Congratulations, Jessica Stremer, on PLIGHT OF THE PELICAN!

Thank you so much for sharing the release of PLIGHT OF THE PELICAN: How Science Saved a Species with us! Young readers love STEAM books and I’m sure yours will find many happy readers. Can you share with us a bit about the inspiration for this book? What was your initial spark?

Pelicans are one of my favorite birds. I tried writing a story about them years ago, but it just wasn’t working. Each year Vivian Kirkfield hosts 50 Precious Words writing competition. We were on vacation traveling up the coast of California when I began brainstorming ideas. Pelicans once again popped into my head, but this time I knew exactly what approach I wanted to take. My 50 Precious Words entry received honorable mention, and I decided to flush it out into a new draft, sticking to the sparse language while working in some layered text. Eventually that layered text became part of the story.

Writing STEAM books requires a substantial amount of research. Often it is the most fun part of our writing process. Did you meet any challenges in your research journey? With eight species of pelicans existing in the world, I had to be mindful of my research and narrow down which species I wanted to highlight in the story. I chose to focus on the brown pelican. Going forward I had to make sure that my research aligned with what was true for that species. Often one of the most difficult parts of crafting our books is not deciding what to include, but deciding what to leave out. What did you choose to leave out of this book and why? Rachel Carson played a huge role in advocating for endangered species, and her book Silent Spring exposed the hazards of pesticides like DDT. But there are already several children’s books about Rachel. I chose to leave her mostly out of the story to help make my book different from others in the market.

What tip can you share with teachers who want to use your book in the classroom? PLIGHT OF THE PELICANS can be used in a variety of ways across the curriculum and at different grade levels, including lessons about food chains and relationships in ecosystems, to history, activism, and scientific discovery. I hope to offer an educator’s guide on my website soon!

Congratulations on this book release! What comes next for you? Can you give us a peek at what you are currently researching? My next book, WONDERFULLY WILD: Rewilding a School and Community publishes May 6th and then TRAPPED IN THE TAR PITS: How Paleontologists Unearthed a City’s Prehistoric Past publishes August 26th of this year. In between different publicity events, I’m researching another book about fossils and adding to my always growing “to be written” idea list.

About the author: Jessica Stremer is an award-winning children’s author who combines her love of science and writing to create books that inspire kids to explore and think critically about the world around them. Her books have received multiple starred reviews and have been designated as School Library Journal Gold Standard Selections, Cook Prize Silver Medal recipient, NYPL Best Book of the Year, and NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book. Jessica obtained a B.S. in Biology from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. When not writing you can find her cheering from the sideline of her kids’ soccer games and planning her next family adventure.