My First TikTok Video Celebrates the Love Between Abraham Lincoln and Joshua Fry Speed!

Hi Everyone,

First, I hope you and yours are well.

Second, I'm excited to share this!

@leewind What if you knew a secret from history that could change the world? Abraham Lincoln & Joshua Fry Spped! ##queer ##historybuff
♬ Boys - Lizzo

Of course, if you're curious about Abraham and Joshua, and all the historical evidence that they were in love, you can check out my award-winning YA novel, Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill.

It's all about a teen today discovering this secret from history... and deciding to use it to change the world. It's available in eBook and digital audio, as well as print editions.

Stay Safe,
Lee

p.s. Giant thanks to my husband and our teen daughter for their help pulling this off!

The "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" Audiobook Gets a Strong Review from In'D Tale Magazine!

I'm excited about this review by Chelsea Anderson for the audiobook of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill", in the September 2019 issue of InD'Tale Magazine!

Some highlights:

"a wonderful narrative style"

"an eye-opening experience"

"this is a novel for fans of YA who are looking for an authentic teen experience told with lots of heart!"

and praise for Michael Crouch, who narrates the audiobook:

"Mr. Crouch's narration is one full of emotion and connection to the story. His voice is wonderful to listen to as he takes us through Wyatt's head."

You can read the full review here.

Find out more about Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill here.

Want to listen to the first two chapters for free? Click here.

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee

"Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" Gets a Wonderful Editorial Review in Publishers Weekly!

This review is awesome:

Highlights:

“a smart coming-of-age story... a timely discussion about challenging long-held myths about history… profound and honest.” —Publishers Weekly (BookLife)

Read the full review here.

Getting such a positive editorial review for my debut novel from Publishers Weekly is a wonderful moment. So happy to share it with you.

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee

ALA Inspiration - Two Librarians Share Their Response to Complaints About Their Library's LGBTQ Pride Displays

I'm back from the American Library Association annual conference in Washington D.C., and one discussion among the more than 600 librarians I met really stands out. (By the way, that number is not an exaggeration, I was working at the IBPA booth on the exhibition floor representing over 260 books from our independent publisher members, and I scanned 606 badges over the four days.)

It was during my give-away of audiobook review copies of my YA novel, "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill", for which I had a big diversity rainbow pride flag out on the signing table, rainbow pride flag bookmarks, and a sign about the giveaway with the same pride flag on it as well. I even had a little bust of Abraham Lincoln with some Gay Pride neck jewelry (courtesy of my brother John!) In short, for the times I was at the demo table, I was a lighthouse of LGBTQ inclusion.

And it worked as a lighthouse, drawing interested and allied folks near.

That's me, chatting with interested librarians about the "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" audiobook at #alaac19

One librarian, Monena, told me about how she had a patron complain about a June pride display in their library. Her response? She thanked the patron for sharing their point of view, and then, "I went and added a dozen books to the display."

Another librarian overheard our conversation, and nodded. She had had a patron complaint about a pride display in one of their branch libraries as well. She smiled as she said, "so this year, we did pride displays in two more libraries."

That's the stuff of true allies.

And it's why I so appreciate and respect librarians!

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,

Lee

p.s. If you're a librarian, and you want a free review copy of the audiobook of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill," simply email me your name along with your library name and location, and I'll send you a copy as well! 

leewind (at) roadrunner (dot) com

I'm so excited about the audiobook (narrated by Michael Crouch, who also did the narration for "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda", and with a bonus author interview at the end where the legendary Lesléa Newman interviews me!) You can listen to the first two chapters here.

Librarian Friends! Come Say "Hi" At ALA2019

Hello Librarian friends!

If you're going to be in Washington D.C. for the American Library Association's 2019 annual conference, please swing by the Independent Book Publishers Association booth #1145 where I'll be working, helping to represent the more than 260 books from IBPA's publisher members.

We'll have signings and book giveaways throughout the conference weekend, including me on Saturday June 22, 2019 at 3:30pm and on Sunday June 23, 2019 at Noon!

I'll be giving away free review copies of the "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" audiobook—narrated by Michael Crouch (who also narrated the "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" audiobook), and with a bonus author interview at the end by "Heather Has Two Mommies" author Lesléa Newman!

Listen to the first two chapters of the "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" audiobook for free here.
Visit me at the IBPA booth #1145 to get the full audiobook review copy emailed to you.

It's always a wonderful show, and I hope I'll get to see you.

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee

Order Signed Copies of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" From Pages A Bookstore!

I'm thrilled to announce that Pages A Bookstore in Manhattan Beach, California, will be carrying signed copies of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" and they're happy to mail them to you!

Me, outside the independent Pages A Bookstore

You can order signed copies online at their website here, or call them at 310-318-0900.

Ten minutes from my day job at IBPA, Pages A Bookstore has become my local bookstore, and they're awesome. They even have a pretty amazing LGBTQ Pride month display up—a whole table-worth of great reads—and I'm so excited that Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill is being welcomed to their carefully curated collection!

Here I am, holding a copy of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" in front of their LGBTQ Pride Month Display!

Order your signed copy from Pages A Bookstore today!

My thanks to Kristin, Casey, and the whole Pages A Bookstore team!

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee

I'm Featured In The Lead Story at Books Make A Difference!

This month's headline article is Power and Progress: Diverse Stories, Authentic Voices by Karen Pavlicin-Fragnito.

Wow - there's "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill," among some of my favorite LGBTQ titles for kids and teens!

I'm honored to be included, not just with a generous shout-out to "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill," but also with numerous quotes from my interview with Karen, covering why diversity in books for kids and teens is important, the difference between archetypes and characters, some of my favorite LGBTQ reads for youth, and so much more!

Hey, that's me! Talking to some of the teens who received the crowdfunded donated copies of "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" at Camp Brave Trails.

The article also features Hannah Ehrlich, marketing and publicity director at Lee & Low Books, and T.S. Ferguson, editor at Jimmy Patterson Books. They're both smart and articulate, and I'm delighted to be in their company.

Some stand-out quotes:

“When we see someone like ourselves in books, it’s powerfully validating,” says Lee Wind, author of Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill. At the same time, “When we step into someone else’s shoes through the magic of reading, and they’re different from us in some way (different gender, or racial background, or ability, or religion, or affective orientation) it helps us have a level of empathy and understanding we didn’t have before we knew them through the book.” —Me!

Hannah challenges fellow publishers and editors to recognize they are all gatekeepers and to approach that authority with responsibility. “Books have power,” she says. “And we choose the books.” —Hannah

“And you should be reading multiple books by multiple authors within those communities, because just like in your own communities, not everyone is the same and one perspective is not going to give you a fully formed idea of what these communities are like. You’re not going to read The Hate U Give and fully understand the black experience, for example. You need to be well-read.” —T.S.

Head over to read the full article here at booksmakeadifference.com - it's a great piece!

I'm grateful to Karen for writing it and including me, and to you, my community, for this opportunity to share.

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,

Lee

"Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" Wins the National Indie Excellence Award for Best Book LGBTQ For Children & Young Adults

Hurray!

Look! From the winners page—it's "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill!"

Another lovely accolade for my debut YA novel. I'm so grateful more people will find out about the story now!

Check out the super-fun listing of all the winners of the National Indie Excellence Awards here.

Want to know the story-behind-the-story of Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill? Check out the 5 minute video I did here.

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee

The Big Gay Fiction Podcast Reviews "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill" -- and Jeff Loved It!

It's a podcast I love, and the love was reciprocated this week  in Episode 189 with Jeff's review of my YA novel, "Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill."

Fun moments from the review:

"I read a tremendous YA novel this past week, it's called Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill, by debut novelist Lee Wind."

"My love of this book starts very much with these teenage characters."

"Even the jerk high school kids that are in this book are written with so much authenticity and dimension that you really fall into their stories, too, and it's really a credit to Lee how he kind of pulls all this together to make such inherently readable and relatable characters."

"I love how much actual history is mixed into this book. It's really brilliant as we've all heard about Lincoln being gay, we've heard those rumors and how it all ties back to Joshua Speed but this book, and through Wyatt's eyes, it really lays out some of the facts as they're presented. There's an interview with Lee at the end of the audiobook, where he talks about the research that he did to get this book as accurate as it is, and it's really a credit to him how he's made a history lesson without making it feel like you're reading a textbook, because it's really Wyatt trying to piece all this stuff together. And there are some really great comparisons to Lincoln and Martin Luther King in the book, too. It's a history lesson without a history lesson, kind of like going to Hamilton, you get the big infusion of history while you enjoy a great musical."

"While there's a lot of history in this book, the story is very much rooted in our time..."

"There were times when I was like, this is really over the top, and then in the next moment, like, it really isn't. Because in these crazy times, when we can look at the news and really ask ourselves what the hell was that? Everything that goes on in the book you can easily see just escalating in the society that we've got today. And Lee perfectly captured all that and it grounds the book, actually, with a very here and now kind of feel to it."

"I have to give a quick shout out, too, to Michael Crouch. Michael's the voice of Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, and he does a tremendous job with a large cast of adults and kids who are in this book..."

"I highly recommend, for a great YA read, Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill by Lee Wind."

You can watch the podcast (and hear the full review at about 9:17 in) on youtube here,



or get the podcast wherever you listen to podcasts!

Thanks, Jeff!

And hurray!

Highlights of #KidLitCon2019

What an awesome weekend! It was great seeing friends (tried and true and new) and being immersed in this wonderful community of authors, illustrators, teachers, librarians, and children's and teen book bloggers!

Some of the moments still resonating for me:

#1
My panel, Reaching Readers: Getting Your Book To Kids was a blast!

Left to Right: Anika Denise, Barbara Fisch, Me(!), Debbie Kovacs, and Josh Funk

We played games (the one-minute timed elevator pitches were fun—and well-received),  spoke about strategies, working with publishers and bookstores, online communities, the importance of planning ahead and making checklists, and supporting others. (And, in a humbling moment, I learned to be more careful with my language.)

The session ended with Anika reminding us all of balance, and how while we have to spend time getting our books to kids, it's also important to make time to write the next book. It was a really wonderful panel!

#2
The many moments of inspiration and insight, some of which were captured by myself and others on twitter. Here are 17 of them:

Lee Wind‏ @leewind Mar 22

children of color become "experts in whiteness" while children of the dominant (read: white) culture know nothing about their peers of color. -@EmmaOtheguy at #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind 24h24 hours ago

"Magic is about power... Spirituality and belief systems are also about power." Zetta Elliott talks respect and subverting expectations on the "Diverse Fantasy in the Real World" at #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind 22h22 hours ago

"So many different parts of my life are in the book, in a kaleidoscope way." -Ann Bradley at #KidLitCon2019

Debbi Michiko Florence‏ @DebbiMichiko 23h23 hours ago

“Tell the story as true as possible.” @JoKnowles #KidLitCon2019

Kirsten Cappy, Curious City‏ @TheCuriousCity Mar 22

“You have to tell children, ‘you can walk your self out of ANYTHING.’” - @LynMullalyHunt @kidlitprov @KidLitCon #KidLitCon2019 #resilience

PeeCeeAch‏ @PaulaChase Mar 23

"We all deserve to be part of the conversation." #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind Mar 22

"What if queerness in picture books was as ubiquitous as red hair?" stories centered on red hair, and stories just about them being kids. "Every kid is the hero of their own story." - @AndreaJLoney at #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind 19h19 hours ago

"Kids want to read what other kids recommend." Melissa Fox at #KidLitCon2019, with Ms. Yingling and Sam Musher

goodnight, irene‏ @kerstynleigh Mar 23

"Write the thing that's gonna get you up in the morning and keep you up late at night." -@varianjohnson #KidLitCon2019

goodnight, irene‏ @kerstynleigh 23h23 hours ago

"You find a way out. Where is that way to get to hope? Find that one crack so that kids know that somehow, there is gonna be a way through." -@annbradenbooks #KidLitCon2019

Hayley Barrett‏ @hayleybwrites Mar 23

"I wanted my writing to get the best of my day." @varianjohnson on getting an early (as in 4:15am) start to his creative work. #KidLitCon2019 #Keynote

Lee Wind‏ @leewind 19h19 hours ago

"Goofy enthusiasm" - @MsYingling shares her most important ingredient in getting books to kids at #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind Mar 22

"This is my year of convincing myself that character IS plot... how they react to things is plot." -Leslie Connor at #KidLitCon2019

Lee Wind‏ @leewind Mar 22

"to survive in school... I learned that I had to put away my Latinx identity." @EmmaOtheguy speaks of what motivated her to become the proud Latinx author she is today. #KidLitCon2019

Debbi Michiko Florence‏ @DebbiMichiko 23h23 hours ago

Sharing hope w readers is key. -@annbradenbooks #KidLitCon2019

Josh Funk‏ @joshfunkbooks 23h23 hours ago

“I hear people say, ‘We’d love to have your books in our school, but we don’t have any black kids.’ That’s EXACTLY why you *need* them!” - @zettaelliott at #KidLitCon2019 #KidLitCon

Publisher Spotlight‏ @pubspotlight Mar 22

“To me all division ends when the story rings true” #LeUyenPham on #diversity #anger & #kidsbooks #KidLitCon2019

#3
The chance to share about my own Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill, how it is the story of my heart, and even sign copies purchased by wonderful people!

Gratitude to Charlotte and all the other volunteer organizers, and to Katie at Barrington Books!

The light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you,
Lee