On January 23, 2020, Montera was thrilled to host Jerry Craft, author of the award-winning graphic novel New Kid. Jerry spoke to a group of 40 students about his life, his work, and the long process of making a graphic novel. We learned about some of his struggles, some of his triumphs, and he showed us how to make a "mistake" in a drawing turn into a key element. (Remember the curlicue that turned into a beautiful hairstyle?)

The week after his visit to Montera, Jerry Craft was awarded the 2020 Newbery Medal! This national award has been given annually since 1922 for "the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children."

Many authors have websites of their own and regularly post new tidbits about their books and their lives. Take a look at some of the fun author websites for some of our most popular authors. There are interviews with the authors, videos, book trailers, and sneak peeks at upcoming books.

Mrs. Rogers really enjoyed seeing how Kazu Kibuishi works on his Amulet series! And then there’s the advice columns from Nikki and Brandon on the Dork Diaries website. And for a serious post, read what Tomi Adeyemi has to say about Telling a Story that Matters.

• Tomi Adeyemi (Children of Blood and Bone)

• Kwame Alexander (The Crossover; Rebound; Booked)

• Kazu Kibuishi (The Amulet Series)

• Jeff Kinney (Diary of a Wimpy Kid)

• Dave Pilkey (Dog Man)

• Rachel Renée Russell (Dork Diaries)

• Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson Series)

• Raina Telgemeier (Smile, Sisters, Baby-Sitters Club)