Category: News

MORE Best of 2023 News!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 2 Comments

A few weeks ago, I hopped on here to talk about how the end of the year meant the arrival of all sorts of Best Of lists — and I shared that the audiobook edition of A Work in Progress had popped up on none other than Audible’s Best of 2023. (Click HERE to check out that post.)

Well, in the time since I’ve written that, lots more lists have appeared, and I’m super delighted and wildly honored to let you know that my books have popped up on even more of them!

First up, New York Public Library’s (yep — the one with the famous lions out front) Best Books of 2023 list, on which A Work in Progress appeared:

And now, another wonderful city’s equally wondering public library — Chicago Public Library’s 2023 Best of the Best list, on which A Work in Progress was included:

Leaving behind the public libraries and heading into schools, Nat the Cat — and his second book, Nat the Cat Takes a Nap — showed up on School Library Journal’s Best Books list:

And last but definitely not least, I made a pair of appearances on another list — one that I look forward to every single year. The list is compiled by author-illustrator-librarian Travis Jonker, and published on his brilliant 100 Scope Notes blog. (You really should subscribe to it, if you don’t already.) The list, Travis’s annual “Year in Miscellanea,” is a collection of amusing, exciting, and fun things that have happened in the kid lit world throughout the calendar year. As soon as Travis posts the list, I open it up and read it, because it’s never not a delight. So imagine my surprise when I saw my name on there — twice. Best of all, my appearances on the list have nothing to do with anything I’ve done. Except, I suppose, celebrate some of the amazing creations of my fans. Here — take a look. First, at these fabulous cookies:

And now, feast your eyes on this incredible work of art:

Yes, those are Rubik’s Cubes. Dozens and dozens of them. (I’m pretty sure they told me how many, but I can’t remember. If you want, you can zoom in and count.)

Amazing. All of it. I am humbled and very, very happy.

I want to once again thank all the librarians, both public and school, for considering my books and ultimately honoring them in this way. It means that they will reach — and, hopefully, positively impact — even more readers than they would otherwise. And that, at the end of the day, is all I’m really after.

~ Jarrett

A WORK IN PROGRESS: An Audible Best Book of 2023!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 2 Comments

It’s getting toward the end of the calendar year (hard to believe, I know!), and at the end of the year, all the Best Of lists begin to come out. And just a couple weeks ago, A Work in Progress appeared on a pretty big one.

That’s right: the book was chosen as an Audible Best Book of 2023! Of course, I share this honor with the hugely talented Eric Yang, the narrator of the audio version of A Work in Progress, who delivered a gut-wrenching (but ultimately hopeful and uplifting) reading of my words.

At the beginning of this year, several months before A Work in Progress published, Eric was on a list of narrator candidates that my publisher sent me. I listened to samples of everyone’s previous work — and Eric quickly emerged as a frontrunner. When I sent him a handful of poems to read from the book, we got back a five-minute audio file. But I knew after just five seconds that Eric was it. I opened up my email as I continued listening to Eric’s reading, and well before the five-minute mark, I’d fired off a note asking my publisher to please offer Eric the job. And Eric — he did not disappoint. His performance is absolutely incredible, and I am so, so pleased that he has received this recognition as well.

Here’s what an Audible editor said about the book — and Eric’s performance — on their Best Of list:

When I saw an anti-fatphobic audiobook aimed at middle-grade boys, I was thrilled! When I downloaded and listened to it, I was gobsmacked. Jarrett Lerner lays bare the embarrassment and shame a kid feels realizing that others’ views of him affect how he views himself. Because the protagonist is looking back from a safe, adult perspective, the story is appropriate for young readers, and the influence of a character who positively shifts Will’s self-image triumphs in the end. It’s Will’s pain, however, narrated by Eric Yang, that makes this story—and the redemptive arc—exceptionally satisfying for any listener.

Thank you to Audible for their kind words and for honoring A Work in Progress in this way. Thank you to Eric Yang for all of the work he put in to crush his reading like he did. And thank you to my wonderful, brilliant team at Simon & Schuster, for doing countless big and small things to help make my work shine.

Click HERE to check out more of Audible’s Best Of picks, and whether or not you’ve read A Work in Progress yet, I encourage you to go and take a listen to Eric’s reading the book. He’ll knock your socks off.

~ Jarrett

TWO Cover Reveals + A Paperback Release Date

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

I had a very busy October, and that is why I am only coming on here now, in November, to share a whole bunch of very exciting stuff — specifically, a pair of cover reveals (one of which also happens to be a series reveal) and a paperback release date.

First up, the cover reveal for Welcome to Scare School, the first book in my new series, Scare School Diaries:

Welcome to Scare School is a chapter book — but save for its length, it’s very different from most chapter books you’ll open. The book is what my editor, agent, and I have begun to call a “hybrid,” a blend of both written and illustrated elements that are put together in a way that make it difficult to classify according to traditional categories. In other words, it’s not a straightforward chapter book, with mostly text and some occasionally illustrations. And it’s a not a graphic novel, with comic paneling on every page. The book is set up as a diary (that of Bash, a young ghost just beginning his education at Scare School), but while each entry begins with text, it soon gives way to a mix of spot illustrations and comics. In other words, with each page turn, the reader never knows what they’ll see next! I find storytelling in this form the most natural for me (if you’ve ever seen photos of drafts, which I often share on social media, they almost always appear in this way, whether or not the final product is a novel, a graphic novel, or whatever).

I can’t wait to share more about this book (and series!) with you, which comes out on July 16, 2024, but is already available for preorder wherever books are sold. (As always, if you preorder from the Silver Unicorn, I will sign/personalize — and doodle in! — your copies. Click HERE to do that.)

Lastly, here’s my publisher’s description of the book:

Bash, a young ghost who’s never been good at “ghost stuff” is heading off to Scare School, the world’s leading institution for elementary scare instruction, and he’s not happy about it. In fact, he’s kind of scared! His older sister Bella, precocious in every way, was a star student there and he knows the classes are hard and the teachers are tough.

Even before his first day of school, Bash is worried about how he’s going to make it through the rigorous curriculum when he hasn’t been able to get the hang of basics like making himself invisible or passing through walls (without bonking his head!). Will the young ghost get booooted out of Scare School?

Next up, the cover reveal for my next (the third) Nat the Cat early reader: Nat the Cat Has a Snack!

I’m a bit nervous that if I let myself ramble a bit about this book, I’ll end up spoiling everything. So I’m going to limit myself to saying that it comes out on May 7, 2024, but like Welcome to Scare School, it is already available for preorder wherever books are sold. (And also like Welcome to Scare School — as well as all my other books — if you preorder from the Silver Unicorn, I will sign/personalize/doodle in your copies. Click HERE to do that.) Beyond that, I’m going to let my publisher describe the book for you:

Nat that Cat has a snack. Pat the Rat wants a snack. Nat the Cat can share, right? Nat the Cat does not want to share!

And for my last bit of news today, I’m thrilled to share that A Work in Progress now has a paperback release date!

This significantly cheaper and much more portable edition of the book will come out alongside Nat’s newest adventure, on May 7, 2024. I don’t know much about the paperback A Work in Progress beyond the release date, but I know my publishers are currently working on it, and are exploring some pretty cool design ideas. I’ll be sharing more information about it — and the other two books mentioned above — as soon as I can, in addition to more news about all the other stuff I’ve been working on these past handful of months. Oh! How could I forget? The paperback edition of A Work in Progress is, like Welcome to Scare School and Nat the Cat Has a Snack, available for preorder wherever books are sold. And you know the drill, right? Preorder from the Silver Unicorn if you want YOUR copies signed/personalized/doodled in. Click HERE to do that.

And THANKS!

~ Jarrett

MORE Nat the Cat!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

I’m delighted to share that my Nat the Cat series of early readers has been extended! There will now be (at least) SIX books in the series.

These books are such a joy to make. And I’ve already hit the ground running making them. I’ve written the third book, finished the cover art, and laid out the interior. I’ve also written Books #4 and #5, and sketched covers for both. And I know you’re obligated to take this statement with a (very large) grain of salt, but I think the stories are only getting better and better. (Perhaps there’s some evidence for this, too — while both Nat the Cat Takes a Nap and Nat the Cat Takes a Bath were Junior Library Guild selections, Nat the Cat Takes a Bath scored a bonus STARRED review.)

In any case, I can’t wait to share more about these new Nat (and Pat!) stories with you. I’ve already shared a couple of sneak peeks about/of Book #3 on my social media accounts, so head over there to see those and make sure you don’t miss anything else about the books!

~ Jarrett

THE HUNGER HEROES: MISSED MEAL MAYHEM Wins the OTTER Award!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

A little over a year ago, I shared some excited news about Missed Meal Mayhem, the first graphic novel chapter book in my Hunger Heroes series. The news was that the book had been nominated for an OTTER Award, one of three state book awards the book had been put up for. (You can read the original blog post about the OTTER Award HERE.) The OTTER Award, which is given out by the Washington Library Association, is an especially special award. The list of nominees is put together by a group of librarians, and after a year of reading and discussing all the nominees, the winner of the award is chosen by the KIDS of Washington state. And I am beyond delighted and honored to share that, last week, it was announced that The Hunger Heroes: Missed Meal Mayhem WON the award.

There are even MORE reasons why the OTTER Award is so darn awesome, though, one being that the award highlights and celebrates a very specific type of book: so-called “transitional chapter books.” These books — which fall between picture books/early readers and longer, full-fledged chapter books — aim to both attract AND assist readers. In other words, these books need to be ones that kids will not only love to read, but ones that will help them in their journey to becoming stronger, more confident readers. And that is precisely what I tried to accomplish with Missed Meal Mayhem and its sequel, Snack Cabinet Sabotage. The carefully balanced blend of comics and text was designed to grow readers just as it excited and entertained them. To have a bunch of librarians acknowledge the work I did to make such a book — and, by nominating it for their state’s award, let me know they think I made a successful one — and THEN have thousands of young readers use their vote to declare it their favorite? I can’t think of anything better.

THANK YOU to the Washington Library Association, and THANK YOU to every Washington kid who read The Hunger Heroes: Missed Meal Mayhem, whether they ultimately voted for it not. Because getting kids reading and voicing their thoughts and feelings about books — that’s the real prize.

To learn more about the OTTER Award, click HERE.

To see the official announcement about Missed Meal Mayhem‘s big win, click HERE.

~ Jarrett

NAT THE CAT TAKES A BATH Receives a STARRED Review from School Library Journal!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

I know I already gave it all away in the title of the post, but I’m so jazzed about it, I’m going to say it again down here: Nat the Cat Takes a Bath got a STARRED review from School Library Journal!

I want to say a big THANK YOU to School Library Journal — and a big THANK YOU, in particular, to SLJ reviewer Mary Lanni. It’s extra special when a reviewer really “gets” what you’ve tried to do with a book of yours, and Mary did just that and then some.

I’ve pasted below the full text of the review, and you can also click HERE if you want to check it out on SLJ’s site (which I recommend, since there’s TONS of great stuff on there). Also, if you follow me over on social media, you know I’ve been teasing some big news about Nat that I’ve got to share. This wonderful review isn’t it — this was a total surprise, and one that I learned about just last night. But I promise: the OTHER big news is coming soon!

Nat the Cat Takes a Bath is available wherever books are sold, as is Nat’s first book, Nat the Cat Takes a Nap. As always, if you want your copies of Nat’s books signed (and personalized, if you wish), you can order them from my local indie, The Silver Unicorn. Click HERE to do that.

Thanks!

~ Jarrett

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

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 2 Comments

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

A WORK IN PROGRESS on the Kids’ Indie Next List!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

In case you missed me shouting about it on social media, I figured I’d share the news here…

A Work in Progress was picked for the May/June 2023 Kids’ Indie Next List!

What IS the Kids’ Indie Next List?

It’s a list (I’m guessing you’d worked that much out) compiled every two months by the independent booksellers of the country and published by the American Booksellers Association. The list contains 31 books — the ten kids’ books in each of three categories (Picture Books, Middle Grade, and Young Adult) that those independent booksellers of the country are MOST excited about (plus one “#1 Pick,” which received the greatest number of votes from the booksellers). This is obviously an enormous honor, and also bodes very well for the book’s performance in the independent booksellers of the country. As a longtime lover and avid supporter of independent bookstores and the hardworking, devoted booksellers who run them, this honor is especially meaningful to me.

You can see a preview of the May/June 2023 Kids’ Indie Next List HERE, and in a matter of days, you’ll be able to find beautifully designed and printed copies of the list at any independent bookstores near you. Below are quotes about the book from a few of the booksellers who voiced their support for A Work in Progress being on the list.

“One of the most relatable middle grade novels ever! Almost all of us have been called names, ones that hurt, ones that we internalize. Names that we beat ourselves up over, body shaming names. The incredible graphics in this book and notebook format illustrate brilliantly the power of words meant to hurt and those words we use against ourselves. We are all works in progress. To root for Will Chambers is to cheer for ourselves!” – Becky Anderson, Anderson’s Bookshop (Naperville, IL)

“Jarrett Lerner has put all of himself into this middle grade, novel in verse, graphic memoir, and the results are stunning… It is a harrowing look at what can go through the mind of a young person, and hopefully will serve as a cautionary tale that it’s important for all of us (not just kids) to remember to love who we are. This outstanding and accessible book figures to be on bookshelves for a very long time.” – Paul Swydan, The Silver Unicorn Bookstore (Acton, MA)

“Will’s journey from self-hate to learning that he is – that everyone is – a work in progress is one that will break your heart and stitch it back together with threads of hope. Every human –age 8 to 108– needs to read this book, because every human has felt less than in their lives.” – Lorie Barber, Anderson’s Bookshop (Naperville, IL)

Once again, THANK YOU BOOKSELLERS!

~ Jarrett

GEEGER THE ROBOT GOES FOR GOLD pub day!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

Today is a big day for Geeger the Robot! The fifth book in his early chapter book series, Geeger the Robot Goes for Gold, comes out today!

Goes for Gold takes place on what was always my second favorite day of the school year: Field Day! (My first favorite day of the school year, by the way, was always the book fair — obviously.) The book is all about winning — and what you can inadvertently lose out on when you focus too much on it.

As Geeger would say: “EN-joooooy.”

~ Jarrett

A WORK IN PROGRESS Receives a STARRED Review from Publishers Weekly!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 5 Comments

With A Work in Progress less than six weeks away from publication (I can hardly believe it), more reviews are rolling in, and just the other day I got a big one: a STARRED review from Publishers Weekly!

Publishers Weekly is perhaps THE go-to publication for everything BOOKS. And in case you don’t know what STARRED review means — the star is there “to denote a book of distinction or particularly high quality.” Below are a couple of my favorite portions from the review, but you can read the whole thing yourself by clicking HERE.

Using succinct and personal-feeling verse, Lerner (the Nat the Cat series) crafts an empathetic illustrated novel about one boy’s experience with body dysmorphia, disordered eating, and stigma… Lerner’s sketch-like illustrations, presented as Will’s own diary doodles, render grayscale caricatures of Will’s classmates, while his own self-portrait, depicted via stark black scribbles, slowly morphs into a monstrous version of himself that fills the page. Employing frenetic pacing and disjointed verse that conveys Will’s growing anxiety and internalized shame, Lerner cultivates a perceptive representation of recovery and self-acceptance.

Publishers Weekly review of A Work in Progress (March 20, 2023)

Thank you to Publishers Weekly for reviewing the book and for honoring it with a STAR.

And just a reminder: you can preorder A Work in Progress wherever books are sold. Click HERE to check out Simon & Schuster’s landing page about the book, where you can access links to a variety of book retailers. And click HERE to visit my local independent bookstore’s landing page for the book. If you order from the Silver Unicorn, I will sign the book, and can also personalize it if you wish.

~ Jarrett