My tribute to Tales of Alcatraz and Book Scavenger series

Eager readers,



 Please check out our dual author event Next Sunday July 8th at 4 pm!

Please check out my last blog posts including a dual interview!

For today, the 84th anniversary of the opening of Alcatraz Island, I am writing a blog post about the impact Book Scavenger series and the Al Capone middle grade series have had on me professionally.

 

I could go on and on about how the two series have had on me personally, suffice it to say my curiosity and imagination about our beloved Alcatraz National Park and San Francisco local history have both grown exponentially, and the books revived my passion for bookselling with each new book in their respective series! Both series are currently being taught across the country!

These two series have proven to me once again that voices who are new to you need and deserve to be read with new eyes. I also learned that we all need to read outside our comfort zones because you never know what you could be missing, especially when the story is freshly written or even if the series and author are new to you, but not to anyone else.


For me professionally, I’ll start with Gennifer Choldenko’s Al Capone series and her book series impact on me. First off it taught me many lessons on Alcatraz history and reminded me of how diverse the genre of own voice historical fiction in middle grade books can be. You never know how rich and engrossing historical tales can be, especially for local families. Choldenko’s series also reminds me of the importance of  research in writing and reading even for middle grade fiction books is critical to fully integrating and fully experiencing any historical fiction.

Next critically, in the Al Capone series, our main protagonist, Moose Flanagan, and his stories are full of family fun, familial love and sibling care, planned tomfoolery, spontaneous actions and personal responsibilities. The books in the series are full of childlike wonder and relatable daily life well researched historical accuracy of life on “rock”. There are so many levels of learning and a diversity of types of personal growth of all the characters in Choldenko’s series that is quite unique to see in all the member of the Flanagan's family especially the main characters Natalie and Moose.

Gennifer Choldenko and yours Drewly at an event earlier this year 

A few month ago I got the honor to sell books at a Gennifer Choldenko event and her sparking enthusiasm and her sense of making history more and more fun, is impressive. I thank her for bringing the Flanagan’s and the whole Al Capone series Alcatraz family, to explain the San Francisco world of the 1930’s and for opening hearts and minds of thousands of kids.

My professional history with  Jennifer Bertman’s Book Scavenger series is different and longer. I will do my best to abbreviate how her series has changed me professionally.


My personal understanding of codes, ciphers, and my love of scavenger hunts has rekindled a new childlike love of tactile puzzles and youthful games.

Being able to be on the 2015 Middle grade and young adult American Booksellers association Indies Introduce new voices panel was a huge honor for me and of the nearly fifty books we read for that book award panel, only one stood out to me. Book Scavenger. Ever since I read book one for the first time it’s been a inspiration for me to keep being a Children’s  specialist, so I can keep promoting books like the Book Scavenger series!

Now for my review of the series of the Book Scavenger series. Bertman makes an unforgettable quirky, witty, action-packed, multilayered mystery adventure series based on multiple layers of San Francisco’s history. Our protagonists are a young girl named Emily and her friend Max. They comes across a fantastic, thrilling game made by Garrison Griswold, the Willy Wonka of the publishing industry. But villains attack Griswold and turn childish fun into a game for their growth, their identities and at times even their lives.

I was blessed to have Jennifer Bertman come to our store last summer to promote book two in the series, a books she wrote my name in the acknowledgements.

In closing please come to our July 8th event with both authors sharing their newest books in their thrilling and unparalleled local series.

Don't miss the dynamic duo author event.

Now for my gratitude with links.  Thanks to Jennifer Bertman, Book Scavenger, Macmillan Children's Publishing, Gennifer Choldenko, Wendy Lamb Books, Books Inc Burlingame, Books Inc Kids, and all the Worthy Readers out there.  Be sure to check out Facebook pages and other social media of all the links.