An interview with Kathy Stemke, and a few of her main characters

I’d like to introduce the main characters in each of Kathy Stemke’s books.  Sitting next to me is Shelby from Trouble on Earth Day, next to Shelby is Zachary the super hero from Sh, Sh, Sh Let the Baby Sleep. And finally, next to me is Winnie from Winnie’s War. Welcome to my blog today.

Let’s start with Shelby. When is you book coming out and why should children read it? 

Shelby: Well, my proof will be in Kathy’s hands any day now soooo I would think the book will be on sale by June. I’ve been waiting two and a half years to tell my story. That must be some kind of record. Kurt Wilcken has drawn my beautiful pictures. I don’t mind waiting because I’m Kathy’s favorite character and kids will learn about being a friend while helping the environment. 

Zachery: Wait just a minute Shelby, you’re just a talking squirrel.  I’m a real boy. Kathy likes me the best.

Shelby: NOT! Did you know that my poster, RETHINK, REUSE, RECYCLE won a first place ribbon at school? 

Magdalena: That’s very impressive Shelby. Thank you.

Zachary, tell us about your story.

Zachary: Well, I got this new baby sister, Layla. She has a real loud cry when she wakes up. Being the big brother and all, I had the difficult job of keeping her asleep. All kinds of things happened to wake her up. But, I have a secret weapon. You’ll have to read the book to find out what happens.

That sounds exciting Zachary. I know Kathy is a retired teacher and she always tries to help kids learn. What will they learn from your book?

Zachary: She uses rhymes with consonant blends throughout the story. You know like sh, th, wh, br, and ch. If kids learn the blends that will help them learn to read. Oh, by the way, my illustrator is Jack Foster. He’s really cool and he captured my extreme good looks rather well.

Fantastic! Thank you, Zachary.

Winnie, you’ve been listening and waiting patiently for your turn. You’re in Kathy’s ‘work in progress,’ Winnie’s War. Can you tell us about your story?

Winnie: Yes, certainly. But first I have to clear one thing up. I can assure you all that I am Kathy’s favorite character. In fact, I’m her mother.

Do you mean to tell me that Kathy Stemke is writing a story with her mother as the main character?

Winnie: Yes, Luv. The story starts when I was seventeen in Birkenhead, England during WWII. My younger brother and two sisters were evacuated to keep them safe from the nightly bombing attacks. We never got word where they ended up. I made it my mission to find them. I even joined the Woman’s Land Army thinking I could find them on some farm somewhere.

It must have been difficult for you to endure all the physical and emotional hardships.

Winnie: It was a long hard war but some good did come out of it. I met Kathy’s father, Ralph, and married him. I fell in love with his curly black hair and turquoise eyes. Yes, they were as blue as the sea. And Kathy’s big brother, Joe was born in England too.  That’s an exciting part of my story.

That sounds interesting, Winnie. What age reader do you think should read your book?

Winnie: Kathy calls it a YA historical fiction. If young adults or even old adults read my story, they will learn all about WWII.

Thank you all for visiting today. I’d like to ask my readers to answer the BIG QUESTION. Who do you think is Kathy Stemke’s favorite character Shelby, Zachary or Winnie and why?

Kathy Stemke is a retired teacher with a love for all things creative. She lives in the North Georgia Mountains with her husband, Tony and their dog, Lucy. Tony is a writer too, but they’re still working on Lucy. Kathy and Tony are participating in the A-Z bloggers challenge. They will write a blog to every letter of the alphabet in April. Check it out.

KATHY STEMKE'S WEBSITES:

Kathy’s blog: http://educationtipster.blogspot.com

Tony’s blog: http://gritsandgroceries.blogspot.com

Moving Through all Seven Days link:http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/moving-through-all-seven-days/7386965#

Helium:http://www.helium.com/users/406242.html

Associated Content: http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/237923/Kathy_stemke_dancekam.html

twitter: http://twitter.com/kathystemke 

Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=6147172660&topic=4910#!/kathymarescomatthews.stemke?ref=profile

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/pub/kathy-stemke/13/269/285

Do drop by tomorrow to visit Virginia Grenier, who is featuring author Stephen Tremp.