Joy
Joy
Joy is a 23-year-old Nigerian American from the small suburb of Lithonia, GA, just outside of Atlanta. She is the author of Joy-Grace and the Dress Dilemma (2021) and Stubborn Roots (2026). Outside of poetry, Joy is a budding researcher who aspires to become a physician-scientist, using her expertise to care for others and contribute to medical advancements. Joy spends much of her time balancing research, writing, and serving at her local church, where she often finds inspiration in science, service, and storytelling. She envisions a future career where she bridges the gap between medicine and human connection, offering care that is both scientifically sound and deeply compassionate. Joy hopes readers of her story find encouragement and walk away feeling empowered to join in activism and the efforts against social injustice.
BOOKS BY JOY
Authors: Tseganesh Chala, Joy Ugwu
Illustrator: Joy Ingram
In Joy-Grace and the Dress Dilemma, authors Joy and Tseganesh wanted to write a book about the challenges--and the beauty!--of having a multicultural identity. Joy-Grace is a fashionista, and this week is her school’s culture day. She wants to bring in a garment to reflect her background, but there’s only one problem: her family is from Nigeria, Jamaica, AND Ethiopia! Will Joy-Grace be able to find the perfect dress to celebrate all of who she is in time for culture day?
En Joy-Grace y el dilema del vestido, las autoras Joy y Tseganesh quisieron escribir un libro sobre las dificultades —y la belleza— de tener una identidad multicultural. Joy-Grace es una fashionista, y esta semana es el día de la cultura en su escuela. Quiere llevar un vestido que refleje sus raíces, pero solo hay un problema: su familia es de Nigeria, Jamaica y Etiopía. ¿Podrá Joy-Grace encontrar el vestido perfecto a tiempo para celebrar todas sus culturas?
ISBN: 978-1-950807-39-0
Age: 4-9
Lexile: AD570L
Page Count: 40
Published: Fall 2021
Foreword by Elizabeth Acevedo. Edited by Sasa Aakil and Kathy Crutcher.
by the Young Writers of Shout Mouse Press
For ten years, Shout Mouse Press has championed the voices of young writers, publishing their authentic and necessary stories. Now, this landmark anthology of youth writing celebrates a decade of storytelling—and invites readers to pick up their pens and write the path ahead.
Spanning memoir, poetry, fiction, comics, and children’s literature, Bright Before Us, Like a Flame is more than a retrospective—it’s a creative writing resource and a call to action. Taking its title from Langston Hughes’ poem “Youth,” this collection ignites both hope for the future and the power to shape it. Through stories of immigration, identity, social justice, and resilience, young authors confront today’s most urgent topics with insight and empathy. Their words challenge, inspire, and invite readers to add their own voices to the conversation.
What’s Inside:
✅ A diverse collection of youth-authored memoirs, poetry, fiction, comics, and children’s literature, featuring underrepresented voices.
✅ Creative writing prompts and behind-the-scenes insights to inspire students and emerging writers to tell their own stories.
✅ Intergenerational conversations with award-winning guest authors, exploring the role of storytelling in social change.
✅ Discussion questions for middle and high school classrooms, book clubs, and creative writing workshops.
At a time of uncertainty and urgent global challenges, these young authors remind us: Words have power. Stories create change. And the future is yours to write.
Perfect for:
📖 Aspiring young writers looking for inspiration, mentorship, and creative guidance.
🎓 Educators and librarians seeking an engaging, diverse, and inclusive classroom writing resource for middle and high school students.
🎁 Readers who believe in the power of storytelling to spark dialogue and transform communities.
ISBN: 978-1-950807-82-6
Age: 12+
Page Count: 304
Available for preorder — product will ship Oct 27 2026
By the young writers of Shout Mouse Press
"The poems and essays in Stubborn Roots have changed me in ways I was unprepared for. The profundity of their observations of the world, and of themselves, left me in awe. This is a special book filled with special writers." —Clint Smith, author of How the Word is Passed
This powerful anthology illuminates today’s activist experience through the poetry and essays of our most vital and essential youth.
Through compelling poetry, 18 young writers of color plant their resistance in the soil of our uncertain future. They tackle disparities across lines of gender and sexuality, race and ethnicity, ableism and fatphobia, immigration and the environment, and more. Their poems are accompanied by portraits of each poet (by cover artist Sobia Ahmad) along with first-person essays on what liberation means to them.
Diverse voices and styles shine throughout Stubborn Roots, providing personal and cultural context to ongoing conversations about change in the United States. Tender and green, vulnerable and wondrous, this singular book of poems serves as an urgent call to the transformative power of art and is a must-have for young readers looking to develop their connection to social justice.
Foreword by Camonghne Felix, author of Let the Poets Govern.
ISBN: 9781950807901
Age: 12+
Page Count: 220
Coming Fall 2026
