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WEBSITE: https://jessebcreative.com
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COUNTRY: United States
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School Library Journal vol. 69 no. 12 Dec., 2023. Elisabeth LeBris, “BYRD, Jesse. Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise.”. p. 86.
Booklist vol. 120 no. 5-6 Nov. 1, 2023, Alvarez, Vivian. , “Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise.”. p. 71.
Kirkus Reviews Jan. 6, 2023, , “Byrd, Jesse: MIGHTY MARA.”. p. NA.
Booklist vol. 119 no. 13 Mar. 1, 2023, Fletcher, Connie. , “Marina: A Story about Plastic and the Planet.”. p. 50.
Jesse Byrd is a 33-year-old African-American children’s book creator and dual-native of California and Louisiana.
At 6 feet 8 inches tall, Jesse paid for his college education playing basketball at one of the top 10 Public Academic Universities in the country (UC Santa Barbara).
After 3 years working on a secret project for Google at their headquarters in California, Jesse decided to pursue his true love of creating stories for readers young and old.
Jesse’s debut novel, King Penguin, was highly praised and won awards at both the Los Angeles and Paris Annual Book Festivals, placing top 10 for the year in its category. His two picture books: “Sunny Days” and “Real Jungle Tales” have received awards in four major competitions worldwide.
His next storytelling adventures include:
DREAM CATCHER | a book about the magical beings that keep our dreams sweet and protect us from the Bad Dreams. But, what happens when they make a mistake?
BASKETBALL ABCs | The first basketball ABC book that’s inclusive of gender, race, age and people who are differently-abled. The goal is to reflect the wide spectrum of people all over the globe from different walks of life who enjoy the game.
STUFF | A picture book about a kid named Luca who has the best toys, games and stuffed animals in the world. Or, so he thinks until he spots a kid with newer, shinier, fancier stuff.
SANTA’S SECRET SHOPPERS | A story about the team who flies around the world to pick up the raw materials Santa needs to make gifts.
Jesse’s favorites are french toast with sliced strawberries, reading, writing, film, video games, and freshly popped popcorn.
You can purchase Jesse’s stories HERE + on Amazon
You can join Jesse for storytime (via AirBnB Experiences) or book a private STORY TIME READING and VISUAL PRESENTATION for your school, group or family!
About the author
After 3 years of working on a project for Google at their HQ in California, Jesse decided to pursue his true dream and passion of creating stories for young readers.
Jesse's debut novel, KING PENGUIN, received high-praise and won awards at the Los Angeles and Paris Annual Book Festivals - placing top 10 in its category.
His picture book, SUNNY DAYS - a heartwarming picture book about a little girl putting the pieces back together in her neighborhood after a natural disaster - has been highly-reviewed by the Kirkus Review & Book Review Directory.
Jesse cares deeply about children having access to reading that grabs their attention and speaks to them. Jesse writes and produces the FREE illustrated mini-series, MONSTERS ARE REAL, collaborating with illustrators worldwide to create short, spooky-comedy stories for kids. This series blends artwork with narrative text for children who are too advanced for Picture Books, but maybe not be ready for Middle-Grade Novels.
You can experience more of Jesse's work and the free information he happily shares with new writers at www.JesseBCreative.com
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Jesse Byrd is an award-winning children’s book author and the youngest African American NPR Foundation Board Member. He started his professional journey as a Silicon Valley techie before pivoting to pursue his true passion of creating stories for audiences young and old. Jesse has been fortunate to perform readings of his children’s books to over 25,000 kids and is currently in partnership with Airbnb Experiences to provide families and corporations with virtual storytime experiences during COVID. Aside from traditional and independent publishing, Jesse is also working with one NBA athlete and three non-profits to develop original stories for young readers. He’s also been hard at work adapting two of his children’s books for consideration to become animated TV series (fingers crossed!).
Jesse loves french toast with sliced strawberries, reading, writing, film, video games, and warm popcorn. He also makes a mean milkshake (or at least, he thinks so). Jesse has swum with sharks and stingrays, snuggled lions, and draped a boa constrictor around his neck but, at 6 feet 8 inches tall, he is most afraid of butterflies.
Award-winning author Jesse Byrd inspires students at Jackson Heights school through interactive book reading and writing workshop
Jesse Byrd at PS 139Q Photo: QueensPost
Mar. 8, 2024 By Czarinna Andres and QNS Staff
Award-winning children’s book author Jesse Byrd talked to fourth-grade students at P.S. 193Q Alfred J. Kennedy Tuesday as part of a program that helps elementary school students write their own children’s book.
Byrd hosted an interactive reading of his new book “The Switch”, which draws on his experiences from his college basketball career, and spoke to students about creative writing techniques to help guide them through the process of writing their first book.
The event took place at the P.S. 139Q in Jackson Heights located at 152-20 11th Avenue, as part of New York Edge’s book publishing program.
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New York Edge, the city’s largest provider of school-based afterschool programs, hosted the event as part of its Reading Across New York Edge Week, which aims to boost literacy among schoolchildren, connect students with their favorite authors, and empower young students to write their own stories.
Byrd will host ten one-hour sessions with students at P.S. 193Q, guiding them through the process of writing a book. Students collaborate to build their own worlds, character, themes, and storylines during the ten sessions, with Byrd taking a back-seat role.
Byrd has won awards at the Los Angeles and Paris annual book festivals for his debut children’s book “King Penguin” and has been working with New York Edge for around three years. He has already completed eight similar projects with students across the country and said he allows the students to have as much creative control as possible.
“I let them steer the ship as much as possible,” Byrd said. “I feel like my job is to be like bumper lanes in a bowling alley.
“It really does have to be something extreme for me to suggest to the group that maybe we should go a different direction. But usually what I find is collectively it all levels out because if one person suggests something that seems absolutely left field for the story, it’s almost like antibodies. Other kids will be like, ‘no, no, no, that’s not going in my book’.
“I have them vote after they let out their ideas. So whatever most of them want for that particular story item is what gets cemented into the book.”
Byrd, who is from Oakland, California, said he got involved in the program after being confronted with some “scary” facts and statistics about literacy levels among children and their correlation to problems later in life.
“I have a lot of friends who work in the school district in Oakland where I’m from and they were really sharing some of the scary outcomes that are tied to kids not reading on grade level by a certain age,” Byrd said.
“Not only the expected things like repeating grades, but also not getting into the college of your choice, lifetime earnings, and the school to prison pipeline.”
Byrd believes that helping to write a published book can help reading feel less “foreign” or “scary” for young children, helping them to understand how a story is created.
He added that the chance to become a published author at such a young age can help inspire a child’s confidence.
“It’s something that they help make in a very real way,” Byrd said. “In addition to creating reading habits, what does becoming a published author do for their courage and confidence?”
Students will build the core elements of their story during the workshops with Byrd and will subsequently put together a story summary, which Byrd will share with a professional writer for a script. A professional illustrator will then turn the story into an animated children’s book.
Byrd added that he aims to hire artists and writers from around the world from disadvantaged or underrepresented communities.
He has also promoted diversity in many of his published works, stating that he hopes to teach children to celebrate differences.
“I think it’s important for kids and I guess readers in general to see that great stories and great art can come from anywhere and from anyone, no matter how they look or how they dress.”
Byrd said around 200 children he has worked will become officially published authors by the end of the year.
“This is something they can never take away from. Books typically outlive people, so this is something that they can, um, that they can hopefully point to throughout the rest of their life.”
Kayla Carpenter, an assistant program director for New York Edge at P.S. 193, said students are “really excited” to be taking part in the program.
That excitement was evident on the faces of several children when Byrd informed them that their names would appear on the front cover of their book once it’s published.
Carpenter, meanwhile, added that New York Edge provides an important service for children at P.S. 193, offering them the chance to try new hobbies and build their social skills, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic.
She said children are struggling with developmental challenges following the pandemic and added that the afterschool programs give them more opportunities to socialize with children their own age. The free program also provides a safe location for children after school if their parents are working late, Carpenter said.
The afterschool non-profit has existed in P.S. 193 for around 15 years, Carpenter said, and now features staff members who were once students at the school.
New York Edge’s literacy initiative is sponsored by Grid for Good from National Grid, Panera Bread and Lyft and connects students across the city with more than 60 published authors.
BYRD, Jesse. Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise. illus. by Moraiti, Lau. 48p. (Big Sister Coco). Paw Prints. Oct. 2023. pap. $5.99. ISBN 9781223187082.
PreS-Gr 2--Three short chapters center on big sister Coco, an eight-year-old Black girl, and her little brother Bo's fifth birthday. Bo is determined to uncover his hidden birthday present. Coco helps him out using logic and questions and the gift is soon discovered: a trip to the waterpark! But before they can go, the duo must decide which items they should bring. Since this is a first for both of the siblings, many objects are considered until the best ones make the final list. Once they arrive, Bo is overwhelmed by the choices and sizes of slides. He is very nervous about the biggest slide, but that is the one he wants to try. Being a good big sister, Coco decides to find a way to help Bo to feel brave enough to go down. A bright color palette is combined with well-developed, relatable actions, such as an excellent sequence of vertical panels that depict the four stages of descending a waterslide. Sparse and easy-to-read dialogue appears embedded in the drawings and in speech bubbles. VERDICT A solid choice where slice-of-life comics for young readers are in demand. --Elisabeth LeBris
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
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LeBris, Elisabeth. "BYRD, Jesse. Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise." School Library Journal, vol. 69, no. 12, Dec. 2023, p. 86. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A779118681/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=f2f77f68. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise. By Jesse Byrd. Art by Lau Moraiti. 2023. 48p. Baker & Taylor/Paw Prints, $15.99 (9781223187075); paper, $5.99 (9781223187082); e-book, $5.99 (9781223187099). Gr. 1-3.741.5.
In this comics-style early reader containing three stories, the fun begins with Bo's birthday, which is happening in just three days! He is eager to open his present ahead of time and determined to find its secret hidden spot, and his older sister, Coco, signs up for the gift-hunting quest. One clue leads to the next, and they eventually find his present inside his toy box: tickets to the water park! In the next story, Bo's birthday is here, and the siblings help each other decide what to pack for their big day, and in the final story, Coco and Bo are ecstatic to explore the water park. With all sorts of splashy options, they opt for "the really REALLY big one." Bo finds it scary at first, but his loving big sister compassionately helps guide him away from his fear. Conveyed primarily in speech balloons with simple text, this warmly illustrated story is a great introduction for emerging readers, particularly those who are interested in comics.--Vivian Alvarez
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
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Alvarez, Vivian. "Big Sister Coco: A Birthday Surprise." Booklist, vol. 120, no. 5-6, 1 Nov. 2023, p. 71. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A774988478/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=abf0e440. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Byrd, Jesse MIGHTY MARA (Children's) $16.00 ISBN: 978-0-9997050-7-0
A girl hopes to dazzle the crowd at a talent show in Ho and Byrd's debut picture book.
Mara dresses more colorfully than other residents of conformist Sametown, who all wear bland polo shirts. She's planning to perform a dance routine at an upcoming talent show where everyone else is doing magic tricks. However, her teacher discourages her. Mara's mother, however, knows exactly what to say to give her child courage. Right before her performance, it's revealed that Mara uses a wheelchair; the stage isn't accessible, and she must emotionally ground herself before asking for assistance. The book takes care to show that Mara's difference from others in Sametown isn't only her wheelchair use, but also her creativity and inventiveness. Co-author and dancer Ho discusses her own wheelchair use in an author's note, which brings authenticity to the story. Rodriguez's pleasing full-color illustrations are refreshingly diverse, featuring characters with varying skin tones; Mara and her mother are portrayed as Asian. The story flows nicely, but the talent show stakes are a bit unclear; although the audience and emcee are seemingly blown away, Mara doesn't even place. Discussion questions will spark conversations about uniqueness and unpack biases about people who use wheelchairs.
A thoughtful, well-illustrated work about pursuing goals.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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"Byrd, Jesse: MIGHTY MARA." Kirkus Reviews, 6 Jan. 2023, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A733021258/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=6604079d. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Marina: A Story about Plastic and the Planet. By Jesse Byrd. Illus. by Andressa Meissner. Mar. 2023.400p. Baker & Taylor/Paw Prints, $19.99 (9781223186658). Gr. 1-3.
This picture book drives home the reality that plastic never really goes away by having a discarded sandwich bag return to the little girl who threw it away in the first place. The story starts with little Marina's mother making her a sandwich for school and putting it in a plastic wrapper with Marina's name on it. Once Marina throws away the plastic in a trash bin, the wrapper's adventures begin, moving from bin to truck to trash dump--and then, when the wind picks up, into the sea. Byrd opts for the comical when showing the effects of plastic in the sea (for example, an old shrimp thinks the floating plastic is a UFO). Eventually, the plastic floats to the surface and drifts to the edge of a plastic-choked beach where the little girl is shocked to find the bag with her name on it. The resolution includes advice like starting small by using paper bags, while two ending sections, "Ocean Plastic Facts" and "Ocean Plastic Solutions," add information to this relatable title.--Connie Fletcher
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
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Fletcher, Connie. "Marina: A Story about Plastic and the Planet." Booklist, vol. 119, no. 13, 1 Mar. 2023, p. 50. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A741103701/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=feef30e1. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.