Seeing the Magic in the World

Ali Benjamin is the co-writer for HIV-positive teen Paige Rawl's coming-of-age memoir, Positive, as well as Tim Howard's New York Times bestseller The Keeper. She is a member of New England Science Writers and has written for the Boston Globe Magazine, Martha Stewart's Whole Living, and Sesame Street. In her debut, the children’s book The Thing About Jellyfish (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers), after her best friend dies in a drowning accident, Suzy is convinced that the true cause of the tragedy was a rare jellyfish sting. Retreating into a silent world of imagination, she crafts a plan to prove her theory--even if it means traveling the globe, alone.  In its starred review, School Library Journal writes, “...readers...will fully immerse themselves in this superbly written, heartfelt novel.” NOMINATED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 2015

Cassie Beasley’s story for grades 4-7, Circus Mirandus (Dial Books), celebrates the power of seeing magic in the world. In its starred review, School Library Journal writes, "This gripping fantasy tale will have readers hooked from the opening scene to the breathtaking—and unexpected—conclusion." A graduate of the Vermont College of Fine Arts, this is Beasley’s first book.

In 2013, Corey Ann Haydu was chosen as one of Publisher Weekly’s Flying Starts. Her books have been Junior Library Guild Selections, Indie Next Selections, and BCCB Blue Ribbon Selections. Haydu teaches YA Novel Writing with Mediabistro and is adapting her debut novel, Ocd Love Story, into a high school play, which will have its first run in fall 2015. In Making Pretty (Katherine Tegen Books), a New York City girl experiences the most intense summer of her life. In Rules for Stealing Stars (Katherine Tegen Books), sister discover a magical place that gives them what they truly need: an escape from the complications of their home life.

Author and illustrator Nicholas Gannon’s debut is the lavishly illustrated book for middle graders, The Doldrums, in which a boy who craves adventure gets more than he bargained for. With approximately twenty pieces of breathtaking full-color artwork, as well as black-and-white spot illustrations, and gorgeous, literary writing, Nicholas Gannon proves himself to be a distinctive new voice.