Finding books that appeal to boys, especially at the middle-school and high school levels, can be tricky. Author Jill Chapman gives parents, grandparents, educators, and young male readers a book filled with adventure and friendship. in
The Bomb Squad, released in September 2021.

Finding books that appeal to boys can be difficult for parents, grandparents, educators and others. I have several friends who have grandsons, and though the grandparents are readers, they struggle to find books their ‘boys’ like, especially after elementary school. Jill Chapman, a former teacher, is an author whose new book helps fill in that gap.

I learned about Jill through another author, a Christian children’s writer named Michelle Medlock Adams. I met Michelle many years ago when I attended my first writer’s conference. Her delightful children’s books appealed to me as a new children’s author, and I learned so much in the workshops she taught! I continue to follow her on social media, and I read an interview with her that Jill conducted on the blog The Diamond Mine of Christian Fiction.

I’m excited to have Jill as my guest on this last blog post for 2021. Continue reading to learn more about her and her new book, The Bomb Squad, the first in a series for middle-school readers.

Middle-grade author Jill Chapman

GI: Welcome, Jill! Tell us a bit about yourself you know your family life where in the country you live all that kind of stuff a little bit of bio:

JC: I have lived in Indiana my entire life. My husband and I live in southern Indiana. We have two daughters and five grandchildren. I also have a yellow lab, Indy. I named him Indiana after the movie Indiana Jones – definitely one of my favorite movies. I’m a retired schoolteacher, and former homeschooler. I homeschooled both of my daughters for 10 years, and had my own small, private school for six years. I worked with children that struggled in traditional school settings; they had a variety of issues. So that was my heart, and God absolutely closed the door. Then God opened the door for me to write.

GI: Tell us about your new book, The Bomb Squad.

JC:  The Bomb Squad is a middle grade chapter book. It’s a mystery adventure, and the main characters are a boy and his three friends. They are mischievous. They’re not bad boys, they’re just mischievous, and they accidentally set off the community fireworks. That earns them the nickname ‘the bomb squad.’ So that’s how the book begins and then it moves into the mystery of a new neighbor who moves in next door, and they’re very curious about him. In the end, he does have some things he’s hiding, and it’s quite dramatic. They end up saving him with the help of the main character’s dog, Max. So, it’s a fun story with a lot of excitement and adventure for kids.

GI: What age group do you think is best audience for the book?

JC: Middle grade can be so tricky because it can go older or younger, but I would say 10 would be the beginning and then on up to 12 maybe to 14; it depends on their reading level. I don’t talk about the boys’ age in the book at all because when I worked with children that struggled and that I tutored — their reading level sometimes is lower, but they don’t want to read about a second grader or third grader. They might be in 6th grade or 7th grade so they don’t want to read about the younger child. The boys in the story are riding bikes and doing things that a broad range of children would be able to do. The idea was to give kids a fun story with a lot of action.

Book cover for Jill’s book.

GI: You’re a Christian so do you weave that theme in your book?

JC: It is Christian but it’s not preachy at all. There are a couple of places where the main character contemplates what he’s doing. They’re snooping in the neighbor’s house to find out if he’s a bad guy, at one point Brian wonders if he is the bad guy for snooping. That’s about as deep as it gets.

GI: How did the idea for the story come about?

JC: The story started off completely different and morphed into what it is. In the beginning when I was writing it, I had no idea what the neighbor was actually going to be or do; I even was thinking it might be fantasy and the neighbor was a time traveler. As for the idea for calling them ‘the bomb squad,’ I’ll be honest: I don’t even know, that just came to me one day about them setting off the fireworks.

GI: When did the book publish?

JC: September of this year.

GI: You said the book is part of a series – are you working on the second one yet?

JC: Yes. In the next book they will be going camping. They’re off the grid so the next book is titled The Bomb Squad – Off the Grid. Their cell phones will all go dead, and they’ll be stranded for a bit with no contact with adults. So, they take care of each other and things like that.

GI: Why did you pick this particular genre? Why middle grade?

JC: Well, I was a teacher, and it was really a struggle to find books that I felt were displaying what I wanted in a book for my students. There are lots of popular books that kids love to read and there is nothing wrong with those books, it’s just not the kind of reading that I did when I was growing up. I wanted books to be filled with adventure and the characters to not be in a school building, which is hysterical because I’m a teacher and I had my own school. But you know, my life took place outside of the school building and all the characters that I loved growing up, their stories were never about school. Almost every single one of the kids that had been in my school were bullied before they came to me, so school had not been a fun place for them. I want to write stories where children can see themselves having adventures.

GI: What are some of your favorite stories in the middle grade genre?

JC: Mysteries like Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, and the Hardy Boys. I had a book called The Flight of the Doves – that was one of my favorite stories when I was in middle school. It’s about a brother and sister that ran away because they’re being abused, and the whole story is children: children help them, they go places, they do things, and they travel to get to their grandma.

GI: Have you written in other genres, and if so, what are they?

JC:  I’ve written one nonfiction, a short book, 10 Common Mistakes Newbie Homeschoolers Make, and how to avoid them. This will be the first in a series of books for homeschool parents. I also have an adult mystery that I have roughed out; I did that during NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I want to polish it up to be pitch-worthy. It’s the rough draft, and since I’m a pantser, it’s all over the place in some places so it needs some work!

GI: It sounds like you want to go into other genres…

JC: Yeah, I’m excited to work on it. I also love writing short stories, and I’ve had some really good luck with that. I recently found out I’ve made it to the second round in the NYC Midnight contest. I made it to the second round on the 100-word story I entered. I recently made it to the second round on the 250-word story so I’m excited to see where that goes. I have written short stories for a local news magazine in our county. I really love writing short stories.

GI: What are some of your hobbies when you’re not writing?

JC: I love doing watercolor painting and that has been a hobby for a long time. I don’t always get to do it. I help homeschool one of my grandsons so that takes a couple days a week. I also enjoy going to church and walking my dog.

GI: Who has been the biggest influence on you in your writing?

JC: It’s hard to say but adventure books of all kinds have been a huge influence.  I love reading about people who find themselves in a challenge they must overcome.

GI: Are there any aspects of your personal life that influences your writing and if so, what are they and how do they influence you?

JC: I have two girls so it’s kind of funny that I end up writing a story about four boys. I have a grandson on the spectrum and then I worked with so many boys that were on the spectrum or boys that had other challenges. I have a character that has anxiety in the book; it’s not a huge part of the story at all but the other boys know he gets nervous, and they might get irritated with him, but they don’t throw him out of the group. Most all of them had been bullied and they longed for friendship, so I wanted to exhibit friends that could be different and still stay friends and be true friends and have that unity.

GI: Anything else that you want to say that I didn’t ask or anything else you might want people to know about you?

JC: Well, I am a Christian, and a lot of what I do directed toward a positive attitude. I want people to feel brave in their life and I want them to find strength. I want to be an encourager so just about everything I do I try to lean toward that. I don’t always succeed but I try to show others their strengths and uplift them.

I have a writing group at our local library. It’s called The Mighty Pen, and I’m the host. I have people that attend that I’m there to encourage them on their journey. That’s really a lot of fun!

All of us have a voice and it’s important to listen to other people’s voices as well. In my school, I saw children come that had been so unsuccessful and almost within the first week start doing things that others didn’t think they could do because I would tell them they could do it. They just want to know that someone’s on their side and that’s what I tell them. Maybe we can’t do this today but you’re going be able to do it and I’m here to help you do it.

GI: That’s so great! Encouragement is important to everyone, adult or child, creative person or scientist. Encouraging others to read is also important, and with Jill’s book, The Bomb Squad, more youngsters will. Thanks for joining us, Jill!

Jill and her dog Indy.

Readers, you’ll find The Bomb Squad on Amazon here – click the image link:

Find more about Jill and her writing on her website: https://authorjillchapman.com/

You’ll also find her on these social media channels:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorjillchapman/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author_jill_chapman/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jill27118981

Pet Principle:

Animals appear in numerous books, both contemporary and classics. Animals appeal to kids as well as adults, and having animals in stories helps an author’s readership. From Because of Winn Dixie and The Life of Pi to The Art of Racing in the Rain and A Dog’s Journey, there are numerous wonderful novels and children’s books featuring animals as characters. As you consider winter reads for yourself or younger readers, check out Jill’s book for tween and teen readers as well as additional recommendations below:

https://bookroo.com/explore/books/topics/animals

Best Middle-Grade Books About Animals

Fantastic Animal Fiction for Grown Ups