JEWELL PARKER RHODES

My grandmother valued her Southern roots, folk culture, and healing.

In 'Bayou Magic,' I write about African goddess-mermaids who accompanied slaves to America.

The empathy I found reading 'Heidi' and 'Little Women' is empathy we have as human beings that can feed all of our souls. We have our differences, but we're all so similar in our humanness. So those stories about young girls overcoming meant a lot to me and gave me hope.

I tried the second season of 'American Horror Story,' and it scared me horribly. I guess I prefer my own imagination to a realized visual.

To me, the pinnacle of my career is writing for youth. I can die happy: I have succeeded in doing what I have always wanted to do.

I was born in a ghetto on the North Side of Pittsburgh. I was born as Emmett Till was dying and the civil rights era was being born.

My grandmother and my upbringing filled me with the spirit of the church and the spirit of the faith brought by Africans to the new land during slavery.

I always wanted to write for children. When I was growing up, we were really poor. My mother had left, and it was all a mess. So I lived in my head a lot, and I would get lots of books for Christmas - from librarians and teachers - and they just fed my imagination.

Prejudice is sinful. All blood flows red. And the most harmful and foolish kind of prejudice is prejudice against yourself. Every woman is your sister, and every woman needs her sisters. So try to give other women the courtesy of your compassion, respect, and forgiveness. Love yourself despite - and because of - your flaws.

I would love for there to be a 'Voodoo Dreams' movie, especially after seeing the glorious 'Beasts of the Southern Wild.' I so admired how the filmmakers captured Louisiana and the magical atmosphere. I cried.

My mother had abandoned the family, so grandmother raised me. And she was instrumental in that she taught me that the world is a glorious place. She taught me to embrace humanity. And she'd say there's never an excuse for joy. And to be thankful.

In 'Bayou Magic,' I bring in the cultural tradition of African mermaids - Mami Wata, the mother goddesses.

I love historical fiction because there's a literal truth, and there's an emotional truth, and what the fiction writer tries to create is that emotional truth.

I inhaled books. I loved Classics Illustrated comic books. These were books that I could afford to buy after I turned in pop bottles for change. 'The Prince and the Pauper,' 'Robinson Crusoe,' 'A Journey to the Center of the Earth.' Male narratives filled with adventure and self-discovery.

When a parent says about a book, 'That's not my child's world,' I remind them of the future. Social fluency will be the new currency of success. Not experiencing diversity challenges our kids' future in the global work force. It handicaps them from making America and the world more livable and just.

I grew up feeling 'less than.' I was the sad, shy child hiding in the hall closet beneath coats. I'd wait for my grandmother's voice to call, 'Jewell, Jewell.' I was lost, waiting to be found. I thought being found, I'd be happier, better. All the while, I read stories. Stories with both truth and lies.

While the books I read as a child lacked diversity in the strict sense, they didn't lack values. Reading, I didn't see me externally, but I felt me - my humanity.

Diversity in books is a civil rights frontier.

Every time a bookseller hands a child a book, they are doing something that is the heart and soul of the American dream and the American ideal. It's a very sacred tradition.

Kids search for what's relevant, what connects with their life... now. They know bad things happen like Hurricane Katrina. Through character driven stories, they explore what it's like to survive, thrive, and become more themselves.

I think it's always natural for children to rebel against their parents and establish their own identity. And also, I think parents get invested in, you know, doing the right thing? And so their anxiety about being good parents might, in a way, affect a relationship negatively.

A grandparent can be simply affirming. A grandparent has been there, done that child-raising stuff, and has the wisdom of experience. And so in some ways, they're free to love without the anxiety of being the actual parents. They're free to give.

I wanted kids to have context for seeing the horrible footage of 9/11. I wanted them to feel the patriotism that united us, the sense of inclusivity, of not discriminating against religions. I want that feeling back, and I want to remind kids - and all of us - that we have a tremendous power when we remember our history and our founding principles.

Children know you ought to be fair. Especially fifth graders. I love fifth graders. They know that bullying is wrong. They know that you should praise one another, and that differences make a strong community. So sometimes I feel as though I can't wait for the fifth graders to grow up and rule the world.

But you...are my sweetest gift. The life surprise that soothed all my ills and gave me my greatest joys. I feel so blessed you are mine. —Mama Ya-Ya