The Writer’s Center welcomes Caela Carter for a virtual book release celebration of her new middle grade novel, Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers. Caela will be in conversation with fellow middle grade author Janae Marks, author of A Soft Place to Land.
RSVP below to receive login information (our virtual events are held via Zoom). FREE and open to the public, all times Eastern.
We encourage you to order a copy of our guests’ books from your local, independent bookseller (Caela recommends her nee neighborhood shop Cups and Books) or online through Bookshop.org: Order Caela’s book » | Order Janae’s book »
Caela Carter is a writer and an educator. She is a graduate of the New School’s MFA program in writing for children. She has written three books for middle grade readers: One Speck of Truth, My Life with the Liars, and Forever, or a Long, Long Time, which received three starred reviews, among other accolades. Caela lives in Brooklyn with her family. You can visit her online at caelacarter.com.
​​Janae Marks is an author of middle grade novels. Her debut From the Desk of Zoe Washington is an indie bestseller and was named a Best Book of the Year by Parents Magazine, Book Riot, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Chicago Public Library and the Boston Globe. Her second novel is A Soft Place to Land. She has an MFA in Writing for Children from The New School, and lives in Connecticut with her husband, daughter and miniature schnauzer named Cookie. Janae is part of the Renegades of Middle Grade and is a co-founder of Middle Ground Book Fest.
About the Book
From the critically acclaimed author of the ALA Notable and Charlotte Huck Honor Book Forever, or a Long, Long Time comes a moving own-voices story that shines a light on how one girl’s learning differences are neither right nor wrong…just perfectly individual. For fans of Alyson Gerber, Cammie McGovern, and Kathryn Erskine.
No one can figure out what Gwendolyn Rogers’s problem is—not her mom, or her teachers, or any of the many therapists she’s seen. But Gwendolyn knows she doesn’t have just one thing wrong with her: she has fifty-four.
At least, according to a confidential school report (that she read because she is #16. Sneaky, not to mention #13. Impulsive). So Gwendolyn needs a plan, because if she doesn’t get these fifty-four things under control, she’s not going to be able to go to horse camp this summer with her half-brother, Tyler.
But Tyler can’t help her because there’s only one thing “wrong” with him: ADHD.
And her best friend Hettie can’t help her because there’s nothing wrong with Hettie. She’s perfect.
So Gwendolyn is hopeless until she remembers the one thing that helped her mother when her own life was out of control. Or actually, the twelve things. Can these Twelve Steps that cured her mother somehow cure Gwendolyn too?