Tag: NAT THE CAT

NAT THE CAT SETS A TRAP, NAT THE CAT FIVE BOOKS IN ONE, and THE SUPER ROOMIES: LAKE OF SLIME pub day!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

As you can see from the title of this post, today is BIG day for me. I have not one, not two, but THREE books coming out.

First up, my sixth Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Sets a Trap. Yes, the trap is for Pat the Rat. But don’t worry, as Nat says in the book–it’s a nice trap.

Nat the Cat Sets a Trap provides readers with another dose of the Nat the Cat format they have come to know–the usual silliness, the emotional roller coaster of it all, and a bit of sweetness to close things out–but also develops the characters and their increasingly caring relationship (which, by the way, is all carefully done to lead the way into Nat and Pat’s new series of early graphic novels, which launch this November with Nat the Cat and Mysterious Thing. More on all that soon…).

This book has also has an extra layer of personal meaning for me, as it’s dedicated to my wife, Danni. Like Pat the Rat, Danni is someone who thoroughly enjoys and celebrates the little, often overlooked things in life. She’s changed how I see and approach the world for the better, in countless ways. Nat the Cat Sets a Trap is, in part, me sharing that with my readers and the world.

Next up, another Nat and Pat-related book: Nat the Cat Five Books in One! This is exactly what it sounds like: five Nat the Cat books all bound-up in a single volume–and, my publisher would probably like me to add in here, all for one very reasonable price, especially when compared to what it’d cost to buy five Nat the Cat books individually. The five books collected in Nat the Cat Five Books in One! are the first five Nat early readers: Nat the Cat Takes a Nap, Nat the Cat Takes a Bath, Nat the Cat Has a Snack, Nat the Cat Has a Hat, and Nat the Cat Finds a Map (in other words, the bind-up is only missing Nat the Cat Sets a Trap).

This past weekend, at the Silver Unicorn’s Kids Graphic Novel Festival, the shop got the go-ahead from my publisher to sell this book a few days early, and it was, I’m pretty sure, my bestselling title of the day. Even kids and families who already owned the first five Nat the Cat books were purchasing a copy of Nat the Cat Five Books in One!, both for the ease of having them all together, and because young readers who can read the Nat the Cat books on their own were delighted and proud to own a book as thick as this bind-up is.

And last of all–but DEFINITELY not least of all–the third book I have coming out today is… drumroll please… The Super Roomies: Lake of Slime.

If you follow me on social media, you’ve been hearing A LOT about this book. Lake of Slime is the start of not only a brand-new series, but a brand-new line of books: Star Chapter Books, from Simon Spotlight/Simon & Schuster. These books are all “early graphic novels,” and every single one of them is 112 pages long, split up into six to eight chapters, with each page containing between one and four panels and, typically, no more than a sentence or two per panel. If that sounds very specific, well, IT IS. But for very good reasons. Simon Spotlight (who also publish all my Nat the Cat books, and all the other Ready-to-Read titles out there) endeavors to make high-interest books that not only delight young readers, but help them learn and grow as readers, building their capability and confidence with each and every turn of the page. All of the Simon Spotlight editors, art directors, designers, and creators are extremely thoughtful about the choices made in these books, wanting to be effective about turning kids into readers by making books that are both FUN and helpful at the same time. These Star Chapter Books fill a hole in the marketplace that has become more and more apparent as we learn more about kids’ reading and observe more about this specific generation of kids’ book-related wants and needs.

I’m so grateful that I was asked to be a part of the Star Chapter Books crew and to help launch this new line, because Simon Spotlight’s core mission perfectly aligns with mine and the goals of my career from the get-go. And, to toot our own horn a bit, I think we absolutely NAILED IT. But you don’t have to listen to me. You can listen to everyone else! Because over the course of the past few months, The Super Roomies: Lake of Slime has been racking up good press and high praise. It received TWO starred reviews (one from School Library Journal and one from Publishers Weekly), and both of those reviews were packed full of wildly kind comments and comparisons. The book was also named a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, and just this past weekend was named an Amazon Editor’s Pick and Best Book of the Month.

Lake of Slime will be quickly followed up, in August, by the second installment of the Super Roomies series, Paint the Town Pink, with a third book to follow in 2027. Below, you can get a sneak peek at the interior of Lake of Slime. If you want to see more, you can get your hands on the book anywhere books are sold. As always, if you order any of my books through my local indie, the Silver Unicorn, I can sign, doodle-in, and (if you want) personalize the books before you pick them up (if you’re nearby) or they ship them out to you. Click HERE to get shopping for my books at the Silver Unicorn!

~ Jarrett

And here’s that sneak peek at the interior of LAKE OF SLIME (please note: these pages are not in order, but just a handful from here and there that my publisher opted to share to show what readers can expect to find inside the book). Enjoy!

NAT THE CAT FINDS A MAP pub day!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 2 Comments

Today’s the day: my fifth Nat the Cat early reader–Nat the Cat Finds a Map–is officially out!

I’ve said it here and elsewhere, but THIS Nat book is my favorite so far. I also think it’s my best so far, in that it most fully, sweetly, and funnily captures the personalities and growth of both Nat the Cat and Pat the Rat.

Here’s what my publisher has to say about the book:

Nat the Cat goes on a treasure hunt in this fifth book in the hilarious, fourth wall–breaking Pre-Level 1 Ready-to-Read series about a grumpy cat, a curious rat, and an exasperated narrator from powerhouse creator Jarrett Lerner!

Nat the Cat finds a treasure map. Nat the Cat loves treasure! Pat the Rat loves treasure too. Nat the Cat does not want Pat the Rat to get his treasure, but there is something funny about this map…and the treasure too!

Starting today, you can find Nat the Cat Finds a Map anywhere and everywhere books are sold. However, if you want yours signed, doodled-in, and personalized, make sure to order from my local indie, the Silver Unicorn. You can do so–and also order and/or preorder signed, doodled-in, and personalized copies of any of my other books!–by clicking HERE.

I can’t wait to hear what my readers make of Nat the Cat Finds a Map. So if you and/or the young readers in your life check out the book, let me know what you all think!

Thanks!

~ Jarrett

COVER REVEALS — PLURAL! Plus: a roundup of what’s in store for 2026!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

I’ve had an exceptionally busy fall — one filled with school visits all over the country, a handful of conference appearances, a family trip to Disney World, and a whole bunch of book-making. Because of all this busyness, I haven’t been keeping up with sharing new book covers and new news here on the blog. Add all that to the fact that 2026 is going to be the biggest publisher year of my career so far, and I’ve fallen way behind.

What makes next year such a big one for me? Well, I’ve got nine — yes, NINE! — books coming out. Two of these are bind-ups of previously released series of books. But still. It’s a lot! So, below, here’s a catch-up/roundup of what I’ve got in store for 2026.

First up, in January (on the 13th, one day after my birthday!), is my fifth Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Finds a Map. I did already reveal this book’s cover (you can find the post HERE). But that was more than four months ago, and at that point, while the cover was done, the interior had yet to be finalized. Now that’s finally, officially done though (and possibly even being printed as you read this), I can say that this installment of the Nat the Cat series is without a doubt my favorite yet. I think it most fully captures Nat the Cat’s and Pat the Rat’s personalities and their (continually developing) relationship. I also think the book most perfectly hits the combo/balance of humor and heart that I strive to achieve in all my books. And I’m not just tooting my own horn here, either — a big part of Nat the Cat Finds a Map was actually thought up by my oldest daughter, Isla. It’s why the book is dedicated to her. For helping me find the most elegant solution to a problem I couldn’t work out myself, she definitely deserves it!

Next up, in March, I have a very special Middle Grade novel coming out — Roohi and Nate Are Not on the Same Page. Looking at this cover, you might notice something unusual about it: it’s not just my name down on there on the bottom! That’s because I co-wrote and co-illustrated this book with Supriya Kelkar! Supriya and I debuted together way back in 2017, and have been good friends ever since. And when, one day, my agent offhandedly asked whether I’d ever be into co-authoring a book with another creator, Supriya was the person who immediately popped to mind. We’d never worked together like this before, but it came naturally, and went wonderfully, resulting in a book that we couldn’t be more excited to share with our readers, both young and old. It’s a book about friendship, about the power of stories, about being true to yourself, and about the importance of school libraries and their librarians. Early next year, Supriya and I will make some announcements about virtual visit opportunities with the two of us. If that’s something that sounds interesting to you, watch this space (as well as my social media feeds), to make sure to see that info when we share it.

A couple months after Roohi and Nate releases, at the beginning of May, I’ve got a whole slew of fun stuff coming your way. On the first Tuesday of the month (May 5th), I’ve got three books you can get your hands on: my sixth Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Sets a Trap; a bind-up collection of the first five Nat the Cat early readers, Nat the Cat Five Books in One!; and the first installment of a new series of early graphic novels, The Super Roomies: Lake of Slime.

The latter is part of a brand-new line of books coming out from Simon & Schuster’s Simon Spotlight imprint. These books, called “Star Chapter Books,” are all, in fact, early graphic novels — 112 pages, split up into six to eight chapters, with one to four comic panels on each page. Simon Spotlight is the home of the super successful Ready-to-Read lines of books, and these Star Chapter Books are intended to serve as a sort of next step for young readers who have worked their way through books in that program. But the most important thing I can tell you about ALL of the Star Chapter Books (there will be several others releasing right along with my first one) is that they are FUN. Spotlight’s editors and art directors gave us creators the green light to be as silly and wild as we wanted, and we went for it.

The Super Roomies are superheroes who also happen to be roommates — and not very good ones. In each book, the crew are called upon by their city’s mayor to stop one or another bad guy from committing some sort of reprehensible act, but their roommate-related troubles are always threatening to get in the way of them actually accomplishing their mission. For instance, in Lake of Slime, the deranged Dr. Slimepeople has plans to drain Big City Lake of all its water and replace every last drop with slime, thus making it impossible for the city’s citizens to go swimming. (Like I said: reprehensible.) It’s up to the Super Roomies to figure out just how Dr. Slimepeople is going to do all this draining/replacing and stop him before he can. Which they have plenty of time to do — if, that is, they can stop squabbling about who finished their apartment’s milk and then put the empty carton back in the fridge and stay focused… Below is a sneak peek at some spreads of the book’s interior.

One week after all of that — on May 12th — my fourth book of the month hits shelves: another bind-up, this one of my first-ever series of books, EngiNerds. When I learned that my publisher wanted to rerelease these books in this form, I was beyond delighted. The EngiNerds series is comprised of three Middle Grade novels, all of them just under 200 pages and featuring fun, funny, fast-paced storytelling. For all kinds of reasons, books at this length and with such so-called “high-interest” content are needed now more than ever, and I am so excited that this bind-up will introduce a new generation of readers to the EngiNerds and their epic showdowns with a fleet of bottomlessly hungry, aggressively flatulent robots.

After the EngiNerds 3-in-1, I’ve got a bit of a break, though things ramp back up at the end of the summer and for the end of the year. None of the covers of the remaining books I’ve got coming out have been revealed yet. So, since I can’t show you much, I’ll just tell you about them.

— In August, you’ll be able to get your hands on the second installment of the Super Roomies series, which is called Paint the Town Pink.

— In October, the third book in my Scare School Diaries series, The Un-Hauntable House, comes out.

— In November, I’ve got a second series of Star Chapter Books early graphic novels launching, this one featuring Nat the Cat and Pat the Rat. The first book in this series is called Nat the Cat and the Mysterious Thing.

— And finally, in December, it’s not another book, but a box of them — a boxed set, to be specific, of all my Nat the Cat early readers.

Whew! That’s it for 2026. Looking ahead at it all like this, I’m feeling incredibly grateful that I get to do this work, and also incredibly excited to share all these books with my readers. If YOU are one of those readers: THANK YOU. It’s because of your support that all of this has been and continues to be possible. As always, if you want signed/personalized copies of any of the books mentioned above (or ANY of my already-released books), you can order/preorder them from my wonderful local independent bookstore, the Silver Unicorn. Click HERE to do so.

Again: THANKS!!!

~ Jarrett

COVER REVEAL: Nat the Cat Finds a Map — Plus: New Book News!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

In case you missed it, last weekend I revealed the cover of my next (and fifth) Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Finds a Map. So, without further ado, here it is:

Of all the Nat books, this new one is my personal favorite. I think it does the best job of capturing Nat and Pat’s personalities while also simultaneously taking their relationship to a bit of a new place.

And speaking of venturing to new places, Nat and Pat are bound for a super exciting one: graphic novel chapter books! In 2027, shortly after the sixth Nat the Cat early reader releases, the first two books in this brand-new series will publish. And if you’re disappointed you’ll have to wait that long to see Nat and Pat in comic book panels, next year, I’ve got another graphic novel chapter book series launching. This one is about a new cast of character, the Super Roomies, and I’ll be sharing a bunch more about them soon. In the meantime, though, you can check out the announcement about their graphic novel chapter book series, as well as Nat and Pat’s, below.

All of these graphic novel chapter books are 112 pages, with each page broken up into at least one but no more than four panels. They perfectly fill a hole currently out there in the marketplace, and are thoughtfully designed and carefully crafted to, first of all, be a total blast, and second of all, to help young readers continue to grow. In terms of Nat and Pat, you’ll also get to see THEM grow. Especially Nat, who in each of these books is pushed to emotional places readers have yet to see him in.

In OTHER book news, I recently announced something else: that my Scare School Diaries series of highly illustrated chapter books has been extended, too! Book 3, The Un-Hauntable House, will be out next fall, with the fourth book in the series coming early on in 2027. Here’s the announcement for THAT:

But back to Nat and Pat! Nat the Cat Finds a Map will be out first thing next year, on January 13th (the day after my birthday!), but you can preorder it right now wherever books are sold. As always, if you preorder it from my astoundingly awesome local independent bookstore, the Silver Unicorn, I will sign, doodle-in, and (if you want) personalize your copies. You can do that by clicking HERE.

Okay, I better get back to work. I’ve got a lot of books to finish…

~ Jarrett

NAT THE CAT HAS A HAT pub day!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 2 Comments

Today, my newest book, Nat the Cat Has a Hat, officially hits shelves!

Nat the Cat Has a Hat is the fourth installment of my Nat the Cat early reader series, joining Nat the Cat Takes a Nap, Nat the Cat Takes a Bath, and Nat the Cat Has a Snack.

I try to make every one of my Nat the Cat books fun and funny–that is definitely the most important thing. But in each book, I also attempt to explore some emotional terrain that my young readers might also find themselves facing. In Nat the Cat Takes a Nap, Nat struggles with exhaustion and the annoyance and anger that often stem from it. In Nat the Cat Takes a Bath, Nat confronts fear and shame. In Nat the Cat Has a Snack, Nat deals with selfishness and, at least at first, has a tough time with sharing. And in this newest book, Nat the Cat Has a Hat, Nat has to grapple with jealousy and pride.

The release of Nat the Cat Has a Hat is special for another reason, too–it’s my 20th published book! This fact somehow feels both obvious and also impossible for me to wrap my head around. I’ve worked long and hard, and so a part of me thinks, Yeah, that was about 20 books‘ worth of work. But another part of me thinks back to before I’d sold my first book, to the days (and there were LOTS of them) where I’d think, If I could just publish one book–ONE book–in my whole entire lifetime, I’d be happy. For a long time, it was all I wanted. And I try to remind myself of that as much as I can. It helps me take a step back, take a deep breath, and feel a bit of pride about what I’ve done (something I am notoriously quite bad at…). At the same time, it also reminds me that there is absolutely no way I could’ve gotten here without my family, my friends, and also everyone–likely including YOU–who has ever supported me and my work in any way. So, if that’s you: THANK YOU. Books are nothing without readers, and whether you are one of my readers or someone keeping tabs on my career in order to connect my books to the right readers (or both!), you have been instrumental in making these 20 books a reality, and also in bringing about the next 20. You have quite literally helped make my dreams come true. I appreciate it enormously, and will never stop.

~ Jarrett

COVER REVEAL: Nat the Cat Has a Hat

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

I’m delighted to reveal here the cover of my next Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Has a Hat:

The book is out January 7, 2025, and will be my fourth Nat the Cat book. And while I think all the Nat books are quite fun, this one is especially so. I mean, it’s got hats. A whole BUNCH of them!

You can check out my publisher’s description of the book below. And you can, starting now, also preorder the book. As always, if you preorder from my local independent bookstore, the Silver Unicorn, I’ll sign, doodle-in, and personalize (if you want) your copies of the book. You can click HERE to do that.

Nat the Cat gets a little jealous in this fourth book in the hilarious, fourth wall–breaking Pre-Level 1 Ready-to-Read series about a grumpy cat, a curious rat, and an exasperated narrator from powerhouse creator Jarrett Lerner!

Nat the Cat has a hat. Pat the Rat has a nicer hat. Nat the Cat wants a hat like that. Will the two friends have a spat?

~ Jarrett

NAT THE CAT HAS A SNACK and A WORK IN PROGRESS (paperback) Pub Day!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

Okay, fine: the title of this post is a bit misleading. TODAY is not actually the pub day for the books mentioned above. It was last week. But last week, I was busy in New Jersey with school visits, and so didn’t get a chance to post until now. So, a bit belatedly, here’s my celebratory shout: Happy Book Birthday to Nat the Cat Has a Snack and the paperback edition of A Work in Progress! Phew. I’ve been holding that in for nearly a week.

First up: Nat!

The third/newest Nat the Cat book is all about SHARING. More specifically, the book is about how we can share both GOOD things (like snacks!) and BAD things (like problems!) with our friends, and how, even if it’s not always EASY to share, it’s basically always BETTER when we do.

Next up, the paperback edition of A Work in Progress.

To me, the most exciting thing about this edition of the book is that it’s (comparatively) CHEAP! It’s half the list price of the hardcover edition. I hope the means the book ends up reaching the hands of many, many more kids than it already has. This cheaper price also means it’s easier for teachers, librarians, and schools to purchase sets of the book for reading groups and book clubs. The second most exciting thing about this edition of the book is that the cover has this fancy cutaway (you can see it in the picture up there), meaning you can glimpse the notebook lines that carry throughout the book, as well as a few of Will’s scribbles.

In other A Work in Progress news, over the course of the past few months the book has popped up on a bunch of state award lists: Kentucky’s, Georgia’s, Florida’s, and my home state of Massachusetts’s, too.

This means that kids all over these states will spend the year reading A Work in Progress (in addition to the other books on the nominee lists) and then have a chance to vote for their favorites. And while winning would of course be incredible, I am super honored and grateful to simply be nominated. The list of nominees are created by teams of librarians who spent the past year reading more or less EVERY SINGLE BOOK published for kids before deciding on what they deem the 10 to 12 very, very best. Also, being nominated means your work will reach thousands and thousands of kids that it otherwise might not. So, to all the committees who’ve nominated A Work in Progress so far: THANK YOU!

As always, if you want signed/personalized/doodled-in copies of Nat the Cat Has a Snack and/or the paperback edition of A Work in Progress (and/or ANY of my books), you can order them from my wonderful local indie, The Silver Unicorn.

~ Jarrett

A COVER REVEAL and a ONE-MONTH COUNTDOWN!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

Happy April 7th?

What am I celebrating?

In just one month, on May 7th, TWO big books of mine are coming out: (1) my next Nat the Cat early reader, Nat the Cat Has a Snack, and (2) the paperback edition of A Work in Progress.

Nat the Cat Has a Snack — the third book starring Nat and his rat pal, Pat — is about SHARING. Both the beauty of it . . . and the difficulty of it. My hope is that kids get a kick out of watching Nat discover that things are almost always better when we share with friends, and also learn that we can share both good things with friends (like snacks!) and also bad things (like hard-to-solve problems!).

If you read this blog and/or follow me, I surely don’t need to tell you what A Work in Progress is about. But I definitely do need to tell you that the paperback edition of the book — which, again, you can get your hands on in just ONE MONTH — is not only more lightweight and portable than the hardcover, it’s also cheaper. (Hooray!) I hope the lower price leads to the book reaching the hands of many, many more kids. And hey — if you plan to get a copy of the book, you can do it now and enter the book’s paperback preorder giveaway, which’ll give you a chance to win a whole class set of the books! Find more info about that in the image caption below.

To enter the A Work in Progress paperback preorder giveaway: Preorder the paperback edition of the book and send proof of preorder to AWIPpreorder@gmail.com. You will be entered to win an additional 20 extra copies! Multiple preorders and/or preorders from independent bookstores are counted as multiple entries.

And now, last but certainly not least, as promised . . . a COVER REVEAL!

Yes, the first volume of my newest series, Scare School Diaries, is not even out yet (it will be on July 16th), but we are already promoting the second volume, because — excitingly! — it comes out just three and a half months after the first. It’s not unusual for kids to have to wait a whole year, and sometimes even longer, for a subsequent installment of a book series to publish. But, along with my amazing team at Aladdin/Simon & Schuster, I am always aiming to grow readers and keep kids happy, so we’ve worked hard to keep the books coming.

Forest Frights is about one of the scariest things kids will encounter during their educational careers: the dreaded GROUP PROJECT. Here’s my publisher’s official writeup for the book:

At the start of his second session at Scare School, the world’s premiere institution for elementary scare instruction, Bash is feeling a bit more confident and excited about his classes starting up again. But when Vlad and Vicky, the mischievous vampires, join his group project, Bash starts worrying if this mean-spirited duo are going to take a bite out of his good grade!

You can preorder Forest Frights — along with, of course, the first book in the Scare School Diaries series, Welcome to Scare School — anywhere books are sold. As always, if you order and/or preorder any of my books from my local indie, the Silver Unicorn, I can sign, personalize, and doodle in your copies. Click HERE to do that. And THANKS!

~ Jarrett

Nat the “NOTABLE” Cat!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ 1 Comment

I had a pretty busy end of January and start of February, and so it’s taken me a while to get around to sharing this news — but I am delighted to share that Nat the Cat Takes a Nap has been named an ALSC/ALA Notable Book!

If you’re not super familiar with the world of children’s literature, this news might leave you with a few questions. Like, What’s the ALSC? And what about the ALA? And what does it mean when they say a book is “notable”?

Well, the ALSC is the Association for Library Service to Children, and the ALA is the American Library Association, and at the end of every calendar year, various committees formed by these groups meet up to discuss all the children’s books that have been published over the course of the previous dozen months. From this mountain of titles, a small number are chosen and given that above-mentioned designation of “notable” — which, according to the ALSC/ALA, means:

Worthy of note or notice, important, distinguished, outstanding. As applied to children’s books, notable should be thought to include books of especially commendable quality, books that exhibit venturesome creativity, and books of fiction, information, poetry and pictures for all age levels (birth through age 14) that reflect and encourage children’s interests in exemplary ways.

Pretty nice, right?!

I was beyond delighted to get this news, and want to once again thank the ALSC and ALA — and, specifically, the Notable Books committee — for this honor. Below is a graphic my publisher posted, celebrating all of their books that were named notable. Nat the Cat and Pat the Rat are keeping some truly excellent company!

Want to see the full list of ALSC/ALA Notable Books? Click HERE!

~ Jarrett

Happy New Year — And A Whole Bunch of Updates!

~ Jarrett Lerner ~ Leave a comment

Happy new year!

I managed to spend the last week or so of 2023 away from my computer and drawing tablet. It was lovely, and much needed — but I’m excited to be back. Especially because I’ve got a whole bunch of exciting updates to share.

First up, some Nat the Cat news!

My curmudgeonly feline friend has been popping up in some exciting places, like on Betsy Bird’s absolutely spectacular Fuse 8 blog. If you don’t know Betsy and her work, you ought to change that immediately. I’ve been a fan of Betsy’s work since before I had a book published. Over the years, I have learned about SO many amazing books from her — books I most likely would’ve otherwise missed. Also, Betsy’s writing — whether on her blog or in her books — is simply wonderful. Her voice is so strong, her sentences such a delight to read. Take a peek at her blog and you’ll quickly get what I mean.

Anyway, one of the coolest (and most impressive) things Betsy does on her blog is her annual “31 Days, 31 Lists” marathon of, well, lists. Every year, for each day of December, Betsy posts a list — a round up of what she considers the best kids’ books published in a variety of categories. I look forward to these lists every year, and usually read them with a pad and pen so I can write down all the titles I missed and want to check out. So you can imagine how excited I was when I spotted none other than Nat on one of Betsy’s lists. Specifically, Nat the Cat Takes a Nap and Nat the Cat Takes a Bath appeared on Betsy’s 2023 Easy Books and Early Chapter Books list.

Before I tell you what Betsy said about Nat’s books, I first want to share with you a bit from Betsy’s introduction to the post. She begins by asking a question: “Is the most difficult kind of book to write for children a picture book, a poetry book for kids, an easy book, or an early chapter book?” After ruling out picture book and poetry, she finally comes to a conclusion: it’s a tie between so-called easy books and early chapter books. Why? First of all, “A truly great easy book must use literally the simplest of words to convey a title so interesting that it makes a child want to know how to read.” And early chapter books? Each one has “the additional obligation of transitioning children from those easy books into long chapter books. If it fails, it sets the kid back.”

I have long felt this way about these deceptively “easy” books — and only felt it more so after I began publishing both kinds. It’s why I typically use the term “early reader” as opposed to “easy books.” They are extremely challenging to make, and not at all easy for the emerging readers who are their target audience. The only people they are easy for, in fact, are already-fluent readers (like the adults who are putting the books into the hands of the kids who need them). Probably because they’ve read these kinds of books by the hundred, if not thousand, all the librarians and educators I’ve met understand just how hard these books are to make. And any grownup who doesn’t get it should sit down and try their hand at making one themselves. The difficulties will pretty much immediately become apparent.

It was so nice to read Betsy’s take on all this — and then I scrolled down and got a look at Nat, followed by a bunch of very kind words from Betsy. Here’s her write-up in full:

Oo! A new easy book character to read relentlessly for years! And read I shall! Here we have Nat, a semi-rectangular feline with triangle ears. In Takes a Bath, with the requisite number of flies buzzing about his ears, Nat is slated to take a bath… and he don’t wanna. So how do you get a whole book out of that? As it turns out, the delay tactics of children with limited vocabularies transfer perfectly over to cats who feel the same way. Meanwhile, in Takes a Nap, Nat is trying to sleep but the book’s narrator is keeping him from his forty winks with funny results.  I thought the text in both books nicely appropriate for kids first wrapping their heads around slightly longer words like “because” and “bubbles” and “scared”. Now with Nat and the Rat named Pat’s dialogue balloons, coupled with the simpler narration, it would be possible to have a child reading aloud the narrator’s part, alongside a better reader doing Nat’s. Particularly since Nat gets all the good emotional moments (I was particularly fond of him going “And… and… and…”)

Just a couple days after finding Nat the Cat on Betsy’s blog, I received some news about another one of my books — A Work in Progress. The book was among those selected for the 2024 edition of ProjectLIT.

To quote the people behind the project: “Born out of one classroom in Nashville, TN, in 2016, our grassroots literacy movement now includes more than 2,000 schools (or “chapters”) across all 50 states, all committed to increasing book access and promoting a love of reading, and all led by incredible students, teachers, and librarians.” In the seven years since its inception, ProjectLIT has made the kid lit world dramatically better in all kinds of ways. The best way to learn more about ProjectLIT and to see the amazing things it does, follow @projectlitcomm on Instagram and elsewhere. You can also search the hashtag, follow some of the individual chapter accounts, or look for interviews with ProjectLIT founder Jared Amato.

Not long after all this, just before the end of the year, I got some more good news: I learned that Nat the Cat Takes a Nap had been given a 2023 Nerdy Book Award. If you’re not familiar with the Nerdy Book Club and the crew of brilliant, big-hearted people behind it, it’s another thing you must change. They have influenced and inspired me for years, and if you think I’m good at what I do, it’s in large part because of all of what I’ve learned from people like Donalyn Miller, Pernille Ripp, Colby Sharp, Travis Jonker, John Schu, and many of the other nerds making up the initial core of the “club.” So to find out that a book of mine had been selected by them as one of the best of the year — it was a special honor.

The day after Nat got his award, another batch of Nerdy Book Awards were announced — these ones for poetry and novels in verse.

And guess what showed up on there?

A Work in Progress also showed up on Colby Sharp’s personal blog on his round up on Amazing 2023 Books.

All of this made for a fantastic end to 2023, and the first week of 2024 has been pretty great, too. On the first day of the year, Nat popped up yet again — this time as a finalist for a Cybils Award. The Cybils are a unique and wonderful award, and rather than try to describe them myself, I’ll quote them directly:

At its heart, the Cybils Awards is a group of readers passionate about seeking out and recognizing books that portray diversity, inclusion, and appropriate representation for children and teens. To accomplish that goal, the Cybils Awards works to recognize books written for children and young adults that combine both the highest literary merit and popular appeal.

As one of the two original founders put it, between the brussels sprouts of literary merit and the gummy bears of popularity contests, we are the organic chicken nuggets–both yummy and nutritious!

If you didn’t know about the Cybils Awards before, surely you can now imagine how honored I am for Nat the Cat Takes a Nap to have received one. Even more awesome, Nat is in some absolutely amazing company — some of my favorite books of the year!

The last bit of news to report is that I was in a newspaper — specifically, the Boston Globe. I was interviewed by parenting columnist Kara Baskin about my background, my work, and the importance of making books that reflect the full and true spectrum of boys’ emotional lives. It was an enormous thrill to see myself and my work and words in print like it was. My kids, meanwhile, were mostly just excited that there was a picture of Taylor Swift right below my interview. You can check out the piece in the Globe‘s January 5th print edition, or online HERE.

All in all, I had quite an incredible end of 2023 and beginning of 2024. I don’t take any of these special shouts-outs for granted, and am humbled by every single one. The biggest thing I take away from it all is that the people behind these honors and awards, all of whom I know to be most focused on the kids that these books are all for, believe I’m doing some good work. And the biggest thing that does for me is make me eager to keep working — to make more of the kinds of books that kids both want and need. I plan to do exactly this year and beyond.

THANK YOU to all of the above-mentioned individuals and groups for reading my books, and for considering — and ultimately choosing them — for all of this awesome recognition. And THANK YOU to you if you’ve made it through this long (and pretty braggy, I know…) blog post, and for any and all of the support you gave me and my work in 2023.

In addition to the links embedded above, you can find all the posts mentioned above listed on my Press page. Once again: Happy new year!

~ Jarrett