Simon Sort of Says

A middle-grade comedy with a strong and tender core.

12-year-old Simon has just moved to Grin and Bear It , Nebraska — a town where the internet is banned because it interferes with the radio telescopes looking for signals from aliens.

For most seventh graders, going offline forever would be a deal-breaker — but Simon is famous for the worst thing that ever happened to him. When he makes a friend who wants to give the radio telescopes what they’re looking for, he grabs the chance to spin a different story.

Newbery Honor, Schenider Family Honor, National Book Award Longlist. State-level awards galore.

About Me

Hi, I’m Erin. I used to want to be a physicist when I grew up, but I dropped out of my PhD program and started writing books instead — mostly poetry and novels for young readers.

I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up, but the book thing actually worked out. I’ve published six novels and three volumes of poetry — my secret poetry identity is Erin Noteboom — plus this memoir no one read. Between them, they’ve won a fistful of prizes, including the Governor Generals’ Award for young people’s literature, the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, and the CBC Literary Award for poetry.

My hometown is Omaha, Nebraska, but I accidentally blew it up in one of my books. I now live in Kitchener, Ontario, and I write in my garden shed.

  • A boy who’s famous for the worst thing that ever happened to him moves to a town with no internet, and starts telling different stories. A middle grade comedy with a strong and tender core.

  • To raise money for her brother’s medical treatment, a Kazakh nomad girl rescues a baby eagle and teaches it to hunt — even though all the other young eagle hunters are boys.

  • A YA science ficiton duology about a world where the children of presidents and kings are held hostage — and killed if their countries declare war.

  • A girl inherits her mother’s power to bind the restless dead. She’s proud of her power and her place — until her mother dies. A YA fantasy/horror.

  • A Russian-flavored fairy tale in which an orphan girl sells her shadow, and accidentally aquires a talking cat. An upper MG or lower YA. Winner of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award.

I love to meet readers - especially kids!

I do school visits, creative writing workshops, professional development for teachers, and more!

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