The 2026 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour is underway, and the next stop is my podcast blog: an interview with the STBA Winner @MarcellaPixley author of the middle-grade book, NESHAMA. Watch our talk to learn more about Marcella’s writing journey, as well as discover the secrets behind NESHAMA! 💙 👉🏻 FULL INTERVIEW youtu.be/XDfaj8LnfeI?si=L6ft… 👉🏻Listen to the full interview podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas… Congratulations to all of the beautiful important books chosen to be honored and recognized by the Sydney Taylor Awards. For the full listing, you can find the schedule on the @JewishLibraries website.

Sending out a big THANK YOU to Irene Garcia, Betty M. Low and Kevin Burdick (not pictured) at @SMUDUpdates for donating 300 earth friendly bookmarks embedded with wild flower seeds to my nonprofit! These nature themed bookmarks will support my E Train Talks Earth eco-initiative! By planting wildflowers, kids all over #Sacramento will be supporting biodiversity, providing food (nectar, pollen, seeds) for pollinators like bees, butterflies, and birds, and spreading beautiful flower power! #SMUD #ETrainTalksEarth #Nonproft #EarthHeroes #readingcommunity #teachers #kidlit

I spent the morning in a Sacramento school garden reading aloud THE APPLE TREE’S DISCOVERY, my favorite Tu B’Shvat, “Birthday of the Trees,” themed picture book, to a classroom of smart & curious first graders. We talked about the holiday & through this sweet story, discovered the meaningful surprise hidden inside apples and within each of us! The Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shvat is a nature centered festival, so reading a story in a beautiful school garden felt like the perfect way to begin celebrating. Tu B’Shvat begins at sundown on February 1st, and ends at sundown on February 2, 2026. Celebrating trees and all the amazing gifts they provide can happen every day of the year, not just on Tu B’Shvat.🌳💚 #teachers #sacramento #storytime #kidlit #TuBishvat