Q&A with Naomi Gruer

  

 

 

Naomi Gruer is the author of the new children's picture book Hear Me Roar! I'm a HANUKKAHsaur. She is also an educator.

 

Q: What are some of your favorite Hanukkah traditions?

 

A: I love lighting the candles, then turning the lights out in a room to watch them glow. Gathering together with extended family to celebrate is a highlight. And I love latkes with applesauce and jelly doughnuts!

 

Q: What do you think Mel Zohar’s illustrations add to the book?

 

A: Mel did a wonderful job showing Miles’ expressions! He goes from believing he’s different Hanukkah dinosaurs to wanting to participate to uncertainty when things go awry to relief when the day (or Hanukkah activity) is saved. The way Mel framed scenes on a page adds to the playfulness of the story.

 

Q: How does your experience as an educator inform your writing?

 

A: Take the example of the bean bag! My editor asked what I had in mind as an illustration to “whomp.” I shared that my preschool kids were whomping onto the beanbag in our classroom, and our “calming corner” was no longer calm—lol! Listening to what makes the kids feel the way they do runs through my mind when writing.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Thanks for asking! I wrote a picture book where a child’s kind act inspires his friends, family and community to get involved. I’ve written an early chapter book proposal about a girl who loves nature, especially insects, and I’m working on a Shabbat board book.

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: When I’m not writing and teaching, I love taking long walks with my dog Penny Lane, working with clay on a potter’s wheel, hiking, baking, and knitting.

 

And I’m always on the lookout for animals. Some of the animals I’ve spotted in my neighborhood are chipmunks, squirrels, bunnies, groundhogs, deer, raccoons, opossums, foxes, coyotes, black bears and a coywolf!

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. This Q&A was conducted in partnership with Naomi Gruer. Celebrate all eight nights of Hanukkah with a roaring good giveaway! Readers who follow along on this virtual book tour will have the chance to win one of eight prize packs, each including a signed hardcover copy of Hear Me Roar! I’m a HANUKKAHsaur by Naomi Gruer and a bookmark featuring a fun Dino Hunt game. Each winner will also receive a goodie bag filled with a small toy dinosaur, wooden dreidel, and gelt, plus a handmade plush pillow featuring soft turquoise fleece and custom fabric decorated with dinosaurs from the book’s endpapers.