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readergirlz is a literacy and social media project for teens, awarded the National Book Foundation's Innovations in Reading Prize. The rgz blog serves as a depot for news and YA reviews from industry professionals and teens. As volunteers return full force to their own YA writing, the organization continues to hold one initiative a year to impact teen literacy. All are welcome to "like" us on Facebook!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Story Secrets: THE LATTE REBELLION by Sarah Jamila Stevenson + giveaway!

Thanks to the cafés cropping up on every street corner these days, everyone I know seems to be two steps ahead of a caffeine headache - but Sarah Jamila Stevenson, debut author, has an answer: THE LATTE REBELLION. It just hit the shelves this week and promises to be a funny, thoughtful look at a mixed-race girl who must choose her convictions in an increasingly mixed-up world.

readergirlz co-founder Justina Chen (NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL) says, "Get ready to start your own rebellion after gulping down Sarah Stevenson's deftly written, multi-layered story about growing a voice, growing apart, and most of all, growing up girl."

I had the pleasure of meeting Sarah at a kidlit blogger conference a few years ago and am so proud to see her book on the shelf!

Welcome, Sarah!

*****

Asha Jamison, the narrator, and her best friends, Carey and Miranda, decide to make their senior year a little more interesting by creating a fictitious social movement for students of mixed ethnicity: the Latte Rebellion. The proceeds from the t-shirts they sell will go straight into a vacation fund for after they graduate. But their movement gains a life of its own, and various aspects of Asha's life spin out of control as a result—in some good ways as well as not-so-good ways.


Holly Cupala: Welcome to the blog, Sarah! I heard you've had some pretty fascinating stops on the road to publishing this book. Will you tell us about it?

Sarah Jamila Stevenson: It allowed to me to realize one of my geeky lifelong aspirations—to be on NPR! When I was working on the first draft of The Latte Rebellion, it was National Novel Writing Month. A local NPR program, Insight (Capital Public Radio), was doing a segment on NaNoWriMo and posted a call for volunteers to appear on the show along with NaNoWriMo founder Chris Baty. I was one of those selected, and I got to read a passage from my work-in-progress on the air. It's the third and final segment on this show.

Of course, my real dream is to be some kind of expert whose sound advice and/or witty commentary is regularly sought on NPR, but I suspect that'll probably stay a pipe dream...


Read more of Sarah's secrets and enter to win THE LATTE REBELLION here...

~Holly Cupala

4 comments:

Melissa Walker said...

Looking at that cover makes me want coffee!! And I had an NPR dream, too, so I know just where SJS is coming from.

Micol Ostow said...

That cover is calling my name! The book looks great. :)

Little Willow said...

Congratulations, Sarah!

MissA said...

Now see I'm not a coffee person but this book makes me want to try a latte :p

I like how the main character starts a seemingly noble goal to make money, sounds like an entertaining read :) And yet aother novel that came along because of NaNoWriMo, very cool.