Lesléa Newman

Reading from October mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard Newman is the award-winning author of more than 60 books for adults, young adults, and children, including A Letter to Harvey Milk, Nobody's Mother, Hachiko Waits, Write from the Heart, The Boy Who Cried Fabulous, The Best Cat in the World, and Heather Has Two Mommies. Her latest book, October mourning, is a cycle of 68 poems that explores the effect of Matthew Shepard's murder upon the world. (added from IndieBound)… (more)

October mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard

On the night of October 6, 1998, a gay twenty-one-year-old college student named Matthew Shepard was lured from a Wyoming bar by two young men, savagely beaten, tied to a remote fence, and left to die. Lesléa Newman was deeply affected by Matthew Shepard's murder and wrote October mourning to try to understand the impact this hate crime has had on the world and on herself. By telling Matthew Shepard's story in the voices of the silent witnesses (the fence he was tied to, the stars that watched over him, the deer who kept him company, etc.), she creates a compelling narrative that enables young readers to experience the intense emotions of that day, which resonated around the world. With this work, she inspires all of us to work to make the world a safer place and to erase hate and replace it with compassion, understanding, and love in remembrance of Matthew Shepard. A 2013 Stonewall Honor Book, October mourning is a book both for young adults and for caring people of all ages. Lesléa Newman is the author of more than sixty books for children and adults, including the groundbreaking children’s classic Heather Has Two Mommies.

Location: Street: 5233 N. Clark St. City: Chicago, Province: Illinois Postal Code: 60640-2122 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Odyssey Kids! presents our annual Holiday Signing. This is a great chance to find a book for everyone on your list! Authors will be on hand to sign, inscribe, and talk about their books. An inscribed book makes a unique holiday gift!

This year the following authors will be signing from 1pm-2:30pm:

Jane Dyer

Mordicai Gerstein

Jarrett Krosoczka

Natasha Lowe

Leslea Newman

As always, we're happy to reserve a signed book for you if you can't make it to the event! For a complete list of available titles, please contact the Odyssey.

Location: Street: 9 College St. Additional: City: South Hadley, Province: Massachusetts Postal Code: 01075 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

On the night of October 6, 1998, a gay twenty-one-year-old college student named Matthew Shepard was lured from a Wyoming bar by two young men, savagely beaten, tied to a remote fence, and left to die. Gay Awareness Week was beginning at the University of Wyoming, and the keynote speaker was Lesléa Newman, discussing her book Heather Has Two Mommies. Shaken, the author addressed the large audience that gathered, but she remained haunted by Matthew’s murder. October mourning, a novel in verse, is her deeply felt response to the events of that tragic day. Using her poetic imagination, the author creates fictitious monologues from various points of view, including the fence Matthew was tied to, the stars that watched over him, the deer that kept him company, and Matthew himself. More than a decade later, this stunning cycle of sixty-eight poems serves as an illumination for readers too young to remember, and as a powerful, enduring tribute to Matthew Shepard’s life.

Lesléa Newman is the author of more than sixty books for children and adults, including the groundbreaking children’s classic Heather Has Two Mommies. A former poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts, she has received poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Fellowship Foundation. She lives in Holyoke, Massachusetts.

Location: Street: Porter Square Shopping Center Additional: 25 White Street City: Cambridge, Province: Massachusetts Postal Code: 02140 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)