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Valdez knew from the start that Harmony Becker’s Himawari House, which earned an SLJ starred review, was something special.

Nancy Mercado, associate publisher and editorial director at Dial Books for Young Readers, learned on the go as editor of books including SLJ starred titles 'Because Claudette' and 'When We Make It.'

“We’re like jazz musicians in that we decide on a structure, but a lot is left up to improvisation,” says Griffin about working with Reynolds. Read more about how this SLJ starred book came together.

The ALA community was elated to be face-to-face again, talking about issues that matter to the industry. Comments made during a Unite Against Book Bans panel set off a Twitter firestorm that laid bare the emotion and complexities of the censorship discussion.

Author and educator Torrey Maldonado has once again asked his industry friends why  Juneteenth matters.