The Black Butterfly by Shirley Reva Vernick

Some of the honors that my books have garnered include: the American Library Association Best Fiction Books for Young Readers List, Junior Library Guild selection, Simon Wiesenthal Once Upon A World Book Award, Dolly Gray Literature Award from the Council for Exceptional Children, Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction-director’s mention, Sydney Taylor Book Awards-honor book, Los Angeles Unified School District Awards-honor book, and Skipping Stones Award-honor book. And Ripped Away probes the realities of being an immigrant. The Black Butterfly’s main character is a social outcast with a flighty mother. Remember Dippy features a neurodiverse character. For instance, my novel The Blood Lie is based on a real blood libel that happened in my northern New York hometown in 1928. One of the themes I feel called to explore through writing is differences: being different, feeling different, not wanting to be different, accepting or shunning other people’s differences. I figured, hey, if I can write this well before I even learn to read, imagine what I’ll be able to do once I can actually make my letters! My first professional publication happened during high school-I submitted an original quip to Reader’s Digest: “Is a belly-dancer a waist of energy?” Then upon graduating from Cornell University, I did corporate communications and freelance feature-writing before taking the plunge into my true lifework-novels. Genius that she was, she read back “my” pithy prose or imagery-rich poetry.

The best way to get one-on-one time with a parent or sibling? Ask them to read me a story! From my earliest memories, books meant special time with the people I adored.Īs a preschooler, I used to scribble on a scrap of paper and ask my mother what I’d written. As the youngest of five children with two working parents, I had to compete for attention.

The Black Butterfly by Shirley Reva Vernick