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It’s been 5 years since our last round of Meet the Team. It has been an eventful 5 years, so half a decade later, here is our Christmas 2025 edition. We start by introducing you to our co-founder and Senior Editorial Advisor, Janie Cheaney. (Interview conducted by Hayley.)
As we head into the fall/winter season, what is your beverage of choice?
I’m a coffee drinker, but I’ve been enjoying Trader Joe’s spiced chai for a late-afternoon pickup on a chilly afternoon.
Oh, spiced chai is delicious this time of year! Now, are you the kind of reader who likes to snack while you read? Do you have a favorite holiday snack?
Usually not, but if I’m eating lunch alone it’s usually with a book (so I’m not really alone, right?). A favorite wintertime lunch is grilled cheese with tomato-basil soup.
This is making me hungry, so let’s change the subject! Looking back over 2025, what are some of your favorite books you read this year?
This was a great year for graphic-novel versions of classic books. Three standouts are Tuck Everlasting (one of my favorite all-time novels), The Hiding Place, and (of all things) Calvin’s Institutes, Vol. 1. In MG fiction, No Purchase Necessary was a happy surprise. Karina Yan Glaser’s Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli was a standout (fingers crossed for Newbery love this January!), as well as The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest,Max in the Land of Lies, and Will’s Race for Home. Those three are all Newbery contenders, so I’m really looking forward to the ALA announcements this year.
In nonfiction, I learned a lot from Death in the Jungle and Putin vs. Zelensky, and for thought-provoking YA, I recommend Neal Shusterman’s All Better Now and Julie Berry’s If Looks Could Kill – but be sure and read the reviews to see if either of those is appropriate for your particular teen.
Do you have a favorite book that someone gave you this year?
My daughter gave me a copy of Every Moment Holy, Vol. II : Death, Grieving, and Hope. It was particularly applicable this year. In fact, she read selections from it at her dad’s memorial service.
What new books have you discovered this year that you are looking forward to giving/recommending as gifts?
Dance in the Desert by Madeleine L’Engle is a lovely book for giving, but my grandchildren are past the picture-book stage. I might think of someone else, though.
Do you have a favorite Advent book or tradition?
Our family didn’t really grow up with an advent tradition, so I’m sorry to say I don’t!
What is your favorite picture book about Christmas? Beyond picture books, favorite Christmas story?When my kids were young, I loved The Clown of God by Tomie dePaola. It made me cry every time!
That is a lovely one; I think it would make me cry, too. 2025 was a year of changes for our team; what did that look like for you? What are you looking forward to in 2026?
Most significantly, my husband’s long battle with Alzheimer’s came to an end in November. Though I miss him, I know he’s happy to be free of the many limitations of that disease. As for me, I’m looking forward to more time to read. And travel!
Thank you, Janie. God bless you, And Merry Christmas!
Interested in some of the books Janie mentioned? Visit our Amazon storefront for some of her favorites as well as more gift ideas.
Read the Interviews with the Rest of the Team!
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