Listen

Thirteen-year-old Gwilym Duckworthy has a good family and close friends. He¿s learning to play the trumpet and has a job delivering produce. His life is good. Listen opens on Thanksgiving¿Gwilym¿s favorite holiday. It¿s a day he can spend with his family and friends playing their annual football game and scavenger hunt. What could go wrong? Maybe a call from his mom¿the one family member who left them when he was three years old? She is coming to town with her jazz band for a gig at the university. Why has she decided to contact only him? Should Gwilym meet with her without his sister and brother? Does he want to know why she left them? This second book in the Sourland Mountain series delves into the issue of abandonment and how through forgiveness and acceptance the characters find out they are more alike than they think.

About the author

Before becoming an award-winning author, Kristin McGlothlin was the assistant curator of education at the Norton Museum of Art, where she designed and managed the Norton’s art and music programs. She has a BA in Art History and a BA and MA in English. Her Master’s thesis was on the author/illustrator Edward Gorey. McGlothlin wrote and created the artwork for the children’s picture book Andy’s Snowball Story, about the contemporary artist Andy Goldsworthy. Her poem “California T-shirt” was published in the literary magazine Coastlines, and “Roman Ruins in a Modern City” won a haiku contest and was read on Travel with Rick Steves. McGlothlin’s short story “The Red Door” was one of twenty-three finalists among more than four hundred entries in the Florida Weekly 2018 Writing Challenge. Her debut middle-grade novel, Drawing with Whitman, won the 2019 Moonbeam Silver Medal for Pre-Teen Fiction. It is the first book in the four-book Sourland Mountain Series. A writer since she was thirteen, only now, like a million years later, has she settled upon it as her career.

Summary

Winner of the 2021 Silver Moonbeam Award for Pre-Teen Fiction 
In order to play more music in the future, Gwilym first has to deal with the past.

Thirteen-year-old Gwilym Duckworthy has a supportive family consisting of his dad, stepmom Ferguson, grandma, aunt and uncle, and his older siblings, sister Bex and brother Clay. His best friends, Cat and Hattie (who is also his cousin), live on either side of him. He’s going to learn how to play the trumpet, and he has a job delivering Cat’s uncle Hal’s produce. His life is good.
Listen opens on Thanksgiving day—Gwilym’s favorite holiday. It’s a day he can spend with his family and friends playing their annual football game and scavenger hunt. What could go wrong? Maybe a call from his mom—the one family member who left them when he was three years old? She is going to be in town with her jazz band to play two nights at Princeton University. Why has she decided to contact only him? Should Gwilym meet with her without his sister and brother? Does he want to know why she left them?
The second book in the Sourland Mountain series, Listen delves into the issue of abandonment and how through forgiveness or acceptance the characters find out they are more alike than unalike.

Foreword

Publisher Marketing

Prepublication buzz campaign

Digital galley distribution on Edelweiss and NetGalley

Trade advertising

Target outreach to blogs and websites

Social media influencer campaign

Targeted online advertising

Listing and pricing promotions run through GFB’s Aerio store

Enhanced Amazon content creation

Social media posts to support pre-order, book launch, and book reviews

Additional text

"The straightforward story delivers a strong cast of characters . . .the protagonist is sensitive and observant in ways that are realistic for a 13-year-old boy." —Kirkus Reviews

"A heartwarming story about parental abandonment and forgiveness. Gwilym Duckworthy is a hero kids will recognize and root for!" —Shannon Hitchcock, author of One True Way and Ruby Lee and Me

"What a poignant and hopeful book for children. Gwilym Duckworthy, 13, has a lovely family and a heart still broken after his mother left him and his sibs to join a jazz band. I loved the quirky characters, the healing reconciliation with the prodigal mom after 10 years, and discussions of the link between art, music, and creativity. A charming tale not long enough (146 pages). Thankfully, another title in this Sourland Mountain Series comes out in the fall, so the story goes on. Hurrah!" —Literary Redhead

“Listen was a warm, feel-good story that taught lessons about family, no matter how cohesive or broken. Although they were often conflicted over their mother, Gwilym and his siblings were fierce in their love for one another. The novel navigated this idea of ‘lost and found’ family through the eyes of a young teenager beautifully. I haven’t read many books centered around jazz bands or music in general, so that factor was alluring to me as well. The one thing I would say is that there were more family bonding scenes than real plot, so while I found the family bonding scenes enjoyable, I wish the story moved along faster. Overall, however, this is wonderful for anyone coming of age.” —April Yu, LitPick Book Reviews

Product details

• Authors: Kristin McGlothlin
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Age Recommendation: ages 9 to 12
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 04.05.2021
• EAN: 9781736324332
• ISBN: 978-1-73632-433-2
• No. of pages: 146
• Illustrations: map
• Series: Sourland Mountain; Sourland Mountain Series
• Subjects: Children's and young people's books; JUVENILE FICTION / Performing Arts / Music, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Family & home stories, Children’s / Teenage general interest: Music and musicians