Michael Anthony Steele

This morning, I had the honor of being one of the speakers for Region One ESC Battle of the Books!

My audience was very special indeed, being the winning teams from each school district in Region One!

I got to meet so many great teams and even got to see fellow author, Diana López! I never get to watch another author’s presentation, so seeing her was a real treat!

After our presentations, Diana and I had signings and even took some photos with some of the teams.

I was especially thrilled to see Mrs. Rios and her team from Santos Livas Elementary–one of my former, very special school visits!

Thanks to all the event sponsors, including Libraria and Literacy for Texas. Thanks to Mrs. Garcia for inviting me and for the tasty lunch. And the biggest thanks of all goes to all the Battle of the Books teams themselves! I know you made your districts proud!

Today I had an exciting morning at Sullivan Elementary in Sugar Land, TX—home of the Dalmatians!

It was a whirlwind of a morning, presenting to all of 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades! The Dalmatians were polite, attentive, and had wonderful questions. I’m sorry I couldn’t call on everyone, but be sure to email me any questions I missed!

Thanks to Coaches Chauvin and Link for the use of their gym. Thanks to Mrs. Moore for inviting me and the wonderful gift bag. And a big thanks to all the wonderful Dalmatians themselves! Thanks for the great morning! Keep writing and keep reading!

When I got back to the ranch, I found a nice Sullivan Elementary T-shirt in my gift bag. Very cool and thanks again!

Today I made a triumphant return to McLaughlin Strickland Elementary – sort of! I had visited nine years ago when they were in another building and simply McLaughlin Elementary. But this new group of Tigers were just as welcoming! Note the cool banner above!

It was a fun-filled morning where I presented to 1st through 5th grades. There were so many great questions, that I almost ran out of time during the last show!

Between shows, I met fellow hat-wearers, Austin and Brandon.

And let’s not forget music teacher extraordinaire, Mr. Jackson!

I even had a pizza party with eleven special Tigers with even MORE great questions. Great to meet you: Anahy, Brianna, Dana, Daniel, Gonzalo, John Luca, Leah, Mary, Olivia, Ruben, and Zevi!

Thanks to Mrs. Davis for inviting me, for the use of her library, and for being the perfect host!

Thanks to Mary and Elora for the creative stickers. I look forward to seeing your animation some time soon!

And the biggest thanks of all goes to all of the McStrick Tigers! I had a roaring good time!

Today I spent a fun-filled morning at Frisco ISD‘s amazing Comstock Elementary! I gave three presentations, signed a few books, and met tons of excited, yet well-mannered students, including Beckham and Brooks!

Everyone had wonderful questions–in every single grade! And once back at the ranch, I received my first Comstock email from Carter. Incidentally, Carter wants me to give a shout out to his friend and Scooby-Doo fan, Jack! Well, shout out to both of you, Carter and Jack!

Thanks to Mrs. Leeper for all the help and for letting us take over her library for the morning. Hope you had fun with the afternoon spelling bee! Thanks to Mrs. Walvoord and the Comstock PTA for inviting me and all the tasty snacks. And a big thanks to all the wonderful Comstock students! Just like Carter, you can email me any question you want!

Today I navigated my way back to Missouri City, Texas, particularly Sienna Crossing Elementary–home of the Navigators!

My second time to SCE, I was thrilled to meet an entire new and energetic group of Navigators!

Today was especially exciting since my visit fell on Decades Day for the teachers (where they dressed in different decades’ fashions) and Career Day for the students (where many dressed as some of their favorite careers). Hey! Usually I’M the only guy in school in the crazy outfit!

Thanks to Mrs. Cooper and the PTO for having me out. Thanks to Mrs. Humphrey for all the wonderful help and tech support. And the biggest thanks of all goes to the Navigators themselves! Be sure to see Mr. Kenny about checking out the books I signed for you!

Today I finished my Klein ISD tour at Lemm Elementary–home of the Lions!

I gave four presentations to four very spirited audiences. Each one was chocked full of young writers and future screenwriters!

I even enjoyed a brief writer’s summit with seven 5th graders who had some amazing questions–some I’d never received before! Great to meet you: Adalynn, Camilla, Chloe, Lily, Mason, Nicholas, and Rylan!

I signed a few books during my last stop. I hope you enjoy reading them, Raylon, Rose, Talon, and Teddy!

Thanks to Mrs. Eikenberg for having me out, for the nice lunch, the chocolates, and for the young milkweed from the school’s garden. It’s already planted on our ranch and will hopefully feed future migrating Monarch butterflies.

But the biggest thanks goes to all the Lemm Lions! Keep reading! Keep writing! And remember those four words!

A new hat, a new crazy shirt, and a new exciting day at Metzler Elementary!

Today I finally got to meet the 1st, 4th, and 5th grade Huskies!

I met many young writers and future screenwriters, all of whom had great questions–especially the 5th graders!

I even signed more books. Fantastic to meet you: Albert, Bennett, Colton, Hope, Jessica, and Rose Marie!

Thanks to all the Huskies for another great day! Thanks again to the Metzler PTO for having me out and for another nice lunch. Another huge thanks to Mrs. Sonnier for the use of her library and for coordinating my visit to Klein ISD. And my sincerest apologies to Mrs. Perregrino for having so much fun during our last barrage of silly animal sounds that she nearly choked! Great! NOW I’ll have to make people sign a release before the next performance!

Today I returned to Metzler Elementary — home of the Huskies! The last time I visited Metzler was in 2015, and I’m happy to report the current pack of Huskies are just as lively as the last!

This was just day one of a two-day visit, where I met with PreK, Kinder, 2nd, and 3rd grades.

It was great to see that Metzler had just as many young writers as the last time I was here! I even had the pleasure of signing books for Ariana, Ellie, and Kia!

Thanks to Mrs. Sonnier and the Metzler PTO for having me out. Thanks to PTO president Mrs. Weirmar for the nice lunch. And thanks to the first half of Huskies for the fun day. I can’t wait to meet the rest of them tomorrow!

But the day wasn’t over! I swung back by Kreinhop to sign a couple of books for Angel and Tate. Great meeting you, guys!

Today was an exciting day at Kreinhop Elementary–home of the Wolfpack!

I presented for the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. Each class had wonderful questions and were chocked full of young writers and future screenwriters!

We met in Kreinhop’s open concept library, but thanks to Mrs. Bailey’s clever signs in the surrounding hallways, our presentations weren’t disturbed. I can’t say the same for the nearby classrooms since my shows can get a little… loud. Sorry, teachers!

I met Principal Liesburger, several students, and signed their books. I hope you enjoy reading them. And don’t forget to check out the books I signed for the school library!

Thanks to Mrs. Bailey for having me out, for the fun lunch, and the use of the library. And thanks to each and every member of the Wolfpack. I hope you enjoy my books and I look forward to reading some of yours someday!

Day two was a fun return to Mittelstädt Elementary — home of the Patriots! Coincidently, my elementary school mascot was also the Patriot.

I had visited Mittelstädt Elementary in 2018 where I got to meet those group of Patriots and Max, the library rabbit! Thank you, Evelyn for creating the welcome screen, including the photo of Max and me from my last Mittelstädt post!

After two exciting presentations, I signed some books and hung out with some energetic young readers: Ethan, Evelyn, Isabella, Maddox, Sam, Stanley, and Wyatt. They were great fun and had some insightful questions and creative story ideas. They even had the marketing campaign all laid out for my next book!

Thanks to Mrs. Sestak for inviting me. Thanks to Mr. Rivera, Mrs. Banasiak, and Mr. Hanson for the tech support. By the way, I heard great things about Mr. Hanson’s reading of The Book with no Pictures. Thanks to Mrs. Sestak and Mrs. Ledbetter for the delightful lunch. And the biggest thanks of all to the Mittelstädt Patriots. From one Patriot to another, keep reading and keep coming up with those awesome stories!