THE BRIDGE HOME, BORN BEHIND BARS, SAFE HARBOR, A TIME TO DANCE. WNDB Walter Award winning writer, reader, poet, oceanographer, yoga teacher. K-12 Education. Science, nature, music, art. DEI. “Stories are ships on which we sail oceans of hope.”
Author Padma Venkatraman
Good morning.
The state of Utah banned its 35th book from *all public schools statewide* on Friday. The book was published in 1999.
Here's the story, why books are being banned, and where these state-sanctioned bans are coming from.
bookriot.com/utah-has-ban...
🌟Starred Review from #SchoolLibraryJournal 🌟
FARAWAY FAMILY
Illustrated by @painternik.bsky.social
In stores August 25, 2026
“This book stands out due to its quiet realism” - #SchoolLibraryJournalReviews🌟
🙏🏾
@penguinbooksusa.bsky.social @penguinkids.bsky.social
#starredreviews⭐️ #picturebooks
The 79th Annual Tony Awards are tonight! It is the perfect day to reveal the cover for This Is a Theater, illustrated by Jaime Kim and written by me! 100scopenotes.com/2026/06/07/e...
Design Credit: Maryellen Hanley
Publication Date: March 2, 2027
WEAVER AND THE WEB (Godwin/ @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social ) by Chris Baker; illus. by Byron Eggenschwiler will receive a starred review in the July/August 2026 #HornBookMagazine. Congratulations! #HBMag #HBStars www.hbook.com/story/july-a...
⭐️ Hooray Starred Review from #SchoolLibraryJournal !! ⭐️
FARAWAY FAMILY
Written by @padmatv.bsky.social
In stores August 25, 2026
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
@penguinbooksusa.bsky.social @penguinkids.bsky.social @jmcgowanbks.bsky.social
#schoollibraryjournalreview #starredreviews⭐️⭐️ #picturebookreview
@aabbri.bsky.social
Excited and grateful that #SafeHarborBook (@nancyrosep.bsky.social ) is on 6 state award lists! Thank you for the 💚 for a book that slipped so quietly into the world. Congrats to these other @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social @penguinschoollib.bsky.social titles that have hit the 5 state award mark!
Thanks for publishing our commentary @providencejournal.bsky.social
Let’s #fightcensorship and #ProtectPublicSchools and #ProtectPublicLibraries
End prejudice and end hate 🌈
#authorsagainstbookbans @aabbri @riaabb
www.providencejournal.com/story/opinio...
Standing in solidarity with MTA Rank and File for Palestine
actionnetwork.org/forms/stand-...
Thanks to my friend and colleague Dr. Silvia Schultermandl, I got to deliver the opening keynote at the University of Munster American Studies conference on kinship tonight.
My children were in the audience, and everyone was so gracious and supportive about my work around the kinship of loss. 🙏🏾
Author Padma Venkatraman
kelly jensen
The Horn Book
Author Padma Venkatraman
Nicole Wong
John Schu
Author Padma Venkatraman
Utah has added yet another book to the list of titles that must be removed from all public schools statewide.
