Book Giveaway: LISTEN by Gabi Snyder

Gabi Snyder has written a new picture book, LISTEN, and illustrated by Stephanie Groegin published by Paula Wiseman Books. Gabi has agreed to send a copy to the one lucky winner in the US.

Just leave a comment. Reblog, tweet, or talk about it on Facebook with a link and you will get additional chances to win. Let me know other things you did to share the good news, so I can put the right amount of tickets in my basket for you. Sharing on Facebook, Twitter or reblogging really helps spread the word for a new book. So, thanks for helping Gabi and Stephanie.

If you have signed up to follow my blog and it is delivered to you everyday, please let me know when you leave a comment and I will give you an extra ticket. If you want to make sure you don’t miss seeing that you won, please click “Notify Me of Follow-Up Comments By Email” box. I will leave a comment in reply if you win the book. Thanks!

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

“A memorable experience.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

In the tradition of Tomie dePaola’s Quiet and Scott Magoon’s Breathe comes this lyrical, meditative picture book about listening and mindfulness.

BEEP!
WOOF!
VROOM!

Isn’t the world a noisy place?
But what if you
stop, close your eyes,
and LISTEN?

Can you hear each sound?
Can you listen past the noise
and hear the quiet, too?

Beautifully illustrated and poignant, this lovely picture book follows a girl through her school day as she listens to sounds across the city: caws of crows, shouts across the playground, and finally, the quiet beating of her heart and whispered goodnights.

BOOK JOURNEY:

The idea for LISTEN grew out of a desire to explore, in picture book form, the benefits of listening. I also wanted to capture the sense that the world can sometimes be so filled with noise – both literal and figurative – that it can be challenging to focus on what’s really important.

In addition, I wrote the book at a time when I was taking a great deal of inspiration and solace from getting outside for walks and paying attention to the sights, sounds, and sensations on those walks. I was also finding that the practice of mindfulness was helping me focus and feel less overwhelmed – a feeling I was especially prone to as a child and still occasionally struggle with as an adult. So I think the text for LISTEN grew from an exploration of the benefits of listening coupled with the practice of mindfulness.

I wrote the first draft of LISTEN in March 2018, and we sold the book to Simon & Schuster/Wiseman, following a revise and resubmit (R&R) request, in March 2019.  It was challenging, but ultimately satisfying, to revise based on the revision suggestions from my editor. She asked for a bit more structure and arc and for the story to progress from the loudest noises to quieter noises, forcing the protagonist and the reader to listen more carefully as the story progresses. With the help of my brilliant critique partners, I revised per the R&R and I think the resulting text is much stronger.

Originally, I had the onomatopoeia italicized and/or bolded within my text. Later, illustrator Stephanie Graegin and editor Sylvie Frank suggested that some of the sounds, like “Woof!” and “ERNT! ERNT!” could be pulled out of the text and included in the art instead. I think that thoughtful change makes the sounds feel like an integral part of the illustrations!

 

I’m pleased to report that there’s now a French version of LISTEN. It’s fun to compare how the onomatopoeia differs between the French and English versions!

GABI’S  BIO:

is a fan of the unexpected. Her love of dogs, counting, and unusual modes of transportation inspired her debut picture book, TWO DOGS ON A TRIKE, illustrated by Robin Rosenthal and published by Abrams Appleseed (May 2020). Her second picture book, LISTEN, illustrated by Stephanie Graegin, came out in July 2021 from Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books. Watch for her third picture book, COUNT ON US!: Climate Activists from One to a Billion, illustrated by Sarah Walsh, and arriving in September 2022 from Barefoot Books.

Gabi studied psychology at the University of Washington and creative writing at The University of Texas. When she’s not writing, she loves taking nature walks and baking sweet treats. She lives in Oregon with her family. Learn more at gabisnyder.com or connect with Gabi on Instagram or Twitter.

STEPHANIE’S BIO:

Born during a blizzard on Groundhog’s Day in Chicago, Illinois, Stephanie spent her childhood drawing and collecting fauna in Fort Wayne, Indiana and Houston, Texas. She received her BFA in Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland. She later attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, obtaining a Master of Fine Arts in Printmaking. Stephanie now lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she writes and illustrates children’s books.

Clients include: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Beach Lane Books,
Candlewick Press, Carus Publishing, Dial Books for Young Readers, Disney Hyperion, eeBoo, Farrar Straus and Giroux, Google, Little Brown for Young Readers, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Random House Studio, Roaring Brook Press, Schwartz and Wade, Simon & Schuster and Sterling Publishing.

Gabi, than you for sharing your book and journey with us. I love that your book will help children to take the time to listen to the world around them. We are all busy rushing through life so maybe this book will help the parents to take time to listen past the noise, too. The Stephanie’s illustrations are fabulous. Together you have a perfect book. Best of Luck!

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy