Thank you so much to writing coach and children's book consultant Anastasia Suen for using The Lost Celt for one of her #kidlit writing lessons on May 10th. Have a look at her lesson here.
Author Reception at Northern California Independent Booksellers' Association Spring Gathering, April 10.
For the first time, and hopefully not the last, I was on the other side of the table signing books as part of the author reception at the NCIBA Spring Gathering on Sunday. So much fun to share my love of story and history with fellow booksellers. Only in a group of booksellers (and historians) would you get two people walk up consecutively, point to my necklace and say, "Oh isn't that Cernunnos from the Gundestrup Cauldron?"
Visiting Wade Thomas Elementary, San Anselmo, Old Mill School, Mill Valley and Bel Aire Elementary, Tiburon
So fortunate to have had a wonderful week talking about The Lost Celt to some of the most attentive and enthusistic kids in Marin County.
Favourite moments include: lines of kids waiting to try on my reproduction of the Snettisham torc…it's only brass, but it's still really heavy; kids sharing their love of Romans, Celts and ancient myths and having a young girl come up to me saying, "I'm just like you." She loves books about soldiers and yet she still likes "girl" things like ballet and fluffy animals. She seemed hugely relieved to share this, so I think I touched a chord. It worries me that in this "selfie, social media" age, girls might be forced into stereotypes and emphasizing looks more than ever.
The Lost Celt Reviewed on ReaderKidZ Website and The Pirate Tree
Thank you so much to Nancy Bo Flood, herself an author, for reviewing The Lost Celt on the ReaderKidZ website and on The Pirate Tree, a blog dedicated to Social Justice in Children's Literature. Click here to read ReaderKidZ and here to read The Pirate Tree Blog. Nancy's new middle grade novel Soldier Sister, Fly Home comes out with Charlesbridge in Fall 2016.
A. E. Conran Interviewed as part of the Swanky Seventeens Debut Author Club
It was such a privilege to be interviewed by, and chat on the phone to, Bree Barton, a Swanky Seventeens debut author whose own YA novel, Black Rose, comes out in Fall 2017 with Katherine Tegen/Harper Collins. Bree is just a delight and I have no doubt her book will be equally fabulous.
Checkout the interview here. We talked in depth about the inspirations, themes and issues of war in The Lost Celt.
Evening at Urban Promise Academy: March 16
Could there have been a better first school to visit, post-launch, with The Lost Celt than the Urban Promise Academy, Fruitvale, Oakland? Their school motto is "Developing Scholars, Warriors and Artists," so my character felt completely at home. I had a wonderful evening talking, and then whispering, about The Lost Celt. Yes, I'd lost my voice by the end of the evening, thanks to a cold at the weekend, but the UPA Jaguars just listened extra hard. Thank you!
The Lost Celt Reviewed on Shadows and Mirrors Blog Post
Thank you to L. M. Quraishi for featuring The Lost Celt on her blog with this thoughtful review. Michelle is a fellow writer and member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Read the review here.
A. E. Conran Featured in Kick Butt Kidlit Blog Interview
This was such a fun interview. Kick Butt always uses great gifs in their interviews, and I was ecstatic to get my favorite from The Princess Bride: Inconceivable! Read the whole interview here
Kidliterati Blog gets "the scoop" on The Lost Celt.
The wonderful bloggers at Kidliterati are featuring three or more "scoops" (great dollops of behind-the-scenes information) on a few debut novels every month to coincide with their launch dates. I'm so delighted that THE LOST CELT is featured this month. To find out my scoops click here.
A. E. Conran is under the "Author Spotlight" on Kidlit411 Blog
Thank you to Sylvia Liu and Teresa Robeson for featuring me on their blog Kidlit411: an invaluable resource for writers. Click here to read the interview.
The Lost Celt Featured on Patrick Samphire's Blog
Check out the blog of fellow debut author Patrick Samphire, Secrets of the Dragon Tomb, a fabulous middle grade sci-fi novel set on Mars in 1816. (What's not to like about that?) Patrick kindly featured The Lost Celt and several other debut novels on his blog. Click here to read more.
Great Middle Grade Reads
The Lost Celt is surrounded by greatness in this wonderful flyer created by the debut authors' group The Sweet Sixteens.
The Lost Celt Featured in Children's Book Council "Hot off the Press."
The Lost Celt is a Hot off the Press pick for the Children's Book Council February List. This is a huge thrill as other titles include Princess in Black and the Hungry Bunny Horde, Shannon and Dean Hale, Pax, Sara Pennypacker and fellow Sweet Sixteener, Lee Gjertson Malone's The Last Boy at St Edith's. Click here to see the full list.
The Lost Celt Launch Co-Sponsored by the SF Irish American Crossroads Festival
The Lost Celt book launch is being co-sponsored by Book Passage and the 2016 San Francisco Irish American Crossroads Festival, which promotes discovery and understanding of the diverse Irish experience in the Americas. Click here for more fabulous festival events. I really am honored to be part of the festival.
The Lost Celt featured on Publishers Group West Booth at American Library Association Midwinter
Very excited that The Lost Celt was featured on the PGW (our Distributor's) Booth at the American Library Association Midwinter get together January 2016. If you are a librarian and received an Advanced Reader's Copy, I'd love to hear from you.
Meet the Author on Sweet Sixteens' Website
On December 23rd I was featured on the Sweet Sixteens YA and MG debut authors' site. Click here to read the interview.