Representation in Romance: Finding Depth and Diversity in Love Stories

This episode of Reading with Your Kids featured interviews with several children's book authors discussing their recent publications and the importance of talking to kids about difficult topics like relationships and grief.  The episode featured an interview with Rachel Lynn Solomon who wrote the YA romance novel "Past, Present, Future." Solomon discussed how the book explores healthy teenage relationships and navigating intimacy. Also in the episode Ell Gonzalez Rose celebrated her romantic comedy "Caught in a Bad Fauxmance." Gonzalez Rose talked about drawing inspiration from her own mixed Puerto Rican heritage and passion for representing diversity in fiction. She emphasized the depth that can be found in romance genres. The episode concluded by speaking to Kellie Kaminskas, author of "Here With You", about the importance of exposing children to topics of death and loss from a young age to help them better understand life's ups and downs.