Dear Friends,
My plan is always to send out newsletters more frequently, but somehow I never get around to it. So here are a few tidbits I’ve been stockpiling for you — some new books, some banned books, a possibly good idea that I hope you’ll make me follow through on, a book giveaway, a discount on Escargot plushies, and a rant about leafblowers. Also, I’m trying out the substack platform for the first time to see if it might be a good platform for me, particularly as Twitter implodes. I’d love to hear your feedback. But first….
Can I Interest You In A Grab Bag of Books?
I need to make some room in my office so I’m raffling off a few grab bags of my books for younger readers — picture books and middle grade. Each grab bag will contain at least three signed books. The more entries I get, the more grab bags I’ll send out. U.S. residents only.
How to enter:
Make a contribution of any amount to an organization that fights book bans like EveryLibrary, the ACLU, PEN America, or the National Coalition Against Censorship
OR purchase any one of my books (e-books not included).
Send proof of your contribution or purchase along with a mailing address where I can send your books to this email address: Dashka.Slater.assistant@gmail.com.
Each book purchased or contribution made = one entry. Enter as many times as you like and feel free to share with friends and family.
Deadline: December 1, 2022. Winners will be notified by email.
Sneak Peek
My forthcoming nonfiction narrative, Accountable, is available for preorder. You’ll be hearing a lot more about it starting next year, but here’s a first peek at the cover, designed by the legendary Henry Sene Yee, who also designed the cover for The 57 Bus.
Substacking?
Having spent the past decade writing and talking about justice, hate, and accountability, I’m toying with the notion of starting a newsletter just for topics related to Accountable and The 57 Bus, including free speech, social media, online radicalization, accountability, amends, restorative practices, gender identity, teaching tools, and much more. If this sounds intriguing to you, sign up for it using that big red button. I’ll be way more likely to do it if I have some subscribers.
Book Bans and Criminal Investigations
The 57 Bus is one of the 50 most banned books in the U.S. and was investigated this year by a North Carolina Sheriff who wanted to see librarians criminally charged for having it on their shelves. Here’s an article I wrote about the situation. You can also listen to an interview with me about the banning of the book on the podcast East Bay Yesterday or watch this panel conversation about book bans with me, Marcus Ewert, Justin Hall, and Ipek Barnett on YouTube:
I’ll also be talking about Book Bans at NCTE, as well as signing books.
Preview: Wild Blue
I have a new picture book coming out in February inspired by my love of bicycles, imagination, horses, and trying scary new things. You can pre-order it now.
Love, Escargot
The third Escargot book, Love Escargot, was released on election day. You can order a copy here.
The Story Behind the Story Behind the Story
If you missed Darcey Rosenblatt interviewing me as part of the launch for The Book of Stolen Time, the second book in the Feylawn Chronicles, you can watch it on YouTube by hitting the link below. We talk about how I built a world without time, researched magical plants, and my astonishing discovery that the fictional fairy book series I invented for the Feylawn Chronicles actually exists in real life.
A Few Words About Leaf Blowers
Anyone who knows me, knows how much I hate leaf blowers. (It’s even in my Twitter bio.) Last week Chuck Wendig wrote the world’s best leaf blower rant, which says everything I’ve ever wanted to say about the pollution-spewing machine from hell. Read it, and then enjoy this hilarious leaf blower piece from the New Yorker. I am pleased to say that gas-powered leaf blowers are being phased out in California, a first step in fighting the scourge of leaf blowers everywhere.
A Cavalcade of Escargots
Over on Instagram, I’ve been posting lots of pictures of children and adults who dressed up as Escargot for Halloween. Here’s one of my favorites — a superfan who made sure to include a shimmery trail of shimmery stuff.
Hug Your Own Escargot
Speaking of Escargot superfans, my newsletter subscribers get a discount on the snuggly Escargot plush toy when you use the code ESCARGOTPLUSH at Merrymakers. Here’s another adorable Escargot-costumed child holding his Escargot plushie.
Thanks for reading this far! I’ll have more news for you in December.
Dashka