Skinny Dip

Skinny Dip with April Halprin Wayland
Today we welcome author and educator April Halprin Wayland to Bookology. Her most recent picture book, More Than Enough, is a story about Passover. April was one of nine Instructors of the Year honored by the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, Creative Writing. Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? I would

Skinny Dip with Polly Carlson-Voiles
Today we welcome author Polly Carlson-Voiles to Bookology. Her book, Summer of the Wolves, has been a favorite adventure story with middle grade readers, a recent contender for the Maud Hart Lovelace Award. Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? Jane Goodall. Which book do you find yourself recommending passionately? The

Skinny Dip with Eric Rohmann
Today we welcome author, illustrator, and Caldecott medalist Eric Rohmann to Bookology. He agreed to give us the skinny on several topics of vital importance. Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? Darwin, Newton, William Blake … and so many others I’ll need a big coffee shop.

Skinny Dip with Bobbi Miller
Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? My definition of celebrity is someone whom I admire, who I think has contributed to society in his actions or words. To me, celebrity is more than a pretty face. He does more than recite words that someone else wrote,

Skinny Dip with Barbara O’Connor
Which book do you find yourself recommending passionately? Missing May by Cynthia Rylant. I read it at a time when I was struggling to find my writing voice. I was so struck by the strong sense of place in that book. It was obvious that West Virginia was Rylant’s heart’s home. So I decided

Skinny Dip with Marsha Qualey
Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? Joni. And I’d come prepared with questions about her painting, not her music, because then, just maybe, she’d see beyond the gobsmacked fan. Maybe she’d draw something on a napkin for me. If she didn’t show, I’d be okay

Skinny Dip with Caroline Starr Rose
Which celebrity, living or not, do you wish would invite you to a coffee shop? Author L.M. Montgomery, of Anne of Green Gables fame. I’ve read all of her books several times over, including the journals she kept from fourteen until the time of her death. In fact, I’ve committed to revisiting Maud’s journals every

Skinny Dip with Steve Palmquist
Favorite holiday tradition? Well, that usually involves food — we try to have Chinese food on Christmas Eve. Our family has had a lot of changes lately, so we’ve been trying to create new traditions. Were you a teacher’s pet or teacher’s challenge? Both! At times I was a model student and other times I was the

Skinny Dip with Michael Hall
What is your proudest career moment? Several months before the publication of my book, Red: A Crayon’s Story, The Wall Street Journal published an editorial bemoaning the “gender industrial complex,” “cultural warriors,” and books — including mine — “that seek to engage the sympathies of young readers … and nudge the needle of culture.” I had written something good enough

Skinny Dip with Karen Blumenthal
Favorite holiday tradition? Food! I love to bake and holidays are the best excuse for baking! Peach cobbler for the Fourth of July, apple cake for the Jewish holidays, dozens and dozens of cookies for friends and family in December, and this killer candy that we call matzo toffee at Passover. I make a ton of it

Skinny Dip with Eileen Beha
What TV show can’t you turn off? I watch very little TV; I will almost always choose to read a good book instead. However, I do admit that I’ve not missed a single episode of Mad Men since the series premiered in 2007 or Downton Abbey, which will end after its sixth season this winter.

Skinny Dip with Stephanie Greene
What keeps you up at night? Not much. If I do wake up and start worrying about something, I put my newest plot dilemma into my brain. Puzzling over it puts me right to sleep. What is your proudest career moment? I guess I’m most proud that I’m still coming up with fresh ideas after

Skinny Dip with Roxanne Orgill
What keeps you up at night? Thoughts of my two children: their school issues, health problems, things they said or didn’t say. What calms me and gets me to sleep, perhaps oddly, is to think about the book I’m writing at the moment. I can think about parts of it I like, what I’ll write

Skinny Dip with Loretta Ellsworth
What keeps you up at night? Usually my son Andrew – he’s blind and sometimes gets day and night mixed up. What is your proudest career moment? Finishing a novel, meaning writing and revising until I’m satisfied with it – no matter what happens with the manuscript, I know I’ve accomplished an amazing goal. Describe

Skinny Dip with Candace Fleming
What’s the first book you remember reading? The first book I remember reading on my own is E.B. White’s Stuart Little. I was seven years old and it was the Saturday before Christmas – the day of St. John Lutheran’s annual holiday party. I loved that party! The potluck. The carols. The visit from Santa