We caught up with author MEGAN DOWD LAMBERT to discuss April & Mae and the Animal Shelter, a story that celebrates friendship, hope and love.
What inspired you to write April & Mae and the Animal Shelter?
I initially signed on to write only three ‘April & Mae’ early readers Charlesbridge. Then in January 2020, editor Yolanda Scott expanded the contract to a seven-book series, with one title for each day of the week. I was drafting the second round of titles in spring 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic was raging and the horrific murder of George Floyd by police spurred widespread protests. During this time, it was hard to resist despair or to tap into any creativity, and so I tried to figure out how to write a story for children about confronting feelings of helplessness when dealing with great sadness and witnessing injustice.
I admit, my first drafts of this story were pretty terrible – very grim, and too heavy for the tone of the rest of my early reader series about two best friends. Another editor at Charlesbridge, Karen Boss, gave me extremely helpful feedback. With her help, I revised the text to a point where I felt I was being honest about the big feelings that adults and children alike can have amidst hardship and societal wrongs, without bogging it down with bleak commentary, or having the story stand out as an anomaly from the rest of the series.
I should also note that each book in this series is inspired by my three daughters and their friendships. This particular title is dedicated to my daughter, Caroline (now 18), who has a deep love of animals and is a very sensitive person. I homed in on how April and Mae’s love of their pets makes them feel sad for animals who have no homes and not enough to eat, while April worries that her efforts to help solve these problems don’t go far enough. Mae helps April realise that while they can’t help every dog and cat who needs a home, they can make an impact in their community at their local animal shelter.
What animals will April and Mae meet in this book?
April’s dog and Mae’s cat are always with them in each book of the series. In this title, they also meet other cats and dogs when they volunteer at the animal shelter.
The theme of friendship and kind deeds is prevalent in your book. How important is it to send this message to children?
It’s crucial! True, reciprocal friendship enables friends to be seen and heard as their authentic selves. Such caring, respectful relationships allow us to grow as individuals and to show up for each other with honesty, kindness, and hope. As they grew up, I saw how my daughters’ friendships spurred their growth and gave them joy, encouragement, and comfort. I hope I’ve captured some of that in my ‘April & Mae’ stories, and I think this particular title is my favourite in the series as it tackles a wide range of emotion.
What are some small steps you have taken recently to make a positive change?
In addition to volunteering, voting, and making financial contributions to causes and candidates I believe in, I recently started taking one day a week to devote to my own writing, reading, and spiritual practice. ‘Filling up my cup’ in this way is enabling me to avoid burnout and to show up for my family, friends, colleagues, and neighbours as my best self.
What do you hope readers will take away from your book?
I hope they will realise that even though the problems of the world can feel overwhelming, we can each make a difference ‘bit by bit,’ as April and Mae say.
What other books do you plan on crafting for the future?
I am just wrapping up work on an expanded edition of Reading Picture Books with Children: How to Shake Up Storytime and Get Kids Talking About What They See, which Charlesbridge will publish in fall 2025 for the book’s 10th anniversary. It will include new introductory content as well as a sampling of Whole Book Approach storytime plans from a book I published in 2023 at my own company, Modern Memoirs, Inc., called Read It Again: 70 Whole Book Approach Plans to Help You Shake Up Storytime.
At Modern Memoirs, I am now working on an essay collection about my Franco and Irish American heritage, with 10 pieces completed and plans for a few more. I also have notebooks and files filled with new story ideas for young readers. I am mulling over whether build on the first seven ‘April & Mae’ books – perhaps with a set of four new titles for each season of the year – or to introduce entirely new stories. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Megan Dowd Lambert grew up in Vermont and earned her BA at Smith College, where she majored in African American Studies and Government. She earned her MA in Children’s Literature at Simmons University (formerly, Simmons College), where she taught in some capacity for more than a decade. Her experiences as a white mother of seven children in a blended, multiracial, queer, adoptive family inform her work as a children’s book author, reviewer, and educator.
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