In this episode of the Watchung Booksellers Podcast, children's book author Alliah Agostini talks with children's book illustrator Olivia de Castro about taking humor seriously, and celebrating the joy of underrepresented voices in kids' books.

Buffalo, NY native Alliah L. Agostini has marketed everything from iconic brands to scrappy start-ups, but motherhood helped her return to her first love: children's literature. She is the author of over a dozen released and upcoming picture books, early readers, and even a cookbook. Alliah and her work have been featured on Oprah Daily, TODAY with Hoda + Jenna, Essence.com, The Washington Post, and more. She strives to center stories that illuminate the diversity of the Black experience at the intersection of joy and truth.

Olivia de Castro is a Dominican and Colombian children’s book illustrator. She grew up in Verona, New Jersey and currently lives in Brooklyn, New York. In her art, she likes to capture the weirdness of everyday life, along with the humor and joy that comes with it. She has illustrated books such as How To Speak In Spanglish, Cute Toot, and Great Idea Malia! Her fourth children’s book, Sticky Hermana, comes out on October 28th.

Books:
A full list of the books and authors mentioned in this episode is available here.

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The Watchung Booksellers Podcast is produced by Kathryn Counsell and Marni Jessup and is recorded at Watchung Booksellers in Montclair, NJ.

The show is edited by Kathryn Counsell.

Original music is composed and performed by Violet Mujica.

Art & design and social media by Evelyn Moulton. Research and show notes by Caroline Shurtleff.

Thanks to all the staff at Watchung Booksellers and The Kids’ Room!

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