Agility Wonder!

In case you need a break from the serious stuff: Our puppy is nine months old. What she lacks in her ability to aim 🤦🏻‍♀️, she makes up for with agility and enthusiasm. 😂

Hispanic Heritage Month

he book tour put me a little behind on recommending some of my favorite picture books and middle-grade reads for Latinx and Hispanic Heritage Month...but here they are! If you haven't shared these wonderful stories with your children or students, I hope you'll explore some of these unforgettable stories.

Picture Books:
Green Is A Chile Pepper
All The Way To Havana
Carmela Full of Wishes
Be Bold! Be Brave!
Dreamers
Alma — And How She Got Her Name

Middle Grade Books:
Merci Suarez Changes Gears
Each Tiny Spark
Esperanza Rising

Let Freedom Read

Over the past two weeks on tour, I've been visiting elementary schools to read my books for the kids. It's not lost on me that these readings--among my absolutely favorite things to do--have happened during banned books week. When we read to kids, we open their minds to new experiences, validate their feelings, build connections, and introduce new ways to look at the world. When books are kept out of their hands with bans, children's worlds get just a little bit smaller.

People are always surprised to learn that some of our most cherished children's stories have been, at some point, banned or challenged. I've rounded up a few of my all time favorite, and most surprising, banned books for kids.

Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh was banned in several states for encouraging bad behavior.

Where the Wild Things are by Maurice Sendak has been banned and challenged as being too dark.

Drum Dream Girl and Voice of Freedom have been banned and challenged for representing diverse perspecives.

The Bridge to Terabithia is one of the most frequently banned and challenged books in the United States for its alleged use of inappropriate language, religion and themes about death.

I hope you'll introduce the kids in your life to these if they haven't discovered them already. To learn more about #bannedbooksweek and #letfreedomreadday (that's today) visit bannedbooksweek.org.

Thanks to @watchungbooksellers for creating this great banned books display for young readers to discover.

Amazon's Pick of the Month!

I'm so excited to share that CONSTRUCTION SITE: TAKING FLIGHT has been selected as an Amazon Editor's Pick for Children 3-5. If you haven't had the chance I hope you'll check it out, and pop by sherririnker.com to see all of my remaining tour dates!

So Sweet

Our puppy @ 8 months. My family has been sending me photos of her while I’m on the road, with mentions of how depressed and clingy she is while I’m away.

Bring Your Child's Favorite Books to Life Through Play!

Bring your child’s favorite book to life through play!

✈️ We brought the newest book in the construction site series by @sherririnker & @agfordart “Construction Site: Taking Flight!” to life through play! I set up some activities that went along with the book for Brady to explore when he got home from school and it was a perfect way for him to transition back home & decompress. Add a snack and it’s a sure win!

🚧 In the book, the construction team is expanding the small airport, so I dumped some kinetic sand & diggers in one bin & used some blue play scarves and taped an activity sheet under a clear insert for him to draw on using our @kwikstixpaint & also
found a small, wooden plane on @amazon from @melissaanddoug toys for him to paint & decorate.

🛩️ Comment “activity pack” below and I will dm it to you 😊 it includes fun companion activities like word searches, matching the new airport crew members to their name & the window seat picture shown here (he drew a horse). You can find the book in my Amazon storefront & linked in my stories. Check out the entire series!

In an Airplan Near You!

As someone who flies pretty regularly, I was delighted when a friend found me looking back at her from the pages of @United's Hemispheres magazine. With just a few more days until I take to the friendly skies for the book tour, we chatted about what I learned about airports while writing Construction Site: Taking Flight, indie bookstores, and my most memorable trips. I'll see you all soon!

Check Out on Instagram

With just a few weeks to go before Construction Site: Taking Flight hits stores, I'm excited to be able to offer a free SIGNED and PERSONALIZED copy to 10 lucky winners!

To enter, make sure to follow my account, like this post, and tag 2 friends in the comments. How easy is that?

Goodbye Summer!

I love summer. I love the long, less-scheduled days and the joyful squeals and laughter of the kids, freely running around the neighborhood. I love the feeling of my bare feet on the earth. I love the smells of compost and flowers, of ripe tomatoes on the vine and freshly-cut grass. I love dirt under my fingernails and resting after a day of hard work in the fresh air. I love never having to consider a coat, or whether I need gloves or a hat.

But now, earlier sunsets and cooler nights are too obvious to ignore. Mums have replaced the frilly, technicolor annuals at the garden centers and, somehow, they feel more somber to me, less free and fresh, with their sturdy stems able to withstand chilly winds and first frosts.

So, slowly, I’ll begin the process of dismantling summer. Root-bound containers will be emptied, awaiting next spring. Things that can be saved or propagated will come inside, to ride out the months of cold and snow under the basement grow lights. Mounds of plant material will be composted to nourish the gardens next year, and, once first frost hits hard, it will be time to dig up dahlia tubers and put them away for safe keeping until the ground is warm again.

Eventually, I’ll make the best of it — with straw bales and pumpkins and mums, with warm, hearty soups and stews and freshly-baked bread. The fireplaces will be lit and Zak and I will decide that some mornings are “definitely hot chocolate” mornings. Our maple trees will burst with color, and I’ll notice that they’re beautiful. I’ll hear the loudspeaker and the marching band and fans cheering from the local high school on Friday nights. And, I’ll decide that “fall is nice, too.”

But, for now, I’m hugging summer goodbye. I know that it’s time, and I know it will be back… but, still, I just don’t want to let go.

Fall Tour Dates

📢 Fall Tour Dates Announcement📢

I'm so excited to be heading back on the road this fall to visit some of my favorite independent bookstores, local schools, and the @occchildrensbookfest! If you live in California or near any of these cities in the Northeast, I hope you'll come and say hello!