🎧 The Reader's Heart Podcast | Guest: Greg Howard
I'm not exactly sure how long I've known Greg Howard, but I believe we first met shortly after his debut novel, Social Intercourse, came out in 2018. Since then, we've discovered that we have quite a bit in common, from our shared love of RuPaul's Drag Race to growing up counting the days until we could "escape" the places we blamed for being at the heart of our individual traumas. Now, all these years later, I feel lucky to call Greg a friend.
Over the years, I've loved watching Greg grow as a writer, and I think his latest book, The Travelers, is his best yet! As we discuss in this episode, the book holds a special place in my heart for several reasons. For starters, I think it would make a fantastic read-aloud. I also love the way Greg uses time travel to explore generational trauma. And, of course, there's a librarian with red cat-eye glasses, whose name I cannot remember because she should have been named Mme. LaGarde!
All kidding aside, I've been delighted by the response The Travelers has received since its book birthday in late August, and I'm excited for all the readers who will discover in it a book of their hearts.
ABOUT THIS WEEK'S GUEST:
Greg Howard is an award-winning author of books for young readers, including The Whispers, Middle School’s a Drag, You Better Werk!, The Visitors, and his latest middle grade novel, The Travelers, as well as the young adult novel Social Intercourse. Born and raised in the South Carolina Lowcountry, Greg originally pursued a career in songwriting and music production in Nashville before returning to his childhood love of storytelling. His debut middle grade novel, The Whispers, was nominated for an Edgar Award, and The Visitors was named a 2022 New York Public Library Best Book. Greg writes for and about LGBTQ+ youth, creating the kinds of stories he wishes he'd had growing up gay in the American South.
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
EDUCATOR ACTIVITY
One of my goals for this season of The Reader's Heart is to create resources that help readers continue thinking about the ideas explored in each episode. Whenever possible, I'll be creating student activities inspired by my conversations with authors and illustrators and sharing them here as a free resource for educators. While The Reader's Heart is a podcast for adults, the books we talk about are written for kids. My hope is that these activities will serve as a bridge between the two. I'm excited to share the activity for The Travelers because it was inspired by two specific aspects of my conversation with Greg Howard:
Our discussion about grief as something we carry with us, and how metaphors can help young readers make sense of big, complicated feelings like loss.
Our conversation about giving readers the opportunity to choose their own ending, and how that reflects Ben and his friends' own journey as they discover the power of making choices that shape their futures.
To make these activities as useful as possible, I've created them as Canva templates. That means you can make your own copy, adapt them for your learners, and customize them to fit your classroom, library, or book club needs.
That said, although this should go without saying, while I very much hope you'll use these resources with the readers you serve, you are not allowed to sell them. Please feel free to share them (with credit), but I absolutely do not want to find them on Teachers Pay Teachers, y'all!
👉 Download the The Travelers Educator Activity
RESOURCES & LINKS
Please enjoy a special discount of 20% off the titles mentioned in this episode (or others of your choice) by visiting Bookelicious and using the code JENNIFERLAGARDE. Note: I do not make any money from these sales, but I am delighted that you get to save some!
Greg's Books on Bookelicious
Connect with Greg
MORE ABOUT THE READER’S HEART
Rooted in the belief that our world needs the magic of children’s literature now more than ever, the Reader’s Heart podcast captures conversations with authors and illustrators about children's literature as a vehicle for empathy and joy in a dark world. I'm so excited about this project and it's my wish that it brings you as much light and hope as it has brought me.
Special thanks to Corinna Luyken for creating the beautiful illustration that will serve as the show's logo. I've always found Corinna's art so moving and she perfectly captured the spirit of what I am trying to do, which is to put warmth and love into the world during a time when so many are working to limit kids' access to the warmth and love inherent in children's literature. (Also, don't forget, you can use the discount above to buy Corinna's books from Bookelicious, too!)
If all goes to plan, episodes will drop every two weeks through September 2026. Once you've had a chance to listen, I hope you will consider leaving The Reader's Heart a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review! Podcast reviews are one of the best ways to support your favorite shows and help others find these conversations.
WHERE TO LISTEN:
Wherever you listen to podcasts!
