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Julie A. Swanson

@jules9swanson

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MG & YA author, mom, wife, gran, sis, aunt, she/her, interested in gender, spirituality, psychology, dreams, love the outdoors & making things, DIYer

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Some books just make you feel a little less alone while you’re figuring things out. 📚💛 These coming-of-age books explore what it really feels like to grow up and find your place in the world. From changing friendships to figuring out who you are, these stories capture the experiences that can shape us along the way.

Whether you’re going through that stage now or looking back on it years later, there’s always something that can hit close to home. If you love stories about growing up and finding yourself, you’ll want to check out these reads! 📜

Save this post for the next time you’re looking for your next coming-of-age read! 🔖

Check the link in our bio for the full article!🔗

Featured here:
— NORTH OF TOMBOY by Julie A. Swanson (@jules9swanson) | SparkPress (@shewritespress)
— GOING FOR THE RECORD by Julie A. Swanson | Eerdmans Books for Young Readers (@eerdmans)
— WHAT THE FIREFLIES KNEW by Kai Harris (@authorkaiharris) | Tiny Reparations Books (@tinyrepbooks)
— SISTERS IN YELLOW by Mieko Kawakami (@kawakami_mieko) | Knopf (@knopfyoungreasers)
— BETH IS DEAD by Katie Bernet (@katiebernet) | Sarah Barley Books (@sarahbarleybooks) / Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (@simonyabooks)
— A BEAST SLINKS TOWARDS BEIJING by Alice Evelyn Yang (@aliceevelynyang)| William Morrow (@williammorrowbooks)
— KIN by Tayari Jones (@tayari) | Random House Large Print (@penguinrandomhouse)
— THE OUTSIDERS by S. E. Hinton | Viking Books for Young Readers (@vikingbooks)
— WIZARD OF EARTHSEA by Ursula K. Le Guin (@ursulakleguin) | Clarion Books (@clarionbooks)
— BOYS LIFE by Robert McCammon | Gallery Books (@gallerybooks)
— THE KITE RUNNER by Khaled Hosseini (@khosseini) | Riverhead Books (@riverheadbooks)
— THE HUNGER GAMES SERIES by Suzanne Collins | Scholastic Press (@scholastic)
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#comingofagenovels #mustreads #bookrec #booklovers #tbr

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THIS WEEK’S TOPIC:
In this episode, hosts Mike and Dory sit down with Julie Swanson @jules9swanson , author of the semi-autobiographical middle grade novel North of Tomboy, for an honest, wide-ranging conversation about gender identity, growing up outside the binary, and the healing power of storytelling.
LISTEN NOW

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Please don’t laugh, only half of what I said was a joke

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🎉 Happy Children’s Day! 📚✨
📖🤩🫵🏼🫵🏽🫵🏿🫵🏻🫵🏽🫵🏼🫵🏿🫵🏻🫵🏾🤩📖
To my fellow middle-school teachers, librarians, and middle-grade moms: we know the massive hurdle of getting reluctant 9-to-12-year-olds to pick up a book.
(Right, yes, we hear you😦)
As a veteran middle-grade educator, I see that struggle firsthand. Tweens need complex stories that mirror their real, messy worlds. That is why I wrote Joshua Creed: Keeper of Worlds. Joshua is a neurodivergent middle-schooler navigating bipolar disorder—a struggling kid and a reluctant hero who proves that your internal battles do not disqualify you from saving the day.
But true inclusion means filling the entire bookshelf.
To celebrate every unique mind and voice, I am expanding the circle! I have built a curated Middle Grade Master Reading List. It features incredible indie, self-published authors who are writing the most relevant stories for today’s classrooms. Plus, I have rounded out the collection with must-read, traditionally published diverse middle-grade books at the end.🤩
🫵🏼🤗
Let’s team up to show our middle-grade readers that their unique minds are their greatest strengths.
👉 Click the link in my bio to explore the complete curated list and grab your copies of Joshua Creed Books 1 & 2!

#teachers #writingcommunity #MiddleGradeBooks #authorsofig NeurodivergentBooks ReluctantReaders DiverseBooks TeachersOfInstagram SchoolLibrarians MomsOfMiddleGraders SupportIndieAuthors InclusiveLiterature

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Two besties from younger days and I have each had a new book come out over the past few months: my closest high-school friend @jules9swanson with her moving, partly-fictionalized memoir/young adult novel North of Tomboy and its examination of gender concepts and their strictures (Julie and I were co-valedictorians of our Leland Public School class of 1982!) and @authordanbrown with his latest blockbuster novel The Secret of Secrets (Dan and I were freshman and sophomore year roommates and best buddies at Amherst College in the early 1980s) 😻✨😻✨😻 Three paths that crossed markedly and meaningfully along the way—two lovely (and memorably smart, talented, and thoughtful) individuals I still count as friends and with whom I had the greatest good fortune to come of age 🌻✨🌻✨🌻 We were eager and motivated learners teaching and profiting from one another—and have since all three gone on to explore on our own, leading now to three idiosyncratic new works for 2025 and 2026 🧚‍♂️✨🧚‍♂️✨🧚‍♂️

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#VAASLgold part 2!

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#vaaslgold part 1!

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𝐕𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰.

A really good book, a great view, and bird chirping—this vacation is perfect.

Vacations don’t always turn out as planned.
I arrived in Albuquerque, intending to get to know the city and surrounding area, but instead my travel companion and I are spending a lot of time chilling, reading, and simply enjoying the sunny weather. Because that’s what we both need.

Albuquerque isn’t on many people’s bucket list. Yet, I wanted to come here. Maybe the land was calling me—because it is absolutely sacred. I sense a vibrant peace flowing from the mountains and the Rio Grande, and it has pushed away any heaviness from a stressful flight.

I believe ABQ is an underrated gem.
Maybe next time I’ll get to explore more of the surrounding nature and area. Because I’m coming back.
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#albuquerque #vacationmood #abqnm #readingislife #sunshinetherapy #sacredland #bucketlist✔️ #northoftomboy #newmexico

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📚 𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕞𝕒𝕚𝕝 𝕄𝕠𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕪 📚

I’m sending a special thanks today to @booksparks for this #bookmail that I won in their recent International Coffee Day giveaway. This cozy #gifted package included a beautiful porcelain book club mug from @riflepaperco and a complete stack of BookSparks #fallpopup titles!

📚𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤:
⚜️ 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙔𝙚𝙩 𝙇𝙤𝙨𝙩 by Janis M. Falk
⚜️ 𝙈𝙮 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝘽𝙖𝙙 𝘿𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨 by Rachel J. Lithgow
⚜️ 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙈𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙒𝙖𝙮 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙚: 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘼𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧’𝙨 𝙎𝙪𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙙𝙚 by Cyra Sweet Dumitru
⚜️ 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙔𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙙𝙖𝙮 by Maryellen Donovan
⚜️ 𝙉𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙣: 𝘼 𝘿𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧’𝙨 𝙈𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙞𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙠𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 by Leslie Johansen Nack
⚜️ 𝙉𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝙏𝙤𝙢𝙗𝙤𝙮 by Julia A. Swanson

I’m planning to dive into My Year of Really Bad Dates first so keep an eye out for my upcoming review. And even though I’m drinking @traderjoes pumpkin spice rooibos today, the coffee enthusiast in me will be enjoying many many lattes in my new bookish mug. ☕️ Happy Reading!

💭Qᴏᴛᴅ: ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜱᴛᴀᴄᴋ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ꜰɪʀꜱᴛ? ✨ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋᴍᴀɪʟ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴄᴇɪᴠᴇᴅ ʀᴇᴄᴇɴᴛʟʏ? ✨ ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ꜰᴀᴠᴏʀɪᴛᴇ ᴍᴜɢ?

#booksparks #fallpopup #bookmail #bookmailmonday #gifted #giveaway #internationalcoffeeday #memoir #nonfiction #middlegrades #historicalfiction #riflepaperco #bookmug #mug #coffee

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Our talented Mid-Atlantic authors and illustrators are excited to share their passion for storytelling and literacy at this year’s @VAASL Conference in Williamsburg. Stop by to meet the creators inspiring young readers across Virginia! 📖

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