An Inside Look with Torrey Maldonado
*Season #SIX (Summer 2019)
Bio:
Torrey Maldonado was born and raised in Brooklyn’s Red Hook projects. He has taught in New York City public schools for over 25 years and his fast-paced, compelling stories are inspired by his and his students’ experiences. His popular young readers novels include What Lane?, which won many starred reviews and was cited by Oprah Daily and the NY Times for being essential to discuss racism and allyship; Tight won the Christopher Award, was an ALA Notable Book, and an NPR and Washington Post Best Book of the Year; and his first novel, Secret Saturdays, has stayed in print for over ten years. His newest book, Hands, publishes on January 24, 2023, is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, won a starred School Library Journal review, and amazing reviews from Horn Book, Kirkus, and Publishers Weekly (please embed this preorder link https://www.greenlightbookstore.com/book/9780593323793 ) Learn more at torreymaldonado.com or connect on social media @torreymaldonado.
How did you come to know Trev?
Michael Jackson has this song-line: “I’m staring at the man in the mirror”. When I see Trev, I’m staring at the boy in the mirror because he is young me. That’s true about the cover too. If you want to know how sixth grade me looked, check out Hands’ cover by Steffi Walthall. The cover is more than just “SUPER-DUPER-SPECTACULAR-AND-EXTRA-FULL OF-AWESOMENESS”. It’s so accurate that someone asked me, “Did the illustrator draw this from a picture of you at the age?” Maybe I should ask Steffi, yeah? And while my real-life story and I mirror Trev, fourth graders through eighth graders who read advanced copies of Hands say that they sometimes feel how Trev does and they know other kids will recognize Trev in themselves.
What do you think is Trev’s most admirable quality?
Let’s travel back in time to when I was a fourth grader. That’s when grownups who cared about my family started building a quality in me that I admire in Trev. If I was around my neighborhood alone and crossed paths with them, they’d usually ask me, “How’s your mother? How’re your sisters?” It built in me responsibility for my family. That’s Trev’s main quality—he loves and would do anything for his mom and sisters, including protect them. And if someone hurts his mom or sisters, Trev wants revenge. Today is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s nationally recognized holiday and we might want to ask ourselves the question that Ms. Clark asks Trev and his class about revenge when she starts class with the Dr. King quote, “’An eye for an eye leaves everybody blind’. Why do you think King said that?”
What do you think Trev can offer to other children who experience similar situations to what he goes through?
That question makes me think of children who I recently met who experience similar situations to what Trev goes through. In Biddeford Intermediate School in Maine there are fans of Hands who I virtually visited thanks to the amazing Rebecca Reynolds and Suzanne Tighe. The students and I faced off in a gameshow way to see who knew more about Hands. It was great and students say that Trevor’s story offers a lot of, but how his story is offered is important. They enjoyed the short, fast-paced chapters so much that they agreed that Hands should be a movie. And it’s important that Trev’s story can offer readers a thrilling, entertaining rollercoaster ride, especially when school or life sometimes feels slow or boring. Matthew Winner words what I’m trying to say better in his interview of me on The Children’s Book Podcast when he says, “You have a beautiful, beautiful way of writing these micro chapters, these, these quick “Oh, I can just read a chapter and then put it down. I've got time to read a chapter”, and then you find yourself reading multiple”.
Do you and Trev share any similarities?
Trev is me so we share similarities. And those are similarities that lots of kids share. For starters, so many of us learned that “throwing hands” and fighting sometimes should happen and sometimes we feel fighting is the only choice we have. I’ve taught middle school for over twenty-five years and what I’ve heard students say is what I’ve heard said my whole life—knowing how to fight and have hand-skills is cool to some kids. That’s why Jake Paul, Black Adam, Mike Tyson, Bruce Lee, Mayweather, and more are in Hands. Trev’s like me because we got inspiration from the posters of Muhammad Ali and Creed on our walls and from comic book characters. Doubting ourselves is a similarity that me, Trev, and lots of people share. Trev doubts it when people say he’s a talented comic-book artist, just like I didn’t believe it. Trev doubts that he’s a good student and I did too. Trev learns to believe more in himself and I hope readers will use that as keys to unlock believing more in themselves and in their futures.
What was the hardest scene to write about him?
Everything was the hardest to write, especially writing such personal parts of my life. Some of Trevor’s story is about overcoming perfection and my writing Hands was a struggle with perfection. To pretend he has the perfect life, Trev hides personal things he’s going through. Some who he hides stuff from are his friend, P, and his teacher. I struggled with perfection while writing Hands because I share hidden parts of my life in Trev’s story that might change people’s image of me. Millions or more kids experience what Trev and I did, but I see other authors who don’t share such personal parts of their lives. Sometimes, I’d write a scene and wonder, Maybe I shouldn’t write this. But, Trev’s journey is about becoming a rainbow in other people’s clouds and a rainbow can’t shine if it’s hiding, so I had to pull parts of me into the light even when it felt hard to do. People constantly tell me that they appreciate the powerful truths I share because it reminds readers of how strong they are. For example, Carmen Shannon—a Library Media Specialist—in North Dakota says Hands is a “hard hitting novel of struggle and strength”.
Who do you think was Trevor’s biggest supporter?
I’m curious who readers would say is Trevor’s biggest supporter. In our lives, each person is different and offers something different. Readers of Handskeep emailing me their favorite person in Trev’s life. Some think his friend and neighbor Pete—the 12-year-old who Trev learns how to box with—is the coolest. People say, “Awww, I love Cole”, the eight-year-old neighbor. And Trev’s uncles? @TheLitAdvocate on Twitter says the chapters where Trev are with the men around his neighborhood who act like family are so well done that she was an instant fan of his uncles. And more than just mothers contact me to say that Trev’s mother is their favorite. Lori Barber—a friend and the Education Director for Anderson’s Bookshop—messaged about how likeable Ms. Clark is. I hope readers go on a scavenger hunt through Hands and find who they feel is Trevor’s biggest supporter.
Why do some young people think they have to protect the adults in their lives when the adult should be the one to protect the young child?
There are comics in Hands and lots of characters, including Miles Morales Spider-Man. Miles is a young person who thinks he has to protect the adults in his life, and he should because he is Spider-Man and Miles has abilities that lots of us don’t have. I’m so much of a fan of Miles that I’ve become friends with other fans and we call each other Spider-Fam. They message me Spiderverse information and trailers when that airs (hi Christina Carter!) or mail me Miles Morales t-shirts and toys (hi Ro Menendez!). Miles’s and my family are similar, half Puerto Rican and African American. In Hands, Trev is a young person who’s also a fan of Miles and Trev thinks he has to protect people too—his mom and sisters. And, just like Miles, Trev has abilities that some don’t. Trev is taller, bigger, and a better boxer than his mother and his sisters so he can protect them in ways that they can’t. Yet readers tell me that after reading Hands they have new ideas of “protection” and strength that Trev learns. Trev thinks his mom isn’t so strong, but his Uncle Larry helps him see that strength and protection isn’t just muscles. That happens when Larry and Trev watch Star Wars and compare Trev’s mom to Yoda. They say she’s Yoda for different reasons and one reason is she’s protected Trev, fought unseen battles for him, and gives him advice to stop him from becoming a Darth Vader or Kylo Ren.
What do you think Trev is doing at the present time?
Right now, Trev would be doing what I’d be doing at his age. There’s a scene in Hands where Trev’s oldest sister is shocked by a drawing he did of someone he wishes he was as strong as—The Rock, Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam. Trev’s sister is amazed at Trev’s shading of Black Adam’s face and says, “You’re so good at showing emotions’ of character’s faces”. Then she invites him to come to her After School program that she helps manage to teach drawing to younger people. In this present moment, Trev might be drawing and shading in the face of a superhero. Maybe he’s teaching that to Little Cole, his eight-year old neighbor? Maybe he’s teaching how that to kid’s at his sister’s After School program? What I’m curious about is who young readers think Trev would be drawing.
SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)
Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)
Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)
Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)
Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)
Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)
Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)
Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)
Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)
Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)
Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)
Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)
Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)
Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)
Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)
Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)
Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)
Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)
Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)
Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)
Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)
Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)
Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot)
Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)
Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave)
Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)
Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)
Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero)
Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)
Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)
Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas)
Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There)
Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)
Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)
Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)
Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)
Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)
Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)
Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)
Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)
Interview #177 with Holly Goldberg Sloan (Author of The Elephant in the Room)
Interview #178 with Jeff Zentner (Author of In the Wild Light)
SEASON #ELEVEN (Fall/Winter 2021)
Interview #179 with Katherine Applegate (Author of Willow)
Interview #180 with Padma Venkatraman (Author of Born Behind Bars)
Interview #181 with R.J. Palacio (Author of Pony)
Interview #182 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Too Bright to See)
Interview #183 with Barbara Dee (Author of Violets are Blue)
Interview #184 with Anne Ursu (Author of The Troubled Girls of Dragonmir Academy)
Interview #185 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of We Could Be Heroes)
Interview #186 with Jasmine Warga (Author of Shape of Thunder)
Interview #187 with Joseph Bruchac (Author of Rez Dogs)
Interview #188 with Kathryn Erskine (Author of Lily's Promise)
Interview #189 with Elly Swartz (Author of Dear Student)
Interview #190 with Heather Clark (Author of Lemon Drop Falls)
Interview #191 with Veera Hiranandani (Author of How to Find What You're Not Looking For)
Interview #192 with Elizabeth Eulberg (Author of The Best Worst Summer)
Interview #193 with Cathy Carr (Author of 365 Days to Alaska)
Interview #194 with Carol Cujec and Peyton Goddard (Authors of REAL)
Interview #195 with Gillian McDunn (Author of These Lucky Stars)
Interview #196 with Alyssa Colman (Author of The Gilded Girl)
Interview #197 with E.L. Chen (Author of The Comeback)
Interview #198 with J.M.M. Nuanez (Author of Birdie and Me)
SEASON #TWELVE (Winter/Spring 2022)
Interview #199 with Jamie Sumner (Author of One Kid's Trash)
Interview #200 with Chad Lucas (Author of Thanks a Lot, Universe)
Interview #201 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Where We Used to Roam)
Interview #202 with Rebecca Caprara (Author of Worst-Case Collin)
Interview #203 with Leslie Connor (Author of Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?)
Interview #204 with Caroline Gertler (Author of Many Points of Me)
Interview #205 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of Susie B. Won't Back Down)
Interview #206 with Shawn Peters (Author of The Unforgettable Logan Foster)
Interview #207 with Aisha Saeed (Author of Omar Rising)
Interview #208 with Adrianna Cuevas (Author of Cuba in my Pocket)
Interview #209 with Jennifer Swender (Author of Stuck)
Interview #210 with Brenda Woods (Author of When Winter Robeson Came)
Interview #211 with Danya Lorentz (Author of the Book Of a Feather)
Interview #212 with Saadia Faruqi (Author of Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero)
Interview #213 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of What About Will)
SEASON #THIRTEEN (Summer 2022)
Interview #214 with Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner (Authors of What About the Octopus)
Interview #215 with Lauren Wolk (Author of My Own Lightning)
Interview #216 with Rebekah Lowell (Author of the Road to After)
Interview #217 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Honestly Elliott)
Interview #218 with Dan Gemeinhart (Author of The Midnight Children)
Interview #219 with Melanie Conklin (Author of A Perfect Mistake)
Interview #220 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Different Kinds of Fruit)
Interview #221 with Tracy Edward Wymer (Author of The Great and Mighty Benjamin Teller)
Interview #222 with Louise Hawes (Author of Big Rig)
Interview #223 with Paul Acampora (Author of In Honor of Broken Things)
Interview #224 with Shannon Doleski (Author of Gabe in the After)
Interview #225 with Jennifer Ziegler (Author of Worser)
Interview #226 with Natalie Lloyd (Author of Hummingbird)
SEASON #FOURTEEN (Fall 2022)
Interview #227 with Celia C. Perez (Author of Tumble
Interview #228 with Greg Howard (Author of The Visitors)
Interview #229 with Rob Buyea (Author of The Daredevils)
Interview #230 with Sashi Kaufman (Author of Sardines)
Interview #231 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of The Real Deal)
Interview #232 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of New Kids and Underdogs)
Interterview #233 with Amanda Rawson Hill (Author of The Hope of Elephants)
Interview #234 with Jasmine Warga (Author of A Rover's Story)
SEASON #FIFTEEN (Winter 2023)
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