Playwright. Journalist. Author. Yes, sometimes writing a book, especially for children, seems like an afterthought. Celebrities may have the one-time goal on their “bucket list.” Well-read supporters of children’s literature ooze with doubt and skepticism when encountering new authors.

However, multi-talented Rosemary Zibart has given her all to True Brit. The historical fiction has entered a second printing after winning honorable mention at the London Book Festival.

What’s good about children’s literature right now?

I believe there’s more talent in this country than ever before. Not just in children’s literature but poetry, film, art, theatre—I live in a very art-centric city, Santa Fe, and I am always amazed by the talent. The sheer variety is amazing. In children’s lit you see enormous diversity as well. Fantasy, gothic horror, biography, historical fiction, fiction … children are being exposed to a much wider gamut of experience and imagination.

The piece of the pie that I now write about is historical fiction. Twenty years ago, I discovered that four English girls came to Santa Fe in 1940 to escape the bombing in London and the fear (quite justified at the time) that Hitler might win. With that spark of inspiration, I created a fictional story that conveys what Santa Fe was like at that time: the mixture of cultures, classes, races. I also wanted to show the exhilaration of a 12-year old girl, Beatrice, who goes from a very restricted, privileged background to one which is much freer, more open, and requires nitty-gritty effort.

After writing about Beatrice, I came across a similar but very different story—Werner, a Jewish boy who travels on his own to New York City in 1939—again to escape Hitler. He endures a lot of difficulties but survives and triumphs. That story will be published later this year.

Since writing these two, people have told me many other stories of survival—not just during WWII — but in every generation. I’ve heard about Iranian children who came to the U.S. to escape persecution. Cuban teen who were forced to come to the United States to escape communism. These stories are often heartrending and yet it’s so important for young people to know about the struggle of their peers to find freedom and safety.

The hard part for talented artists of any kind is to survive the marketing process. The portal created by the few major trade publishers that remain is very slim. Also, as libraries are cut back in hours and buying power, the opportunities for authors to find readers diminishes. That hurts!!! Schools and school libraries which used to introduce millions of children to books have much less time and encouragement to spend time just reading. School days are crammed with other obligatory activities.

What can be improved about children’s literature?

I personally think that respect for books and libraries need to be increased. People believe (falsely) that they can find everything they need online. I do some research online when I’m researching facts. But in general, I find libraries far richer as sources of information about any subject. The huge investment schools make in computers and programming is understandable, as long as they simultaneously engender respect and enjoyment for books, for imagination, for authors, past and present, especially the ones who are working so hard to bring forth works of quality. I think what needs to be encouraged is the connection between good books and eager readers!!

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To learn more about the author and True Brit, please visit www.rosemaryzibart.com.