I’ve just found out that The Marvelwood Magicians has been nominated for the Rhode Island Children’s Book Award! This is such exciting news. Students in the state will be reading the book, and then they’ll be voting on it, and maybe it will win. But even if it doesn’t, the nomination means that lots of kids will get a chance to read it.
Rhode Island is a beautiful state with a glorious coastline. I spent part of my honeymoon there. I have friends who live there. And now the librarians and readers of Rhode Island are honoring the Marvelwoods. Thank you all so much!
Just FYI: here are some strange and/or interesting facts I’ve learned about the state:
- Its official name is The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.
- Newport, RI, was the first town in the country (before it was even a country) to host a circus.
- Its official state bird is a…chicken.
- It’s the home of the country’s oldest Baptist church and oldest synagogue — and oldest still-functioning lending library.
(And as the nomination is the result of librarian love, I must add: HAPPY NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK! There is no better place than a library, and 
no better people than librarians. They are our bookish superheros.)