You May Contribute A Verse

Jerrold Connors’s House of Donuts and Ideas

If you don't know today's guest, there's at least one easy way to remedy that. Go and listen to our conversation from one year ago, January 2022. Jerrold Connors is a delight and - you'll find - there's MORE than enough ground to cover in this follow up conversation. I daresay The Annual Jerrold is an achievable goal, should our commitment and creativity hold out.
Speaking of creativity, you're going to hear only about a million potential title ideas in this episode, but I think we had it in one. Jerrold's House is truly one built of both ideas and the execution thereupon.
If you're here for donuts, we get there eventually, and it's worth the wait. As of publication, I'm happy to report that Jerrold's #DonutsForEverybody Kickstarter has exceeded its fundraising goal. Listening to this lil' ol' conversation feels so quaint, even though we only had it a week and a half ago. We've come a long way since then, including through the beginning where I feel especially fortunate to have been both clued in AND available to be the first donor.
There's a lot more in store: from James Marshall to Invisible Things, Jerrold's got a lot of irons in the fire.
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We have a sponsor! This year we're partnering with Justin Colon of The Kidlit Hive as he steers our community toward affordable and inclusive educational opportunities across the board. Check out upcoming classes at kidlithive.com!
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Our reviews of the week are Dan Yaccarino's CITY UNDER THE CITY and Stephanie Campisi's QUACKS LIKE A DUCK. Check them out!

Guinea Pig Moves with Jolene Gutierrez

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster.
Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast. 
Our guest for this conversation was Jolene Gutierrez. You can find Jolene on Twitter, Instagram, or her linktree. 
This episode’s book reviews:
THE CHRISTMAS GIANT by Steve Light
I HATE BORSCH! By Yevgenia Nayberg
 
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on IG @hellomaddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.

Artichoke-y Karaoke with Samantha Gassman!

Today's guest is author Samantha Gassman, and we have the distinct privilege of discussing her apparently extreme versatility as an artist, encompassing not only her three VERY different published or acquired works, but additionally her military background, her motherhood, her singing ability, and her impeccable rhyme sense.
I'll leave her other two books to be discussed in our chat, but did want to introduce DEAR RAINBOW BABY, published as her commercial picture book debut this year. This book is deeply personal to Sam, as you might imagine given the subject matter of miscarriage, pregnancy loss, and the ways families rebound. It's a beautiful book and a touching way to introduce one of the most difficult topics imaginable to a child.
All this is to say that the conversation Brenna and I had with Sam is a real journey as we reconcile and connect the tissue between her nonfiction, her early 2022 debut on the educational market, her publication of DEAR RAINBOW BABY, and Artichoke-y Karaoke, which you'll have to wait til the end of the episode to hear about and is WELL worth the wait for the introduction of our new occasional segment called the Dead Manuscripts Society.
And as I'm writing this I realize for the first time that I never got the proper spelling of Artichoke-y. Sorry if I got it wrong in the show notes, Sam!
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Our book reviews of the week:
UNDERWEAR by Jenn Harney
MR THATCHER'S HOUSE by Kristin Wauson

Something, Something, Books an Interview with Charlene Chua

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster.
Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast. 
Our guest for this conversation was Charlene Chua. You can find Charlene on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. 
This episode’s ChewyReviewy books:
KID SHERIFF AND THE TERRIBLE TOADS by Bob Shea illustrated by Lane Smith. 
NORTON AND THE BEAR by Gabriel Evans
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.

Justin Colon’s Experience Points!

Today’s chat features none other than author-illustrator-actor-voice-over…er Justin Colon, creator of the esteemed PBChat on Twitter and overall kidlit powerhouse.
Chances are very good that you’re already familiar with Justin, his passion, and his work to foster community among other creatives. Equal parts craft, community, and consideration, this conversation is very much a worthy follow-on to last episode’s chat with – not at all coincidentally – Justin’s agent Jennifer March Soloway of Andrea Brown.
We get right into the real stuff this time, starting with some context around the two recent announcements of Justin’s fall 2024 debuts, IMPOSSIBLE POSSUMS with Disney-Hyperion and THE QUACKEN with Simon & Schuster.
Redirection. Mentorship. Outreach. Education. Being ready. Having to wait. And chalking it all up to experience.
Justin Colon literally and figuratively spills the tea. This verse is one you don't want to miss.
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Our ChewyReviewy picks of the week are:
The Ugly Doodles by Valeria Wicker
The Very True Legend of the Mongolian Death Worms by Sandra Fay
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Instagram at @hellomaddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.

Cliffhangers, Queries and Bad Guys with Jennifer March Soloway

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster.
Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast. 
Our guest for this conversation was Jennifer March Soloway. You can find Jennifer on Twitter, or on the Andrea Brown website. 
This episode’s ChewyReviewy books:
JILLIAN VS PARASITE PLANET by Nicole Kornher-Stace illustrated by Scott Brown
MCTOAD MOWS TINY ISLAND by Tom Angleberger illustrated by John Hendrix
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.

Detours and Dosas with Pamela Ehrenberg

The end-of-year season that brings with it so many celebrations and togetherness across cultures, geographies, and faiths feels like the perfect time to share this conversation with author Pamela Ehrenberg!
A large part of our chat today centers around the joy of collaboration, finding and building strong relationships, acting in service, and coming together to build something more than the sum of individual parts could alone.
We talked today mostly about two of Pamela's books, in addition to her journey as a whole. Detour Ahead is her middle grade collaboration with author Tracy Lopez, centering on the intersection of two adolescents who met by happenstance, and the ways that meeting changed the courses of their lives. Pamela's 2017 debut is our other book subject this week: Queen of the Hannukah Dosas is a delightful book blending an intercultural family dynamic with a troublesome affinity for climbing.
Pamela's own journey through service-oriented work and into the publishing industry (read more about PJ Library here!) was fascinating and we're really happy to share.
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DETOUR AHEAD co-author Tracy Lopez is located here.
QUEEN OF THE HANNUKAH DOSAS illustrator Anjan Sarkar is here.
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Our ChewyReviewy picks for the week:
SOUL FOOD SUNDAY, by Winsome Bingham
I CAN EXPLAIN by Shinsuke Yoshitake 

The Plop Of Doom! With Lisa Rogers

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster.
Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast. 
Our guest for this conversation was Lisa Rogers. You can find Lisa on Twitter, or on her website. 
This episode’s ChewyReviewy books:
WHERE ARE YOU FROM? by Yamile Saied Mendez, illustrated by Jaime Kim. 
LOOKING FOR A JUMBIE by Tracey Baptiste illustrated by Amber Ren.
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.

Potatoes and Process with Jennifer Concepcion!

Author Jennifer Concepcion’s debut picture book, Potatoes for Pirate Pearl, is slated for an alliterative publication of winter 2023, and you’re absolutely not going to want to miss this book’s – and Jennifer’s – journey to publication.
We caught up with Jennifer during her class plan time, which we very much appreciate, at her grade school in Costa Rica. This is such a charming and conversational chat, and fair warning, there’s a lot of agent-author sausage-making in here about Dan Cramer and Page Turner Literary, as Brenna and Jennifer are agency siblings! Lots of wisdom on offer here!
Jennifer's website: https://www.jenwritescr.com/ 
Our #ChewyReviewy picks of the week:
Bikes for Sale, by Carter Higgins and illustrated by Zachariah Ohora: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/39874653-bikes-for-sale 
Maybe Tomorrow?, by Charlotte Agell and illustrated by Ana Ramirez Gonzalez: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/37828981-maybe-tomorrow 

Be Someone’s Opportunity with Valerie Bolling

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster.
Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast. 
Our guest for this conversation was Valerie Bolling. You can find Valerie on Twitter, or by following her Linktr.ee links. 
This episode’s ChewyReviewy books:
UNICORN’S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL by Jess Hernandez and illustrated by Mariano Epelbaum.
DOING BUSINESS by Shawn Harris
The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com 
Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com  
Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment!
Thanks and see ya next time. 
You May Contribute a Verse is a homespun production, produced, edited, recorded, conceptualized, and marketed by Josh Monken and Brenna Jeanneret.