How To Read A Book

A stunning new picture book from Newbery Medalist Kwame Alexander and Caldecott Honoree Melissa Sweet! This New York Times bestselling duo has teamed up for the first time to bring you How to Read a Book, a poetic and beautiful journey about the experience of reading.

Find a tree - a

black tupelo or

dawn redwood will do - and

plant yourself.

(It’s okay if you prefer a stoop, like Langston Hughes.)

With these words, an adventure begins. Kwame Alexander’s evocative poetry and Melissa Sweet’s lush artwork come together to take readers on a sensory journey between the pages of a book.

About the Author

Kwame Alexander has written seventeen books, owned several publishing companies, written for television (TLC's Hip Hop Harry), recorded a CD, performed around the world, produced jazz and book festivals, hosted a weekly radio show, worked for the U.S. government, and taught in a high school. Recently Kwame was a visiting writer in Brazil and Africa. He resides in the Washington, DC, area, where he is the founding director of Book-in-a-Day (BID), a program that teaches and empowers teenagers to write and publish their own books. The idea for He Said, She Said came during a writing workshop he conducted with thirty smart, funny, feisty, insecure, and ambitious young people in Charleston, South Carolina which, by the way, is his favorite place on earth (behind Bahia, Accra, and Tuscany, of course).

About the Illustrator

Melissa Sweet is one of Australia's most respected specialist health journalists, and has been covering health and medical issues for over 15 years. She is a columnist and feature writer with The Bulletin and Australian Doctor magazines. She has also published widely in medical literature, with articles appearing in the British Medical Journal, The Medical Journal of Australia, and Australian Prescriber. Previously, Sweet has worked for the Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Associated Press. This is her third book.