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Featured News


Nov 02
Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List!

I’M THRILLED that learn that my book, “The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver,” is one of 20 books chosen for the prestigious 2021-22 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List! Over the course of the year, students from schools and libraries throughout Texas will read the list and choose their favorite. I’m in great company! Congratulations, Ben Rosenthal and Frank Morrison! Thank you, Texas Library Association!
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News


Dec 27
Thank you one more time, Fuse #8!

Another cool list! Thank you for the Year-End smiles, Elizabeth Bird! School Library Journal/Fuse #8’s Favorite 2020 Non-Fiction Picture Books included, “The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver!” Thank you, Thank for letting me know, Melissa Stewart!
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Dec 26
Thank you, Fuse #8!

Thank you, Elizabeth Bird! My book, “The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver” is included in School Library Journal/Fuse #8’s 2020 Unique Biographies! Thank for letting me know, Melissa Stewart!
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Oct 27
Thank you, Book Riot!

So cool! Both my Muhammad Ali and George Washington Carver books are on this wonderful list! Thank you for letting me know, Adrienne Wright! And thank you, Book Riot!

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Oct 20
Obrigado!

OBRIGADO, Ana Luisa Branco and everyone at Colégio Bandeirantes! Today I had so much fun giving a Zoom school assembly to 200 kids in São Paulo, BRAZIL!


Jul 28
Black scientists, inventors, and thinkers

My book, The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver is mentioned in this School Library Journal article on Black scientists, inventors, and thinkers.
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Jul 26
George Washington Carver selected by #BlackinSTEM

The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver” included in SLJ article, “#BlackinSTEM: 17 Nonfiction Books That Spotlight Black Scientists, Thinkers, and Inventors.”


Jun 22
NerdCampNJ talk!

Here’s a fun conversation for #nErDCampNJ I had with wonderful authors, Oona Craig Abrams, Laurie Wallmark, and Andrea J. Loney.
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Jan 26
Starred Review from School Library Journal!

Thank you School Library Journal for the Starred Review:
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Dec 19
Thank you for the Starred Review SLJ!!!

George Washington Carver is best known as an agricultural expert who discovered versatile uses for the peanut. This story focuses on his first garden. Hidden beneath the trees where no one could tease or belittle him, Carver studied nature and the “more he experimented, the more he learned.” The narrative starts in 1921 with Carver addressing Congress on the importance of the peanut and impressing an audience of white men at a time when “African-Americans were…treated as second-class citizens.” Readers are then transported back to 1874, to the Missouri farm where Carver was born into slavery, and then to the end of slavery and the planting of his first garden. The narrative then focuses on Carver’s determined search for education and finally his work as a teacher at the Tuskegee Institute. The beautiful oil on board illustrations show the wonder of young Carver as he contemplates the petals on a flower or the first green sprouts of spring. Barretta’s prose, combined with Morrison’s art, fully illuminates the depth of Carter’s considerable contributions to the science of agriculture, the farming community, and racial equality. Back matter includes a time line of Carver’s life, a ¬bibliography, and suggestions for further ¬reading. VERDICT A well-thought-out biography that highlights a different side of Carver and will be a first purchase for school and ¬public library collections.
–¬Suzanne Costner, ¬Fairview Elementary School, Maryville, TN


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Gene's Books

The Bat Can Bat : A Book of True Homonyms Lincoln and Kennedy : A Pair to Compare Timeless Thomas : How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives The Bass Plays The Bass : and other Homographs. (FORMERLY: Zoola Palooza) Neo Leo : The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo Da Vinci Jack The Tripper Dear Deer : A Book of Homophones Now & Ben : The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin