Leslceacute;a Newman is the author of 75 books for readers of all ages including the teen novel in verse,October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard; the middlegrade novel,Hachiko Waits; the poetry collection,I Carry My Mother; the short story collection,A Letter to Harvey Milk; and the children's books, A Sweet Passover, The Boy Who Cried Fabulous, Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed, andHeather Has Two Mommies. Her literary awards include poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation. October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard was named an American Library Association 2013 Stonewall Honor Book, and A Sweet Passover was named a 2013 Sydney Taylor Honor as well. A past poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts, she is a faculty member of Spalding University's briefresidency MFA in Writing program.