Reading With Your Kids Podcast

In this episode of Reading With Your Kids, Jed welcomes two creators whose work celebrates courage, creativity, and the many ways kids can be themselves.
First, Jed chats with Rebecca Caprera about her new middle grade novel in verse, Eva to the Max. The story follows 12-year-old motocross phenom Eva "Eva Knievel" as she chases her dream of qualifying for the national championships. Along the way, Eva navigates family tension with a worried mom, a supportive dad who was paralyzed in a racing accident, and an overachieving older brother whose shadow feels hard to escape. Rebecca also explores the inequalities girls face in extreme sports and shares fascinating history about women in motocross, including those who once raced under male pseudonyms. She explains why verse is the perfect form for this high-octane, sensory-rich story and how the white space and poetic structure invite readers' imaginations to fill in the gaps.
Then, Jed is joined by Phyllis Harris, creator of the wordless picture book Claude, inspired by her own dog, Brinkley, and her love of Claude Monet. Phyllis describes Claude as a playful exploration of perfectionism, creativity, and the power of play. A serious young artist tries to paint her masterpiece while her dog has very different ideas, leading to glorious mess and discovery. Phyllis talks about how wordless books build confidence, imagination, and storytelling skills—especially for emergent readers and families who may struggle with print—and offers heartfelt advice to parents on nurturing their children's artistic side.

In this heartfelt episode of Reading With Your Kids, Jed Doherty welcomes Heidi E. Y. Stemple, author of Lydia Loves Bugs, and later Jezebel Rivera, author of Mommy, Where's My Dad?
Most of the conversation centers on Heidi, her work, and her remarkable family legacy. Heidi shares how Lydia Loves Bugs began on her screened-in porch during the early, anxious days of the pandemic, when she wanted to write something purely fun and comforting. Lydia is a bug-loving kid whose mom studies bugs, while her dad and brother are decidedly not bug fans—an intentional celebration of family differences and a playful twist on gender stereotypes.
Heidi talks about growing up in a family deeply rooted in the natural world—especially birds—and how that love of nature shows up again and again in her books. She reflects movingly on the recent passing of her mother, Jane Yolen, noting that Jane has 10 more books under contract and over 100 manuscripts still to be shepherded into the world. Heidi describes how she read to her mother in her final months, including their co-written work and Heidi's new projects, and how Jane always encouraged her children to walk beside her, not in her shadow.
Later, Jed is joined by Jezebel Rivera, who shares the inspiration behind Mommy, Where's My Dad?—a tender, honest picture book drawn from conversations with her son about their family. Jezebel emphasizes the power of redefining family through love, support, and the "village" that surrounds a child.

In this episode of Reading With Your Kids, Jed welcomes Academy Award–winning director, animator, and author Alan Barillaro to celebrate his new picture book, Today We Will Be Eaten. Alan shares how a seemingly dark premise—a ladybug and dragonfly convinced they'll be eaten—becomes a gentle, meditative story about anxiety, uncertainty, and learning to take a breath. He describes the book as a "little reset," inviting kids and families to slow down, look up, and discover beauty even when life feels scary or unpredictable.
Alan talks about the shift from collaborative animation at Pixar to the intensely personal world of writing and illustrating books, where there's "less to hide behind." He explains his creative process: keeping notebooks of ideas for years, working on multiple projects at once like "tomato plants" in a garden, and borrowing lessons from animation—testing work with trusted readers, listening to how it sounds out loud, and embracing failure as an essential part of finding the story. The conversation also touches on kids' anxiety, helicopter parenting, graphic novels as real reading, and Alan's nuanced view of AI and technology as tools that must be used ethically and thoughtfully. He teases upcoming projects, including Bun's Rabbit 2 and another picture book on the way.
In the second half, Jed chats with Jennifer Dickinson, author of Maggie's Big Break, a middle grade novel about a girl with a stutter who faces bullying but finds belonging in theater. Jennifer shares her own history with stuttering, using story to help kids feel seen, heard, and brave enough to take risks—and encourages families to co-read and talk honestly about fears, bullying, and courage.

In this episode of Reading With Your Kids, we're celebrating humor, heart, and the power of picture books to bring families together.
Most of our time is spent with Ann Koffsky, author of Blazing Humor: Mel Brooks Is Seriously Funny. Ann and Jed dive into why Mel Brooks' comedy, while very much for adults, still offers a powerful, kid-friendly life story. Ann talks about the challenge of sharing a famously edgy comedian with young readers—focusing not on the racy jokes, but on Mel's resilience, his use of humor to face bullies, racism, and hard times, and his joyful Jewish identity. She describes curating a YouTube playlist of kid-appropriate Mel Brooks clips and reflects on how picture books might be one of the last truly shared media experiences for grown-ups and kids. Together, they explore how humor can be a survival skill in an angry, algorithm-driven world.
Next, Evelina Ruimy joins the show to introduce The Kind Bunny, the first in her Hops Tales series. Written during a frightening wildfire evacuation, the book helps families talk about unkind words, hurt feelings, and why kindness begins with how we treat ourselves. Evelina shares how Bunny chooses to answer rudeness with kindness, turning conflict into friendship, and how parents can use the story to start meaningful conversations about bullying and self-worth.
Finally, Bob Richley stops by to chat about Redeeming Rhubarb, a middle-grade novel about a mouse, a rat, and what it really means to love your enemies—even when you've been taught to hate them.

In this joyful, wisdom-packed episode of Reading With Your Kids, we're shining a light on two amazing creators who are helping kids (and their grownups) find calm, connection, and a love of stories.
First, Jed chats with musician, yoga teacher, and mindfulness author Kira Willey about her new parenting book The Joyful Child. Kira shares how years of performing in schools taught her the "magic formula" for engaging kids: music, rhythm, movement, and mindful breathing. She explains why a parent's own emotional state is the most powerful tool in a child's self-regulation, and offers down-to-earth strategies for staying calm in real-life moments—like when your child melts down in the grocery store. Kira also describes simple one-minute activities, car-friendly games, and her Mindfulness Moments for Kids board books that sneak powerful breathing tools into sweet stories.
Then we head to Texas to meet Laekan Zea Kemp, author of the funny and heartfelt middle grade novel The Chismosas Only Book Club. Laekan introduces us to four freshman friends navigating high school, family expectations, and their own anxieties. She talks about blending prose with graphic novel sections to hook reluctant readers and bridge kids from comics to longer fiction. Laekan also shares how her work as a high school ESL teacher shaped the book, why simultaneous English–Spanish publication matters, and the very real challenges teens face today with fear, social media, and school.
It's an episode full of heart, humor, and practical ideas for raising joyful, mindful, book-loving kids.