We are delighted to host a virtual book release party with our friend Carol Coven Grannick as we celebrate her new novel-in-verse for young people, Reeni's Turn.  Carol's beautiful book is the story of a young dancer struggling with lifelong shyness, anxiety, and a newly-developing and expanding body that does not match the ballerina posters on her bedroom wall. Ultimately Reeni must choose between coming to terms with her natural limitations, or taking a chance on becoming the girl of her dreams. The story addresses universal themes of emotional resilience, body acceptance, and the search for courage, and we recommend this program for readers ages 9 to adult. 

This event is free. To register, please email events@thebookstall.com.

Advance Praise for Reeni's Turn: 

"In lyrical, deeply moving verse, Reeni's Turn shares both the joy and beauty of dance and the cruel self-doubt caused by our culture's obsession with bodily appearance. This is an extraordinarily empowering book.  —Claudia Mills, Zero Tolerance, Nixie Ness Cooking Star (After-School Superstars)

"Reeni's Turn is a moving story of identity, courage, and self-acceptance. Grannick's verse spins with a dancer's ease: graceful and elegant, determined and powerful. Readers will connect with Reeni’s struggle to listen to her inner voice when the world threatens to drown it out, and applaud as she triumphs."  —Lisa Jenn Bigelow, Hazel’s Theory of Evolution and Drum Roll, Please

"Reeni Rosenbloom leapt off the page and pirouetted straight into my heart. Her struggles with body image and the pressure to conform to society’s ideal were both achingly real and refreshingly honest. Every young girl needs to read this lyrical gem of a novel!"  —Jenny Meyerhoff, The Friendship Garden series, the Louie Burger books, and Playing Cupid.

 “Through beautifully crafted poetry, Carol Coven Grannick creates a main character who is strong yet vulnerable and highly relatable. Reeni's Turn artfully portrays the dance that is middle school--sometimes smooth, sometimes unstable, always growth-rendering.”  —Ami Polonsky, Gracefully Grayson and Spin With Me (2020)

About the Author: Carol Coven Grannick is an award-winning author, poet, and chronicler, writing picture books and short fiction, poetry for very young children, and articles and essays chronicling the “inner” writing journey, with a focus on emotional resilience. Her poetry and fiction for young children has appeared or is forthcoming in numerous magazines, including Hello, Babybug, Highlights, Ladybug, and Cricket. She is a regular columnist for the Illinois SCBWI Prairie Wind, reporter for Cynthia Leitich Smith's award-winning blog, Cynsations, and a member of the GROG blog. She is represented by Joyce Sweeney at The Seymour Agency.