Kitty Felde

I spent many years as a reporter, covering Capitol Hill for public radio. Back then, I explained government to grownups. Now I explain it to kids.

MY INTRODUCTION TO WASHINGTON:

I'm a California kid. I never got to take that trip to DC with my 8th grade class. It was too expensive for a family with seven kids. And too far. So when I walked into the Speaker's Lobby of the U.S. Capitol for the first time, it was like visiting a foreign country.

The first thing I noticed was the formality on Capitol Hill. You have to wear a coat and tie (if you're a man) and ladies must cover their arms to enter the Speaker's Lobby or the galleries of the House and Senate. Even in the heat and humidity of summer. Only the First Lady is allowed to go sleeveless.

And DC women wear the ugliest shoes in America. Really. (So ugly, I created a Twitter account called Shoes on the Hill to post pictures of scary boots and hideous ballerina flats with buckles across the top.)

It was also exciting! And fun. I discovered that DC was a city of people who wanted to make a difference in the world.

But the partisanship grew nasty. Social media made it easy to attack the people you don't agree with and label them as the enemy. Who would want to pursue public service? I worry about our democracy.

But I'm also an optimist. I believe kids are the key to our future.

So I wrote a series of books about the daughter of a Congressman from Southern California who solves mysteries on Capitol Hill.

WHO'S FINA?

Years ago, I mentored a young woman named who was determined to be the first in her family to go to college. She was the inspiration for my character Fina Mendoza. She even lent me her name for the character. The real Fina is a teacher today, working on her PhD in education.

FIVE FUN FACTS ABOUT ME:

1. I grew up in Compton, the oldest of seven in a multi-racial family.

2. I'm married to a writer, Tad Daley, author of Apocalypse Never.

3. I'm host and executive producer of the award-Book Club for Kids podcast, winner of DC's Excellence in the Humanities award and the California Library Association's Technology award, named one of the Top 10 Podcasts for Kids in the world by The Times of London.

4. I also love to sew. There are 10 bins of fabric stashed in closets around the house.

5. We have a new cat named Trudy Tomato who is still hiding from us.

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www.kittyfelde.com

www.bookclubforkids.org