#yamatters

Day 3 of Reading Matters reminded me once again why I read. Words matter. Empathy matters. Diversity matters. Equality matters. Honesty matters. Love matters. Thank you to every author and reader who was there today. You inspire me. ❤️ #centreforyouthliterature #yamatters #allthebrightplaces #holdinguptheuniverse #diversity #equality #empathy #love #readingmatters (at Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

Thank you @wodongalibrary and all the lovely readers who came out to see @lililiwilkinson and me on #yamattersontour ❤️❤️❤️You make us lovely!! ❤️ #centreforyouthliterature #yamatters #allthebrightplaces #holdinguptheuniverse #liliwilkinson #jennifernivendownunder (at Wodonga Library)

Day 4 of Reading Matters was filled with memorable moments and so much inspiration and the loveliest readers. 💖 I wore new pink boots in honor of bright places everywhere, especially those here in Melbourne. ✨🌟Thank you to everyone who was there today! And endless awe and gratitude to the lovely @snarkywench for all she does for writers and readers everywhere!! 💞 #yamatters #centreforyouthliterature #allthebrightplaces #holdinguptheuniverse #jennifernivendownunder #readingmatters (at Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

Good morning, Melbourne! I'm ready for Day 3 of #ReadingMatters 📚🎉!! So excited!!!!!! Thank you Auckland for the boots and Melbourne for the new dress. You make a weary world traveler feel refreshed and ready to go!! ❤️#jennifernivendownunder #centreforyouthliterature #yamatters #allthebrightplaces #holdinguptheuniverse (at Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

Day 2 of Reading Matters was magical. I started the day on ABC News, and then headed to the conference where I paid tribute to my mom in my keynote speech, and later talked love and romance (and first love Christopher Robin) with @randaabdel.fattah @rachaelcraw and @dbinks 💕I met so many inspiring superheroes. Can't wait for tomorrow! 📚 #yamatters #centreforyouthliterature #jennifernivendownunder #allthebrightplaces #holdinguptheuniverse (at Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

For the #grimdragon challenge #diversereads and Coming of Age prompts, I picked You're Welcome, Universe by Whitney Gardner @heywhitneywrites. It is such a perfect book for these prompts! . You're Welcome, Universe by Whitney Gardner was the March BOTM for @mirrorbookbox. I was so sad to have missed this box--it looked amazing and this book sounded perfect. Thank the book gods for libraries bc even though I missed this fabulous box, I was still able to read this book. . The main character Julia is hearing impaired and is a graffiti artist. She does a piece on the cafeteria wall that gets her expelled from her school for hearing impaired students and her parents enroll her into a mainstream school. . What I found so intriguing about this story was how well the author captured Julia's frustration and anger. The story is told in first person point-of-view so the reader experiences first hand Julia's thoughts and reactions. Julia is intelligent and creative but so many assumptions are made about her bc of her impairment. It was eye opening to say the least to read how she was treated at her mainstream school and everywhere else. . I also enjoyed how graffiti art was such a big part of Julia's character and the story. Someone else adds to Julia's pieces which infuriate her but she also admits to herself that the unwelcome additions complement her work too. I was surprised to learn who did it but liked how this part of the story turned out because it plays into the themes of friendship and trust that Julia struggles with through out the story. . This book represents diversity so well too! Julia is Indian and has two moms. Such positive reps for both and done in a way that is seamless--it's not the focus of the story. These are just parts of their identity. . For a complete summary, swipe through to see the Goodreads synopsis. . How was your weekend? We were home bound all weekend. The temperature here has been in the 90s which pretty much means staying inside with the A/C on. 😆 . #yourewelcomeuniverse #whitneygardner #knopfteen #randomhouse #underhypedbookclub #yamatters #diversebooks #booklover #bookflatlay #booksofinstagram #youngadultlit #readabook #readeveryday

Looking for help and to also help someone else. So I am looking for someone who writes #YA #contemporary if you write fantasy or sci-fi I can't help you. It's not my wheel house. I need to bounce some ideas with someone regarding some side characters. #critiquepartners please DM me if you have any free time, like wise if you need any help ✌️ #amwriting #writersofinstagram #yamatters #writerslife #writingcommunity #writersofig

I started reading #TheEvaporationOfSofiSnow by @maryweberauthor / #MaryWeberAuthor at 11:55 AM Thursday, June 1, 2017 and I finished at 2:40 PM Sunday, June 4, 2017. #SofiSnow #YAMatters (at Kenner, Louisiana)