8.2 Treasured Stories

From Reading Teachers Lounge by Shannon Betts and Mary Saghafi

October 17, 2025 · 57 min · Season 8 · Episode 2

About this episode

Shannon and Mary engage in a conversation with children's author Kate DiCamillo about her writing journey and the themes in her stories.

In this special episode of the Reading Teachers Lounge, hosts Shannon and Mary have an engaging and insightful conversation with acclaimed children's author Kate DiCamillo about treasured stories. They explore Kate's journey as a writer, discussing the profound impact of her debut novel 'Because of Winn-Dixie,' the themes of her books, and the role of animals in her stories. Kate shares her thoughts on writing with empathy, the importance of ending stories with hope, and the joy of reading al...

People in this episode

Hosts: Shannon Betts, Mary Saghafi

Guest: Kate DiCamillo

Topics covered

children's literature
writing journey
empathy in writing
hope in storytelling
role of animals in stories

Keywords

Kate DiCamillo
children's author
Because of Winn-Dixie
storytelling
empathy
hope
animals in literature

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Because of Winn-Dixie