Justina Chen is an award-winning
novelist for young adults whose most recent book, A Blind Spot for Boys,
is a Booklist Top Romance for Teens. North
of Beautiful was named a Best Book of the Year by Kirkus and Barnes &
Noble. Her other novels include Return to Me, Girl Overboard, and Nothing but the Truth (and a few white
lies), which won the Asian Pacific American Award for Literature. Additionally,
she co-founded readergirlz,
a literacy and social media project for teens, which won the National Book
Foundation’s Prize for Innovations in Reading. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa
from Stanford University where she was given the Dean’s Award for Service.
When she isn’t reading or
writing, Justina can be found hiking with her daughter (who’d rather be
shopping) or Skyping with her son who now lives in Abu Dhabi.
“Educators and librarians hoping to engage female readers want to
add this novel to their shelves.” –VOYA
Shana Wilde has always had a
blind spot for boys. Can she trust the one who’s right in front of her?
Shana is
officially on a Boy Moratorium. After a devastating breakup, she decides it’s
time to end the plague of Mr. Wrongs and devote herself to her true passion:
photography.Enter Quattro, the undeniably intriguing lacrosse player who slams into Shana one morning in Seattle. Sparks don’t just fly; they ignite—and so does Shana’s interest. But just as she’s about to rethink her ban on boys, she receives crushing news: Her dad is going blind.
Shana and her parents vow to make the most of the time her father has left to see, so they plan a photo safari to Machu Picchu. But even as Shana travels away from Quattro, she can’t get him out of her mind.
Love and
loss, humor and heartbreak collide in this new novel from acclaimed author
Justina Chen (North of Beautiful).
About writing the book
Of all my novels, A Blind Spot for Boys was the most fun to write. Machu Picchu, a bedbug sniffing dog, a girl who puts herself on a Boy Moratorium? Those were such fun elements and balanced some of the more serious themes in the book. Seeing your blind spots clearly—the blind spots we have for our mistakes (especially the ones we keep making over and over and over again). The blind spots we have for people. The blind spots we have for our past.
Teachers and Librarians check
out the free Educator’s Guide Of all my novels, A Blind Spot for Boys was the most fun to write. Machu Picchu, a bedbug sniffing dog, a girl who puts herself on a Boy Moratorium? Those were such fun elements and balanced some of the more serious themes in the book. Seeing your blind spots clearly—the blind spots we have for our mistakes (especially the ones we keep making over and over and over again). The blind spots we have for people. The blind spots we have for our past.
Library Love When You Were a Cub
My second home when I was growing up was the Cupertino Public Library. I would spend hours and hours in the library, browsing books first in their children’s section when I was in elementary school, then in the adult section as I grew up to be a teen. The few YA books at that time were housed in slender rounders on the second floor that I would check every visit in hopes that a new book had been written for girls my age.
This
deeply ingrained memory of wanting stories that reflected me propelled one of
the literacy projects readergirlz spearheaded, Operation Teen Book Drop (Operation TBD)For a number of years, we partnered with Young Adult Library ServicesAssociation (YALSA), publishers, Children’s Hospitals and
libraries to get 30,000 YA novels into the hands of teens around the country. My second home when I was growing up was the Cupertino Public Library. I would spend hours and hours in the library, browsing books first in their children’s section when I was in elementary school, then in the adult section as I grew up to be a teen. The few YA books at that time were housed in slender rounders on the second floor that I would check every visit in hopes that a new book had been written for girls my age.
More Library Love
Celebrating librarians and teachers who work so hard to match books to teens drove Janet Lee Carey, Dia Calhoun, Lorie Ann Grover, and I to create readergirlz.
Celebrating librarians and teachers who work so hard to match books to teens drove Janet Lee Carey, Dia Calhoun, Lorie Ann Grover, and I to create readergirlz.
Readergirlz
with Nancy Pearl
That
same mission to nurture librarians has led me to commit to create small happy
hour gatherings
for librarians and teachers so we could celebrate the launch of
A Blind Spot for Boys together with
Lorie Ann Grover’s new novel, Hit.
We are
so blessed in the greater Seattle area to have truly great librarians who are
providing amazing thought leadership on what it means to be a library and
provide youth services. Their programming is cutting-edge and
community-building. So a special shout out to Jackie Parker Robinson, Rachel McDonald
and Darcy Brixey.
A Lion’s Pride of Programs
One of my greatest joys as an author are my visits to middle and high schools where I get to spend time with remarkable students, teachers, and librarians.
One of my greatest joys as an author are my visits to middle and high schools where I get to spend time with remarkable students, teachers, and librarians.
Photo with
Middle School librarian “Walter the Giant”
With Hanna
Teter and Arlington Librarian
One of
the most memorable visits was to Charlotte Country Day School in North
Carolina. Megan Fink is a truly wonderful librarian who worked with media
specialists to sponsor a multicultural day where I had the privilege of being
the keynote speaker. The school district bused in a couple of hundred of
students to Charlotte Country Day so they could hear me. On display outside the
auditorium was a student’s senior art project: a pair of wings crafted from
maps and inspired by my novel, North of Beautiful. I was beyond touched that my
words could catalyze a young woman to create art.Let’s link
JustinaChen.com
Facebook: facebook.com/AuthorJustinaChen
Twitter: @JustinaYChen
Thank
you Justina for sharing your books and your Library Love with us!
Love
Libraries? Give a Roar in “Comments” below.
Note to
Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library
we’d love to hear about you and your library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview
slot. The calendar for 2015 is currently wide open J
Note to Authors:
If you’re interested in Roaring for Libraries on this blog, contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview
slot.
