Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: LEMONS by Melissa Savage (Interview and Giveaway)

LEMONS by Melissa Savage (Crown Books for Young Readers, May 2nd, 2017)

The Don and I are thrilled to be part of Melissa Savage's book tour. Melissa also agreed to answer our patented Middle Grade Mafioso questions so, after you've read about Lemons, stick around to learn more about Melissa!

What It's About (from Goodreads):
The search for Bigfoot gets juicy in this funny and touching story that’s perfect for fans of Kate DiCamillo’s Flora & Ulysses and Katherine Applegate’s Crenshaw!

Lemonade Liberty Witt’s mama always told her: When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But Lem can’t possibly make lemonade out of her new life in Willow Creek, California—the Bigfoot Capital of the World—where she’s forced to live with a grandfather she’s never met after her mother passes away.

Then she meets eleven-year-old Tobin Sky, the CEO of Bigfoot Detectives Inc., who is the sole Bigfoot investigator for their small town. After he invites Lem to be his assistant for the summer, they set out on an epic adventure to capture a shot of the elusive beast on film. But along the way, Lem and Tobin end up discovering more than they ever could have imagined. And Lem realizes that maybe she can make lemonade out of her new life after all

Opening Lines:

"Bigfoot.
It's the very first thing I see when we pull into town. A gargantuan wooden statue of the hairy beast, stuck right smack in the middle of the square, like he's the mayor or President Ford or someone real important like that."

Middle Grade Mafioso Questions for Melissa:

1) Who are your favorite (middle grade) writers?         

I love Kate DiCamillo, Gary Schmidt and Kelly Easton to name a few. I also grew up reading Judy Blume and Paula Danziger, two more favorites. One of my most beloved books growing up was Can You Sue Your Parents for Malpractice? by Paula Danziger.  It was not one of her best known YA’s, but I loved it! That one and her Pistachio Prescription were books I read and reread growing up. It’s a hard question to answer because I’m always finding new favorites. I love going to the book store and finding a gem I didn’t know about. I just did that with Jason Reynold’s, As Brave As You. It should have been on my radar, but it wasn’t and it was just a gem to find. Now I’m a huge fan!

2) What's on your nightstand now? 

I’m reading Rain Reign right now and I LOVE it! I know whether or not I’m going to like a book by reading the very first page. And this was one I knew I needed to keep reading.

 3) Pick a favorite scene from your novel, and say why you like it.

I especially love to write dialogue between Tobin and Lemonade because they are so different. I think it’s fun for them to debate their differences and then have to come to some kind of agreement or compromise. However, one of my favorite scenes is when Tobin and Lemonade come upon the nest out back of Mrs. Dickerson’s house and find Scotty living there. The scene in which Charlie, Debbie, Scotty, Tobin and Lemonade all come to grips with Scotty being alive is so full of all kinds of different feelings all at once. And it also really shows Lemonade’s growth and healing as she reaches for Charlie’s hand just in case he has his own sadness quicksand.

4) Fill in the blank: I'm really awesome at.... 

Still being a ten-year-old on the inside, useless Seinfeld Trivia and binge watching cryptozoological reality shows of any kind.

5) My breakfast of writing champions is...

Matcha tea. I start my day every day with a cup of Matcha in my Bigfoot “I believe” mug for cryptozoological inspiration.


6) If you could visit any place, where would it be? 

I just took a trip this year to Scotland, my first time overseas and I loved it! I would love to visit England, Australia and Norway. And maybe . . . Cleveland? Just because I’ve never been there.

Thanks so much, Melissa!
For more information about Melissa, visit her website. And if you want to be entered into a drawing for your very own copy of LEMONS, leave a comment to say 'hi.' Ciao!