Susan Tan

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About Susan Tan
Susan Tan has worked with children's books since the age of 14, when she had her first job working in the children's room of the Concord Public Library. She went on to study children's literature while at Williams College, and got her PhD from the University of Cambridge in children's and Young Adult literature. While in graduate school, she began to write a children’s book of her own which became her debut novel - Cilla Lee-Jenkins, Future Author Extraordinaire. Cilla is based on Susan’s own experiences growing up in a mixed-race family. A second book in the Cilla series, titled Cilla Lee-Jenkins: This Book is A Classic is scheduled for release in 2018. Susan was the 2015 Gish Jen Emerging Writers Fellow at the Writers’ Room of Boston, and teaches at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
You can follow her on Twitter (@susansmtan), or write her a message through her website: www.susantanbooks.com
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Books By Susan Tan
Pick a book. Grow a Reader!
This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line, Branches, aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost reading confidence and stamina. Branches books help readers grow!
Meet Ember, a rescue Chihuahua who has just been adopted by the Chin family. Ember is no ordinary dog: he thinks he is an evil overlord, destined to rule the world. He enlists the help of the other pets in the house, like Smelly Steve the hamster and Neo the canary, to take over the neighborhood. Their first mission is defeating Masher, the mean squirrel who lives next door. But to his shock, Ember finds himself growing attached to his “minions”, the Chin family—especially Lucy. Does Ember still have what it takes to control of the neighborhood… and the world?
With laugh-out-loud humor, engaging artwork on every page, and nonstop action that will have readers rushing to turn the pages, Pets Rule is the just-right series for any emerging reader!
"This early chapter book expertly cultivates a larger-than-life pseudo-antihero... an infectiously silly series starter." -- Kirkus Reviews
Cilla Lee-Jenkins returns to pursue her dreams of becoming a successful author while dealing with her Chinese-American family in Cilla Lee-Jenkins: The Epic Story by writer Susan Tan and illustrator Dana Wulfekotte.
“Anyone who spends time with Cilla Lee-Jenkins will look forward to reading her in the future.” –Booklist, starred review, on Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire
Pricilla “Cilla” Lee-Jenkins has already written a "Bestseller" and a "Classic"—now it’s time for her to write an Epic Story. Epics are all about brave heroes overcoming Struggles to save the world, and this year, Cilla is facing her toughest struggles yet:
· Cilla is in fifth grade and, unlike her classmates, not at all ready to start middle school
· She has two younger sisters to look after now and they don't exactly get along
· Her beloved grandfather YeYe has had a stroke and forgotten his English, and it’s up to Cilla to help him find his words again
With humor, heart, and her mighty pen Cilla Lee-Jenkins will use her powers to vanquish every foe (the mean girls in her class), help every citizen (especially Ye Ye), and save the world.
“Anyone who spends time with Cilla Lee-Jenkins will look forward to reading her in the future.” –Booklist, starred review, on Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire
Priscilla “Cilla” Lee-Jenkins has just finished her (future) bestselling memoir, and now she’s ready to write a Classic. This one promises to have everything: Romance, Adventure, and plenty of Drama—like Cilla’s struggles to “be more Chinese,” be the perfect flower girl at Aunt Eva’s wedding, and learn how to share her best friend.
In Cilla Lee-Jenkins: This Book Is a Classic, author Susan Tan seamlessly weaves experiences as a Chinese American with universal stories about being a big sister, making friends, and overcoming fears. Cilla Lee-Jenkins will bulldoze her way into your heart in this winning middle grade novel about family, friendship, and finding your voice.
“Meeting Cilla felt like making a new best friend.” —Grace Lin, bestselling author of Newbery Honor book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Priscilla "Cilla" Lee-Jenkins is on a tight deadline. Her baby sister is about to be born, and Cilla needs to become a bestselling author before her family forgets all about her. So she writes about what she knows best—herself! Stories from her bestselling memoir, Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire, include:
- How she dealt with being bald until she was five
- How she overcame her struggles with reading
- How family traditions with her Grandma and Grandpa Jenkins and her Chinese grandparents, Nai Nai and Ye Ye, are so different
Debut author Susan Tan has written a novel bursting with love and humor, as told through a bright, irresistible biracial protagonist who will win your heart and make you laugh.
A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2017
2017 Asian Pacific American Library Association Honor Book
"Susan Tan's writing is funny, fun, and hits straight to the heart."—Christina Soontorvat, two-time Newbery Honor recipient
From APALA Honor award-winning author Susan Tan, a middle-grade novel about a girl who must overcome her worries to find the truth behind her town's urban legend.
Mo is not afraid of toast. Just to be clear. She is afraid of fires, though. Which can be caused by everyday appliances, like toasters. So toast isn’t the problem, but you could say it’s the start of a slippery slope. Since her family's recent move, Mo's been eating oatmeal for breakfast.
Moving to a new town is never easy, but it’s even harder when you’re dealing with a stepdad who just left and a mom who can’t get out of bed long enough to find a new a job.
But Mo doesn’t have time to dwell on these things. Because it’s her job to keep her family together. To keep them safe.
So when an elephant starts to haunt her dreams—and a mysterious spirit attacks her home—Mo knows it’s up to her to intervene before things get too dangerous.
With her new friend, Nathaniel, she embarks on an investigation, searching for the truth about the town, its people, and their history. But things are much more complicated and tangled than she thought.
To find out what’s really going on, Mo might have to live a little dangerously after all.