This post is a thank you note – that also includes presents for YOU!
First the thank you… I’m wildly grateful that my MG novel THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES has already landed on over twenty state book award lists in the US, as well as Hong Kong’s Battle of the Books list and Singapore’s Red Dot Student’s Choice Book Award list.
I know from your emails & social media posts that many schools are planning to read Finn and Seymour’s story with kids or entire communities this year, so I wanted to offer up some resources that will make your planning easier and make the reading more fun!
THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES teaching & discussion guide created by NBCT Melissa Guerrette offers everything from discussion questions to writing prompts and extension activities.
Below is the recipe for Cascade and Porter Cookies, which are featured in the book (along with other cookie recipes named for the Adirondack High Peaks) You can bake up a batch for your book club discussion!
Cascade-and-Porter Cookies
Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease a cookie sheet.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 stick of butter, softened but not melted
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup jagged toffee pieces (or chopped Heath bars)
16 chocolate covered orange rinds, cut in half the long way, into thin strips*
*If these aren’t easily available, you can substitute a sprinkle of orange zest (grated orange peel) instead.
Mix together sugar and wet ingredients until smooth
Stir in salt and baking soda, then flour.
Add chocolate chips and mix.
Scoop balls of dough onto cookie sheet 2 inches apart
Bake at 350 for 7 minutes.
While cookies are baking, cut the orange rings in half the long way and chop toffee into pea-sized pieces.
After 7 minutes, remove baking sheet from oven and press half an orange rind (or orange zest substitution) and a sprinkle of toffee pieces gently into the middle of each cookie.
Return to oven and bake for another 2-5 minutes, until cookies golden brown and edges are beginning to look crisp.
Cool on a baking rack before eating
VIRTUAL POETRY WORKSHOPS FOR THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES
Here are four on-demand poetry workshops to share with your readers! Each runs 10-20 minutes and guides writers through creating their own poem in the style of Finn’s poetry in the book .
THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES Poetry Workshop #1 – Writing Place Poems with Sensory Language (22 minutes)
THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES Poetry Workshop #2 – Writing “Found Poems” (11 minutes)
THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES Poetry Workshop #3 – Writing Memory Poems (22 minutes)
THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES Poetry Workshop #4 – Revising Poems – Strategies to Play With (11 minutes)
WHAT’S NEXT?
My new novel KEEP THE GHOST LIGHT ON comes out February 23, 2027 and is available for pre-order now! If you pre-order a signed copy from my local indie (or pre-order from another participating indie bookstore) you’ll automatically be signed up for my new Virtual Author-in-Residence program.
KATE MESSNER’S VIRTUAL AUTHOR-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM FOR 2026-2027
Best for grads 4-8 and offered at no cost with your pre-order one or more copies of KEEP THE GHOST LIGHT ON from Kate’s local independent bookstore, The Bookstore Plus in Lake Placid, NY or another participating indie before February 1, 2027.
Kate’s virtual author-in-residence program includes:
An exclusive pdf excerpt with the first 40 pages of KEEP THE GHOST LIGHT ON delivered to your inbox
Writing Scary Scenes – a 20-minute on-demand writing workshop for grades 4-8 with author Kate Messner
Songwriting is Poetry – a 20-minute on-demand workshop for grades 4-8 with author Kate Messner & Broadway music director and composer Haley Bennett, who wrote music to go along with the song lyrics in KEEP THE GHOST LIGHT ON.
A Live Virtual Author Visit on February 11th – A 45-minute virtual author visit sharing Kate’s research and writing process for her NYT Bestseller THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES and her new novel KEEP THE GHOST LIGHT ON, including live Q&A with readers. (Each pre-order provides access to the live webinar for one device. A recording will also be available after the live event, with unlimited access through the 2026-2027 school year.)
Preorder your copy here & you’ll automatically be signed up for the virtual author-in-residence program. You’ll get an email on October 1st with the excerpt and links to the on-demand writing workshops as well as your invitation to register for the live Zoom author visit.
Happy Reading!