Author Chat with Stacy Cervenka & Diane Debrovner (Roxie in Color), Plus Giveaway~ US/CAN ONLY!

Today we are very excited to share an interview with authors Stacy Cervenka & Diane Debrovner!

Read on to learn more about the authors, the book, and a giveaway!

Meet the Author: Stacy Cervenka

Stacy Cervenka is the director of the Iowa Department for the Blind and previously led the Blind Parents Group of the National Federation of the Blind. She divides her time between Des Moines and Lincoln, Nebraska, where she lives with her husband and two children. Just like Roxie’s family, Stacy and her husband, Greg, are blind, while their children, Leo and Josephine, are sighted.
Website

Meet the Author: Diane Debrovner

Diane Debrovner is the former deputy editor of Parents magazine and author of the article “What Blind Parents Want You to See,” which provided the spark for this novel. She now helps nonprofits share their stories to raise the funding they need. Diane lives in New York City with her family and a dog who loves watermelon.

Website

About the Book: Roxie in Color

Roxie wants to blend in at a new school, which is hard to do when your parents are blind, in this remarkable novel about friendship, misperceptions, and family—plus a dog’s view of the world.

Roxie loves her parents, but other people can’t seem to see past the fact that they’re blind—and they don’t really see Roxie, either. To them, she’s just “the girl with the blind parents.” So when her family moves to a new town and Roxie starts seventh grade at a new school, she’s determined to be known for the other parts of who she is: an artist, an animal lover, and the kind of person who bakes cookies for people she cares about for no special reason. But that means keeping her parents’ blindness a secret from the kids at school and definitely not telling anyone that she might inherit the eye condition that caused her mother’s vision loss—at least until they get to know her.

For a while, Roxie is happier than she’s ever been. But when her lies and omissions lead to a visit from Child Protective Services, will Roxie find and the courage to be fully honest with her friends, her parents, and herself? This heartfelt depiction of a girl establishing her own identity, with some chapters told from the perspective of her mother’s loyal guide dog, is an authentic portrayal of the joys, challenges, and everyday ordinariness of being raised by parents who have a disability.

Note: The novel is typeset in Atkinson Hyperlegible, a font developed by Braille Institute specifically for low-vision readers.

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~Author Chat~

Diane Debrovner:

YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?

I wrote a magazine article about blind parents, which is how I met Stacy. She and other parents I interviewed told me about how their families are often judged unfairly, and I started wondering what that might be like for a sighted 12-year-old with blind parents. As a dog lover, I also became fascinated with guide dogs and what they could be thinking.

YABC: Is your main character like you?

I am not a talented painter! But I had a lot of the same emotions as Roxie when I was in middle school. I wanted to fit in with a new group of girls, wasn’t always sure what to say, and felt embarrassed by my parents sometimes. I think our experiences at that age often stay with us for life.

YABC: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I was a journalist for many years but never thought about writing fiction until my own daughter couldn’t find enough realistic contemporary books that she wanted to read. Those were the types of stories I loved most when I was her age. I soon discovered that writing a book was much harder than I thought it would be.

YABC: How do you keep your ‘voice’ true to the age category you are writing within?

I’ve spent a lot of time with kids this age, but wherever I am, I try to overhear their conversations without being too obvious. Reading scenes out loud is the best way for me to know when the voice isn’t quite right.

YABC: What type of scene do you love to write the most?

I love writing dialogue, and in especially long-awaited scenes that characters have been worried or excited about. It’s fun to weave in their observations and emotional reactions moment by moment.

YABC: What is your favorite reading space?

A shady porch.

Stacy Cervenka:

YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?

People don’t always think of blind people as adults, who get married, have children, and pursue careers. I’ve seen up close how inaccurate assumptions and systemic discrimination cause real harm to blind parents and our families. I want to put accurate information into the world in whatever form that takes.

For much of my career, I did that work by lobbying Congress and federal agencies. As a co-author of this book, it takes the form of educating young readers, teachers, librarians, and anyone else who encounters the story. The audience is different, but the goal is the same: to replace myths with reality and to portray blind parents and their families in a way that reflects how we actually live.

YABC: How do you know when a book is finished?

A book is finished when the main character has learned something big enough to move into the next season of their life. In Roxie in Color, the ending isn’t about everything being resolved. Roxie still faces the same middle school pressures, the same ableism toward her family, the same possibility of her own vision loss. What changes is that she stops organizing her life around fear—fear of what her peers think of her, fear of what other people think of her family, fear of her own potential vision loss, fear of being different in general. Roxie still has a lot to learn as she grows and as her understanding of the world matures, but this particular season of her life is over.

YABC: What hobbies do you enjoy?

I really enjoy the speed and power of figure skating. I competed locally in middle and high school, then stepped away for years. When my kids started Learn to Skate classes, the adult skaters were on the ice at the same time, and I found myself pulled back in. What started casually turned into getting a private coach, putting together programs, and competing locally against other adult skaters in Nebraska.

YABC: What is your favorite holiday or tradition and why?

My extended family has always loved game nights. Some of my best memories are laughing so hard I cried around my aunt’s or my grandma’s kitchen table while playing Outburst, Taboo, or Scattergories. My husband and I have carried that tradition into our own family, and now our kids love Apples to Apples Jr., First to Worst, and Outburst Jr. It’s loud, competitive, and we all love it.

YABC: What’s up next for you?

I currently serve as the Director of the Iowa Department for the Blind, and I’m focused on doing that work well. Longer term, I’m open to where the work leads. I’m drawn to leadership roles in states up north or further west, because our family loves hunting and fishing and I love those areas of the country. I’m interested in the possibility of running for office someday. I’d love to write a young adult novel from the perspective of a blind high school student or adult fiction featuring a young blind professional. Storytelling has been central to my work—both as a federal lobbyist and now as an author—and I’d like to keep using it to shape policy and public understanding in meaningful ways.

Title: Roxie in Color

Author: Stacy Cervenka & Diane Debrovner

Release Date: 6/2/26

Publisher: Candlewick Press

ISBN: 9781536246605

Age range: 9 to 12

Page count: 336

Dimensions:50 × 7.75 in

Publication date: June 2, 2026

Price: $18.99

~ Giveaway Details ~

Use the Rafflepress Form below to enter

*Be sure to include a complete mailing address for the second entry question to qualify to win*

Five (5) winners will receive a hardcover copy of Roxie in Color (Stacy Cervenka & Diane Debrovner) ~US/CAN Only!