Rabbi Yehuda Kantor is the spiritual head of Chabad of Westport.
Located in the former Three Bears Inn on Newtown Turnpike at Wilton Road, Chabad blends traditional values with modern technique. It offers a home to hundreds of families, and programming for all ages.
The other day, I chatted with Rabbi Kantor about all things Chabad — and much more. Click here or below, to watch and listen.
It’s been 50 years since Martha Moxley was murdered.
The crime transfixed the nation. The 15-year-old was bludgeoned and stabbed with a golf club the night before Halloween in her back yard, in Greenwich’s Belle Haven section.
She was last seen alive with Thomas and Michael Skakel — nephews of Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy. They were the prime suspects.
Michael — who was 15 at the time of the murder — was convicted 27 years later, and sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. He was granted a new trial 11 years later, on the grounds of inadequate counsel, and released.
In 2020 — 45 years to the day after the crime — the state of Connecticut announced he would not be retried. Too many witnesses had died.
Many people believed — long before Michael Skakel’s first trial — that he was guilty. So did Andrew Goldman.
Andrew Goldman
But a few years ago, when Robert F. Kennedy Jr. asked the Westporter — a writer for the Wall Street Journal, New York Times Magazine, the New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Esquire, Wired and more — to ghostwrite a book about his cousins’ involvement in the case, he agreed to meet some of those involved.
Michael Skakel was eager. He let Goldman pore through the entire case file: 50 boxes of police reports, evidence and more.
Eventually, Goldman came to doubt that Michael was the killer.
RFK Jr. — then an environmental lawyer, several years away from becoming President Trump’s Health & Human Services secretary — believed, on word from a tipster, that the murderers were 2 teenagers from New York. One was sexually obsessed with Martha.
Though still skeptical of Kennedy’s theory, Goldman ghostwrote “Framed: Why Michael Skakel Spent Over a Decade in Prison for a Murder He Didn’t Commit.” It was published in 2016.
Robert F. Kenney Jr.’s name is on the book. But Andrew Goldman was the ghostwriter.
But his involvement with the case did not end there.
By that time, Goldman believed Michael Skakel was miles away when Moxley was clubbed to death. And he wanted to counteract 2 influential books — Dominick Dunne’s fictional-but-close-resemblance 1993 “A Season in Purgatory,” and Mark Fuhrman’s 1998 “Murder in Greenwich” — that convinced many of Skakel’s guilt.
The result — after extensive research and numerous interviews, including Michael and Thomas Skakel — was a 12-part NBC News Studios podcast. It premiered late last year.
“Dead Certain: The Martha Moxley Murder” spent several weeks as Apple’s #1 podcast series.
“I spent the better part of a decade immersed in the case,” Goldman says. “It was a story people thought they knew, but didn’t.
“I documented how and why the state of Connecticut tried and convicted a man with virtually no evidence against him. The whole case was built on a foundation of lies. In my 30 years in journalism, no case has ever gripped me like this story.”
It still grips him. Certain elements were not included in the podcast, at NBC’s insistence. Since it aired, more tips have come in.
Martha Moxley
So at 7 p.m. on June 24, Goldman presents a special show at the Westport Library.
The “live podcast” event will include accompaniment by 2 New York musicians, and a song by Jack Donahue — a former assistant to Dunne, who has a unique connection to the case.
The evening includes a panel discussion with friends of Martha Moxley, and people who worked on the case.
“It will be quite unlike anything Westport has ever seen,” Goldman promises.
The potential audience is vast: people who have long been fascinated by the Martha Moxley story; those who listened to the podcast, but want more, and “true crime” aficionados.
And people who (like me) remember the case when it first happened, have not thought about it in years, but are now — with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the headlines, and a Westport author who worked with him convinced of the truth — ready for a deep, deep dive.
(For more information on the June 24 multimedia Westport Library event, click here.)
(“06880” is “where Westport meets the world.” If you appreciate this hyper-local blog, and our wide-ranging stories about people, news, trends and more, please click here to support us. Thanks!)
Michael Skakel, in a screenshot from Andrew Goldman’s podcast.
Posted in Library, Looking back, Media, Police
Tagged Andrew Goldman, Martha Moxley, Michael Skakel
Rick Redniss is principal planner and former president of Redniss & Mead.
A design firm that works throughout Fairfield County, they’ve been involved in residential, commercial, retail, industrial, educational, religious, government and cultural projects, as well as waterfront, parks and open space.
Their imprint on Westport is substantial. The other day, Rick and I chatted on the Library stage. Our conversation focused on our town — including the affordable housing efforts that Rick is passionate about.
Click here or below, to learn all about a design firm’s impact on a town.
Some of our podcasts are serious.
Some are thought-provoking.
This one is just plain fun.
Lonnie Quinn is the lead weather anchor on WCBS-TV in New York. He appears on the “CBS Evening News,” among other gigs. He was an actor on “All My Children” and “Santa Barbara.”
Lonnie is also a Westport resident, seen most recently on the same Westport Library stage where I interviewed him for our “06880” podcast.
It was a spirited half hour, for sure. Lonnie’s energy is off the charts.
So is his expertise.
I learned a lot — about weather, his life and career, and much more.
You will too. Just click here or below. And enjoy!
For 5 years, I’ve introduced the “06880” podcast.
Today, Ian O’Malley does it.
For good reason. He’s spent 36 years as a New York radio personality — first during a decade on legendary WNEW-FM, and for the past quarter-century at Q104.3.
He’s still going strong.
Ian also was a VJ at VH1, and had a stint on the CBS reality show “Big Brother.” He’s done voiceovers for national campaigns like Burger King and Saab, and appeared on “Law and Order” (“SVU” and “Criminal Intent”), and “School of Rock.”
Ian lives in Westport, where he donates tons of time to charities. He also “dabbles” (his words) in real estate.
The other day, Ian sat behind the mic on the Westport Library stage. We chatted about the past, present and future of radio, about music, and much, much more.
Click here or below to listen to — and watch — the multi-talented Ian O’Malley.
Everyone’s Westport is different.
Our image of the town — what it is, and should be — is formed by our first experiences here.
Mine dates back to the 1960s, when I was in elementary and junior high school.
Those who arrived later — by birth, as kids or teenagers, or adults — have a different idea of “Westport.”
A woman recently lamented how much has changed. She misses the mom-and-pop shops on Main Street, and the small-town vibe.
She moved here in 2010.
That was a dozen years after the New York Times published a story headlined “Is Heart and Soul Gone From Main Street?”
In 1998, the New York Times had a stand-alone Connecticut section. This Page 1 photo shows Main Street, with Oscar’s Deli (center) and then-closed Remarkable Book Shop (right). The inset is Klein’s.
Nearly 3 decades ago — on December 27, 1998 — Leslie Chess Feller explored the changing nature of our town. She began:
Little shops, once the backbone of Main Street in Westport, have almost disappeared. One of the last is Klein’s, founded by a Hungarian-born entrepreneur named Henry Klein who took pride in greeting every customer by name, which has for 61 years sold books, stationery and office supplies. Mr. Klein worked until the day before his death in 1990, at the age of 90.
But in January the store will be subletting ground-floor retail space to the Banana Republic chain, one of many that have displaced family-owned Mom-and-Pop stores by being willing to pay higher rents.
Spoiler alert: Banana Republic is gone now too. So is Oka, the furniture store that took its place. The upper part of Klein’s — where you could buy office supplies and typewriters (kids: ask your parents what those were) — has been repurposed as Sushi Jin.
Banana Republic replaced Klein’s.
Robert Hertzel — vice president of Klein’s, and president of what was then called the Downtown Merchants Association — said, ‘We have turned into a regional shopping center. But that’s not a bad thing.”
Klein’s, in the 1962 Staples High School yearbook.
The piece continues:
Another holdover is Jack Swezey’s jewelry store, currently run by his son David. ”We opened here in 1956 when everybody knew everybody and each store was one of a kind,” said Mr. Swezey. ”Business is good, but sometimes I feel like a loner,” he added, looking out his shop’s window, now facing Williams-Sonoma, Brooks Brothers and Crabtree & Evelyn. ‘
‘Today’s Main Street has become an outdoor mall,” he said. ”I’m one of the few individual merchants left and that’s because we own the building.”
Swezey — where an enormous model train set entertained passersby every Christmas — is today the site of Brochu Walker.
Swezey Jewelers
Williams-Sonoma is still here, but in a location (Bedford Square) that did not exist in 1998. Brooks Brothers is still here — though next year, Sephora takes over. Crabtree & Evelyn sold its last loofah in 2009.
Plumed Serpent owner Fred Tow talked about his move to Playhouse Square, after 25 years on Main Street. (The bridal gown boutique has since moved again, across the Post Road.)
”When I opened in 1971, Ann Taylor was the only corporate store,” Mr. Tow said, ”and my monthly rent was $325.” By 1996, the chain stores had moved in and his rent jumped to $5,700 a month. Mr. Tow said that customers now have to go to Kent and New Preston for the look of old-fashioned Connecticut.
”In terms of both merchandise and decor,” he said, ”unless they see the sign, shoppers can’t tell whether they’re in J. Crew or the Gap. It all seems the same. There’s this corporate coldness, a lack of personal connection. People don’t realize what’s been lost.”
The 3-story Gap replaced a failed vertical mall — which was built on the site of a furniture store that burned down in the mid-1970s.
The piece continued with reminiscences from Howard Munce. The artist — then 83 years old, who first came to town in 1935 (and died 10 years ago, at 100), remembered Greenberg’s (“where you could buy anything from buttons and thread to underwear and Girl Scout uniforms,”) Charles Market, and the Ben Franklin 5-and-10 (kids: ask your grandparents).
In Howard Munce’s day, Welch’s was one of 3 hardware stores on Main Street. Traffic was 2-way all the way to the Post Road, too.
Feller continue:
In the last three decades, however, Main Street has morphed into a sort of Rodeo Drive East. Dubbed the ”Golden Half Mile” by the newspaper columnist John Capsis, who died in 1997, Main Street’s chain stores and boutiques are staffed by people who commute from other towns. As they talk on cell phones, the drivers of S.U.V.’s, BMW’s, Jeeps and Jaguars fight for parking spots. Tourists clutch shopping bags sporting logos while undercover police officers pursue what they say are organized gangs of shoplifters.
The story continues, bopping down Main Street’s favorite side road, Memory Lane.
Feller writes about the Remarkable Book Shop, which closed in 1994. Remarkably, after Talbots it was replaced by Westport Local Market, now Eleish Van Breems — both local, one of which even had the word in its name.
The Remarkable Book Shop. Too bad this does not show its vibrant pink color.
Leann Enos, an actress and theatrical director who moved to Main Street when she was a child, and whose father owned Walker’s Frame Shop, said, ”To me, it feels as if Main Street has lost its heart and soul. Now everything is about spending money.”
Anne Rowlands — a Westport native, and vice president of the Westport Chamber of Commerce — said she could no longer afford to shop on Main Street.
”It’s gotten so expensive and, to be honest, it feels kind of faceless to me,” she explained — not exactly a Chamber of Commerce-type comment. “It’s rare to find someone you know.”
Downtown shopper Linda Stern said, ”At first, I missed the mom-and-pop stores. But now it’s very exciting; there’s an energy to the street.”
Meanwhile, Predrag Vicvara, a Fairfield resident who had lived in Croatia, said, ”You find different nationalities here. It seems a little bit European to me. I like it. It’s nicer than the mall.”
Main Street: a bit of Europe?
Sharon Rosen — who moved to Westport 5 years earlier, and “considers Main Street an asset despite the chain stores” — had the last word.
”It’s convenient,” she said. ”I understand it was very quaint and lovely here once.”
That was the view 28 years ago — near the end of the 20th century.
Folks rued the demise of mom-and-pop stores then. They still do, 30 years later — even if they arrived after 1998, and believe there were plenty of quaint mom-and-pops when they came.
Downtown Westport was evolving 3 decades ago. It was when my parents moved here in 1956. It continues to evolve today.
What’s “your” Westport? When did you come to town? What’s changed? What hasn’t?
And how will your comment look when we look back on it 28 years from now, in 2054?
(“06880” often explores the changing face of Westport. If you enjoy stories like this — or anything else on our hyper-local blog — please click here to support our work. Thanks! PS: See you on Main Street!)
Posted in Downtown, Local business, Looking back, Media
Tagged Brooks Brothers, Howard Munce, Klein's, New York Times, Williams-Sonoma
Doug and Patti Brill are a well-known, popular Westport couple.
They’ve lived here for 33 years, raised 4 children, and are involved in many local activities, from Meals on Wheels to the YMCA.
But Doug and Patti have a story unlike any other couple in town — perhaps the world.
This is one of the most remarkable, honest, raw and important interviews I’ve ever done.
I’ll let them take it from here. Click here or below to view.
Yesterday was Patriots Day. (A celebration of the Battles of Lexington and Concord — not the football team.)
The Westport Garden Club used the occasion to announce a new pop-up floral display and civic initiative, like its popular “Friday Flowers.”
That tradition began in May 2020 as a way to brighten spirits during the pandemic. This will continue this legacy of civic beautification and community dedication, in honor of America’s 250th birthday this year.
A special floral display was installed on Main Street, by the new town clock near The Gap.
The Westport Garden Club display at the town clock …
Other floral pop-ups include:
🌷Memorial Day (May 25): Veterans Green, in front of the Doughboy statue.
🌷Flag Day (June 14): Compo Beach entrance
🌷Independence Day (July 3): Veterans Green, in front of the Doughboy statue.
🌷Constitution Day (September 17): Town Hall steps.
… and a close-up.
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Praise continues to pour in for “Primary Trust,” the Westport Country Playhouse’s current production.
Phil Kann writes: “Alphonso Walker Jr. highlights a cast that makes clear why the script won a Pulitzer. During the play’s 3 or so breaks in the action, I have never heard more vacuum-like silence. I urge people to experience this quietly dazzling show.”
Another aspect that many theater-goers find fascinating is the brilliant scene-changing technique.
Scenic designer Jack Magaw created a slip stage — a large wheeled platform that slides to “slip” scenes into view, allowing for rapid scene changes.
In most shows the entire stage moves to the wings, so another full set can come into view.
This slip stage includes several locations (an office, bank, restaurant and bookstore) that move on an arc. All are visible throughout the entire show. The location that is the focus of a particular scene is lit, while the others exist in the shadows.
“Primary Trust” runs through May 2. Click here for tickets, and more information.
Set design for “Primary Trust.” (Photo/Kelsey McFarland)
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Rising Tide brings creative small business owners together to collaborate and share their diverse perspectives and expertise.
Tomorrow (Wednesday, 6:30 p.m., Bella Bridesmaids, 19 Post Road West), they invite creatives, entrepreneurs and small business owners to a free meeting on “AI Tools and Resources.”
Rising Tide promises a “focused, jargon-free discussion on the AI tools that are actually worth your time. Whether you’re a total beginner or a tech enthusiast, come share your experiences and learn from your peers.”
The evening will include best resources; real-world cases by local people; open conversation to share tips, apps, and the ethics of using AI in creative fields; and brainstorming how to integrate tools into workflows.
Click here for more information, and to register. (Hat tip: Sal Liccione)
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Congratulations to Inklings!
Staples High School journalists won several Gold Circle awards, in the Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s 43rd annual contest.
This year, there were over 6,000 entrants. All entries were published during the 2024-25 academic year.
Staples had 4 first place winners:
Placing 2nd was Ella Turner ’28, for news headline writing.
In 3rd place for news sports commentary were Lucy Basso ’27 and Sophie Smith ’26 (“Is Aquatics a Must”).
Inklings honorees, clockwise from top left: Starting from the top left, Sophie Smith, Alexis Jacobs, Camille Blundell, Avni Krishna, Ella Turner, Anna Kercher and Nina Bowens. (Collage created by Avni Krishna)
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More Staples news: 3 students are headed to Singapore!
Mehmet Madigan, Josephine Caricato and Elizabeth Stauder will represent the school — and the US — at an international summit hosted by Hwa Chong Institution, in July.
It is an elite event, with only 80 students. This marks the 12th year in which Westport has been invited to send 3 juniors. Requirements include high grades, and interest in world affairs (particularly Asia).
Congratulations, Mehmet, Josephine and Elizabeth!
From left: Josephine Caricato, Elizabeth Stauder, Mehmet Madigan.
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In November, the Staples boys soccer team won the state championship at Hartford’s Trinity Health Stadium.
This Sunday, 2 Westport teams will try to do the same.
But these players are old enough to be the Wreckers’ parents.
Last weekend, the Over-40 Westport Storm FC knocked out Danbury United 2-1 — the defending state champs — in the Connecticut State Soccer Association semfinals. They’ll face Vasco da Gama of Bridgeport in the final.
Westport players include Jim Wolf (captain of Staples’ 1999 and 2000 teams, now president of the Westport Soccer Association), Dan Chiazza, Olly Cook, Nick McDonald (whose son William plays at Staples), Robbie Newman, Steve Orloff, John Raus, Russ Pfeffer and Mike Zambon.
Westport Storm Over-40 team.
On an adjacent Wakeman field, the Over-50 Westport FC topped Newington 3-2 in penalty kicks, after regulation and overtime ended 1-1. They’ll play The Russell from Windsor.
That game could be especially meaningful to several players.
Fredy Duque’s son Gabe was a captain of Staples’ state championship squad. His daughter is also a Wrecker player.
Erik Waldman’s son Jaden was a sophomore Wrecker on last fall’s varsity. And Aldo Lopez is the father of a former Staples goalkeeper.
Other Over-50 players from Westport include Damien McClave, Jean-Francois Geschwind, Jeffrey Holl, Kaveh Ghahremani, Mihai Ciustea and Scott Hopper.
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The “Career Coach” will be in the Westport Library parking lot this Thursday (April 23), for a session on “Computer Basics.”
It returns May 21, covering “Tips for Resume & Cover Letter,” and June 19 (Intro to Excel).
There are 2 sessions (10 a.m. and 1 p.m.) each day; both are 2 hours long. Registrants can choose one.
The service is available to people who are exploring career opportunities, actively looking for a job, or seeking additional part-time employment. Click here to reserve a spot.
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One more follow-up on the return of the Remarkable Bookcycle:
Yesterday, “06880” reported that the iconic lending library was back at its beloved Compo Beach spot.
But, we noted, Larry Roberts — who repaired it — had to throw out some books, due to snow and water damage. The shelves were a bit bare.
Within minutes, Westporters came through.
Barely an hour after that post, John Richers sent a photo of one side — nearly full. The other side is presumably equally robust.
And, John adds, there are “some significant titles.”
Feel free to borrow. But — in contradiction to Hamlet (whose play may even be on the shelf) — feel free to be a lender, too.
Robust titles, in the Remarkable Bookcycle. (Photo/John Richers)
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“JazzFC” presents the wildly popular “Jazz at the Post” series every Thursday. Great musicians play 2 shows at VFW Post 399. The price is low; the talent level very, very high.
But Jazz FC does much more. Among their projects: workshops for youth and aspiring professional musicians, as well as the local underserved community in senior citizen residences and community centers.
They also administer the Micky Golomb Scholarship, awarding up to $10,000 annually to students who concentrate in jazz studies.
To fund those endeavors, they’re sponsoring a “Jazz Cruise by the Saugatuck” this Thursday (April 23, 6 to 10 p.m.). (It’s at the VFW, not actually on the river.)
Over 25 award-winning artists will jam. There’s a silent auction and lavish dinner too. Click here for tickets, and more information.
Some of the 25+ musicians appearing at the “Jazz Cruise by the Saugatuck.” It takes place on dry land, at VFW Post 399.
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As long as flowers keep blooming — and readers keep sending them — we’ll feature spring foliage in our “Westport … Naturally” daily feature.
This is the scene at Lansdowne condominiums:
(Photo/Lauri Weiser)
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And finally … on this date in 1509, Henry VIII ascended to the throne of England, after the death of his father, Henry VII.
(Flowers, the Playhouse, Staples, soccer, jazz — and Herman’s Hermits. That’s how “06880” rolls — 24/7/365. If you enjoy our these Roundups, or anything else, click here to support us. Thanks!)
Writing a book is an impressive achievement.
Writing one of over 300 pages on the story of baseball, through interviews with nearly 2 dozen broadcasters — including Huge Names like Bob Costas, Chip Caray and Suzyn Waldman — is very impressive.
And to do it while just a junior at Weston High School — well, that’s the equivalent of throwing a perfect game and winning the World Series with a walk-off grand slam.
But it’s what Micah Soloshatz has just done.
“Beyond the Mic: Behind the Scenes Stories from America’s Best and Brightest Broadcasters” was published earlier this month.
Micah Soloshatz, and his book.
Icons of the broadcasting world — many of them Ford C. Frick Award winners (their equivalent of a Cy Young) — shared never-before-told stories with Micah. They offer advice for aspiring baseball broadcasters.
As a new season begins, the book is a perfect companion to watching your favorite team.
So what’s “Beyond the Mic” — or, more appropriately, beyond Micah?
The book began in 2023 with an 8th grade “Launch Class” project at Indian Hill Middle School in Cincinnati, where he lived then. (His family moved from Westport, when he was in 1st grade.)
Students picked a subject they were passionate about, and created a research-based project.
Baseball is Micah’s passion. He lived just 20 minutes from the Reds’ Great American Ball Park. During COVID — when he couldn’t go to games — he became an avid radio listener.
Cincinnati has a rich baseball history. It’s where the professional sport was born (the 1869 Red Stockings were the first “openly salaried” team). So Micah contacted Reds play-by-play voice John Sadak public address announcer Joe Zerhusen.
Micah Soloshatz with (from left) John Sadak and former Reds star Barry Larkin. In 2021 he joined their TV broadcast team.
Both were generous with their time. Micah realized this could become bigger than just a school project
With the confidence of a star athlete, he approached Reds’ legend (and Baseball Hall of Fame inductee) Marty Brennaman. Slowly, the book idea took shape.
For the next couple of years — continuing after a move to Weston — Micah pursued the top broadcasters in baseball.
He met Dave Sims — now the Yankees’ play-by-play commentator — when he worked with the Seattle Mariners, at the team’s hotel.
Micah and Dave Sims.
Again like an athlete, the more Micah worked at his craft — in this case, interviewing — the better he got. He honed his questions — different for each subject — and grew more comfortable asking them.
His young age was not a deterrent.
“People were so open and generous with their time,” he reports. “They saw me as someone who wanted to learn about what they do. I hope I lived up to it.”
Micah Soloshatz with Marty Brennaman. The legendary broadcaster called Cincinnati Reds games from 1974 to 2019.
Costas — the 29-time Emmy Award winner with MLB Network and NBC Sports (and the host of 12 Olympic Games) — was the biggest get.
Micah sent him a letter. The broadcaster called back. They spoke via Zoom for well over an hour.
There were in-person moments too. Philadelphia Phillies PA announcer Dan Baker invited Micah to Citizens Bank Park. He toured the media room, and watched on the field as Baker worked the game.
The 21 interviews include those who not yet in the majors, like Nick Curran of the AAA Louisville Bats and Jeff Dooley of the AA Hartford Yard Goats. Micah wanted to share their stories too.
New York Yankees broadcasters John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. (Photo courtesy of Suzyn Waldman)
To prepare for interviews Micah used SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) archives, the Baseball Hall of Fame, ESPN, MLB.com, YouTube — anything he could find.
At the end of each session Micah asked advice, for himself and other aspiring broadcasters.
Many said something like: It doesn’t matter what sport. You may not know anything about boxing or lacrosse. But say yes to every opportunity — and then learn everything there is to know.
The bulk of “Beyond the Mic” is transcriptions of the interviews. But Micah includes a fascinating, in-depth history of baseball broadcasting (it began in 1921, at Pittsburgh’s Forbes Field), along with a glossary and very extensive bibliography.
It’s a home run. Micah’s 8th grade teacher should be very, very proud.
(“Beyond the Mic” is available on Amazon. Click here to purchase.)
(“06880” regularly covers sports, the media, the accomplishments of teenagers — and, like today, their intersection. If you enjoy stories like these, please click here to support our work.)
This is a thriving tech and entrepreneurial community. Just go to any StartUp Westport evening (or coffee shop at midday).
But we’ve got our share of writers too. A particularly interesting subset is children’s authors.
In the 7 years since I first wrote about that group, they’ve grown even more numerous and active.
Now, a Westport writer has created a way for young readers to find authors who interest them — all over the country.
Karlin Gray is a 20-year resident. She writes fiction and non-fiction picture books (and credits fellow Westporter Victoria Sherrow with helping transform her manuscripts into publications).
Gray’s subjects include tennis star Serena Williams, Olympic gymnast Nadia Comaneci and giraffologist Dr. Anne Dagg.
Two years ago she wrote “Mia and Friends: Mia Hamm and the Soccer Sisterhood that That Changed History,” about the heroes of the 1999 Women’s World Cup.
Karlin Gray, with one of her books.Karl
Each time, Gray heard from young readers who related to a book — perhaps for the first time — because it was about a subject they loved.
So — in an effort to promote picture-book biographies that young kids can relate to — Gray has launched True Story Bookshop.
The online resource helps parents and educators find true stories that match youngsters’ interests.
As a children’s author and mom, Gray has read hundreds of narrative nonfiction books for kids.
True Story Bookshop highlights her favorites. All are searchable by interest.
“Do you know kids who love soccer, space or singing?” she asks. “Dogs, drawing or dance? Food or fashion?”
Recommendations for all those subjects — and many more — are available for students from kindergarten through grade 5.
It’s searchable too by theme — for example, Black History Month, LGBTQ+ Pride, and Contributions of Immigrants.
The goal, Gray says, is to help find “true stories that celebrate diversity, promote understanding, and initiate important conversations about culture and society.”
While each book has links to buy from Amazon and Bookshop (where she earns a small affiliate commission), Gray also includes a link to WorldCat, enabling users to find the book at a nearby library.
“Whether you buy or borrow, these books encourage kids to pursue their passions, and help them build their nonfiction literacy skills. Win-win!” Gray says.
(“06880” regularly covers interesting Westporters doing important things. If you enjoy stories like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
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