Slipping Into September...

Our west coast weather is changing and fall is definitely in the air. We have had an extended summer with lovely warm temperatures for almost the entire month of September.

I wonder if the summer-like temperatures made it more difficult to blog? That is my excuse, anyway. :-)

In spite of slacking off on blogging, I am pleased to report I have been hard at work on a new manuscript. It seems to be shaping up into something I will be able to deliver to a publisher and I am happy about that — although it may be another month before it is ready to go.

In the meantime, I hope your September is a good one. If you have returned to work or school after a summer break, I hope it is going well!

Cheers!

Back to School!

To all the teachers and students who head back to the classroom today: Good luck!

I am thinking of you and sending my best wishes for a wonderful year of learning, friendship and fun.

Cheers!

May the Muse Be With You!

If you are a writer participating in the 3 Day Novel contest this weekend, I wish you the best of luck! I am so impressed with people who are willing to forgo the last rays of summer sunshine to hunker down in their respective offices hunched over a keyboard. I am pleased to say that my Dad is one of those writers.

They call the contest the World's Most Notorious Literary Marathon and writers from around the world are engaged right now in creating their wonderful stories.

Little sleep, lots of coffee, determination and talent — are the main ingredients for a successful writing weekend.

To all of you writing: May the Muse be with you!!!

Green Prize for Sustainable Literature

I'm happy to announce that my book Watch Me Grow! A Down-to-Earth Look at Growing Food in the City is the winner of the 2012 Green Prize Award for the Best Community Garden Book for Children, given by the Santa Monica Public Library. To see more about the award, please go here and to read more about the book, please go here.

In addition to that lovely news, Watch Me Grow! was also named as a Best Children's Book of the Year by the Bank Street College of Education in New York. To find out more about the Bank Street List of Best Books, please go here.

A big thank you to the Santa Monica Library and to Bank Street College for these wonderful honours!

Wild West Coast

It's been a few weeks since I posted and I am pleased to report that we west coasters have indeed seen the sunshine. We are thrilled!

I recently returned from a trip to the very west coast of Canada — to Long Beach and Tofino, BC. I am posting a couple of photos taken from Mackenzie beach where we stayed. The beautiful sunset photo was taken by my niece on an evening stroll down the beach. The other photo (blue sky, tide out) was taken by moi from the porch of the cabin we stayed in.

As always, it was an inspiring trip, seeing the power of the ocean and the beauty of the rainforest. It's possible there may be a book in the works. And on that note, I picked up a copy of Long Beach Wild written by my friend and fellow author, Adrienne Mason, who is a Tofino resident. It is fascinating reading. I recommend it!

Hope you enjoy the photos and are having a lovely summer.

Cheers!

Summer!

Now that school is out, summer has officially arrived! (Sadly, our west coast weather tells another story. The garden is soggy and the strawberries are moldy. But we don't let that dampen our spirits!)

We can look forward to sunshine (one of these days) and a more relaxed summertime pace. I wish all of you a happy couple of months! Kids, teachers, families and everyone else — go beachcombing, get your summer reading material, host a barbecue or do whatever it is you like to do best when the days are long and the weather is warm.

FYI: This blog may also be on a slightly more relaxed schedule, but come fall, the posts will be (more or less) regular again.

Happy Summer!

Sneak Preview!

"Many of the Kinder believe that their parents gave them life twice: once when they were born and a second time when they were sent to safety on the Kindertransport."

Who were the Kinder and why were they in danger? Find out more here.

I am delighted to show you the cover of my upcoming book, Rescuing the Children: The Story of the Kindertransport. It will be published by Tundra Books and Random House on Oct. 9, 2012, in both hardcover and e-book forms.

It is a book I've been working on for the last couple of years and I am thrilled that it will soon be available. If you'd like to learn more about it, please check out the description on my website.

Cheers!