2K12 Guest Post: Sarvenaz Tash - The Mapmaker and the Ghost

A long while back I was approached by Caroline Starr Rose to help promote the fantastic group of authors in the Class of 2k12.  These are a group of authors being published in 2012.  I jumped at the chance to help out.  

What we came up with was a series of guest posts.  The topic: 

MIDDLE SCHOOL!

 Since I teach 7th grade I live and breath middle school (ok some of you can stop shuddering now). 2

So over the course of 2012 you will get to hear from some the the 2k12 authors and their memories/thoughts about that time in their life.  I thank each of them for jumping in a tackling the subject!

To learn about all the 2k12 authors check out their site: Class of 2k12: Fiction that Rocks

Today our 2k12-er is:

Sarvenaz Tash

Book: The Mapmaker and the Ghost

Published: April 24, 2012, Walker Books for Young 

Readers

Goldenrod Moram loves nothing better than a good quest. Intrepid, curious, and full of a well-honed sense of adventure, she decides to start her own exploring team fashioned after her idols, the explorers Lewis and Clark, and to map the forest right behind her home. This task is complicated, however, by a series of unique events—a chance encounter with a mysterious old lady has her searching for a legendary blue rose. Another encounter lands her in the middle of a ragtag gang of brilliant troublemakers. And when she stumbles upon none other than the ghost of Meriwether Lewis himself, Goldenrod knows this will be anything but an ordinary summer . . . or an ordinary quest. Debut author Sarvenaz Tash combines an edge-of-your-seat adventure, a uniquely clever voice, and an unforgettable cast of characters to prove that sometimes the best adventures of all are waiting right in your own backyard.

What Were You Like as a Middle Schooler?

As a middle schooler, I was very shy. I felt awkward and out-of-place, especially with a strange name no one could pronounce and the fact that I could never seem to understand what were the “right” clothes to wear.

I spent a lot of my free time reading. Or, at least, I spent the time not fretting about not fitting in reading.

I had a handful of friends I liked a lot. For the most part, we all didn’t fit in together. (And, for the record, some of those friends are still my very good friends.)

When it was time to go to college, I went to film school. Guess what I found there? A whole slew of people who didn’t fit in! I think I had a grin on my face the whole four years.

I’ve come to realize that my quirky viewpoint, my obsession with spending my free time writing, even my crazy name: they are all a part of what has brought me to where I am. And I am very happy with where I am.

But I hope I never forget that middle school was hard. High school was hard. They were some of the hardest times of my life and it was because I was struggling to figure out who I was and to be okay with it. I think that’s why writing tween and teenaged characters is so compelling. Their struggles are very real and very universal. And having a character discover who they are throughout the course of a story will always make for a fulfilling read.

To find out more about Sarvenaz check out her website!!! Then go check out her book because it sounds sooooooo cute and perfect for the middle grade reader!