Whenever Amy returned, there was usually a new book or project to discuss, but our conversations inevitably became something bigger. We talked about writing. We talked about publishing. We talked about the strange realities of trying to make a creative career work. We talked about technology, including artificial intelligence and its potential impact on authors. During one 2023 conversation, Amy also spoke about her experience with ADHD and what she had learned about adjusting her creative process to the way her own brain worked.

Of course, “just one more” has a way of becoming two.

The stories themselves are a delightful mix of adventure, humor, magic, and lessons about kindness, cleverness, greed, gratitude, and sometimes simply what happens when somebody makes a very bad decision.

What I found was a wonderfully entertaining collection of memories covering a remarkable range of experiences. Bruce takes the reader from the Jersey shore to Hawaii and eventually to the green hills of Vermont, building a portrait of a life that feels both personal and distinctly tied to different eras and places in America.

And some of these memories are anything but ordinary.

That idea gives the story much of its emotional power. Bunns may be small and treated as an outsider, but her courage grows from compassion rather than a desire to prove everyone wrong. Her quest is not simply about finding acceptance; it is about learning to trust herself and recognizing that being different does not make her dangerous or less worthy.

The book has a wonderfully Vermont quality to it. The humor is dry, observant, and rooted in the personalities and small details of rural life. These are the kinds of stories that find comedy in ordinary conversations, stubborn characters, local habits, and the quiet absurdities that people living in small communities understand especially well.

What I enjoyed most about this book was how accessible it is. Rather than one long narrative, it's made up of dozens of short entries featuring haunted locations, ghost stories, and local legends from across Vermont. That made it a perfect distraction after a busy day. I could pick it up, read a few stories, put it down, and come back later without ever feeling like I had lost my place.

This time, our assignment was Spider-Man: The Other – Evolve or Die. With the upcoming Spider-Man movie reportedly drawing inspiration from this storyline, Jordan and I both sat down to read it before we see what makes it onto the big screen.

Barillaro’s warm illustrations and graphic-novel-style passages make the world feel expansive and alive. Some pages invite you to pause and absorb the artwork, while the more dramatic sequences give the adventure a cinematic quality.

I first became interested in this book after having Nancy as a guest on my podcast. She was kind enough to send me a copy, and I'm grateful she did. As someone who spends a lot of time reading children's books, interviewing authors, and sharing stories with my own kids, I found it to be a fascinating look behind the scenes of children's publishing.

The artwork is breathtaking. Every page feels like it could be framed, with sweeping landscapes and expressive characters that pull you into the story. It's one of those graphic novels where you occasionally stop reading just to admire the illustrations.

I've had the creators on my show several times over the years, so when they sent me a copy of the newly remastered Volume One, I was excited to finally sit down and experience the story in its collected form.

Unlike many picture books, Be You doesn't tell a traditional story. Instead, it's a collection of gentle encouragements for children as they grow and discover who they are. The message is simple: be curious, be brave, be kind, be creative, and most importantly, be yourself.