I think this is very important, and shows that everyone goes through a process when someone in the family discovers something about themselves.

  I was also inspired by attending Family Week (in Provincetown, MA) which is run by the Family Equality Council. I saw so many little boys wearing tutus happily running around, filled with joy at being able to be themselves. One boy’s dad said to me, “I wish my son could wear his tutu every day, not just in Provincetown during Family Week.” And I remembered what you said in your book—that your job as a parent is to make the world a safe place for your son to be himself. That is my intent with Sparkle Boy: to put forth a book that respects, accepts and celebrates everyone’s right to shine!

  LESLÉA NEWMAN
  Duron: You started writing books that deal with LGBTQ issues and identities in the 1980s, long before there were LGBTQ shelves in popular bookstores and online booksellers. What was it like writing about LGBTQ issues and advocating through written word back then?

  Newman: You know, I really didn’t think about it. When I came out, in 1982, my writing just exploded. Previous to that time, I only wrote poetry and considered myself exclusively a poet (I had studied with Allen Ginsberg and Anne Waldman at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa Institute in Boulder, Colorado). But in the early 80s, much to my surprise, I wrote a novel called Good Enough to Eat, I was hungry (pun intended!) for books that featured a character like me (a Jewish lesbian) and couldn’t find any, so that’s why I wrote it.

  Subscribe to The Morning Email.
  Wake up to the day's most important news.
  address@email.com
  I write to explore the world inside me, the world outside of me and the relationship between the two. I followed up that novel with a short story collection called A Letter to Harvey Milk. Each of the nine stories featured a different Jewish lesbian. And I was still writing poetry. I didn’t write these books to make any kind of political statement, though I do think writing as an out lesbian about lesbian characters is a political act. I was just writing stories about my life and the lives of the people in my community. I took the advice of Grace Paley, with whom I also studied, who said, “Write what you know you don’t know about what you know.” And then a lesbian who knew I was a writer stopped me on the street and said, “There are no books that show a family like mine. Someone should write one.” And, thus, Heather Has Two Mommies was born.

  Duron: Heather Has Two Mommies was a pioneering book. It was the first children’s book to portray a family of two lesbian moms and their child in a positive way. What was the reaction to the book when it was first published?

  Newman: I had a lot of trouble getting the book published. No publisher would touch it. Finally, my good friend Tzivia Gover and I decided to put the book out ourselves under the auspices of In Other Words, which was her desk top publishing business at the time. We sent out fundraising letters (before the internet! licking envelopes and stamps!) and raised about $4,000 ― mostly in $10 donations. Then we found an illustrator through the lesbian gravevine and printed 4,000 copies. I never thought anyone except lesbian moms would be interested in the book, so I was surprised at the huge reaction it received.

  Lesbian mothers were thrilled with the book. I heard about kids who got three copies for the holidays, who went to bed with the book tucked under their pillow every night. And I heard from people who were less-than-thrilled with the book and stole it from the library and refused to return it, or returned it with its pages glued shut. Part of the book was read into the Congressional Record by Senator Bob Smith of New Hampshire in an attempt to convince other representatives to vote on a bill that would cut federal aid to schools that in his words, “carry out a program or activity that has either the purpose or effect of encouraging or supporting homosexuality as a positive lifestyle alternative.”

  Lori Duron and Lesléa Newman, 2014
  LESLÉA NEWMAN
  Lori Duron and Lesléa Newman, 2014
  Duron: You’ve written more than 70 books and your works are pretty evenly divided in terms of intended audience. About half are for an adult audience and half are for children. What are the pros and cons of writing for each audience?

  Newman: To me, it’s really all writing. What I try to do is let the content dictate the audience (children, middle-graders, teens, adults) and the form (poetry, prose, fiction, non-fiction). As long as I’m writing, I’m happy. The advantage to writing a picture book, is that usually—though not always—it takes less time to write than a chapter book or novel. The advantage to writing a novel is that I always know what I am going to be working on when I return to my writing notebook the next day (as opposed to starting from scratch every time I finish something short such as a poem or a picture book).

  What I love about writing for children is that a book such as Heather Has Two Mommies can really make a difference in a child’s life. So many families have told me how important that book was to them because it was the first time their children saw a family just like their own between the covers of a book. That is extremely important and validating to a child. What I love about writing for adults is that often I hear from readers who tell me how my work has touched their lives. I never get tired of hearing that. That’s what it’s all about.

  Duron: I think it’s important for people to know that you’re an amazing voice for the LGBTQ community through written word and the speaking that you do, but you’re also such an encouraging and nurturing mentor. You help emerging authors and advocates; that’s something not a lot of established authors do. They don’t always want to help other people.

  Newman: I don’t really understand that. I firmly believe that when one of us succeeds, all of us succeeds. So many people have been kind to me along the way: my mentors, Allen Ginsberg and Grace Paley; the women in my writers group; and so many others, too numerous to mention.

  The literary life is not an easy one. Authors need to stick by each other and support each other. I am always thrilled when emerging writers I have mentored succeed (shout out to Newbery medalist Kwame Alexander author of The Crossover, and Leah Henderson whose first middle grade novel, One Shadow on the Wall has just been published). Allen and Grace kept in touch with me for years (again, before the internet), always showing an interest in my work and taking me seriously as a writer. That was so important to me. I honor my mentors by paying it forward.

• Jewish Women's Archive website - https://jwa.org/people/newman-leslea

  LESLEANEWMAN
  A proud lesbian feminist writer, Lesléa Newman made history in 1989 with her controversial children’s book, Heather Has Two Mommies. Heather was inspired by Newman’s friend, a lesbian mother, who complained that there were no children’s books with families that looked like hers. The book, originally a desktop publishing effort, sparked national controversy when it was included in the 1993 Rainbow Curriculum, a list of books that better reflected American children’s diverse experiences. Newman went on to write countless books for children, adolescents, and adults on homosexuality, Jewish identity, eating disorders, and AIDS, including the award–winning short story “A Letter to Harvey Milk.” She has won the Highlights for Children Fiction Writing Award and the James Baldwin Award for Cultural Achievement, among other honors, and from 2008–2010 was poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts. From 2005–2009 she taught at the Stonecoast MFA program at the University of Southern Maine. As of 2014 she is a faculty mentor at Spalding University’s brief residency MFA program.

  Topics: Feminism, LGBTQIA Rights, Teachers, Fiction

  DATE OF BIRTH
  1955
  BIRTHPLACE
  Brooklyn, NY
  United States

  OCCUPATIONS
  Writer, Professor

Newman, Leslea KETZEL, THE CAT WHO COMPOSED Candlewick (Children's Picture Books) $16.99 10, 6 ISBN: 978-0-7636-6555-5

A cat strolls down a piano keyboard and saunters into musical history. Composer Moshe Cotel finds a stray kitten near his home and dubs her Ketzel, Yiddish for "little cat." One day a letter arrives, announcing a contest for a piece lasting one minute or less. Moshe toils away at his piano, but nothing he composes meets the time limit, and he gives up. Aiming to pounce on the grievous paper--Ketzel just knows it's causing her guardian's distress--she walks across the keys to reach the table where the letter lies. Little does she know what she's wrought. Moshe is astounded by what he's heard, immediately reproduces the notes on paper, and mails the "composition" off. In time another letter arrives--congratulating Ketzel on her award of "a certificate of special mention" for her "creative instinct and imagination." There's more: "Piece for Piano: Four Paws," will be performed! News of Ketzel's extraordinary achievement spreads, and she receives a royalty check that buys a bounty of cat food. This adorable account is as warm and fuzzy as Ketzel herself and all the sweeter because it's based on fact. The watercolor, gouache, and pencil illustrations suit the text perfectly, delightfully capturing Ketzel's furriness, the story's charming, lively energy, and Moshe and the "composer's" loving friendship. Truly, the cat's meow. (author's note) (Picture book. 5-8)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: KETZEL, THE CAT WHO COMPOSED." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Aug. 2015. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A423540571/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=5aff03d7. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed

Leslea Newman, illus. by Amy June Bates. Candlewick, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-7636-6555-5

Here's a lovely tale of cross-species affection and creativity, based on a true story (recounted in an afterword). While seeking inspiration in the busy streets of New York City, a composer and pianist named Moshe Cotel finds and adopts a stray kitten, bestowing it with the Yiddish name Ketzel (for "kitten"). Ketzel proves more than a companion: when Moshe needs an entry for a music competition restricted to pieces no longer than one minute, the kitten steps in and composes a piece by walking across the keys (Moshe dubs it "Piece for Piano: Four Paws" and gives her full credit). Newman's great affection for her subject is evident, yet she never crosses into cutesiness or sentimentality; her reportorial tone is a perfect match for her down-to-earth, generous hero. Bates, working in hues of parchment and gold, produces some wonderfully warm vignettes, pushing the graceful realism of her watercolor, gouache, and pencil drawings just enough to add a glint of magic to a story that's already one of a kind. Ages 5-8. Author's agent: Elizabeth Harding, Curtis Brown. Illustrator's agency: Shannon Associates. (Oct.)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed." Publishers Weekly, vol. 262, no. 32, 10 Aug. 2015, p. 63. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A426033766/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=cd208cc6. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Hanukkah Delight!

by Leslea Newman;

illus. by Amy Husband

Preschool Kar-Ben 12 pp.

8/16 978-1-4677-9353-7 $5.99

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

In lines with simple meter that all rhyme with the second word in the title, this board book runs through the high points of Hanukkah ("Dreidels spinning through the night / Chocolate gelt--come take a bite") during a friendly eighth-night gathering at a rabbit family's house. The pastel-toned mixed-media illustrations show the visiting "friends and neighbors" as a congenial assortment of animals, and they include accurate holiday details such as a row of dreidels with correctly ordered Hebrew letters. A very first introduction to blessings, candles, and latkes as well as holiday joy: "Hanukkah--a wondrous sight!"

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Flax, Shoshana. "Hanukkah Delight!" The Horn Book Magazine, vol. 92, no. 6, Nov.-Dec. 2016, p. 47. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A469755332/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=00b3e5bf. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea HANUKKAH DELIGHT! Kar-Ben (Children's Picture Books) $5.99 9, 1 ISBN: 978-1-4677-9353-7

In brief board-book form Newman revisits the familiar Hanukkah traditions she successfully introduced in Eight Nights of Chanukah, illustrated by Elivia Savadier (2005), and Here Is the World, illustrated by Susan Gal (2014). Here the holiday stands on its own without parodying a Christmas tune or being lost in a compendium of the Jewish year. Of course, a board book has space for much less information. The essential ingredients of the celebration--candles, blessings, latkes, dreidels, and gelt--are mentioned in nine lines of text that all rhyme with "delight." The finer points of theology, including the miracle Hanukkah commemorates, are left for older children to learn from experience, their own reading, or stories told round the holiday table. The fun is in the detailed pictures. Husband uses cheerful, well-dressed bunnies to depict a family as they celebrate the Jewish holiday American gentiles know best. Some subtle stereotypes still creep in. The family consists of papa, mama, big sister, and baby. A crocodile in a tie and a portly and bespectacled owl are among the friends. The males all wear yarmulkes, and the females all wear dresses. Otherwise they are just like anyone else who can be depicted as talking animals. Useful for both Jewish families and others seeking to give children a head start on religious pluralism. (Board book. 1-3)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: HANUKKAH DELIGHT!" Kirkus Reviews, 1 Jan. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A475357258/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=79ec8710. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea SPARKLE BOY Lee & Low (Children's Fiction) $17.95 5, 1 ISBN: 978-1-62014-285-1

Newman adds to her lengthy resume of LGBT-themed books for children with this story about sibling rivalry and gender nonconformity.Despite the title, this book is not about Casey, the titular Sparkle Boy. It's about his big sister, Jessie, and her ongoing attempts to bully, shame, and otherwise convince her little brother that "boys don't wear shimmery skirts," paint their fingernails, or otherwise accessorize. Casey's parents and abuelita, indicated as a Latino or mixed family, are refreshingly supportive and kind, but Jessie's anger overshadows much of the story. Readers never learn why Jessie feels such antagonism, with no space given for reflection or empathy, nor does Casey display much depth of personality beyond his ravenlike attraction to shiny things. Of course, Jessie has a sudden and cliched change of heart at the very end, when she's compelled to protect her brother against other children making identical accusations about his gender expression, and by the end the siblings "adore...each other." With illustrations that are colorful yet subdued and stationary, there's little to distinguish this story from other recent picture books about femme boys and trans girls who are forced to endure maltreatment from family, community, or both. Multiple titles already explore nearly identical themes, and at this point any of them will suffice until the industry yields more interesting and nuanced portrayals. (Picture book. 3-8)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: SPARKLE BOY." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Apr. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A489268550/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4abb29ff. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Sparkle Boy

Leslea Newman, author

Maria Mola, illustrator

Lee & Low Books

95 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016

www.leeandlow.com

9781620142851, $17.95, HC, 32pp, www.amazon.com

Casey is a little boy who loves to play with his blocks, puzzles, and dump truck, but he also loves things that sparkle, shimmer, and glitter. When his older sister, Jessie, shows off her new shimmery skirt, Casey wants to wear a shimmery skirt too. When Jessie comes home from a party with glittery nails, Casey wants glittery nails too. And when Abuelita visits wearing an armful of sparkly bracelets, Casey gets one to wear, just like Jessie. The adults in Casey's life embrace his interests, but Jessie isn't so sure. Boys aren't supposed to wear sparkly, shimmery, glittery things. Then, when older boys at the library tease Casey for wearing "girl" things, Jessie realizes that Casey has the right to be himself and wear whatever he wants. Why can't both she and Casey love all things shimmery, glittery, and sparkly? "Sparkle Boy" is a sweet, heartwarming story about acceptance, respect, and the freedom to be yourself in a world where any gender expression should be celebrated. Sparkly things are for everyone to enjoy! While very highly recommended for children ages 4 to 7, "Sparkle Boy" will prove to be an enduringly popular and appreciated addition to family, daycare center, preschool, elementary school, and community library picture book collections.

Please Note: Illustration(s) are not available due to copyright restrictions.

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/cbw/index.htm
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Sparkle Boy." Children's Bookwatch, Sept. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A511040091/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=3c91628b. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea GITTEL'S JOURNEY HMH Books (Children's Fiction) $17.99 2, 5 ISBN: 978-1-4197-2747-4

In the last years of the 19th century, 9-year-old Gittel must make the long journey to America alone.

She and Mama say their goodbyes to their family and set off on the trek to the port where they will board the ship to a new world. But Mama is denied passage because of an eye infection. Her mother reminds her that she must be brave, so Gittel gets on the ship alone for the long, frightening journey, clutching the family candlesticks, her rag doll, and that most important slip of paper containing cousin Mendel's address in New York. Upon arriving at Ellis Island, Mendel's address is smeared and unreadable, so she is detained there. A kind Yiddish interpreter and a newspaper photographer save the day by placing her photo in a Jewish newspaper, and Mendel comes to claim her. Even greater joy comes when she is reunited with her mother several months later. The tale is based on a combination of stories handed down in the author's family. Newman tells Gittel's story with sympathy and tenderness, incorporating Jewish phrases (italicized) and customs and placing within it facts about that time and place. Gittel's every emotion is felt in Bates' soft, earth-toned, framed illustrations reminiscent of old-time sepia photographs. Block-print decorations in blue, green, and rust enhance the setting.

A heartfelt, lovely evocation of one facet of the immigrant experience. (glossary, bibliography, websites) (Picture book. 5-9)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: GITTEL'S JOURNEY." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Nov. 2018. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A560344740/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=680f627e. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Gittel's Journey. By Leslea Newman. Illus. by Amy June Bates. Feb. 2019.48p. Abrams, $17.99 (9781419727474). Gr. 2-4.

The creators of Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed (2015) offer another Jewish-themed picture book based on a true story. Nine-year-old Gittel and her mother are preparing to immigrate to the U.S., leaving friends and family behind in Europe. But when Mama is not allowed to board the boat because of an eye infection, Gittel must travel alone, bearing her mother's treasured candlesticks and a note with the address of a cousin who is expecting them. The journey is largely uneventful until Gittel's arrival at Ellis Island, when she discovers that the paper with cousin Mendel's address has blurred beyond recognition. Newman's spare yet evocative text works well as a read-aloud, and the solution to Gittel's problem (her picture appears in a Jewish newspaper where Mendel recognizes her) is both clever and true. Bates' mixed-media artwork features a variety of framed double- and single-paged spreads. She employs Old World-style decorative frames throughout (setting off both art and text), appropriate to the story's turn-of-the-century setting. Earth tones predominate, with Gittel's red scarf setting her apart from the countless other immigrants depicted. Several spreads also take advantage of the book's horizontal width, effectively portraying long immigrant lines and the massive ship. Appended with a generous author's note, this serves as a reminder that Lady Liberty's words once mirrored U.S. immigration policy.--Kay Weisman

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2019 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Weisman, Kay. "Gittel's Journey." Booklist, vol. 115, no. 9-10, 1 Jan. 2019, p. 83. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A573094148/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=f5821a09. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea BABY'S BLESSINGS Kar-Ben (Children's Fiction) $5.99 10, 1 ISBN: 978-1-5415-2214-5

A Jewish family celebrates a baby with traditional symbols and rituals.

The whole family--even the cat--dotes on baby in this board book. Newman's rhyming text includes Yiddish and Hebrew vocabulary and Jewish traditions: There's kugel and challah, a mezuzah and a tzedakah box, and, of course, many blessings and much joy. Newman doesn't spend time defining the various terms for non-Jewish readers, allowing Nakata's softly textured illustrations to provide some context clues. While the text is certainly very sweet and scans well, the beautiful images are the stars. There are wonderful details: wallpaper adorned with chicks, Zayde's tortoiseshell glasses, and, delightfully, the cat behaving typically by stuffing itself inside a paper bag. These details bring this family to life. The only point of confusion in the book is that at first, it seems as though the family (all white presenting) is readying the house for a brand-new baby--Bubbe is knitting booties and baking on the first page, for example--but this is no newborn. The baby is shown forward-facing in a baby carrier, sitting up on a lap at the table, and climbing playfully on Zayde. Overall, this book would make a wonderful gift for a Jewish family welcoming a new addition, as it certainly conveys the excitement and joy of having a little one in the house.

A sweet celebration of a baby, full of Jewish tradition. (Board book. 1-3)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2019 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: BABY'S BLESSINGS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Sept. 2019. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A599964359/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4de30bde. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea REMEMBERING ETHAN Magination/American Psychological Association (Children's Fiction) $16.99 4, 7 ISBN: 978-1-4338-3113-3

A family begins healing following a devastating loss.

Sarah lovingly remembers big brother Ethan, who has died. Mommy and Daddy won't talk or reminisce about him; neither wants to hear his name. Small acts offer solace: saying Ethan's name aloud, writing his name, drawing his picture. When Sarah hangs the drawing on the refrigerator, Mommy and Daddy, distraught, leave the room. When Sarah angrily shouts that no one else seems to miss or remember Ethan, Mommy and Daddy must finally confront their pain. In doing so, they rehang the drawing in a more prominent location and gently explain that it's grief that's made them seem unfeeling. Poring over a family album allows everyone to openly share happy memories. The upbeat ending of this well-written, reassuring tale feels a tad rushed, and there's no sense of how much time has elapsed since Ethan's death. However, the author gets two important plot points just right. The circumstances surrounding Ethan's death aren't mentioned, suggesting the family (all depicted with pale skin and dark hair) is heartbroken simply because Ethan has died; as in real life, one cause is no less wrenching than another. Furthermore, the child has real agency; Sarah effects change in the family dynamic that leads to cathartic healing. The delicate illustrations are expressive and effective. Useful psychologist's tips in the backmatter guide adults in helping children discuss the death of a family member.

Gentle, comforting bibliotherapy. (Picture book. 4-8)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2020 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: REMEMBERING ETHAN." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2020. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A612619168/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=61cc5e59. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea WELCOMING ELIJAH Charlesbridge (Children's Fiction) $16.99 1, 28 ISBN: 978-1-58089-882-9

Passover nights are different, happily so for a boy and a kitten.

It's a Seder night, and a boy and his large family welcome guests to the festive holiday celebration. There are many rituals in the evening, including filling a cup of wine for the prophet Elisha, but his favorite is opening the door to welcome Elijah in. Writing in contrasting couplets, Newman relates the many elements of the holiday as "inside" activities. There are also "outside" goings-on. A fluffy white cat in the yard does feline things that seem to mimic what the family and their guests are doing except in one respect. The family enjoys plenty of good food while the kitten "swishe[s] his skinny tail." Finally it is time to hold open the door, and who should be standing there but that irresistibly appealing fluffy white kitten. Boy and kitten, to be named Elijah of course, embrace as the others look on in joy. Gal's softly smudged illustrations, rendered in ink, charcoal, and digital collage, warmly reflect the text's contrasts, with bright yellows illuminating the household and iridescent blues bathing the outdoor scenes. The family and friends are racially diverse, with both black- and white-presenting group members. The boy himself presents white; the men wear kippot.

While not the traditional holiday outcome, it should please celebrants and cat lovers all. (author's note, list of Seder rituals) (Picture book. 4-7)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2020 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: WELCOMING ELIJAH." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2020. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A612619019/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=762b6e06. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

My Name Is Aviva

Leslea Newman, illus. by Ag Jatkowska. Kar-Ben, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4677-2654-2

It's tough to be a kid with an unusual name (unless you're Blue Ivy Carter, perhaps). In accordance with Jewish tradition, Newman's heroine has been named after a loved one, her late great-grandmother Ada, whose Hebrew name was Aviva. Unfortunately, it inspires her classmates to call her everything from "Amoeba" to "Viva La France." Henceforth, Aviva wants to be known as Emily. Her parents play along, but they also make sure Aviva understand her name's backstory: how Ada immigrated to America as a child, worked in a lace factory at age 10, taught herself English, and made chicken soup "so delicious, everyone told her to open a restaurant." Aviva realizes that her name has a more profound meaning than she ever imagined--it connects her not only to her faith traditions but also to a woman who was "brave and smart and talented and kind." Jatkowska's upbeat characters have an oddly wooden, doll-like quality, but it doesn't intrude on Newman's storytelling, which is characteristically empathic, soulful, and wise--not to mention a great lead-in to discussions about readers' own names. Ages 3-8. Author's agent: Elizabeth Harding, Curtis Brown. Illustrator's agency: Bright Agency. (Oct.)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"My Name Is Aviva." Publishers Weekly, vol. 262, no. 31, 3 Aug. 2015, p. 55. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A424620073/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ef7b1ef3. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea MY NAME IS AVIVA Kar-Ben (Children's Picture Books) $17.99 10, 1 ISBN: 978-1-4677-2654-2

The mean kids at Aviva's school are cleverer than the mean kids in most neighborhoods. When students at Aviva's school want to make fun of her name, they call her "Amoeba" and "Viva La France." This requires a certain level of sophistication. (A really cruel kid might have called her "Bieber," but then the book would be instantly out of date.) Aviva is ready to change her name to Emily until her parents tell her why they chose that particular name. Even the youngest Jewish readers will probably guess the secret the moment Aviva's parents start talking about her great-grandmother Ada, an immigrant from Russia who "studied the English newspaper every night to learn her ABC's" and sewed stitches "as fine as spider webs." Stories about Ada run throughout the book--arguably, at least one story too many. The parents are reminded of a story every time they do something she did: sew on a button or pick up a book. The device is contrived and repetitive, but the stories are often moving and do lead finally to the information that Ada's Hebrew name was Aviva. And Jatkowska's illustrations are charming. They look like patchwork dolls, pieced together from items found around the house. This book could have used a little trimming, but it's clever enough to make kids curious about their own given names. (Picture book. 5-8)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2015 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: MY NAME IS AVIVA." Kirkus Reviews, 15 July 2015. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A421459592/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=a75a5605. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea MISS TUTU'S STAR Abrams (Adult Picture Books) $16.95 8, 1 ISBN: 978-0-8109-8396-0

Little spike-haired Selena so loves dance that her mother enrolls her in Miss Tutu's ballet school, where she demonstrates passion and style but no grace. She learns her steps, studies hard and two years later makes her stage debut in a student recital. The story is told in AABB rhyming quatrains with occasional awkward scanning. The illustrations are colorful and portray a multicultural array of boys and girls engaged in something more akin to awkward but energetic physical movement than the more precise study of ballet steps. Selena's round face and round derriere displayed in her stage bow after a performance that literally knocks over her fellow students are not likely to be seen in any serious ballet school, nor would a ballet teacher demonstrate standing on pointe to such little children. Selena's constant mix-ups are balanced by her determination, an admirable quality but not one that would overcome her deficits in any real-world ballet situation. Pink glitter on the cover doesn't quite elevate this to the level of necessary purchase. (Picture book. 4-7)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2010 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: MISS TUTU'S STAR." Kirkus Reviews, 15 July 2010. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A256560561/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=114dc9be. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Miss Tutu's Star

Leslea Newman, illus. by Carry Armstrong-Ellis.

Abrams, $16.95 (32p) ISBN 978-0-8109-8396-0

Selena ("Who did not walk so much as twirl,/Who did not skip so much as prance") wants to be a ballerina, but her untidy black hair, round chin, and pudgy tummy are conspicuously unballerinalike. She could have a teacher who is scornful of her dancing dreams, but Miss Tutu is the ballet teacher everyone wishes for, and this is as much her story as it is Selena's. "What matters most is from the start,/ My dear, you've always danced with heart," she reassures Selena after a fall, holding her close. Selena responds by working hard, not just for one class, but for several years. When Selena finally finishes her starring role in the big recital (which ends in slapstick disaster), Miss Tutu is waiting in the wings: "Selena looked about. 'What now?'/Miss Tutu whispered, 'Take your bow.'" Ellis's (The Twelve Days of Springtime) slightly clunky mixed media cartoons have the same uneasy relationship to Newman's (just Like Mama) crisp verse as Selena does to the world of ballet, but they do a good job of portraying Selena's changing emotions. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2010 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Miss Tutu's Star." Publishers Weekly, vol. 257, no. 30, 2 Aug. 2010, p. 44+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A234228470/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=a1fce0d8. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Donovan's Big Day

Leslea Newman, illus, by Mike Dutton. Random/Tricycle, $15.99 (32p)ISBN 978-158246-332-2

Newman, who broke new ground with Heather Has Two Mommies (1989), returns with an overly earnest and curiously constructed story about a child's role in his same-sex parents' wedding, which follows such books as Uncle Bobby's Wedding (2008) and Morn and Mum Are Getting Married (2004). Newman doesn't reveal whose wedding it is until the final pages, instead devoting most of the story to lengthy descriptions of Donovan's preparations and observations. While she may have intended to build narrative tension before letting readers see that it's Donovan's Mommy and Mama at the altar, in reality it means wading through pages of run-on sentences that read like an instruction manual: "He had to tuck the little white satin box that Aunt Jennifer gave him into his inside jacket pocket and keep track of it at all times and not shake or crush it or squash it or lose it no matter what." Debut artist Dutton's digitally enhanced gouache paintings are bright and upbeat, clearly empathizing with the green-eyed hero's seriousness and pride. It's less about gay marriage than a child's wedding preparations--no matter who's getting hitched. Ages 4-7. (Apr.)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2011 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Donovan's Big Day." Publishers Weekly, vol. 258, no. 8, 21 Feb. 2011, p. 130. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A250321245/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=cca1fef9. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Donovan's Big Day.

By Leslea Newman. Illus. by Mike Dutton.

Apr. 2011. 32p. Tricycle, $15.99 (9781582463322). PreS-Gr. 2.

The author of the classic picture book Heather Has Two Mommies (1989) tells a family wedding story that builds to a climactic celebration. Donovan is excited about an upcoming wedding, in which he has a big job as ring bearer. As Grandma and Grandpa give him breakfast, and he gets dressed in his smart new clothes, he remembers to keep track of the little white satin ring box at all times "and not shake it or crush it / or squash it or lose it / no matter what." Finally, it is time to walk down the aisle and give one shiny gold ring to Mommy and another one to Mama as a tall grown-up in the long black robe says, "I now pronounce you wife and wife." Plain and poetic, the swiftly flowing free verse perfectly captures the day's excitement, as does Dutton's digitally touched gouache artwork, which keeps the focus on Donovan's role in the blissfully happy event. A welcome addition to the still short shelf of picture books featuring same-sex parents.

Rochman, Hazel

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2011 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Rochman, Hazel. "Donovan's Big Day." Booklist, vol. 107, no. 15, 1 Apr. 2011, p. 73. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A254187237/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=aaa523a0. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

A Sweet Passover

Leslea Newman, illus, by David Slonim. Abrams, $16.95 (40p) ISBN 978-0-8109-9737-0

In this colorful Passover story, Miriam spends the holiday at her grandma and grandpa's house. There, together with her parents and aunts and uncles, Miriam takes part in the Passover seder, complete with candle lighting, asking the Four Questions, and looking for the afikomen, the hidden matzo. Most of all, though, she savors the chance to eat matzo for eight days and nights. But when, after seven days of matzo with butter, matzo with jam, and nearly every other combination of matzo with something, Miriam feels sick and refuses any more of the unleavened bread. Grandpa must then use his special touch to salvage Miriam's love of matzo. Bright illustrations and a number of cute touches, like Miriam's matzo bedspread, her loyal dog who mimics her actions and feelings, and a recipe for Grandpa's matzo brei, round out an enjoyable holiday tale. Ages 4-8. (Mar.)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"A Sweet Passover." Publishers Weekly, vol. 259, no. 8, 20 Feb. 2012, p. 171. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A281682977/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=317976e3. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

A Sweet Passover.

By Leslea Newman. Illus. by David Slonim.

Mar. 2012. 40p. Abrams, $16.95 (9780810997370). K-Gr. 3.

Miriam loves celebrating Passover at Grandma and Grandpa's house. She enjoys the holiday rituals (asking the Four Questions, searching for the Afikomen), visiting with relatives, and the special foods, especially matzah, a cracker-like bread. But by the eighth day, Miriam can't bear to even think about eating matzah, until Grandpa makes a Passover version of French toast, matzah brei. Miriam expresses the feelings of many observant Jews at Passover, who find it difficult to abstain from leavened products for eight days. Miriam's meltdown, although tame by tantrum standards, is also well-handled. No one forces her to eat. Instead, they remind her of the festival's positive aspects. Slonim's Charles Schulz-like acrylic-and-charcoal illustrations portray this extended, conservative family with much good humor, especially considering everyone's living under one roof during the holiday. Infused with Yiddish phrases, a brief recounting of the Passover story, and appended with a recipe, note, and glossary, this is a welcome addition to the holiday.--Kay Weisman

Weisman, Kay

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Weisman, Kay. "A Sweet Passover." Booklist, vol. 108, no. 12, 15 Feb. 2012, p. 61. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A282214753/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=5979569c. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea OCTOBER MOURNING Candlewick (Children's Poetry) $15.99 9, 25 ISBN: 978-0-7636-5807-6

Nearly 14 years after the unspeakable tragedy that put Laramie, Wyo., on the hate crimes map, lesbian literary icon Newman offers a 68-poem tribute to Matthew Shepard. Readers who were infants on October 6, 1998, may learn here for the first time how the 21-year-old Shepard was lured from a bar by two men who drove him to the outskirts of town, beat him mercilessly, tied him to a fence and left him to die. Ironically, months before Shepard's murder, Newman had been invited to Laramie to speak at the University of Wyoming's Gay Awareness Week and actually delivered her keynote address on the day he died. This cycle of poems, meant to be read sequentially as a whole, incorporates Newman's reflections on Shepard's killing and its aftermath, using a number of common poetic forms and literary devices to portray the events of that fateful night and the trial that followed. While the collection as a whole treats a difficult subject with sensitivity and directness, these poems are in no way nuanced or subtle. For example, Newman repeatedly employs personification to make inanimate objects, such as the fence, road, clothesline and truck, unwitting accessories to the crime, and she imitates William Carlos Williams' "This Is Just to Say" false-apology format no fewer than four times with mixed results. Though somewhat heavyhanded, these poems are sure to instill much-needed empathy and awareness to gay issues in today's teens. (Poetry. 14 & up)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: OCTOBER MOURNING." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2012. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A299605287/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ef14141e. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

October Mourning:

A Song for Matthew Shepard

by Leslea Newman

Middle School, High School Candlewick 111 pp.

9/12 978-0-7636-5807-6 $15.99 g

In Laramie, Wyoming, one October evening in 1998, a gay twenty-one-year-old student named Matthew Shepard was kidnapped from a bar, robbed, beaten, tied to a fence in a field, and left to die. He was found eighteen hours later by a biker who thought he was "a scarecrow's head/slumped over/ that forsaken fence/not a smashed shattered/pumpkin of a boy." Shepard died five days later. The horrific incident stunned the University of Wyoming community, where Gay Awareness Week was about to begin, with Newman the keynote speaker. The story of Matthew Shepard has haunted her ever since, and in this "historical novel in verse" she performs the poet's work of imagining the human tragedy of Shepard's death. Sixty-eight poems in such forms as rhymed couplets, haiku, found poems, acrostics, pantoums, villanelles, and concrete poetry ("Jury Selection" resembles a syringe holding a lethal injection) present a range of voices--the fence, the biker, a police officer, the doctor, a journalist, the wind, stars, candles at a vigil. Many poems open with an epigraph, words spoken or written by actual people to establish the context, all cited in the source notes. Newman's language serves the voices well, the poems always simple, accessible, and moving.

(g) indicates that the book was read in galley or page proof.

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Schneider, Dean. "October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard." The Horn Book Magazine, vol. 88, no. 5, Sept.-Oct. 2012, p. 112+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A306972444/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=466625c5. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea. October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard. Candlewick, 2012. 128p. $15.99. 978-0-7636-5807-6.

Matthew Shepard was a gay university student who was beaten nearly to death, tied to a fence in an isolated area, and left to die. Although October Mourning is a fictional novel-in-verse, it is grounded in fact and provides (fictional) insights from various points of views. Each poem provides powerful and unique perspectives, allowing readers opportunities to think and talk about serious issues. Less than a week after Matthew's death, the author of October Mourning was scheduled to give a speech for Gay Awareness Week--at Matthew's former university. This speech had been arranged way before Matthew's tragic death, but the importance and meaning of the speech completely changed. This book was written as her way of dealing with his death and its impact on the world.

In addition to the almost seventy unique poems, valuable supplements are available at the end of the book. The epilogue explains the author's fated keynote speech for Gay Awareness Week at the University of Wyoming, where Matthew Shepard attended college. The notes section contains references to factual documents that inspired--and were used in--each particular poem. "Explanation of Poetic Forms" reveals each poem's form and explains each in detail. Some poems are modeled after other poems, and the inspiration is given due credit. This is a powerful book that is useful not only to promote tolerance and peace but is also a great way to study poetry forms and authors, as well as writing itself. This is a must-have book for school and public libraries.

Geers, Dianna

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 E L Kurdyla Publishing LLC
http://www.voya.com
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Geers, Dianna. "Newman, Leslea. October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard." Voice of Youth Advocates, vol. 35, no. 5, Dec. 2012, p. 472+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A312172442/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=1cde3a50. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Here Is the World. By Leslea Newman. Illus. by Susan Gal. 2014. 48p. Abrams, $18.95 (9781419711855). 296.4. K-Gr. 2.

Beginning with a naming ceremony for a new baby, a cheerful family with three children celebrates notable Jewish holidays throughout the year. The kids eat apples and honey while listening to the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, plant trees with their friends on Tu B'Shevat, don costumes and make lots of noise on Purim, and enjoy milk and honey treats in a wheat field on Shavuot. Each two-page spread pairs a rhyming couplet that very briefly introduces a holiday or season with a beautiful full-bleed illustration in a riot of colors. Gal's luminous, smudgy charcoal and digital-collage art captures the joyfulness and excitement of celebrating holidays with friends and family, and helpful seasonal markers--big and bold sunflowers in early fall, windswept snowy trees in the winter--provide useful context clues. Brief descriptions of the celebrations and some of their traditions are included, as well as an easy craft project or recipe for each holiday, some of which will require adult assistance. These warm illustrations and cheery verses will likely build anticipation all year long.--Sarah Hunter

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2014 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
Hunter, Sarah. "Here Is the World." Booklist, vol. 111, no. 6, 15 Nov. 2014, p. 40. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A392900281/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ca1bd35d. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Newman, Leslea HERE IS THE WORLD Abrams (Children's Picture Books) $18.95 9, 2 ISBN: 978-1-4197-1185-5

The year's range of Jewish holidays and celebrations are presented in this repeating, rhyming chant that features key succinct elements for each. "Here are your parents, with arms open wide. / Here are your siblings, to stand by your side." Beginning in early fall, Newman carefully chooses a new baby girl's naming ceremony, not usually represented in other literature, followed by a Shabbat candle lighting, dinner and visit to the synagogue. She then launches into the high holy days of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simhat Torah. Winter leads with Hanukkah, followed by Tu B'Shevat and Purim before the traditional spring celebrations of Passover and Shavuot. An early summer Shabbat picnic brings the year full circle. Bookending this annual list with Shabbat observances reflects the significance the Sabbath holds in Judaism. Gal's illustrations provide a visual narrative, ending with a first birthday party for the baby named at the outset; the story culminates with her family marveling at the "ever-changing world" and wonder of their child. Charcoal drawings enhanced with digital collage create textured, festive scenes for each of the ceremonial traditions. Backmatter explanations fill out the basics (including the bris, or boys' welcome ceremony) with a specific craft or activity for each holiday. Both lovely and eminently useful. (Picture book/religion. 3-6)

Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2014 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 8th Edition APA 6th Edition Chicago 17th Edition
"Newman, Leslea: HERE IS THE WORLD." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2014. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A378247272/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=6e0a6b28. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

"Newman, Leslea: KETZEL, THE CAT WHO COMPOSED." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Aug. 2015. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A423540571/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=5aff03d7. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed." Publishers Weekly, vol. 262, no. 32, 10 Aug. 2015, p. 63. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A426033766/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=cd208cc6. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Flax, Shoshana. "Hanukkah Delight!" The Horn Book Magazine, vol. 92, no. 6, Nov.-Dec. 2016, p. 47. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A469755332/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=00b3e5bf. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: OCTOBER MOURNING." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2012. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A299605287/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ef14141e. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: HANUKKAH DELIGHT!" Kirkus Reviews, 1 Jan. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A475357258/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=79ec8710. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: SPARKLE BOY." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Apr. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A489268550/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4abb29ff. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Sparkle Boy." Children's Bookwatch, Sept. 2017. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A511040091/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=3c91628b. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: GITTEL'S JOURNEY." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Nov. 2018. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A560344740/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=680f627e. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Weisman, Kay. "Gittel's Journey." Booklist, vol. 115, no. 9-10, 1 Jan. 2019, p. 83. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A573094148/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=f5821a09. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: BABY'S BLESSINGS." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Sept. 2019. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A599964359/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4de30bde. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: REMEMBERING ETHAN." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2020. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A612619168/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=61cc5e59. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: WELCOMING ELIJAH." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Feb. 2020. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A612619019/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=762b6e06. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "My Name Is Aviva." Publishers Weekly, vol. 262, no. 31, 3 Aug. 2015, p. 55. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A424620073/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ef7b1ef3. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: MY NAME IS AVIVA." Kirkus Reviews, 15 July 2015. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A421459592/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=a75a5605. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: MISS TUTU'S STAR." Kirkus Reviews, 15 July 2010. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A256560561/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=114dc9be. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Miss Tutu's Star." Publishers Weekly, vol. 257, no. 30, 2 Aug. 2010, p. 44+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A234228470/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=a1fce0d8. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Donovan's Big Day." Publishers Weekly, vol. 258, no. 8, 21 Feb. 2011, p. 130. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A250321245/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=cca1fef9. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Rochman, Hazel. "Donovan's Big Day." Booklist, vol. 107, no. 15, 1 Apr. 2011, p. 73. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A254187237/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=aaa523a0. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "A Sweet Passover." Publishers Weekly, vol. 259, no. 8, 20 Feb. 2012, p. 171. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A281682977/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=317976e3. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Weisman, Kay. "A Sweet Passover." Booklist, vol. 108, no. 12, 15 Feb. 2012, p. 61. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A282214753/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=5979569c. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Schneider, Dean. "October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard." The Horn Book Magazine, vol. 88, no. 5, Sept.-Oct. 2012, p. 112+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A306972444/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=466625c5. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Geers, Dianna. "Newman, Leslea. October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard." Voice of Youth Advocates, vol. 35, no. 5, Dec. 2012, p. 472+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A312172442/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=1cde3a50. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. Hunter, Sarah. "Here Is the World." Booklist, vol. 111, no. 6, 15 Nov. 2014, p. 40. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A392900281/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=ca1bd35d. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020. "Newman, Leslea: HERE IS THE WORLD." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2014. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A378247272/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=6e0a6b28. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

Word Count