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Have you ever felt your spirit soar just watching someone on screen? Aaron Philip’s infectious laugh, can-do attitude, talent and faith radiate and lift everyone he touches. Check out this video of him speaking to the folks at Tumblr for a bit of his magic.

Fourteen-year-old Aaron has already won fans around the world with Aaronverse, his Tumblr blog, that chronicles his life creating art, coping and thriving with cerebral palsy and achieving his dreams.

Now, he will move and motivate even more with his inspiring memoir, This Kid Can Fly: It’s About Ability (NOT Disability) (Balzer+Bray),  that debuted on February 16. Written with award-winner Tonya Bolden and featuring photos and Aaron’s illustrations, it takes you through his amazing life from his homeland of Antigua to New York City. An open and heartfelt look at his struggles and successes, this debut title is a winner that will empower kids and adults to take flight too.

We’re blessed to talk to both Tonya and Aaron…

Danielle Paige is the New York Times bestselling author of Dorothy Must Die, its upcoming sequel The Wicked Will Rise, and the upcoming  Stealing Snow series (Bloomsbury, 2016). In addition to writing young adult books, she works in the television industry, where she’s received a Writers Guild of America Award and was nominated for several Daytime Emmys. She is a graduate of Columbia University and currently lives in New York City. On this 24th day of February, The Brown Bookshelf is honored to highlight the outstanding works of  Danielle Paige.

The Journey

I began my career in soap operas. I interned at Guiding Light while I was a junior at Columbia University. After I graduated, I worked my way up from production secretary to writers assistant to scriptwriter. I loved writing soap scripts, and I especially loved writing for teens. After that, I sold a teen soap to MTV that never made…

In reading her website, Nnedi Okorafor is a novelist of African-based science fiction, fantasy and magical realism for both children and adults. Born in the United States to Nigerian immigrant parents, Nnedi is known for weaving African culture into creative evocative settings and memorable characters. In a profile of Nnedi’s work titled, “Weapons of Mass Creation”, the New York Times called Nnedi’s imagination “stunning”.

Nnedi Okorafor’s novels include Who Fears Death (winner of the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel and Le Prix Imaginales for Best Translated Novel), Akata Witch (an Amazon.com Best Book of the Year), Zahrah the Windseeker (winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for African Literature), and The Shadow Speaker (winner of the CBS Parallax Award). Her latest releases include her short story collection Kabu Kabu (A Publisher’s Weekly Best Book for Fall 2013) and science fiction novel Lagoon (finalist for Best Novel in the British Science…

Congressman John Lewis

Today our honoree is not only a children’s book author, he is a congressman representing Georgia’s 5th District. Along with writer Andrew Aydin and graphic artist Nate Powell, Mr. Lewis has written three books for young readers about his life in the Civil Rights movement: March Book One, March Book Two, and a third one, March Book Three to be released  August 2016.

Mr. Lewis witnessed segregation first hand while growing up on an Alabama farm. As a college student, he decided to work in a nonviolent way so that African Americans could eat at lunch counters, book rooms in any hotel, and attend schools of their choice.
Why did he write about his life?

“I want young people to know that another generation of young people had the same type of zeal, the same type of ‘get up, let’s do it,’” Lewis told Fusion’s Alicia…

Reviewed by Lila Quintero Weaver

This book talk is based on an uncorrected advance copy.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: School: failure. Romance: failure. Family: failure. Suicide: failure. There’s only one thing left to try: living.

When Vicky Cruz wakes up in the Lakeview Hospital psychiatric ward, she knows one thing: She can’t even commit suicide right. But there she meets Mona, the live wire; Gabriel, the saint; E.M., always angry; and Dr. Desai, a quiet force. With stories and honesty, kindness and hard work, they push her to reconsider her life before Lakeview, and offer her acceptance she’s never had.

Yet Vicky’s newfound peace is as fragile as the roses that grow around the hospital. And when a crisis forces the group to split up—sending her back to the life that drove her to suicide—Vicky must find her own courage and strength. She may not have any. She doesn’t know.

Inspired in…

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Christopher S. Ledbetter was a reluctant reader as a child growing up in Durham. His understanding of what that’s like inspires the young adult novels he creates. On his website, he shares: “I continue to write because I see it as an avenue to inspire and uplift. And, because the stories refuse to stop springing into my mind and demanding to be written.”

A former high school teacher with a deep sense of purpose, tales of discovery and transformation call to him. Ledbetter is driven by a desire to empower his young audience and his characters. His contemporary stories mix in fantasy and mythology, his first love.

Drawn (Evernight Teen),  his debut novel, won high praise from Kirkus: “Inventive, fast-paced fantasy with imaginative settings and engaging characters.” Inked, his sequel to Drawn, debuts on July 1. We are honored to feature Christopher S. Ledbetter on Day 23.

The Journey:

I began writing seriously…