Pub Day Eve for NAT THE CAT TAKES A BATH and A WORK IN PROGRESS!

Tomorrow, I have TWO books coming out: Nat the Cat Takes a Bath and A Work in Progress. Judging by their covers, the books couldn’t be any more different. But I have similar hopes for both of them. I hope both books find readers, and I hope they both change the way their readers think of themselves.

I hope the kids who discover Nat the Cat Takes a Bath — and have it read aloud to them in their homes or classrooms or libraries — come to think of themselves as kids who love stories, and kids who want to engage with more books. And the kids who read the book on their own — I hope they close the book feeling more certain than ever that they are indeed readers.

I hope the kids who discover A Work in Progress read the book and never again doubt — or never even begin to doubt — that they are worthy of kindness, consideration, compassion, understanding, love, and respect. I also hope the story exercises and expands readers’ empathy, and that it alters the way they interact with the individuals that they cross paths with during their time on this planet.

On the eve of what will be a very big day for me, I also want to make sure to take this opportunity to thank, as always, everyone who supports me and my books, and everyone who puts my books in the hands of the young readers who want and need them. I can’t reach those readers alone. The parents, educators, librarians, administrators, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and others who share my books with the kids in their lives are an absolutely essential part of the equation, and I never, ever take that for granted.

Thank you. And I look forward to hearing what you all think of the books!

~ Jarrett