I never thought I’d write a book about birds. Then I started teaching
sixth grade English, and I was thrown into a cross-curricular research project
on North American birds. Over several years, my students and I came to
appreciate birds and their various behaviors, quirks, and personalities. I was
writing a lot during this time, but then one day I thought to myself, “What if there was a boy who couldn’t find a
bird? What if he searched for this bird every day, like his life depended on
it?” A couple of years later, after hundreds of hours of research, pouring
over field guides and websites, I finished a book called BIRD NERD. Which then
became MIGHT FLY AWAY. Which then became what it is now: SOAR.
To be honest, I was nervous about the cover. It’s one of those things
where you lie in bed at night and think about what your book will look like on
a bookshelf. There are a lot of elements in the story, and I had no idea where
the artist would take it. Even I wasn’t
exactly sure which angle would best represent the complete narrative. However,
I was almost certain that somehow, some way, a bird would find its way onto the
cover. Sure enough, that’s what happened, and I couldn’t be more excited about
the way artist Brian Biggs captured the essence of Eddie’s story, including the
majestic golden eagle. I’d like to give a huge CHIRP (shout out!) to the team
at Aladdin for creating something special:
Brian Biggs-artist/illustrator
Alyson Heller-editor
Karin Paprocki-designer
Mandy Veloso-managing editor
Sarah Kwak-production
SOAR… coming July 5, 2016…
Seventh grader Eddie is
determined honor his father’s legacy and win the school science fair in this
fun and quirky debut novel.
Eddie learned everything there is to know about birding from his dad, including
the legend of the golden eagle, which Dad claimed he saw once down near Miss
Dorothy’s pond. According to his dad, the golden eagle had wings wider than a
creek and talons the size of bulldozer claws. But when Eddie was in sixth
grade, Dad “flew away” for good, leaving Eddie on his own to await the return
of the elusive raptor.
Now
Eddie is starting seventh grade and trying to impress Gabriella, the new girl
in town. The annual seventh grade Science Symposium is looming (which Dad
famously won), and Eddie is determined to claim the blue ribbon for himself.
With Mr. Dover, the science teacher who was Dad’s birding rival, seemingly
against him, and with Mouton, the class bully, making his life miserable on all
fronts, Eddie is determined to overcome everything and live up to Dad’s memory.
Can Eddie soar and make his dream take flight?
TracyEdward Wymer is the author of middle grade books SOAR (S&S/Aladdin, Spring
2016) and THE COLOR OF BONES, and he is part of the anthology BEEN THERE, DONE
THAT (Penguin 11/3/15). When not plowing through stacks of books on his
nightstand, he likes to run, write, and root for the Kansas City Royals. He
lives with his family in Los Angeles.
