BookHuddle with Readgab

Karen Reeder
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Welcome to Book Huddle with Readgab where you get to hear from authors of children's books and others having to do with children's literacy. We chat not only about what inspired these amazing authors, but also time relevant themes in their books and how kids can benefit from these themes. Each guest also recommends one of their favorite children's books at the end of the episode so you will constantly be building a wonderful list of books for the kids in your life. 

  1. 84: Hawaiian Legend Turned Into a Middle Grade Fantastical Adventure - Malia Maunakea Author Interview

    10 HR AGO

    84: Hawaiian Legend Turned Into a Middle Grade Fantastical Adventure - Malia Maunakea Author Interview

    Do your readers love fantastical shapeshifter books? Werewolves? Vampires? Sharks? Malia Maunakea joins us to talk about her newest middle grade fantasy based on Hawaiian legends. The Shark Prince is about a boy cursed to transform into a shark. You decide if it is a curse or a blessing.  Find author Malia Maunakea  https://www.maliamaunakea.com/ https://www.instagram.com/maliamaunakea/ https://www.tiktok.com/@maliamaunakea The Shark Prince by Malia Maunakea https://www.amazon.com/Shark-Prince-Malia-Maunakea/dp/0593890728/ Lei and the Fire Goddess by Malia Maunakea https://www.amazon.com/Lei-Fire-Goddess-Malia-Maunakea/dp/0593522036/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0 Lei and the Legends book 2 Lei and the Invisible Island https://www.amazon.com/Lei-Invisible-Island-Legends/dp/0593522052/ Clairboyance by Kristiana Kahakauwila https://www.amazon.com/Clairboyance-Kristiana-Kahakauwila/dp/0063045362/ Chapters 00:00 Meet author Malia Maunakea 05:28 What is the Shark Prince about? 07:10 Did you know you wanted to be a writer? Did you know you wanted to write fantasy? 09:01 Is the Shark Prince based on a real Hawaiian legend? 11:41 Pitching the Shark Prince to people who aren’t familiar with the legend or aren’t fantasy lovers. Using books to talk to your kids. 21:52 Themes of friendship 25:02 What is next for author Malia Maunakea 28:28 Malia’s book recommendation

    30 min
  2. 83: A Story Out of Order with Caldecott Medal Winning Philip Stead Middle Grade Author Interview

    2 DAYS AGO

    83: A Story Out of Order with Caldecott Medal Winning Philip Stead Middle Grade Author Interview

    Philip Stead is best known for his writing and illustrating of picture books, but after a little convincing from others and a lot of creativity on his part he recently published his first middle grade novel. "A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic or Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm a Story Out of Order" quickly became a New York Times bestseller for children and in this episode you get to hear about how he came up with this unique writing style and how to work morals into middle grade books. Find author and illustrator Philip Stead https://www.numberfivebus.com/ https://www.instagram.com/number5bus/ A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic Or Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm a Story Out of Order by Philip Stead https://www.amazon.com/Potion-Powder-Little-Bit-Magic/dp/0823458091/ The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine by Mark Twain, Philip Stead, and Erin Stead  Bambert's Book of Missing Stories by Reinhardt Jung Chapters 00:00 Meet author and illustrator Philip  Stead 01:40 What is A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic or Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm a Story Out of Order about? 03:20 Does Philip Stead represent the author in his book? 04:25 What inspired Philip Stead to write his first middle grade book, A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic or Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm a Story Out of Order? And finishing a children’s book that Mark Twain started? 13:05 Did life go like you expected it to as a child? 14:20 Enjoyment vs fulfillment in life? 16:16 Why 10 year old Philip Stead would like a story out of order? 18:00 An interview out of order - author ice breaker in the middle - what is Philip’s will power struggle? 19:20 24 morals in Philip Stead’s books and why Philip decided to put morals in? 22:14 What significance some of the morals hold for Philip personally? 32:31 This or that based on Philip’s book? 34:21 What is next for author and illustrator Philip Stead and wife Erin Stead? 36:45 Philip Stead’s book recommendation.

    40 min
  3. 82: Poetry Is For Everyone! John Schu Children's Book Author Interview

    26 APR

    82: Poetry Is For Everyone! John Schu Children's Book Author Interview

    Poetry is not something that should be dreaded by students or adults. John shares how poetry can be found in multiple forms and can be a benefit to children and teens in many ways. Not only has John written a number of beautiful picture books, but John has a New York Times bestselling novel in verse, Louder than Hunger.  Find author John Schu https://www.johnschu.com/ https://www.instagram.com/mrschureads/?hl=en https://bsky.app/profile/mrschureads.bsky.social https://x.com/MrSchuReads Lily-May's Joyful Day by John Schu https://www.amazon.com/Lily-Mays-Joyful-Day-John-Schu/dp/1536238627/ Chapters 00:00 Meet author and poet John Schu 04:35 How poetry can be encouraged for all ages? 20:00 What has poetry done for John Schu personally? 24:16 How a child shared how a poem of John Schu’s helped them? 26:44 Why is Louder than Hunger for someone who doesn’t struggle with a disorder? 28:08 How can adults use John’s books to share poetry? 30:16 The place picture books have for all ages, particularly upper grades. 33:38 A time where John Schu remembers being read aloud to and felt loved. 33:55 Reading aloud is love- is writing love too? How can adults use poetry as a form of love? As a form of writing? 39:36 John Schu’s book recommendation

    42 min

  4. 18 APR

    81: Everything Animal Stories Can Do For Us - Interview with Jasmine Warga

    Kids love animal stories because kids love animals, but these stories can also teach us so much about ourselves and the world.

    32 min

  5. 15 APR

    80: Unsolved Mysteries and Spooky Stories Mixed With Some Very Real Historical Fiction About Enslaved Individuals - Interview with Shakirah Bourne

    Join Shakirah and I discussing one of my favorite books of the year, Here Lies a Ghost. The mystery of the moving coffins of the Chase Vault is one of the top 100 greatest unsolved mysteries in the world. Middle grade author Shakirah Bourne shares with us how she went from a young girl exploring the vault to a writer who crafted a ghost story that includes real people from history. After this interview go get your copy of Here Lies a Ghost by Shakirah Bourne. Here Lies a Ghost by Shakirah Bourne https://www.amazon.com/Here-Lies-Ghost-Shakirah-Bourne/dp/1546116907/ Find author Shakirah Bourne https://www.shakirahbourne.com/ https://www.facebook.com/shakirahwrites/ https://www.instagram.com/shakirahwrites Chapters 00:00 Meet middle grade author Shakirah Bourne 04:34 What is Here Lies a Ghost about? 08:37 What happened concerning the Chase Vault unsolved mystery? 11:25 Shakirah’s research for writing Here Lies a Ghost 16:55 The enslaved individuals on Barbados and what Shakirah learned about this writing Here Lies a Ghost 19:45 How a history of enslaving individuals effects how people are treated in Barbados today 24:20 Why Shakirah wrote her book alternating between prose and verse and her experience writing in this style 29:38 What is next for author Shakirah Bourne 30:25 Shakirah’s book recommendation

    32 min

  6. 9 APR

    79: Discussion on Body Image with author Rebecca Morrison

    There is so much going on in this discussion because there is so much going on in the incredible book, The Blue Dress, by Rebecca Morrison. We talk about body image, being your authentic self, being an immigrant, complicated mother/daughter relationships. Find author Rebecca Morrison https://www.rebeccakmorrison.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccamorrisonwriter/?hl=en  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rkmorrison TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@contactrebecca?lang=en  Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rebeccamorrisonwriter/ Twitter (X): https://x.com/contactrebecca  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-morrison-12bbb99/ Website: https://www.rebeccakmorrison.com/  Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/rebeccamorrison.bsky.social YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@rebeccamorrisonwriter Substack: https://rebeccamorrison.substack.com/ Threads: https://www.threads.com/@rebeccamorrisonwriter The Blue Dress by Rebecca Morrison https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Dress-Rebecca-Morrison/dp/0374393605/ Jawbreaker by Christina Wyman https://www.amazon.com/Jawbreaker-Christina-Wyman/dp/0374389691/ Chapters 00:00 Meet Middle Grade Author Rebecca Morrison 03:39 What is The Blue Dress by Rebecca Morrison about? 05:32 Complicated mother/daughter relationships and why Rebecca choose to write it for a middle grade book 08:38 Had writing a book about her own experiences affected Rebecca’s relationship with her mother? 12:41 Body image - how to feel happy and secure about our bodies 16:47 Be an authentic self about being an immigrant 20:37 How the author Rebecca would go about recommending a tween or teen read The Blue Dress 25:50 What is next for author Rebecca Morrison? 26:47 Rebecca’s book recommendation

    30 min

  7. 6 APR

    78: What Kids Want In a Book According to Middle Grade Author Michael Buckley - Author Interview

    Weird books are some of the best books! Michael Buckley shares his experience writing The Weirdies series in this author interview on BookHuddle where we learn to embrace and love the weird! Find middle grade author Michael Buckley  https://www.michaelbuckleywrites.com/ https://www.instagram.com/whatsupbuckley/ Chapters 00:00 Meet author Michael Buckley 02:50 What is The Weirdies by Michael Buckley about? 08:10 What is it like writing a weird book for Michael Buckley? 10:36 What was it like creating an Audible original story? 13:36 As you wrote did you try to consider how it would sound narrated 16:35 Words that people use to describe The Weirdies that resonate with Michael 22:37 The benefits of writing a weird book for children 27:00 Embrace the weird. Help kids see that being different is ok 30:00 What would The Weirdies give for advice 37:46 What is next for author Michael Buckley? 41:13 Michael’s book recommendations

    46 min

  8. 15 MAR

    77: Behind the Scenes with Jen Calonita in Writing The Isle of Ever Series - Middle Grade Author Interview

    Jen takes us behind the scenes in her writing the Isle of Ever and book 2, The Curse Breaker. We get to hear all about how it came together and maybe you'll have some questions at the end so maybe you should follow Jen Calonita on her socials and read all of the books in the Isle of Ever series.  Find author Jen Calonita  https://www.jencalonitaonline.com/ https://www.instagram.com/jencalonita/ https://www.tiktok.com/@jencalonitaofficial https://www.facebook.com/jencalonitabooks https://www.threads.com/@jencalonita Isle of Ever by Jen Calonita https://www.amazon.com/Isle-Ever-Jen-Calonita/dp/1464234426/ The Curse Breaker by Jen Calonita https://www.amazon.com/Curse-Breaker-Isle-Ever/dp/172827706X/ Chapters 00:00 Meet author Jen Calonita - Also Cliffhangers 07:40 What is the book Isle of Ever and the sequel The Curse Breaker about? 10:04 What motivates author Jen Calonita in life? 11:37 What personal family life inspired Jen Calonita to write Isle of Ever? 14:09 How did Jen pace her writing for the Isle of Ever series? 16:37 Adding new points of view to the sequel 21:00 What are Jen’s hopes for readers when they read The Curse Breaker? 24:42 Creating the main character, Benny 29:35 Learning to be a kid and have fun 31:50 What is next for author Jen Calonita? 35:47 Jen’s book recommendations

    39 min
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About

Welcome to Book Huddle with Readgab where you get to hear from authors of children's books and others having to do with children's literacy. We chat not only about what inspired these amazing authors, but also time relevant themes in their books and how kids can benefit from these themes. Each guest also recommends one of their favorite children's books at the end of the episode so you will constantly be building a wonderful list of books for the kids in your life. 

Information

  • Creator
    Karen Reeder
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    84
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 BookHuddle with Readgab
  • Show Website
    BookHuddle with Readgab

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