Family, friends and fans joined authors Ann Ingalls and Maryann Macdonald to celebrate the release of Little Piano Girl. Reading Reptile played host to the event on February 13. Congratulations!
In August, Rosen Publishing released two new books written by Diane Bailey: High School Musicals: Scenery and Set Design and High School Musicals: Stage Management and Production.

In January 2010, Diane will have three more releases through Rosen: Tennessee: Past and Present; Venus and Serena Williams; and Great Moments at the World Cup. Her book Kansas: Past and Present will be out in August 2010. Congratulations, Diane!
This month the Institute of Children’s Literature Writers’ Support Room features Lisha Cauthen - Wednesday critique regular, KSCBWI Scoop editor and bloggess extraordinaire. Check out Lisha in action here!
Great job, Lisha!
The Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington, DC, have invited Ann Ingalls and Maryann Macdonald to sign books at a celebration for the centennial of jazz great Mary Lou Williams’ birth.
The sisters’ labor of love, The Little Piano Girl, is illustrated by Giselle Potter and will be published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children in January 2010. Future signing include The Lincoln Center in New York City and the American Jazz Museum and the Plaza Library in Kansas City. The Reading Reptile will host a celebration in February.
Congratulations to Sue Gallion! Highlights will publish her first rebus in an upcoming issue!

Lisa Wade McCormick announces the release of four new non-fiction books with Capstone Press, all part of their Mysteries of Science series. And Lisa’s first story about The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation appears in the The Bark, now on newsstands. If you can’t find the magazine at your local book store, here’s a link:
Congratulations are in order for Bridget Heos! Not only has Bridget secured representation with Kelly Sonnack at Andrea Brown Literary Agency, but Kelly has sold Bridget’s insect larvae parenting book to Carol Hinz at Millbrook Press, a division of Lerner Publishing Group, in a three book deal. The following two books will have a similar theme but incorporating different animals. The first book is due out in the Spring of 2011.


Congratulations to Mary Schulte on her latest releases! Mary works as a photo editor and children’s book reviewer at The Kansas City Star and has nonfiction and fiction books published through Children’s Press/Scholastic, KidHaven Press, and Mason Crest.
My niece Kate (YA director for Johnson County Libraries) reports that everyone at the ALA convention in Chicago was enthralled with Elizabeth C. Bunce and her speech accepting the Morris Award for A CURSE DARK AS GOLD. Elizabeth, aka Stephanie, treated the Wednesday critique group to a preview of her speech last month and we predicted she’d be a show stopper!
Charlotte Adelsperger’s article about the Andrea Doria shipwreck will appear in CRICKET magazine. Look for the article this fall in the October 09 issue. Way to go, Charlotte!