Sara Pennypacker
@sarapennypacker.bsky.social
New York Times bestselling author of PAX, PAX JOURNEY HOME, CLEMENTINE, HERE IN THE REAL WORLD, and LEEVA AT LAST. Coming February 3, 2026 - THE LIONS' RUN!
Tomorrow at 1:00pm ET, I'm excited to appear at the Barrington Public Library to discuss THE LIONS' RUN. Bring your questions, readers. I look forward to meeting you! Registration is required; see details & register here: barringtonlibrary.libcal.com/event/16125332 @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
I was so delighted to visit @booksofwonder.bsky.social in New York City. What an incredible bookstore!
I've been thinking about my new book, THE LIONS' RUN, for more than twenty years. It's a story of courage, quiet resistance, and what I call the Theory of Termites: Tiny termites taking tiny bites can take down a cathedral. Thank you to everyone who has read it. us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
Next Sunday, May 31 at 1:00pm ET, I will be appearing at the Barrington Public Library to discuss THE LIONS' RUN! I'm really looking forward to meeting you, answering your questions, and signing your books. Register here! barringtonlibrary.libcal.com/event/16125332 @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
“Because I am exactly where I should be, doing exactly what I should be doing. That is peace.” 🦊🌿
I'm looking forward to visiting the Barrington Public Library on May 31 at 1:00pm ET to discuss THE LIONS' RUN! I can't wait to meet you, answer your questions, and sign your books. See details and register here to attend! barringtonlibrary.libcal.com/event/16125332 @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
I'm often asked if I have any advice for people who want to write. I say: Read. Read, read, read, read, read. When you find a book you really love, read it again and try to figure out how the author gripped you.
"I don't want things to be magically what they're not. I want them to be what they could be. And somebody has to want that, or nothing bad will ever get better." 🌿📖 From my book, HERE IN THE REAL WORLD. #BookSky sarapennypacker.com/books/here-i...
When I was doing school visits for PAX, I learned that kids want to know what they can do about injustice. So in my new middle grade novel, my characters explore ways they can take a stand against unfair situations. THE LIONS' RUN is on shelves now: us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
My recent novel, LEEVA AT LAST, is the funniest book I've ever written. But I wrote it in anger. I think LEEVA AT LAST saved me that year that I wrote it. If you haven't read it yet, I hope you'll keep an eye out for it at your library or bookstore. sarapennypacker.com/books/leeva-...
Leeva at Last by Sara Pennypacker
With an orphaned badger, a risk-averse boy in a hazmat suit, and the town's librarians, Leeva sets off to discover "What are people for?"
sarapennypacker.com
"This morning the fox ran because below the hard, matted forest floor, below the crusts of snow that remained in the deepest pine-shades and below the wafers of ice lacing the puddles, he smelled it: spring." 🦊🌿 From my book, PAX, JOURNEY HOME. #BookSky
The most moving thing I've seen in my career is when a bookseller or a librarian says to a young reader, “I think I have what you want. I think this is the book for you." @americanbookseller.bsky.social, thank you for sharing THE LIONS' RUN with readers. tinyurl.com/46hfpf3c @mackidssl.bsky.social
Q&A with Sara Pennypacker, Author of March/April Kids’ Indie Next List Top Pick “The Lions' Run”
“I read The Lions’ Run with my heart in my throat the entire time. It’s a story of bravery, of courage, of hope — that the smallest act can make a difference. What a gorgeous historical novel. This is...
tinyurl.com
Historical fiction tells a kid, "You know what? This has happened before and kids have thrived through it, they’ve triumphed through it, and things have changed.” @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
⭐ #Fiction #HBReviewoftheWeek THE LIONS' RUN by @sarapennypacker.bsky.social ; illus. by Jon Klassen (Balzer + Bray/ @mackidsbooks.bsky.social ): "[Pennypacker] shows...how a young person grows in bravery each time they take action, + that the action itself gives hope" www.hbook.com/story/review...
"You thought ahead and you prepared a note enough like mine to back up the story you told yesterday. You weren't afraid?" Lucas thought about bragging, but decided on the truth. "Yes, I was afraid. That's why I prepared." 🐎🐎🐎 @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
Thrilled to see THE LIONS' RUN in @wsj.com's roundup of 6 Books to Read Now. Thank you for your review and recommendation! "Demonstrates that resilience might spring from the unlikeliest of places." www.wsj.com/arts-culture... @mackidssl.bsky.social @mackidsbooks.bsky.social #BookSky
Swimming. Jumping on the trampoline. Putting my writing in my head before I fall asleep. What are the quirks of your creative process? It was fun discussing this and much more with @tcbrbookreview.bsky.social! www.thechildrensbookreview.com/sara-pennypa... @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
Sara Pennypacker on The Lions’ Run: Finding Courage in Occupied France
Sara Pennypacker joins us to discuss The Lions' Run: an orphan discovers courage through unlikely heroes secretly resisting Nazi occupation in WWII France.
thechildrensbookreview.com
I am so moved by the way kids can love animals. Loving anything is an act of profound courage. #BookSky
"One of the questions [kids] always have is ‘Am I brave enough?' So, I knew, in this book, I was going to talk about courage.” Thank you to The Provincetown Independent for this piece about my writing process for THE LIONS' RUN! provincetownindependent.org/arts-minds/2... #BookSky
Sara Pennypacker Argues for Hope - The Provincetown Independent
When Sara Pennypacker begins planning a book, she thinks in terms of seeds, soil, and environment, with herself as the soil. “In order to choose a book to devote two […]
provincetownindependent.org
"It's such small things we can do. I wish it were more." "Little termites taking tiny bites can bring down a cathedral." 🐎🐎🐎 @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
⭐ Stargaze with MacKids ⭐ THE LIONS' RUN by @sarapennypacker.bsky.social is a historical novel about an orphan during WWII who discovers unexpected courage within himself when he becomes involved with the Resistance. Out now! tinyurl.com/2kjzrzaa
While researching THE LIONS' RUN, I spent two weeks in Lamorlaye, France, walking every bit of the book that I was allowed to. Here is one of the lion statues that stands at the entrance of the racetrack after which the book is named. @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
As people involved in getting books into kids' hands, what do we do when the world falls far from the way we think it should be? I share my answer through the example of my new novel, THE LIONS' RUN, in my column in @thehornbook.bsky.social. www.hbook.com/story/the-wr... @mackidssl.bsky.social
The Writer's Page: Portraying Reality, Modeling Idealism
From the March/April 2026 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.
hbook.com
Thank you to the wonderful @mrschureads.bsky.social for having me on Watch. Connect. Read. last week! I so enjoyed discussing THE LIONS' RUN with you. mrschureads.blogspot.com/2026/03/the-... @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social #BookSky
The Lions' Run by Sara Pennypacker
Happy Wednesday from rainy Naperville! Sara Pennypacker stopped by Watch. Connect. Read. to finish my sentences. We discussed The Lions' Run...
mrschureads.blogspot.com
"John Schu, you should have asked me what writing this book taught me. I would have answered: The bravest thing you can do is care about someone else." — @sarapennypacker.bsky.social mrschureads.blogspot.com/2026/03/the-...
I can't wait to for the Tucson Festival of Books this weekend! I'll be on panels with the incredible Erin Entrada Kelly, Daniel Nayeri, and Tracey Baptiste. I'd love to see you there! tucsonfestivalofbooks.org?action=displ... @mackidssl.bsky.social @mackidsbooks.bsky.social #BookSky
Thank you for your lovely review, @smithsmm.bsky.social!
Simon Smith@smithsmm.bsky.social · 5mo agoLoved “The Lions’ Run” by @sarapennypacker.bsky.social. It’s a fantastic tale of personal bravery and courage. Set in occupied France during WWII, it’s a tale of resistance, some themes are dark so definitely Year 6 and above. A powerful, evocative read laced with hope. @hodderfiction.bsky.social
Thank you so much, @mrschureads.bsky.social!
John Schu@mrschureads.bsky.social · 5mo ago"The Lions’ Run tells the story of a boy who follows some kittens and joins some termites to find that he’s a lion. (This is a riddle. You have to read the book to solve it...)" — @sarapennypacker.bsky.social mrschureads.blogspot.com/2026/03/the-... @mackidssl.bsky.social
From Mar/Apr #HBMag @sarapennypacker.bsky.social 's "Portraying Reality, Modeling Idealism" Writer's Page column: "When kids have information abt injustice, role models for how to make a difference, + ppl around who believe in them...look out!" www.hbook.com/story/the-wr... @mackidsbooks.bsky.social
The Writer's Page: Portraying Reality, Modeling Idealism
From the March/April 2026 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.
hbook.com