Reviews
Like a fairy-tale heroine, Hazel traverses the woods without a breadcrumb trail to save a boy who may not want to be saved in this multi-layered, artfully crafted, transforming testament to the power of friendship. (Kirkus Reviews)

The evocative magical landscape, superbly developed characters (particularly dreamy, self-doubting, determined Hazel and lost Jack), and the piercing sadness of a faltering childhood friendship give this delicately written fantasy wide and lingering appeal. (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books)

The creepy fantasyland that Hazel traverses uses bits from other Andersen tales to create a story that…is beautifully written and wholly original. It’s certainly the only children’s fantasy around where Minnesota Twins All-Star catcher Joe Mauer figures into the plot. (Publishers Weekly)

“Devastatingly brilliant and beautiful…Ursu has sculpted a rich and poignant adventure that brings readers deep into the mysterious, magical, and sometimes frightening forests of childhood and change. Breadcrumbs is one of those rare novels that turned me on my head then sat on my heart and refused to budge.” (Ingrid Law, Newbery Honor-winning author of Savvy)

“This is a lyrical book, a lovely book, and a smart book; it dares us to see stories as spreading more widely, and running more deeply, than we had imagined.” (Gary Schmidt, Newbery Honor-winning author of The Wednesday Wars)

A body on the tracks

A teenage terrorist

A mysterious wish-granting machine

The world’s worst private detective

The second volume in the Guys Read Library of Great Reading is chock-full of mystery, intrigue, and nefarious activity. Featuring some of the best writers around, and compiled by certified guy Jon Scieszka, Guys Read: Thriller is a pulse-pounding collection of brand-new short stories, each one guaranteed to keep you riveted until the final page.

WaldenFans.com: Tell us a bit about yourself, for our readers that might not know much about you.

Ingrid: I was born in New York, but my family moved to Colorado when I was six years old. I still live in Colorado with my daughter, who is sixteen now. We both love movies and books and writing.

My first book, Savvy, came out in 2008 and was published by Dial Books, in partnership with Walden Media. Among Savvy’s accolades and awards, it has received a Newbery Honor and a Boston Globe – Horn Book Honor; it became a New York Times bestseller, and was selected by Oprah Winfrey and Al Roker for their reading lists and book clubs. Savvy was also optioned for a feature film by Walden Media. I followed up Savvy with a companion book, titled Scumble, which came out in 2010 and immediately became a New York Times bestseller. I never expected such an amazing response to my books. I feel very blessed, not only because of the success of the books, but because of the wonderful people I’ve had a chance to meet and work with because of them.

WaldenFans.com: Can you give us a quick teaser for each of the Savvy books that will give us an idea of what we’re in for?

Ingrid: In Savvy, Mibs Beaumont is about to become a teenager. As if that weren’t scary enough, thirteen is when a Beaumont’s savvy strikes–and with one brother who causes hurricanes and another who creates electricity, Mibs’s birthday promises to be outrageous. But just before her big day, Poppa is in a terrible accident. Suddenly, Mibs’s dreams of X-ray vision disappear like a flash of her brother’s lightning: All she wants now is a savvy that will save Poppa. In fact, Mibs is so sure she’ll get that powerful savvy that she sneaks a ride to the hospital on a rickety bus, with her siblings and the preacher’s kids in tow. But when the bus starts heading in the wrong direction only one thing is certain: After this extraordinary adventure, not a soul on board will ever be the same.

Scumble, a companion to Savvy, takes place nine years after Mibs’s adventure and stars her cousin, Ledger Kale. Ledge thinks his savvy is a total dud—all he does is make little things fall apart. So his parents decide it’s safe to head to Wyoming for a family wedding, where it’s soon revealed that Ledge’s savvy is much more powerful than anyone thought. Worse, his savvy disaster has an outside witness: Sarah Jane Cabot, reporter wannabe and daughter of a local business man. Just like that, Ledge’s beloved normal life is over. Now, he has to keep Sarah from turning family secrets into headlines, stop her father from foreclosing on Uncle Autry’s ranch, and scumble his savvy into control so that, someday, he can go home again.

WaldenFans.com: What were your inspirations for the stories in the Savvy and Scumble?

Ingrid: Initially, I was driven to imagine what American magic might look like–no wands, cauldrons, or potions. Some people have started calling what I do ‘rural magic.’ But from the beginning, I wanted to create stories about magical children but never actually use the word ‘magic.’ I wanted readers to get the sense that a ‘savvy’ is something everyone has, that everyone has a talent, or something they are working to be good at. Ultimately, the books are about facing the challenges of growing up. The kids I write about simply face those challenges in a fantastical, tall-tale way.

WaldenFans.com: What themes did you try to convey in the story?

Ingrid: I enjoy coming-of-age themes, as well as themes of family, friendship, compassion, and self-awareness.

WaldenFans.com: Are you excited at the potential film version of Savvy?

Ingrid: Yes! I’m a huge movie fan. So, it’s very exciting to know that there’s potential for a Savvy film.

WaldenFans.com: How do you feel about your characters coming to life?

Ingrid: If the project continues to move forward, it will be fun to see how a whole team of creative and talented people choose to bring their vision of my characters and story to the big screen.

WaldenFans.com: When and why did you begin writing?

Ingrid: Long before I ever started writing my stories down, I had dozens of them in my head. I used to make up stories to entertain myself and to keep myself from getting anxious. I was often a very nervous child and I discovered that inventing stories and creating new worlds and characters kept me from worrying about everyday things. Eventually, I moved the stories out of my head and onto paper.

WaldenFans.com: When did you first consider yourself a writer?

Ingrid: Probably when I finished my first novel-length manuscript when I was about 20. It was a big accomplishment. But I was a merely a hobby writer off and on for years before I got serious about the craft and attempted to get something published.

WaldenFans.com: Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?

Ingrid: Anne Ursu is not a new author, but she does have a new book coming out (from Walden Pond Press) that has grasped more than just my interest, it has stolen my heart! The book is called BREADCRUMBS. It’s fabulous. Watch for it this coming fall!

WaldenFans.com: Who designed the covers?

Ingrid: A very talented illustrator named Brandon Dorman created the covers for both of my books. He also created the few interior illustrations in the hard cover editions. You can see more of his fabulous work at www.brandondorman.com

WaldenFans.com: What was the hardest part of writing the Savvy series?

Ingrid: One of the trickiest parts about writing these books is striking just the right balance between the fantasy and real-world conflicts, as well as the internal versus external conflicts. There is no evil super villain the kids have to defeat. They do not have to save the world. They are concerned with family and friends and with learning about who they are, inside and out. The kids need to face everyday challenges in both everyday and extraordinary ways–all while having some larger-than-life adventures!

WaldenFans.com: Did you learn anything from writing the Savvy series, and what was it?

Ingrid: I believe every experience gives us the opportunity to learn. I learn more about myself and the world whenever I write. Even though my books are considered fantasy, I do a lot of research and I visit the places I write about, seeing and learning all sorts of unexpected things.

WaldenFans.com: Do you have any advice for other writers?

Ingrid: My best advice for any writer, young or old, is: 1) Be brave–write what you love! 2) Read a lot. Good readers make great writers. And, 3) Have fun with your first draft, then be willing to work hard and revise, revise, revise.

WaldenFans.com: Finally, if you write a 3rd book in the Savvy series, do you have ideas for the direction you’d like it to go?

Ingrid: I plan to switch again to the viewpoint of another character–most likely to that of Gypsy Beaumont. A lot of kids want to know why I choose to do this instead of sticking with the POV of the character they got to know and love in a previous book. The answer is that it gives me the opportunity to explore the idea of having a savvy birthday–of finding one’s center through the process of growing up and changing–from a variety of perspectives. There are so many different kinds of kids in our world, each one with his or her own challenges. I want to show that that is the case with my magical ‘savvy’ kids as well.

Although the platypuses—officers Rick Zengo and Corey O’Malley—are ostensibly adults (adult animals, anyway) and the books will riff on tropes from films and TV shows aimed at adults, Krosoczka isn’t concerned that kids won’t get the jokes. “At the core, these characters have sort of a big brother–little brother relationship,” said Krosoczka. “Whereas the Lunch Lady books satisfy readers of my picture books, as kids grow out of the Lunch Lady books, they could grow into this.”

Although Platypus Police Squad is Krosoczka’s first series with HarperCollins, he’s not moving away from Knopf, with whom he has published several picture books and the Lunch Lady series of graphic novels. Nor is he moving away from those formats: the fifth Lunch Lady book, Lunch Lady and the Bake Sale Bandit, will be published in December, and Krosoczka is working on a sixth title. And in fall 2011, Knopf will publish Krosoczka’s next picture book, Ollie, about an elephant that moves in with a Brooklyn family.

For Walden Pond Press, Platypus Police Squad represents exactly the kind of project its editors want to publish, according to Brown. “Walden Pond Press has been conscious from the start that the way kids are finding books and reading books and stories is changing drastically,” he explained. “We are acquiring authors and creators who are doing projects that can live in multiple spaces and find kids in multiple ways.”

HarperCollins and Walden Media’s collaboration predates the creation of Walden Pond Press, with Harper’s publishing programs tied to Walden properties, including the Chronicles of Narnia movies, Bridge to Terabithia, and, most recently, Ramona and Beezus. “We have always tried to bring to film projects [a] love of literature, and to make sure kids are reading the books the films are based on,” said Debbie Kovacs, senior v-p and editorial director of Walden Media.

On the film front, one of the most critically acclaimed titles on Walden Pond’s first list, Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce, will be a film from Walden Media; Boyce is working on the screenplay. While Platypus Police Squad could end up at Walden Media, Krosoczka retained film rights to the project, and Eddie Gamarra at the Gotham Group is currently sharing it with screenwriters.

Krosoczka has other film projects in the works as well. His picture book Punk Farm, which had previously been optioned by DreamWorks, is now being produced by an independent animation studio, and last year Universal optioned Krosoczka’s Lunch Lady series, with Amy Poehler attached to star. “I know that side of business can be very finicky,” said the author. “We just continue to keep our fingers crossed here in the Krosoczka household.”

Liam has always felt a bit like he’s stuck between two worlds. This is primarily because he’s a twelve-year-old kid who looks like he’s about thirty. Sometimes it’s not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school or when he convinces a car dealer to let him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly it’s just frustrating, being a kid trapped in an adult world. And so he decides to flip things around. Liam cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space, a special flight for a group of kids and an adult chaperone, and he is going as the adult chaperone. It’s not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again—only this time he’s 239,000 miles from home.

Frank Cottrell Boyce, author of Millions and Framed, brings us a funny and touching story of the many ways in which grown-upness is truly wasted on grown-ups.

“Cosmic” is on the shortlist for the U.K. Carnegie Award and is the latest release from Walden Pond Press, a joint venture of Walden Media and HarperCollins.

Besides publishing books for young readers, Walden Pond is set up to pair book properties with filmmakers and actors. It also collaborates on development and production of features.

“In short, the story is ‘Apollo 13′ meets ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,’ so it makes sense that ‘Cosmic’s’ out-of-this-world adventure would include a journey to the movie theater,” said Francis X. Flaherty Jr., publisher of Walden Pond.

Walden’s Evan Turner will oversee the project with Walden topper Michael Bostick.

Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce

Liam has always felt a bit like he’s stuck between two worlds. This is primarily because he’s a twelve-year-old kid who looks like he’s about thirty. Sometimes it’s not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school or when he convinces a car dealer to let him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly it’s just frustrating, being a kid trapped in an adult world. And so he decides to flip things around. Liam cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space, a special flight for a group of kids and an adult chaperone, and he is going as the adult chaperone. It’s not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again—only this time he’s 239,000 miles from home.

Frank Cottrell Boyce, author of Millions and Framed, brings us a funny and touching story of the many ways in which grown-upness is truly wasted on grown-ups.

Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s books and Space Center Houston today announced the launch of a national sweepstakes in which a family of four will be selected to go on a Completely Cosmic, VIP Behind the Scenes Access Tour of NASA and SPACE CENTER HOUSTON. The event marks the publication of COSMIC, a hilarious story about a 12-year-old boy who cons his way into the first civilian-manned mission to space and goes on the thrill ride of his life. Written by Frank Cottrell Boyce, the best-selling author of Framed and Millions, this touchingly classic story about finding a place where you belong will be available wherever books are sold beginning January 19, 2010. Sweepstakes entries will be accepted from then until February 23, 2010 at www.harpercollinschildrens.com.

Designed to spark the imagination of children who may someday be future astronauts and explorers in space, the winners will receive an unforgettable interactive family experience as their personal guide escorts them on an exclusive two-day behind the scenes tour to see the real world of NASA at work.

“SPACE CENTER HOUSTON, the official visitor center for NASA Johnson Space Center, has designed a thrilling trip that will give a family a once-in-a-lifetime experience that calls to mind the great adventure in Boyce’s phenomenal new book COSMIC,” said Francis X. Flaherty, Jr., Publisher, Walden Pond Press.

Space Center Houston’s Director of Education, Dr. Melanie Johnson said, “Space Center Houston is a natural education arena to experience the excitement of Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematic (STEM) disciplines.”

During the tour, guests will walk in the footsteps of America’s astronaut heroes from the Apollo missions to today’s Space Shuttle astronauts and scientists. Family members will be immersed in a fascinating exploration of SPACE CENTER HOUSTON and NASA that is scheduled to include a tour of the astronaut cafeteria, space vehicle mock-up facility, new mission control center, historic mission control center, and other unique space environment training facilities, simulators, and research laboratories.

“Boyce captures the excitement of going into space,” said Diane Naughton Vice President of Marketing for HarperCollins Children’s Books. “With the NASA collaboration we’ve created a platform that allows us to share the thrill of space exploration with young readers everywhere.”

The tour includes hotel lodging and airfare to Houston. For complete entry details visit www.harpercollinschildrens.com.

About Space Center Houston the official visitor center for Johnson Space Center

Averaging approximately 750,000 domestic visitors each year, Space Center Houston is the gateway to NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Its mission is to serve as a world-class attraction dedicated to inspiring, entertaining and educating every generation about space exploration and its benefits to humankind. Space Center Houston has entertained and informed more than 12 million star-struck guests from every corner of the globe. The center features a multitude of permanent displays, attractions and theatres, specializing in space exploration. In addition, the 183,000-square-foot intelligent-fun complex presents an amazing array of traveling exhibits and remarkable events. Visitors can also experience a “behind-the-scenes” look at JSC and the American space program on one of the tram tours offered at the complex. www.spacecenter.org

About Frank Cottrell Boyce and COSMIC

Cosmic, the third novel by best-selling author and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce, was shortlisted for the prestigious UK Carnegie Award. Boyce’s debut novel, Millions, a New York Times best-seller and Carnegie Award winner was brought to the big screen in a 2004 film of the same name directed by Academy Award winner Danny Boyle.

In this middle grade fiction novel, we meet Liam who has always felt a bit like he’s stuck between two worlds. This is primarily due to the fact that he’s a twelve-year-old who looks like he’s about thirty. Sometimes it’s not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school, or when he convinces a car dealer to let him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly, being a kid trapped in an adult world is just frustrating. And so Liam decides to flip things around–he cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space. It’s a special flight, for a group of kids and one adult chaperone, and Liam is going as the adult chaperone. It’s not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again – only this time he’s 239,000 miles from home.

About Walden Pond Press

Walden Pond Press is dedicated to inspiring children to ready by identifying and publishing the next generation of children’s classics. Walden Pond Press is a strategic partnership between HarperCollins and Walden Media, LLC, and it is Walden Media’s first dedicated publishing imprint. The joint venture follows a longstanding promotional partnership between Walden Media and HarperCollins supporting literacy, featuring such properties as The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, Bridge to Terabithia and Charlotte’s Web that have been published by HarperCollins and adapted for the big screen by Walden Media. . Upcoming Walden Media films include “Tooth Fairy” starring Dwayne Johnson, “Ramona & Beezus” starting Selena Gomez and the third installment in the Chronicles of Narnia series, “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.”Walden Pond Press is dedicated to inspiring children to ready by identifying and publishing the next generation of children’s classics. www.walden.com

About Walden Media LLC

Walden Media specializes in entertainment for the whole family. Past award-winning films include: “The Chronicles of Narnia” series, “Journey to the Center of the Earth,” “Nim’s Island” and “Charlotte’s Web.” Upcoming films include “Tooth Fairy” starring Dwayne Johnson, “Ramona & Beezus” starring Selena Gomez and the third installment in the Narnia series: “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.” www.walden.com

About HarperCollins Children’s Books

HarperCollins Children’s Books is one of the leading publishers of children’s books. Respected worldwide for its tradition of publishing quality, award-winning books for young readers, HarperCollins is home to many timeless treasures–Charlotte’s Web, The Chronicles of Narnia, Goodnight Moon, Where the Sidewalk Ends and Where the Wild Things Are; and popular new classics–A Series of Unfortunate Events, Warriors and Fancy Nancy. HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollins Publishers, one of the leading English language publishers in the world and a subsidiary of News Corporation (NYSE: NWS, NWS.A; ASX: NCP, NCPDP). Headquartered in New York, HarperCollins has publishing groups in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australasia. You can visit HarperCollins Children’s Books at www.harpercollinschildrens.com and HarperCollins Publishers at www.harpercollins.com

COSMIC

By Frank Cottrell Boyce
Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books
$16.99 Tr: 9780061836831
Ages: 8 – 12 / January 19, 2010
www.harpercollinschildrens.com

NASA and Walden Media launched the exclusive Totally Cosmic Adventure at NASA Sweepstakes. The two-day, behind-the-scenes tour of NASA coincides with the launch of Cosmic, an “out of this world adventure novel by Frank Cottrell Boyce.

The winning family will get a VIP tour of Space Center Houston, including the astronaut training areas, the astronaut cafeteria, space vehicle mock-up facility, new mission control center, historic mission control center and other unique space environment training facilities, simulators and research laboratories.

Sweepstakes entries will be accepted from January through February 23, 2010, at the HarperCollins Children’s Books website.