Julia Gillian (and the Art of Knowing)

Nine-year-old Julia Gillian is a girl of manyaccomplishments. Among other things, she isskilled in the Art of Knowing—about her quirkyneighbours, her Minneapolis neighbourhood,even the inscrutable Âclaw machine” in theback of the corner hardware store.Unfortunately, the one thing Julia GilliandoesnÂ’t know is how the book sheÂ’s reading isgoing to end; it doesnÂ’t seem as if itÂ’s goingto have a happy ending, and that scares her.But being afraid teaches her something new:that having good friends and family aroundyou makes life a bit less scary—and muchmore fun.

Alison McGhee is the author of numerous award-winning books for young readers and adults, including the New York Times bestseller, Someday, illustrated by Peter Reynolds. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her family. You can visit her at www.alisonmcghee.com. Drazen Kojzan is the illustrator of several books for children, including Diary of a Fairy Godmother by Esmé Raji Codell, and How to Tame a Bully by Nancy Wilcox Richards. He lives in Ontario, Canada with his family. You can visit him at www.drazenkozjan.com.