S5 EP233 | From Blueprints to Bestsellers with Rebecca Caprara

Hello My Happy People,

Today I am sharing my chat with award-winning author Rebecca Caprara to discuss her journey from architecture to authorship and how an unexpected library design project inspired her to begin writing. We talk about finding her voice as a novelist, writing in verse, creating stories that connect with young readers, and why books can make such a lasting impact on children, especially those who may be reluctant readers.

We also take a closer look at Rebecca's newest middle grade novel-in-verse, Eva to the Max. The story follows twelve-year-old motocross racer Eva as she navigates competition, friendship, bullying, and the challenges of pursuing a passion in a male-dominated sport. Rebecca shares her process, her approach to developing authentic characters, and why themes of determination, resilience, and self-confidence are so important for young readers.

Whether you're a parent, grandparent, teacher, librarian, or simply someone who enjoys discovering talented authors and outstanding books, this conversation offers plenty of insight into the writing process and the power of storytelling. Be sure to check the links below for more information about Rebecca, her books, and where you can purchase Eva to the Max. 

For more behind-the-interview information from this episode, read today's blog at BurckhardtBooks.com/blog.

Rebecca's Website

Rebecca on Instagram

Rebecca on Goodreads

Buy from Penguin Random House

Buy from Bookshop.org

Buy from The Silver Unicorn Bookstore

Transcript

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Dianne Burckhardt 0:01

You're listening to BookBanter with Diane Burkhart, your Book Talk podcast. Join me every Wednesday for real conversations with authors and publishing insiders, where you get to connect with the humans behind the books you love. Let's get on with our show today. Well, hello, my happy people. Today is July 29th, 2026, and have I got another fantastic author for you. If you have young readers in your life, you are going to love today's guest, especially if you have reluctant readers. I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised with her latest book. My guest is an award-winning author whose work has been recognized by the Massachusetts Book Awards, the National Council for Teachers of English, and the American Library Association. She is a Cornell University graduate who began her career as an architect before trading bricks for books. She has written stories that celebrate determination, resilience, and finding your own path. So without further ado, please welcome to Book Bancher with Diane Burkhardt, the incredibly talented Rebecca Caprera. Please tell everyone who you are and what you do.

SPEAKER_00 1:17

Wonderful. Thank you so much for having me. My name is Rebecca Caprera. I am the author of several books for children and young adults. I write everything from picture books up to chapter books, middle grade novels, and YA. I write in both poetry and prose. And I have a brand new book out called Eva to the Max. And I'm excited to talk with you about that story today.

Dianne Burckhardt 1:41

And I was actually really excited about this because I asked to have you on the show.

SPEAKER_00 1:45

Oh, thank you.

Dianne Burckhardt 1:46

When I was a kid, I was like six years old when I got my first motorcycle.

SPEAKER_00 1:50

Did you really? Oh, that is fascinating. What was that something that your parents gifted to you, or was that something that you specifically were were requesting?

Dianne Burckhardt 2:00

Well, my parents both rode motorcycles and I was getting tired of writing on the back. I wanted to drive my own. So when I was six years old, I got a little Honda 50.

SPEAKER_00 2:10

Oh, that's so cute. That's actually in the story, very similar to the very first bike that the main character gets. That's very cute.

Dianne Burckhardt 2:17

And that's why I was like, I have to talk to this person. This is so great. If when I was a kid, I would have died to have a book like this about a girl riding a motorcycle because the only girls that I knew who rode motorcycles were my mom and my sister. I never saw any other girls on motorcycles.

SPEAKER_00 2:34

Yeah, and you know, I had not I hadn't seen it represented in children's literature specifically. And then once I dove in, I well, I should maybe I should backtrack a little and tell you about the book. Would that be a good way to just sort of frame the conversation? Yeah, so for those of you listening, my newest book is called Eva to the Max. It is a contemporary middle grade novel in verse, and it follows a 12-year-old motocross phenom named Eva. And on the circuit, her nickname, her race nickname is Eva Knieval. Um, she sets her sights on qualifying for national championships, which is held at Loretta Lynn's Ranch each year. But first, she will have to overcome obstacles on the track, at home, and at school. And a lot of the research for this story kind of came into what you know required me to dive into the history of women's motorsports, which is what you were sort of alluding to, the fact that there wasn't a whole lot of representation either in your own life or either in kind of the broader media. So it was really fascinating to dive in. And there's an author's note at the back of the book where I give a very brief look into the history and trajectory of this really fast-paced, fascinating sport and sort of the inequity and challenges that female writers have faced and that are, you know, slowly making progress and making some exciting gains on that front.

Dianne Burckhardt 3:52

That was another thing. When I was a kid, evil Knievel was my idol. During the 70s, right at the height of his career, I never missed watching him jumping things.

SPEAKER_00 4:03

Oh my gosh, I love that. Yeah, there's definitely nods to evil in this story. And it's it's sort of a never meet your heroes sort of reckoning moment that the main character has without giving too many spoilers, but she really looks up to evil, kind of it sounds like similarly to how you did. And and I I totally get that because I also remember watching clips of his or seeing image of imagery of him and being fascinated, like by this person who would put their life and their body on the line for the sake of entertainment. And in the story, you know, Eva, there's sort of quotes from Evil scattered throughout the book, which happen at kind of pivotal moments where she's looking to him for advice. And at one point, her brother says to her, you know, you should you should do a little homework about this guy and see, you know, what he's really all about. Because just like anyone, he he contains multitudes, and some parts of his personality and and legacy are wonderful, and some are less than. And um, and I think kind of having that reckoning and having a child look at their hero a little closer and think about what type of person they want to be, who are they emulating. And at a certain point, Eva makes this decision to kind of blaze her own trail, right? To it's okay to be inspired by someone else's accomplishments, but at a certain point we need to be the ones who are forging our own fates and, you know, seizing our own destiny, blazing our own trails. And it's kind of an exciting moment of autonomy and growth for her, I think.

Dianne Burckhardt 5:27

That was one thing that really kind of impressed me. I thought it was a very subtle way of showing how she is transitioning into more of an adult, that she is not just looking at the image on the TV screen, but she's looking at the person behind it and understanding that there are these depths to people that you need to be aware of whenever you're idolizing them.

SPEAKER_00 5:47

Absolutely. Yes. Yeah. And I think even in her own journey of becoming a star or phenom, right, there is this sort of self-centered element to that where you want to be number one, you want to be on the top of the podium, you want to win. And then over the course of the story, she still has that drive and you know, determination and tenacity, but she also starts to realize that she needs to be supportive of the people around her, the people who are helping her gain that success, right? Her pit crew, her family, her friends, and realizing that while it may not be exactly a team sport, no one races alone, so to speak. And so she's widening her view and becoming a little less self-centered and more aware of the people around her. And then also recognizing that there's a certain degree of mentorship that comes with being a leader, right? You know, she was looking up to evil, but what kind of example did he set for younger kids? At some points, it's somewhat questionable. And she has some young riders who are starting to look up to her, and she has this moment where she realizes that it's not just about her anymore. You know, if she advocates for the sport, if she advocates and fights for opportunities on the track, that it's not just benefiting her, it's benefiting all the young riders who are coming up behind her, and that in fact that rising tide lifts all ships. And it's exciting for her, I think.

Dianne Burckhardt 7:08

Have such a great premise and a wonderful storyline, great characters. What made you decide to tell this story in verse?

SPEAKER_00 7:16

That's a great question. So, like I mentioned before, I sort of toggle back and forth in my career in my writing between prose, which is more traditional writing style, and verse, which is poetry. I love them both. I think each story demands its own voice and its own kind of storytelling framework and structure and narrative typology. And for this book, almost immediately I knew it wanted to be told in verse because the sport of Motocross, as I'm sure you know, having ridden motorcycles, it's it's such a sensory-rich environment, right? There's the sound, first of all, that, you know, when I would visit a track or when I would watch videos online, even there's this brap-rap sound of the engines and the reving and the, you know, just it's just so stimulating. And so I thought this was a beautiful opportunity to play with the onomonopoeia of poetry and try to echo the rhythm and the almost the music, the moto music that happens on these racetracks through the poetry. And then I also just love verse as a format. I think it's a really interesting challenge as a writer to pack in a lot of emotionality to encapsulate a plot arc and a character arc with a real economy of words. And that's what poetry demands is you know, you're peeling back anything but the essential text. And it also, I think the third layer to this is sort of a visual one. If you pick up the book, there's very playful with concrete poetry, which is shape poems. So the words literally zip and zoom across the page in some instances. And so for young readers, especially who may be emerging or reluctant readers, you know, the page is very light, right? There's a lot of white space on the page, the ink on the page is very playful and it draws your eyes across the page. And I wanted to sort of mimic the the momentum of a race and also kind of tell a visual story that would layer on top of the text itself.

Dianne Burckhardt 9:18

I actually was a reading tutor for a while and I thought, I agree. This kind of a structure would be wonderful for reluctant readers because it seems like it would give them practice in their reading, but not be so overwhelming seeing that entire page full of text.

SPEAKER_00 9:34

Absolutely.

Dianne Burckhardt 9:36

They could just focus on the emotion, they can focus on the pronunciation, and it's not quite as daunting to see a verse as opposed to an entire page packed with text.

SPEAKER_00 9:49

Oh, absolutely. I have a daughter who has some reading challenges, and verse has been a wonderful, kind of empowering format for her, not just my books, but other books and many other novelists are writing in this form, you know, and she feels very proud she can carry around a 200-page book and say, you know, I read this and she truly did, but it's a much lower word count. It doesn't mean there's less substance, but it is more approachable, I think, in that way. I also see that a lot of kids who gravitate toward graphic novels also tend to love verse novels. And I think it's just coming back to that idea that there is a visual story being told in tandem with the text itself. And so there's layers of storytelling that they can engage with. And so it's, yeah, it's a form that I really love. There's so many authors who are doing amazing work. I was initially inspired to write in verse by Kwame Alexander, who famously wrote The Crossover, among many others. And I give nods to some of my favorite verse novels in the book, in this sort of moment of intertextuality, I suppose, where Eva discovers the work of Kwame Alexander as well as Kay A. Holt, who wrote Houser S, Tanha Lai, who wrote Inside Out and Back Again, and also Elizabeth Acevedo, who wrote the poet X, among other stories. So I wanted to kind of tip my hat to poets that have inspired and informed my own journey within the text, and just thought it would be a fun way for perhaps educators to tie in readings of other stories if they were to also be teaching or reading Eva in the classroom.

Dianne Burckhardt 11:19

And I think they would also be really good for English as a second language student.

SPEAKER_00 11:23

Oh, that's so interesting. Yeah, I hadn't thought about that, but sure. The more the more readers, the merrier, right?

Dianne Burckhardt 11:32

Now you originally studied architecture in Cornell and then transitioned into writing.

SPEAKER_00 11:37

Yes.

Dianne Burckhardt 11:38

What is it that made you decide to make that kind of a shift? Because somehow those don't really seem like they would be a straight line.

SPEAKER_00 11:46

You know, I you're right. I think it's definitely a circuitous, kind of bumpy road that we probably all follow on our path to these different creative endeavors. Looking back, I think that what unifies all my interests is storytelling on some level. So I think architecture is very much about telling a story. You know, when you're creating a space, designing a building, you're thinking about the materiality, you're thinking about putting all these different components together, much like you would put together a novel, right? You have plot and character and language and syntax, and a building has the structure and the plumbing and the electrical and all these different elements that you're combining to create a whole. I think I had a very pivotal experience working on the design, interestingly, of a library. And we were walking through the construction site with our team. It was a university library out in Canada, and I had this moment walking through the construction site with the librarians, and I realized I was more interested in the books that were going to go on the shelves than I was in the design of the space. And that kind of moment took my breath away a little bit, and I thought, huh, you know, I maybe I should pay attention to this little voice in the back of my head, which was really the childhood voice. I mean, I had loved stories and writing when I was little. I wrote a lot of poetry, I edited my high school's literary magazine. So it was still, it was very much a part of my life, but I I guess I didn't really think that writing and telling stories could be a quote unquote real job. But having that moment in the library, I started to think, well, maybe, maybe I should pay a little more attention to this and just revisit my childhood self and and those early passions and just see what comes of it. So I started, I was still working in architecture and started dabbling in writing. And eventually it just became this thing that I couldn't stop thinking about. It's something I just wanted to do all the time and was very sharp learning curve. There was, you know, I didn't go to school to become a writer. I didn't know much about the publishing industry. Um, and so it was really about educating myself and connecting with a community of of other writers who were at similar stages and also finding some mentors. The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators was very helpful on that journey, connecting me with critique partners. And also I was able to take classes on the industry itself and you know, what were all the different genres and the age groups, and how do you get an agent? And what does the acquisitions and submission process look like? So there's so much that goes into it beyond just sitting with your notebook or at your computer and you know drafting your stories. But I found that I really loved each phase of it. And slowly after I had my second daughter and was on a maternity leave, I said, you know, like at this point, I I really want to give this writing gig a sh a go. Um and it, you know, thankfully, it it sort of took off, and I was able to publish. I think this is Eva is my ninth published book, and I hope it's just the beginning. I feel lucky every day that I get to do this job.

Dianne Burckhardt 14:52

Architecture and publishing are both very highly competitive fields. Do you think that working in architecture actually helped prepare you mentally for what you would be facing in publishing?

SPEAKER_00 15:02

That's a great question. I think so. And it at Cornell, the architecture students have a reputation for pulling the most all-nighters, which up definitely came in handy with book deadlines looming. I mean, I can, you know, I can uh kind of strap in and get the work done, even if it means neglecting some sleep here and there. But yes, it's a, you know, it's I think with design, just like writing or any art form, I imagine, you sort of feel like the work is never done, right? You could revise and revise and revise forever. But there comes a point where you have to sort of step away from the work and say, okay, this is where it is at this point. This is the best I could do at this moment in time, and and move on to the next project. And I think they're both very iterative processes. So when you're designing a building, you rarely are designing in isolation. You're typically working with a team of designers, you're coordinating with the engineers who tell you if the building will actually stand up. You know, you're negotiating with your clients to make sure that their vision and their needs are met by whatever you're creating. And in the same way, a book, while you the process of initial drafting is isolating or solitary, I'll say. The publishing process is very much like architecture in that there's this feedback loop where you're working with an editor or critique partners or beta readers and you're soliciting feedback and they're, you know, giving constructive criticism, you're incorporating, you know, the notes that resonate, you're making changes, you're revising. Then there's a team with your publisher that is weighing in on the marketability of things, the cover art. You know, there's there's so much that goes into it. And I think my background in architecture prepared me for that creative collaboration, realizing it's not all like my name is on the book, on the cover, but there's so many people that are a part of that story's journey. And you know, kind of embracing them and being appreciative of all the ways that they can help you make the story better.

Dianne Burckhardt 16:57

Since you've become a professional writer, what has been one of the most rewarding parts of writing for young readers?

SPEAKER_00 17:06

One of my favorite parts of the author journey or the author life is getting to meet with young readers, specifically when I visit schools and I run writing workshops with students. And I think the most rewarding is to see a story that I've told or a poem that I've written then inspire them to go off and write their own poem or their own story. This is where students or teachers send me an entire, you know, classroom booklet of poems that the kids had written. It was a continuation story. So my novel Worst Case Colin, which is also for middle grade readers, also in verse, I had an entire sixth grade write a continuation of that story, sort of like a like a mini-sequel. And each child put their own spin on it and wrote what they thought should happen next to the characters. And I just loved the way they took this kernel that I'd come up with and then made it completely their own. And their their ideas were so smart and clever and you know, just inspiring. I just loved to see that kind of creative catalyst from my work empowering young people to see themselves as storytellers. I think that's the most rewarding.

Dianne Burckhardt 18:16

I love that. That's amazing. I know that you also host a young reader's book club at an independent bookstore. That's important to mention.

SPEAKER_00 18:25

Yes, always indie. Shop local.

Dianne Burckhardt 18:27

Yes. Has anything that the kids have said in the book club ever surprised you or changed the way that you think about storytelling?

SPEAKER_00 18:37

Yes, actually, I can think of a specific example. We were, so I've been lucky enough to host the middle grade book club at the Silver Unicorn bookstore. I have to give them a shout-out in Acton, Massachusetts, for the last seven, almost eight years. And so in that time, we've had lots of different kids kind of age into and out of the group. We've read dozens and dozens of books together. We read a new novel each month together, and those are books that the kids get to vote on, so they very much have a say in what we're reading and discussing, and we do writing projects together as well. But I remember we were reading The Night Diary, which is a very interesting epistolary novel, a historical fiction. And I had asked the kids how they felt about quote-unquote sad books, like books that made them sad, you know, books that have heavier subject matter. And they said, one of the kids said, I like a book that makes me cry because it makes me feel and it feels real. And I think there's so much conversation around kids, whether it's book bands or other conversations, that maybe heavier topics should shouldn't be present in some of these stories that we're telling for young people. But I think that they're they want a safe space to explore emotion. And I think a book is a very gentle place for those conversations to occur. And it made me realize that you have to give your young readers a lot of credit. They are incredibly smart, they are intuitive, they are compassionate, and you don't need to have gratuitous violence or anything like that, but you can speak to them in a very honest and heartfelt way. And I think so long as there's always a note of hope or optimism that they are hungering for these stories that reflect things that they might be experiencing in their own life. And if it's not something that they've experienced, I think those stories are amazing tools at building empathy and awareness about situations that they might not be experiencing firsthand, but it helps them become better, kinder, you know, more worldly people.

Dianne Burckhardt 20:37

And I think that's a great thing about fiction is you can bring these things to life for kids in ways that you wouldn't necessarily be able to reach them by just a discussion. Having them sit by themselves and read these can reach them in ways that you can't do it any other way. I agree. I know you write in several different age groups and in several different formats. How do you decide what project you should do next and what form that project should take?

SPEAKER_00 21:07

Well, this is my big challenge of you to my uh my Achilles heel and also my superpower are the same thing, and that is my scatter brain. I'm incredibly scattered, and um I'm constantly actually, I think you and I might share this because you were saying how you're constantly coming up with new ideas, and I sometimes joke that my brain is like a hive of bees. You know, there's just no shortage of ideas, but my great challenge is the focus and the follow-through. And this is something I am forever lamenting and struggling with. And I I have writing partners that help keep me accountable. I also have, you know, contracts with publishers that deadlines that keep me somewhat focused. And I have an agent who helps sort of when I will be um brainstorming different concepts, she'll sort of reel me in and say, okay, let's let's focus on X, Y, and Z in this order. And so that is helpful. But But in terms of, you know, some writers will get this advice oh, build a brand, you know, write one book, write it well, and then write another in the same vein and another after that, and create a recognizable quote unquote brand. That's just not something that's ever been appealing to me or possible. I tend to follow my passions, and my passions and interests are varied and they change from minute to minute. And so that's why I have, you know, books about Greek mythology. I have books about, you know, science fiction stories about the multiverse. I have realistic fiction about hoarding disorder. You know, it's sort of the entire gamut that my uh the bookseller at my independent bookstore in town was joking recently that, you know, he just never knows what I'm gonna write next. And I kind of like that. I need that in my own mind to stay excited about the work.

Dianne Burckhardt 22:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:51

And in terms of choosing the format, I really think that the subject matter and the age range kind of dictates the form a little bit. I do, in the early stages of most projects, experiment a little bit. Like in Eva, I actually started writing it in verse. I felt pretty strongly that that was the format that it wanted to be told in in poetry. But I did, in an exercise actually encouraged by one of my writing partners, my critique partners, she said, try writing the first 20 pages in prose. And I did, and I in as soon as I had to do that just to like confirm to myself that it needed to be in poetry, because it just felt too heavy and slow and you know, clunky, and it just didn't work. But I've had other stories that do want to be written in prose or need the words and the space to be told in prose. So it's sometimes just a matter of trial and error, to be honest.

Dianne Burckhardt 23:42

Now seems like the perfect time to do our five quick questions that never turn out to be quick, but I refuse to ever give up hope that it will happen one day. Are you ready? Question one. I know that you have lived in several places around the world, including Italy, Singapore, and Canada, and now in Massachusetts. Of all the places you have lived, which one felt most like home to you?

SPEAKER_00 24:11

I would have to probably say Massachusetts because this is the place that I grew up in. And as a teenager, I swore I would never come back. I wanted to see the world. I wanted to get out of my tiny little town and you know have adventures. And I did. And funny enough, the universe sort of laughed in my face when I, my husband and I decided to move back here once we had children of our own. Once we thought, you know what, that is actually a very nice place to raise a family. So I think Massachusetts and New England feels most like home. But I've loved each place that I've lived, and I hope I continue to have some global adventures. We're definitely raising our children as globetrotters and just sort of hopefully citizens of the world to a certain degree and getting out and exploring together.

Dianne Burckhardt 24:55

Question two. Since you've already lived in so many interesting places, what's somewhere that you haven't been yet that is still on your travel bucket list?

SPEAKER_00 25:05

Oh gosh, there are so, so many. One place that I'd love to go is New Zealand with my family. I'd love to, you know, we just have to navigate the kids' schooling. That always complicates the things. But I would love to take an extended trip and travel and hike around New Zealand. And then if you're down there, you might as well go to Australia and maybe Tasmania. So that part of the world is an area I have not explored. I um I've seen a lot of Southeast Asia, which my husband and I loved when we lived in Singapore. But uh yeah, I think I would say New Zealand.

Dianne Burckhardt 25:38

Yeah, I I highly recommend New Zealand.

SPEAKER_00 25:40

It's gorgeous, and the people you've lived the uh an interesting life of many locations as well. Yeah, yeah. Any other places you recommend?

Dianne Burckhardt 25:50

Um, I love Denmark. I I actually miss living in Denmark more than I miss living in Kansas. But we we lived on a little island in Denmark, and so we, you know, had like this little beach all the way around. You could walk around the entire island in the day.

SPEAKER_00 26:06

Oh, I love that. Were you very boat-dependent?

Dianne Burckhardt 26:10

No, um, it had a drawbridge that connected to the mainland. It was very narrow passage between the island and the mainland.

SPEAKER_00 26:19

Yeah, that sounds charming. Does that show up in any of your books? That sounds like a perfect setting for not yet, actually.

Dianne Burckhardt 26:25

It hasn't, but it probably will whenever I get more into the paranormal romance.

SPEAKER_00 26:30

Yeah. Oh, I'd love to read that.

Dianne Burckhardt 26:34

And question three with your book club for young readers, what is the book your book club had the most fun discussing?

SPEAKER_00 26:45

This is so hard. Well, we spent a lot of time talking about Victoria Jameson's Roller Girl, which is a graphic novel. I think the thing that was interesting about that story is we would talk a lot about the ways in which the images, the cartoons, or the you know, the illustrations either matched what was happening in the text or in the dialogue or contrasted it. Like there are moments where you see things happening on the page that aren't addressed, or maybe the characters aren't being um honest about things, or um, and they really picked up on all those little nuances. So we spent a lot of time talking about that story. There's also a story called A Horse Named Sky, I believe by Roseanne Perry. And we also read another book called Willow, uh, sorry, not Willow Dean. There's Willow Dean, and then there's another story called, oh my goodness, I'm blanking. I'm gonna look it up for you for a second because I want to make sure I get it right. Wild Oak by Cece Harrington. That story, just the way her writing is so whimsical and heartfelt and evocative, and there was something about Wild Oak that just really resonated with the kids and myself. It just felt like such a classic middle grade story, something I would hope to read to my grandchildren someday. And the kids love that one as well.

Dianne Burckhardt 28:12

See, and with it being summer read suggestions, those are some great suggestions for people to pick up for their kids.

SPEAKER_00 28:19

Definitely, definitely. Read all summer long.

Dianne Burckhardt 28:23

Question four. As someone who used to work in graphic design, whenever I see certain fonts or layouts, like when I go to the movies, I'll sit there and watch credits, and in my head, I'm naming the fonts that I see. Oh, I was I was wondering since you, as an architect, when you travel, do you automatically look at buildings and think about their styles and design influences that same way?

SPEAKER_00 28:46

Yes, I'm I'm hugely visual. A lot of my book ideas actually come from imagery or or things that I see. I do. I think I'm always looking at my environment and again thinking about the way it makes me feel, thinking about why someone made certain design decisions for better or worse. Um yeah, it's hard to turn off that part of you, your inner designer. It sounds like you have it as well, but it's hard to turn it off.

Dianne Burckhardt 29:08

That's why I thought, oh, I have to ask her because I always wondered, is my brain just that weird, or do other people do this?

SPEAKER_00 29:15

No, I think I know, I think it's just year-wired like an artist.

Dianne Burckhardt 29:20

So now your last question. We are asking everyone the same question this year to make a list to go in our book banter book buying guide that we publish in November. And the question is what book to movie adaptation do you think is the best that you have seen so far?

SPEAKER_00 29:39

Well, I will. This is a caveat. I just watched Remarkably Bright Creatures. Um, I need to watch that. Oh, it was so beautifully done. Now I have my caveat is that I actually haven't read the book, but I thought that the movie was beautiful, and I'm I have a hold on the library at the library to get the book, to read the book, sort of in reverse. I almost always recommend reading the book first, but I have heard from people who have read that story and seen the film that the film is very close to being as good as the book, which is rare.

Dianne Burckhardt 30:14

Yeah. So now what is next for you?

SPEAKER_00 30:19

So I have a another middle grade novel in reverse they can't say much about just yet, and I don't have specific details on when that's coming out, but that will be coming out at some point. I'm also kind of deep in the trenches of working on a new chapter book series, which is a new age range for me. The chapter books are, these ones are aimed at ages five to eight, and that will be a series inspired by world mythology. And I'm really excited about that. We have a great illustrator on board. I'm very excited to see how they continue to bring the story to life, you know, beyond my words, and just see what they dream up and how that comes to fruition. So, chapter book, middle grade, and then I always have some YA on the back burner that I'm tinkering with. Usually the weirder the better, but I'm not sure that's not under contract yet. That's just sort of in its very nascent stages, and we'll see what it wants to become.

Dianne Burckhardt 31:15

So now with the chapter books, you will pretty much cover every age range from being able to pick up a book to young adults.

SPEAKER_00 31:23

I just about, yeah. Without a, yeah, I don't have board books. I guess that would be the other, you know, super, super littles, uh stories for super littles. But um, yeah, that's true. I hadn't thought about that, but that's always been a goal of mine. So I'm excited to sort of span the shelf, so to speak.

Dianne Burckhardt 31:38

So now why don't you go ahead and remind everybody who you are and where they can find your books?

SPEAKER_00 31:44

I am Rebecca Caprera, the author of Eva to the Max and several other books for children and young adults. You can find them anywhere books are sold, especially at your local independent booksellers, or you can visit bookshop.org to support independent bookstores. Thank you so much for this wonderful conversation, and thank you all for reading.

Dianne Burckhardt 32:04

And do want to remind people if you go into an independent bookstore and you cannot find any author's book that you're looking for, ask them to order it in.

SPEAKER_00 32:13

That's great advice. Yes, definitely. And you I have um you can visit my website, it's RebeccaCaprera.com, and that has more info about my stories. It has some updates and it has a way to get in touch.

Dianne Burckhardt 32:25

And of course, in the description of today's podcast, we will have all of your information along with live links so that people can click and go buy your books and find you on social media.

SPEAKER_00 32:37

Thank you so much. This was such a pleasure. Wonderful questions, a lovely conversation.

Dianne Burckhardt 32:41

Thank you so much for being here. I was so looking forward to this because I know if I had found your book Eva to the max whenever I was the age to be reading young readers, I would have been over the moon to actually have a book like that that I could identify with so much. There was nothing like that when I was that age.

SPEAKER_00 33:01

Oh, that makes me happy to hear. I'm glad, I'm glad it may be late to the game, but I'm glad that it's here for you to read. And I just so appreciate the opportunity to talk about the story. And I hope young readers nowadays find the story and it means something to them as well.

Dianne Burckhardt 33:14

Yeah, I'm just so thankful that it's out there for the girls who are, you know, like I was back then, that they're out there looking for something to identify with, and you've made it possible.

SPEAKER_00 33:25

Yeah, there's a line in the book where Eva says there are so many different ways to be a girl. And eventually later in the story, we see that there's so many different ways to be any sort of person and just to sort of embrace your own unique path and your identity and extend grace to others as they navigate that path of self-discovery. So I hope that is one of the takeaways of the story.

Dianne Burckhardt 33:44

I love that. Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_00 33:47

Thank you, Diane. This was lovely.

Dianne Burckhardt 33:50

So there you have it, folks. That was my interview with the incredibly talented Rebecca Caprera. If you'd like to learn more about Rebecca or her latest middle grade novel in verse, Ava to the Max, you'll find all of her information with live links in the description of today's podcast so that you can just click and go and go buy her books. And of course, we hope you'll do it with an independent bookseller. Now, next week we will be joined by poet and essayist Amy Pence. We discuss her debut novel, which is described as fusing cosmic mystery, southern gothic atmosphere, and girlhood. Trust me when I say you will not want to miss this. Now, for some burk art books and book banter production news, I am working to get new covers for our current works in progress, our first paranormal romance, Langston Watch Hotel, and my medical memoir, Free Bad Haircut with Each Craniotomy. In an effort to get some actual income coming in before we release these books, I have also been working to add at least a few new items to our Zazzle storefront every week. Be sure to bookmark our homepage on Zazzle. Just search for Burkhart underscore books and check back often. Each purchase helps us keep promoting other authors and connecting readers with amazing books and all of the talented people behind the stories you love. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter at burkhartbooks.com so you never miss out on anything we're doing. And honestly, it's a lot. We've got so much coming for you. You do not want to miss out on any of it. And be really happy that next week brings another great author for you. Thank you for joining us today. Be sure to subscribe to BookBanter with Diane Burkhart on your favorite podcast streaming service. Because if you love books like we do, you do not want to miss a single episode of this podcast.