Katherine Applegate and John Schu in conversation

The bestselling authors talk about how they met, their latest books and the power of poetry.

John Shu’s photo by Saverio Truglia

Katherine Applegate: John, we might never have met if it hadn’t been for the nice people at FedEx. I think it’s been 12 years since I sent you a copy of The one and only Ivan. I was so nervous to send it! I knew you from your popular blog, Watch. Read. Connect.and I was terribly afraid that you might not like the book. I mean, a talking gorilla might not be everyone’s cup of tea…

John Schu: Hello, Katherine!

I am SO grateful that you emailed me more than a decade ago about The one and only Ivan‘s book trailer.

I am SO grateful that you used FedEx’s fastest delivery option to tell me Ivan’s story.

As I already said with

Thousands and thousands of students,

My life changed the day FedEx

left a box from you

To The Porch on Periwinkle Lane.

A box with

a red bow,

shiny silver wrapping paper,

a nice message,

and a The one and only Ivan Galley.

After experiencing the first chapter, I knew my heart would never be the same again.

A chapter with fifteen perfectly placed and chosen words.

Ivan’s story touched my heart

in such a private,

calm manner.

When revising the fourth draft Louder than hunger,

a verse novel about my own struggle with anorexia nervosa,

I realized why I helped,

almost 30,000 copies of The one and only Ivan.

You have changed so many lives through

Story,

poetry

and compassion.

How does it feel to send The only true family,

the last book in the series “The One and Only …”,

out into the world?

KA: It’s bittersweet. Like sending your kids off to college or saying goodbye to old, dear friends. I never imagined Ivan’s story would expand into a quartet of books… and without your endless support and enthusiasm, I’m not sure that would have ever happened.

You know, if someone had told us back when we met what direction our literary lives would take, none of us would have believed it. We were in Anderson’s Bookshop at the Children’s Literature Breakfast.

I remember being so amazed by your seemingly limitless energy. (I still am!) But even more so, I was impressed by how much you love books. Watching you go from being a “book evangelist” to a New York Times bestselling author: I can’t say that was a surprise. If I had written your story, the narrative arc would have just been there had go.

The circle closed in a wonderful way when I had the honor of writing the foreword The gift of history. In it, you talk about how stories can heal us. And in the same way The one and only Ivan has helped you understand your pain and begin healing, Louder than hunger helped me get in touch with some of my own childhood traumas. I had severe OCD, anxiety, and depression as a child, and Jake’s road to recovery was in many ways a mirror image of my own. So much for stories! Louder than hunger will touch so many lives. It certainly touched mine.

That must be incredibly satisfying for you.

JS: Thank you for these kind and encouraging words.

Thank you for sharing your story with us.

Thank you for writing these words about Louder than hunger that appear on the cover:

“Every now and then a book comes along that is so brave and necessary that it makes your life miserable when you need it most. This is one of those books.”

That’s how I feel about all your books.

When I read your supportive words,

it felt like my favorite teacher

Add shiny stars and stickers

all over my paper.

I felt seen.

I’m grateful that you felt seen when you read Jake’s story.

Poems help me express my feelings better.

It helps me share different parts of my heart.

What do you love about poetry?

KA: Have you ever read the quote that says, “Painting is poetry that is silent, and poetry is painting that speaks”? It’s so perfect. However, when I write free verse, I feel less like a painter and more like a miner searching through mountains of coal for a word diamond. That “Eureka!” moment is my favorite moment in writing. How about you?

JS: Oh, I love this quote.

I didn’t know it.

I just wrote it in my notebook – the notebook in which I am working on a poem.

A poem that is chaotic at the moment.

Your question reminds me of what Susan Van Metre,

the brilliant editor of Louder than hunger,

said to Newbery Honor author Jasmine Warga,

“John Schu put his heart and soul into writing these lines.”

That’s why I love poetry.

It helps me to turn my heart outward.

This also applies to listening to music.

I think I told you that in high school I taped a lot of song lyrics to the walls of my room.

Lyrics written by

Alanis Morissette,

Tori Amos,

Tracy Chapman,

and Ani DiFranco.

For me,

Music is therapy.

For me,

Writing is therapy.

Chatting with you about poetry was the perfect solution!

It’s time to play the playlist I made this morning and get back to this chaotic poem.

KA: I can’t wait to read it, my friend.

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Katherine Applegate is the Newbery Medal winner and No. 1 New York Times Bestselling author of numerous books for young readers, including the One and Only series, the Endling series, Crenshaw, Wishing treethe Roscoe Riley Rules book series and the Animorphs series. She lives with her family in Nevada.

John Schu has made it his career to advocate for the people and things that matter most to him: children, books and the people they connect. He is the children’s librarian of Bookelicious and author of This is a school (Candlewick, 2022) illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison, This is a story (Candlewick, 2023) illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo, Louder than hunger (Candlewick, 2024), Louder than hunger (Candlewick, 2024) and The Gift of Story: Exploring the Emotional Side of Reading (Stenhouse, 2022). John Schu lives in Naperville, Illinois.