SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: BREAKING THE MOLD
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://danaalisonlevy.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 369
Dana Alison Levy c/o Gallt and Zacker Literary Agency 273 Charlton Avenue, South Orange, NJ 07079
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Married; children.
EDUCATION:B.A. (English literature); M.B.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Novelist. Worked variously as a waitress, assistant literary agent and art gallery manager.
AWARDS:Junior Library Guild selection and Best Children’s Books citation, Bank Street Center for the Book, both for The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher; Junior Library Guild selection and Best Children’s Books citation, Bank Street Center for the Book, both for The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island; Junior Library Guild selection, for This Would Make a Good Story Someday; Junior Library Guild selection, and Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2018, for It Wasn’t Me; Junior Library Guild selection and Best Children’s Books of 2020 citation, Bank Street Center for the Book, both 2020, both for Above All Else.
WRITINGS
Author’s work has been translated into French, German, and Italian.
The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher and The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island were adapted for audiobook, read by Dan Woren, Books on Tape, 2015 and 2016, respectively. This Would Make a Good Story Someday was adapted for audiobook, read by Kathleen McInerney, Books on Tape, 2017; It Wasn’t Me, was adapted for audiobook, read by Robbie Daymond.
SIDELIGHTS
Based in New England, Dana Alison Levy taps timely social trends in her novels for middle-grade and young-adult readers. Levy introduces a blended family with two dads, four rambunctious sons, and various pets in her companion novels The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher and The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island. She presents ‘tween girls in a similar family tale, sharing a road-trip story of a two-mom family in This Would Make a Good Story Someday. In her first novel for young adults, Above All Else, Levy offers a harrowing tale set on Mount Everest. Levy states on her website that she writes stories because she “likes to make things up,” but each of her stories is grounded in the real experiences, worries, questions, and interests of contemporary kids and teens. “Stories are how we connect with each other,” she noted; “How, as it’s been famously said, we find windows into other lives, mirrors that reflect our own lives, and doorways to step through and experience a world beyond our reckoning. Stories matter.”
When readers first meet them in The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, the four Fletcher boys—middle-grader Sam, fourth graders Jax and Eli, and kindergartener Frog—are preparing for the new school year, despite having the tail end of their summer ruined by crotchety neighbor Mr. Nelson. Shepherded by Dad and Papa, the boys each face unique challenges. Super soccer player Sam takes an interest in musical theatre, braniac Eli rethinks his desire to attend a special school, Jax learns that not all friendships are forever, even as he builds a new relationship with Mr. Nelson, and Frog finds his comfort zone in kindergarten.
“Ethnically diverse,” according to a Kirkus Reviews writer, the Fletcher brothers are nonetheless “closely tied with warm family bonds. Their banter is realistic, and the disorder of their everyday lives convincing.” By centering each chapter on a different brother, “Levy provides a compelling, compassionate, and frequently hilarious look at their daily concerns,” noted Monica Edinger in her Horn Book review School Library Journal critic Jill Ratzan cited The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher for its “semi-episodic structure, laugh-out-loud humor, and mix of zaniness and love.”
School is over when readers rejoin Sam, Jax, Eli, and Frog in The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island. Visiting the small coastal island, which is steeped in New England culture, they anticipate a summer like they have enjoyed in past years, one full of swimming, biking, and exploring the lighthouse next door. When they find the lighthouse boarded up and about to be sold, the boys band together with new friends to save it. Meanwhile, other challenges await, from auditioning for a Shakespeare production to teaching a cat to swim. Citing the “energetic third-person narrative” in Levy’s novel, a Kirkus Reviews critic noted that the story’s “constant action and delightful humor” is balanced by “realistic present-day problems and happy solutions.” Also praising The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, Ratzan wrote in School Library Journal that Levy’s novel is “a must-have middle grade family story with contemporary sensibilities.”
“Charming but not fluffy,” according to Booklist contributor Molly Horan, This Would Make a Good Story Someday finds serious-minded preteen Sara less than excited when her two moms decided to take their three daughters—Sara, college-aged sister Laurel, and little sister Li—on a cross-country train trip. She says very little as the family sets out, instead recording her thoughts and impressions in her journal. Laurel’s boyfriend Root is also along, making discussions trend toward social and political topics. Sara records and reflects on these and other matters while being careful to make up her own mind about things. Intent on a course of self-improvement, her confidence grows as she is pulled outside her comfort zone by new friends and new places. Despite its focus on social issues, Levy’s “story is never preachy; it ranges from laugh-out-loud funny to incredibly moving,” wrote a Kirkus Reviews writer, “and the voices are true.” While citing Sara’s “prickly” personality, Nancy P. Reeder concluded in School Library Journal that This Would Make a Good Story Someday “is by turns funny and sad, with a lot of life lessons.”
In It Wasn’t Me, Levy tackles a somewhat darker subject—bullying. Seventh-grader Theo finds himself the target of an anonymous bully who defaces his artwork. The only children in the gallery at the time are suspects in the incident. Attempting to form a “justice circle” to address the problem, the school decides to gather all five along with Theo during school break. With the help of a teacher, Ms. Lewiston, the kids undergo a resolution process that reveals that each student is facing his or her own issues and challenges. In an interview with Deborah Kalb for Kalb’s website, Levy admitted that she drew inspiration from the classic 1980s movie The Breakfast Club for the plot: “The Breakfast Club is such a great, iconic movie, and I loved the idea of revisiting the basic idea: kids who have preconceived notions about each other being forced to spend time together, but bringing it down into middle school.” School Library Journal critic Mary-Ann Karre lauded the book’s “laugh-out loud humor” and remarked, “This is an engaging read with quirky, likable characters with whom tweens will identify.” A Kirkus Reviews contributor called the novel “a timely, introspective whodunit with a lot of heart.”
Above All Else, Levy’s first novel for teenagers, focuses on two lifelong, adventurous friends who endeavor to climb Mount Everest at the end of their senior year in high school. Rose and Tate have traveled widely and climbed numerous peaks together, but Mount Everest poses a different, more dangerous challenge. The task gets more fraught still when the two friends begin to realize that they harbor romantic feelings for one another. A Kirkus Reviews contributor called the book “an engrossing, suspenseful, and thought-provoking adventure,” while School Library Journal critic Myiesha Speight remarked that “learning about Mount Everest and the financial disparity in the region is eye-opening and informative.”
“I hope to always write for kids and teenagers,” Levy told SATA. “To me, stories that deal with people at this stage of life, that in-between stage when you’re not a little kid but not yet an adult, are some of the most interesting, hilarious, heartbreaking, and exciting stories of all.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, July 1, 2014, Ilene Cooper, review of The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, p. 75; March 15, 2017, Molly Horan, review of This Would Make a Good Story Someday, p. 66.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, September, 2014, Amy Atkinson, review of The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, p. 39.
Horn Book, September-October, 2014, Monica Edinger, review of The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, p. 114; March-April, 2016, Monica Edinger, review of The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, p. 91.
Kirkus Reviews, June 1, 2014, review of The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher; February 15, 2016, review of The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island; March 15, 2017, review of This Would Make a Good Story Someday.
School Library Journal, June, 2014, Jill Ratzan, review of The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, p. 104; April, 2016, Jill Ratzan, review of The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, p. 150; March, 2017, Nancy P. Reeder, review of This Would Make a Good Story Someday, p. 128.
ONLINE
Books Q&As with Deborah Kalb, http://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/ (January 3, 2019), author interview.
Dana Alison Levy website, https://danaalisonlevy.com (March 5, 2021).
The Short Version Where I Talk About Myself In the Third Person:
Dana Alison Levy was raised by pirates but escaped at a young age and went on to earn a degree in aeronautics and puppetry. Actually, that’s not true—she just likes to make things up. That’s why she always wanted to write books. Dana’s new novel, Above All Else, takes place on Mount Everest and is her first for Young Adults.
Her novels for younger kids, The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, This Would Make a Good Story Someday, and It Wasn’t Me have garnered multiple starred reviews, been named to Best Of lists, and were Junior Library Guild Selections. Also her kids like them.
The Long Version Where I Go Back to First-Person Because It’s Not As Weird:
House cleaner in Paris; waitress in Santorini,Greece; assistant literary agent in New York; art gallery manager; MBA fast-tracker; executive recruiter; carob bean picker: which of these haven’t I done?*
I realize this list might look ominously random. Usually, when you graduate from a prestigious university, you aren’t encouraged to go clean toilets in Paris. Or, if you’ve earned a Master’s in Business Administration, you don’t generally try and write for a living.
But the real reason for this list is the same one that led Jennie, in Higglety Pigglety Pop! to go out in the world. I was looking for Experience. (And if you haven’t read this Maurice Sendak classic then run, don’t walk, to get it. I’ll wait).
Over the years I have found Experience in many wonderful and sometimes strange places. Today my family and I live in a New England seaside town, where my kids surf and play ice hockey in the backyard rink and sometimes let me tag along with them. The Husband (who was offered the carob bean job back when we were both 23…not that I’m holding a grudge or anything) and I enjoy largely peaceful lives, as long as the US and Canada aren’t playing each other in Olympic hockey.
Writing is what I do now, and in some ways what I’ve always done. Stories, journals, professional writing; it has always been a vital part of my life. My stories are for children and young adults, as well as for people like me who, no matter what their age, are still looking for their next experience.
If you want to know more, check out the Extras…and be prepared for more random answers than you ever wanted!
*I was not a carob bean picker. I tried to be, in Crete, but Yanni wouldn’t hire me because I wasn’t a man. Good luck shattering the glass ceiling over the carob bean trees.
Here is a place to get your Frequently Asked Questions (and your Rarely Asked Questions) answered. Other stuff you want to know? Contact me here.
Writing in the Time of Covid, a guest post by Dana Alison Levy
March 15, 2023 by Amanda MacGregor Leave a Comment
In some ways, Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science, was a perfect book to write during the lockdown of 2020. I signed a contract for this book in March 2020, and then the world folded in on itself and we all hunkered down, fretting over (in no particular order): dying, toilet paper, the economy, yeast, our elders, our children, our jobs, our healthcare workers, hand sanitizer, flour…well. You probably remember.
We were a party of four working or attending school from home: my husband in the front room, my daughter on her bed, my son at the dining room table, and me in the finished attic (head clearance, five feet, five inches: my height, five feet, three inches. I didn’t get a lot of visitors).
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Now, I am not precious about the writing process. I have written books in hockey rinks, hotel rooms, my car…it is the nature of being a working parent. But this was different. Not only was the house constantly full of people, it was full of So Much Big Emotion. Everybody’s feelings — anxiety, stress, frustration, fear — were all over the place. To dig into a well of creativity, to come up with characters and stories out of my head, I need some mental space for them to grow. And 2020 didn’t have a lot of space.
But Breaking the Mold was something new for me — my first nonfiction book for a middle grade audience, intended as a series of profiles of diverse scientists who work in climate science. My goal was to pull back the veil and show kids how people build a career in science, especially if they do not fit the mold of the majority of scientists: white, cisgendered, able-bodied, and neurotypical.
Unlike my previous novels, this was a capital-P-Project. It required Project Management. There were spreadsheets…so many spreadsheets. There were folders and different colored tabs. There were workflows and deadlines and Zoom calls and transcription services and fact-checking. For someone who typically sits in a chair and makes things up for a living, this was a whole different way to work. But…and this was the key: it did not require the quiet and intimacy of creating a world in my head. Yes, there might have been moments where kids or cats interrupted a Zoom, but we were all in this together. Everyone understood.
But the real reason that this book was a perfect book to be writing in 2020 and 2021 is that, in the end, it was all about connection. And hope.
I was not alone in my head, trying to tease out the voices there. I was talking to people around the world, listening to their stories and explaining the importance of why we were sharing their experiences with young readers.
I found sixteen scientists to interview, from chemical analysts to ecologists, from botanists to volcanologists. Some are internationally renowned in their fields, some are just starting out. They live in Cape Town, South Africa; Atlanta, Georgia; Hilo, Hawaii; Lubbock, Texas; Vancouver, British Columbia, and beyond. They have very little in common with each other, except that they work in the myriad fields of science related to helping to understand and protect our planet. Their stories are as diverse as they are, but they all have a story to share.
And despite any evidence to the contrary, these scientists also all have hope. Hope that we have not damaged our planet beyond repair. Hope that we can still make a difference. Hope that there is a path into science for everyone. The path was not always easy for these folks. Making your way into science as a person with a disability, or as a Black queer person, or as a gay immigrant, is not always simple, and not everyone felt welcomed. But they made it, and they are doing the work, and they are sharing their stories, and they are inviting others to join them.
Devyani Singh, a queer Indian woman who shifted from business to environmental science because she knew it was the work of her heart, said, “I wish everyone knew that it’s not too late! There are doomsday folks who say that the planet is ruined and there’s no point in taking action, but that’s wrong. There is still hope, and we can still take action, and if we take action today, that’s better than if we wait until tomorrow.”
And Gabriela Serrato Marks, who pushed through her chronic illness to rappel into caves and pursue a PhD before becoming a science communicator, reminds us: “I think it’s really important that people understand that we can and must still have hope.[…] it’s not helpful to be hopeless.”
Valerie Small, an enrolled member of the Crow Tribe (Apsáalooke), says: “As the first in my family to go to college and get a PhD, and as a mother who went back to school, I will say it is not easy. But follow your heart, and even there are curveballs, don’t give up on your dreams. […] My deep passion was to help others and lift Indigenous voices. And I learned that if you don’t give up, if you keep at it, people will help you on your way. And those who don’t, those who make you feel like you’re not worth it, or do not respect or honor you, leave them. Value your own self-worth.”
These are messages of hope. Hope for our planet, hope for our kids, hope for our very humanity.
And as I sat at my desk, surrounded by cats and stressed out family members and text chats filled with links on where to buy disinfecting wipes or links to family Zoom calls, I was filled with gratitude. We need scientists, and we need diversity in science, and we need books for kids, and we need citizen science projects, but most of all…we need hope. And I will be forever grateful to this project for helping me find it.
Meet the author
Dana Alison Levy writes novels and nonfiction for kids and teenagers. Her books for elementary age readers, such as the Family Fletcher novels and It Wasn’t Me, received accolades from the American Library Association, Bank Street College of Education, The New York Times, NPR, and others. Her books for teens include Above All Else, which was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and a Bank Street Best Book, and the nonfiction anthology Allies: Real Talk About Showing Up, Screwing Up, and Trying Again, which she co-edited with Shakirah Bourne.
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Dana loves visiting schools and libraries, talking books and writing with audiences from twenty to two thousand. She was last seen romping with her family in New England. If you want more information, or need to report her for excessive romping, go to www.danaalisonlevy.com.
Website: www.danaalisonlevy.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danaalisonlevy/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danaalisonlevy
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Danaalisonlevy
About Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science
Sixteen scientists. Protecting our planet. Making science more equitable.
Scientists who collect microbes from surfers’ skin, who use radar sensors to gather data miles away, who combat inequality by pushing for cleaner air policies. Each with their own story, all working to make life better for future generations.
Celebrated author Dana Alison Levy profiles 16 people, all studying different elements of the earth’s landscape, animals, and climate, who defy stereotypes of who can be a scientist. From analytical chemists to volcanologists, from global experts to recent graduates, these scientists share what they were like as young people, how they got where they are now, and what they—and the rest of us—can do to help the planet.
Based on extensive interviews and featuring infographics and personal photos, Breaking the Mold offers a snapshot of the people and organizations fighting to make science more equitable. Back matter includes advice for readers interested in science careers, DIY projects, paths to community involvement, and more.
Books for a Better Earth are designed to inspire children to become active, knowledgeable participants in caring for the planet they live on.
ISBN-13: 9780823449712
Publisher: Holiday House
Publication date: 02/21/2023
Series: Books for a Better Earth
Age Range: 8 – 12 Years
Filed under: Guest Post
LEVY, Dana Alison. Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science. 224p. (Books for a Better Earth). Holiday House. Feb. 2023. Tr $22.99. ISBN 9780823449712.
Gr 3-8--Levy profiles 16 boundary-pushing and innovative scientists in this gorgeously designed title. From the first page, the author's goal is to showcase the work of contemporary contributors to the scientific field who might not fit "the mold" of what a scientist "looks like." The subjects are diverse, in every sense of the word. They are representative of a wide swath of marginalized communities, including Indigenous tribes, those with visible and invisible disabilities, and people across the gender spectrum. The variety in the areas of scientific study is also substantial, including environmentalists, climate change activists, volcanologists, and urban ecologists. They hail from all parts of the world, working at a global scale and making important changes--in big and small ways. The trim size allows plenty of white space that helps set off the dynamic layout, popping color, and impeccable photos. Unfamiliar words are in bold within the text and defined in thorough but accessible side bars on the same page. This book can be read as a curricular tie-in, but science enthusiasts could just as easily browse through the engaging pages. Inspirational pull quotes from the scientists profiled also grace the page in bright-colored fonts. The back matter features short bios on seven non-scientists making a mark, including students; DIY activities with an environmental focus; and 10 pages of bibliography and source notes. VERDICT This inspirational text about underrepresented folks in STEM fields is nonfiction at its best.--Shelley M. Diaz
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
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Diaz, Shelley M. "LEVY, Dana Alison. Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science." School Library Journal, vol. 69, no. 1, Jan. 2023, p. 83. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A732326583/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=df73d3af. Accessed 19 May 2023.
Levy, Dana Alison BREAKING THE MOLD Holiday House (Children's None) $22.99 2, 21 ISBN: 978-0-8234-4971-2
An inviting, inclusive introduction to notable figures in a critical field.
This book shows that environmental scientists no longer are limited by outmoded stereotypes. The informative assemblage introduces 16 practitioners who demonstrate the value added to science by increased diversity in researchers' backgrounds and life experiences. Two Native Hawaiians concerned with oceanography bookend the collection: Cliff Kapono and Kelly Luis. Kapono uses analytical chemistry to study the effects of ocean waste on swimmers' and surfers' microbiomes worldwide. Luis utilizes satellite images to determine what the colors of the ocean can reveal about important environmental changes. Readers also meet Anita Marshall (Choctaw), a geologist with a mobility disability who pushes back against ableism; Lila Leatherman, a nonbinary forest scientist who uses remote sensing technology; Marshall Shepherd, an African American meteorologist who worked at NASA; and Katharine Hayhoe, a climate scientist who is also an evangelical Christian. Their life stories both highlight the challenges the subjects faced in education and professional advancement as well as the ways their diverse perspectives and life experiences have enriched the progress of research in their fields and their mentorship of students. Ample color photos show the scientists in their work environments, and extensive sidebars explain related subjects and offer advice for readers. A final chapter introduces seven environmentally active nonscientists from around the world. The lively design breaks up the smoothly written text, emphasizing important points.
Unusually attractive and intriguing. (DIY activities, bibliography, source notes, photo credits, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2022 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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"Levy, Dana Alison: BREAKING THE MOLD." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Dec. 2022, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A729072617/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=e7ff5a2b. Accessed 19 May 2023.
Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science (Books for a Better Earth)
Edited by Dana Alison Levy. Holiday House, $22.99 (224p) ISBN 978-0-8234-4971-2
Detailing the bias that can make scientific fields "uncomfortable or unwelcoming for many LGBTQ + , disabled, and non-white" professionals, Levy (Above Ail Else) offers up a career-spanning compendium positioned as profiling 16 climate scientists who "defy stereotypes of who can be a scientist." Chapters acquaint readers with each figure on a first-name basis, complete with advice, personal stories, and snapshots of interviewees. Black U.S. meteorologist Marshall Shepherd describes a career in atmospheric science, including at NASA; queer environmental scientist Devyani Singh, who grew up in the Indian Himalayas, discusses blending climate research with science-policy activism; and Indigenous Hawaiian analytical chemist and surfer Cliff Kapano talks collecting and analyzing microbial specimens. Anecdotal tellings also interweave personal experiences. Rocio Paola Caballero-Gill, raised in Peru, discusses how a diagnosis of Myasthenia gravis put her on a path to mentorship; Daniel Palacios of Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute recalls growing up gay in Bogota; and nonbinary U.S. biologist Lila Leatherman discusses the isolation of feeling unable to share one's full identity. Sidebars provide additional information, including definitions of identity-related and scientific terms. Levy persuasively argues for inclusion, arming readers with critical thinking skills and positive representations of intersectionally diverse innovators: "If you feel like you don't fit the pictute of a scientist, that doesn't mean you're wrong. It means the picture is." A bibliography concludes. Ages 8-12. (Feb.)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
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"Breaking the Mold: Changing the Face of Climate Science (Books for a Better Earth)." Publishers Weekly, vol. 270, no. 2, 9 Jan. 2023, p. 72. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A733607293/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=fe176791. Accessed 19 May 2023.