Author Spotlight: Julian Klazkin Introduces Sense of Justice to Little Readers
October 01, 2021
The D.C. Bar counts among its members many authors whose books and stories run the gamut. To celebrate October as National Book Month, the Bar will be featuring some of these attorney-authors who have published works in a variety of genres.
After retiring from the government in 2011, Julian Klazkin finally found time to revisit an interest in children’s books he’d put aside years ago. His first book, A Bug, a Slug, and a Ladybug, was published in 2020 and introduced readers to Ruth Bader Ladybug, who resolves playful conflicts. The character reappears in Klazkin’s latest book, Humbugs and Ladybugs, which comes out October 5.
How did your writing career begin?
I wrote my first book in 1990. I was working at the U.S. General Accounting Office, now called the U.S. Government Accountability Office, and I had two young kids at the time. I read them books and thought, “I have some ideas for books.” I started writing them down. After a little while I came up with three books, or stories, that I thought were good.
I sent the books, the story ideas, to 20 publishers … nobody was interested. I took the stories, threw them in a drawer, and forgot about them, literally, for 29 years.
What made you revisit the project?
After retiring from the federal government in 2011 and wondering what to do next, I decided to bring my old stories out of the drawer and attempt to get them published. What I needed first was an illustrator to bring the stories to life. I found one through the website Upwork.com. Upwork helps individuals hire freelancers for all sorts of work. I decided on [an illustrator] whose portfolio impressed me.
Then I needed to negotiate and write a contract, which was also a new experience. We agreed on a contract, and she did a great job. She’s doing the illustrations for my other books, as well. She lives in Pennsylvania, but I’ve never met her. We connect through the internet.
How have audiences received your books?
Kids have reacted well to A Bug, a Slug, and a Ladybug. They love the bright and colorful illustrations and the rhyming style of the book. Kids love rhyming books! Each kid focuses on different things. For example, my grandson loves the policeman even though he only has a small part in the book. A friend of mine told me that when he was visiting his grandson recently, [the child] picked up the book without any prodding from my friend even though there were a multitude of other books lying around. I was happy to hear that.
What sort of lessons do you hope readers take from your books?
The book introduces kids to the concepts of marriage equality, diverse family units, and the legal powerhouse that was Ruth Bader Ginsburg. All of these are important things for kids to learn.
I have also developed a set of lesson plans to help teachers:
- Government: The Courts and the Scales of Justice
- Social Studies: Marriage Equality
- Science: Bugs, Slugs, Ladybugs, Spiders, and Insects
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg
- Vocabulary
- Fairness
- Opinion Writing and Persuasion
These are some of the things that I hope kids will learn. Ideally, I'd like to help build a more just society, and the best way to do that, I think, is by instilling a sense of justice in our kids at an early age. That's what I hope the book does. And what better way to do that than having a heroine modeled after Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
The key concepts in my new book, for which I am developing lesson plans, are kindness, respect, and gratitude — good things for kids to learn.
I believe you have a third book in production. Will the series be continuing?
My third book, It's Peachy Deal, also features Ruth Bader Ladybug and will be sent to the publisher next month. It will likely be published sometime in 2022.
I do have plans for a fourth and fifth book, but Ruth Bader Ladybug is not in those stories. No need to worry, she will be back. Sooner than you think. I have adapted the story in A Bug, a Slug, and a Ladybug and written a script to be animated into a six-and-a-half-minute cartoon. Hopefully, it will be ready by the end of the year.
Where can we find your work?
All my books are available on Amazon. A Bug, a Slug, and a Ladybug can also be purchased from FriesenPress. Humbugs and Ladybugs can also be purchased from Mascot Books. My reading of A Bug, a Slug, and a Ladybug can be viewed on YouTube. Anyone interested in contacting me about the book, lesson plans (free), or school visits can reach me at [email protected].
