Exciting News!

Hey PBC fans! I hope you and your fur babies have been well. The inspirations for Peanut, Butter, and Crackers—my own Charlie, Otis, and Buddy Barker—have been enjoying road trips in our camper van. We even got the chance to drive through the super bloom in Southern California in March. An awe-inspiring color event.

In PBC news, the first book in the series, PUPPY PROBLEMS, won this year’s Beverly Cleary Children’s Choice Award in April. Woohoo! Beverly Clearly was and remains an icon in children’s literature. And to make matters even cooler, hundreds of students voted for Puppy Problems to be given the prize. I am honored and touched that my book on friendship and acceptance resonated with these young readers.

Also, this year, thanks to children’s book publisher, Nosy Crow, even more children will be able to enjoy the mishaps and adventures of our favorite furry friends. That’s because Nosy Crow is publishing special editions of the graphic novel series for children in the United Kingdom to read. Yay! Plus, check out the new fun cover for PUPPY PROBLEMS! Not only do these editions have new covers but there are lots of extra fun things in these books, including a brand new 8-page comic story in each. It was great to get the chance to revisit these characters and expand their stories a little.


Peanut, Butter, and Crackers will also be participating in a social media campaign in June with Nosy Crow to promote empathy. Each book in the series discusses the importance of empathy, our ability to see and understand each other’s experiences. It’s a super power we should all build, and graphic novels are a great way to strengthen our empathy because they transport us to subjects we may never have delved into if it weren’t for the captivating drawings and the often deeply personal storylines. I hope to you see you on social media getting the word out on empathy.

In the meantime, as always, send in your photos of Peanut, Butter, and Crackers in the wild. We’d love to see them!

Why We Love Graphic Novels

Sketch of Peanut, Butter, and Crackers characters
I wrote a guest blog post for Teen Librarian Toolbox at School Library Journal on a topic dear to my heart: graphic novels 🥰

Graphic novels transport us to subjects we may never have delved into if it weren’t for the captivating drawings and the often deeply personal storylines.

Source: Why We Love Graphic Novels, a guest post by Paige Braddock

Happy Birthday, ON THE TRAIL!

Author Paige Braddock with book, ON THE TRAIL

Did you ever notice that sometimes, art imitates life? And at other times, life imitates art? How about art and life imitating each other at the same time? I think that’s what happened to me!


After the first two stories featuring our fur babies, Peanut, Butter, and Crackers, I
thought it would be funny to write an adventure. It seemed like a good idea to take these
characters on a road trip to a place outside their comfort zone. A camping trip seemed
like a fun idea. I love camping. And what better way to get to the campground than in a
camper van.

Funny thing is, when I first began to work on this book, I didn’t own a camper van. But at
some point, it seemed like a fine idea, and we got one. Maybe this story inspired me to
try the adventure I was percolating in my head for Peanut, Butter, and Crackers, in the
real world?

Not long after getting our camper van, which we affectionately call Leonard, we loaded
our fur family up and took a drive from California to Georgia. And then, after a few
weeks, we turned around and did it again!

It soon became apparent that our dogs, Buddy Barker and Charlie, seemed to enjoy the
road trip much more than our cat, Otis. Thankfully only once did we have to rent a cabin
along the way to give Otis some space. Valuable lesson learned: Cats like to have their
own space. Duly noted!

Thankfully what my imagination ultimately conjured up as adventure in ON THE TRAIL
did not come to pass in real life! Reality was enough adventure for all of us!

ON THE TRAIL is about home and all the places we find it. I hope you enjoy the third installment of the Peanut, Butter, & Crackers series.