Today we are very excited to share an interview with Author Jacqueline Davies (The Lemonade War)!
Meet the Author: Jacqueline Davies
Jacqueline Davies is the bestselling and award-winning author of books for children and young adults, including The Lemonade War series, the Sydney and Taylor series and more. Her books have sold more than 2 million copies and have been selected as an ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice, Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year. She divides her time between a town just outside of Boston and a cabin on the wild coast of Maine. In addition, she almost always has a suitcase that is in the process of being packed or unpacked.
Website * Instagram * YouTube * BlueSky
About the Book: The Lemonade War Graphic Novel
Evan Treski is people smart. He’s good at talking to people, even grown-ups. His younger sister, Jessie, on the other hand, is math smart—but not especially good at understanding people. She knows that feelings are her weakest subject.
With just five days left of summer vacation, Evan and Jessie launch an all-out war to see who can sell the most lemonade before school starts. As the battleground heats up, there really is no telling who will win—and, even more important, if their fight will ever end.
~Author Chat~
YABC: How is your graphic novel adaption different from the original story?
The plot of both stories is the same, but the graphic novel form opens up possibilities that simply aren’t available in a prose book. For example, in the original version of the book, there’s a metaphor about Evan fighting to hold in angry words that are trying to escape from him. He feels like the words are bats in his chest, beating their wings to get out. Despite his best efforts, the words finally escape and hurl their way toward his sister, Jessie. In the graphic novel, we were able to show the bats! They beat against Evan’s t-shirt, start to poke their way out, and then one by one take flight and flood the room. The final panel in the chapter is nothing but out-of-control bats flying and Evan’s angry words, “I hate you!” It’s a great moment in the book.
YABC: Is your main character like you?
All my main characters are like me! In one way or another. There’s a part of me that’s like Evan, and there’s a part of me that’s like Jessie. But here’s the thing: there’s also part of Scott Spencer (who’s the “villain” in the story) that’s like me, too. I think that if an author can’t find some small corner of their soul that connects to each character, they probably shouldn’t be writing that character.
YABC: How closely did you work with the illustrator to bring your vision to life?
As with picture books, authors and illustrators have no direct contact during the time they work on the book. It’s crazy, but that’s how it is. The logic is that the author should not be impinging on or constraining the illustrator in realizing their independent vision, and I actually think that’s a good impulse. However, to keep me in the loop, I’m shown all the rough sketches, all the revised sketches, all the almost-final pages, and all the final pages. So at every stage, I can weigh in and offer my suggestions. I think the illustrator, Karen De la Vega, and I worked together really well within this framework. She did a spectacular job of illustrating the book.
YABC: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
Oooohhh, I was young. Third grade, maybe? I used to make little books, just for fun. They were bound together with yarn or staples or plastic spiral binding, and complete with illustrations, tables of contents, and even copyright information. The first book I wrote that I still have is called “The Sad Shape.” I share it with kids when I visit schools. They think it’s a hoot, and a few of them suggest (seriously) that I should try to get it published.
YABC: How do you keep your ‘voice’ true to the age category you are writing within?
I spend a lot of time in schools. A lot. I visit schools in person and do virtual visits with groups large and small. And when I visit a school, I usually meet with kids who range in age from kindergarten up to Grades 5 or 6. So I’m constantly recalibrating my knowledge of how kids talk at different ages. Just as important, though, is what kids talk about at different ages and who they talk to at each age. It changes!
YABC: What type of scene do you love to write the most?
I love writing dialog! I could go on for pages writing a conversation between two characters. Pages! It’s actually a problem. What I find, though, is that I’ll write five or six pages and finally hit on what the characters are actually interested in talking about. Isn’t that the way it is in real life? You need to get through all that small talk before you start to bare your soul to someone. So, in that case, I write the five or six pages as preamble, and then I throw it out and get to the good stuff.
YABC: Which character gave you the most trouble when writing your latest book?
In the graphic novel of The Lemonade War, I had some trouble with the mother, Mrs. Treski (as I did in the original version of the book). She’s the mother I wish I could have been, and the mother I still strive to be today. Needless to say, this brings up some issues for me! I don’t want to make her unrealistically good, but I also want her to offer her kids (and the reader) a different perspective. For most of the book, though, she’s stuck in her office in the attic working on a freelance project. That was part of my strategy for keeping her out of the way so that Evan and Jessie could solve their own problems and carry out some shenanigans. It was a tricky balancing act.
YABC: What word do you have trouble overusing?
In casual writing (emails, etc.) I overuse the word “so.” In writing my stories, I have a bad habit of starting sentences with “And,” which I think is perfectly fine to do, except when it’s overdone and becomes a crutch. An expected rhythm. In my last book, The International House of Dereliction, I consciously banned the use of the word “And” as the first word in any sentence. It was a challenge for me!
YABC: How do you plan to celebrate the launch of your book?
I’m having a party! And if anyone’s in the greater Boston area on April 29, please come! You can get the info and RSVP here. It’s going to be great. The talented author/illustrator/cartoonist Ellen Crenshaw is going to talk about the book with me, and we’re going to do a VERY DRAMATIC READING from the book with audience participation and prizes to give away. And, of course, there’ll be lemonade and other goodies.
YABC: What hobbies do you enjoy?
I like to read, watch movies, hang out with friends, hike, and grow things I can eat in my backyard. And I’m about to start lessons for my newest hobby: sea kayaking!
YABC: What’s up next for you?
I’m working on my next middle-grade novel and day-dreaming about an original graphic novel script I hope to write. I’ve definitely been bitten by the graphic novel bug, and I’m interested in pushing myself into more difficult territory with the form. Writing an original script instead of adapting a well-known book seems scary to me, kind of like letting go of the side of the pool for the first time when you’re not entirely sure whether you’ll sink or swim. Cool!
Title: The Lemonade War Graphic Novel
Author: Jacqueline Davies
Illustrator: Karen De La Vega
Release Date: April 29, 2025
Publisher: Clarion / HarperCollins
Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
Age Range: Ages 8-12
