“Nadia Salomon’s Goodnight Ganesha reminds readers that saying goodnight is both universal and unique and that all children deserve bedtime books that reflect their experiences and culture.” — Hallee Adelman, author of My Quiet Ship

Nadia Salomon is an award-winning journalist. She holds a journalism and public policy degree from Emerson College. She is the author of the award-winning bedtime picture book, Goodnight Ganesha illustrated by Poonam Mistry. It is a Bank Street Best Children’s Book, an ALSC Día Selection, and NCTEWow Poetry Honor book.

A Voice of Hope is her acclaimed release. It is illustrated by London Ladd. It is the first picture book biography written about unsung social activist, Myrlie Evers-Williams. It received the 2025 BCALA, SLJ Children and Youth Literary Award, a 2025 Notable Social Studies Trade Book award, a Bank Street Best Children’s Book award, and earned two starred reviews from SLJ and the Horn Book. Nadia’s third title, A Rakhi for Rakesh, is illustrated by Nabi H. Ali. It is a sibling story set against the summer holiday of Raksha Bandhan.

She works closely with SCBWI, 12×12 Challenge, Kids Comics Unite, and on faculty with Storyteller Academy. When Nadia’s not teaching or spinning yarns, you’ll most likely find her blogging about her favorite reads at Nadia’s Nook.

Nadia's Featured Titles

A Rakhi for Rakesh

Versify |
Children’s

In this beautifully illustrated picture book, brother and sister duo Rakesh and Aashi discover the importance of forgiveness as they celebrate Raksha Bandhan.

Raksha Bandhan, the summer holiday celebrating brothers and sisters, is days away, but Aashi and Rakesh, just can’t seem to get along! As the siblings prepare for the big day, can they work together to learn a lesson of forgiveness and the importance of family?

A heartwarming story about caring for one’s siblings, perfect for fans of Love Comes First, Raashi’s Rakhis, and Lola Reads to Leo.

A Voice of Hope: The Myrlie Evers-Williams Story

Philomel Books |
Children’s

The remarkable life of Myrlie Evers-Williams is honored and celebrated in this stunningly illustrated picture book biography of a civil rights hero–the very first of its kind.

Myrlie Evers-Williams’ voice is gentle yet strong, soft yet powerful. It is a soaring song of hope.

Myrlie’s voice didn’t start out that way. She was born into the segregated South and the beautiful brown color of her skin made her a target for hate. It meant she didn’t have the same opportunities as white children, and that meant her dream of playing music onstage one day would be harder to achieve. But this didn’t stop Myrlie. As she grew, she marched for equal rights alongside her husband and activist, Medgar Evers. She fought against Jim Crow laws and for voting rights. She became the chair of the NAACP, and finally she realized her dream of performing at Carnegie Hall. After that, as a voice for hope and change, Myrlie spoke at President Obama’s second inauguration, inspiring a nation.

Nadia Salomon’s lyrical text and London Ladd’s exquisite artwork honor and celebrate the legendary life of Myrlie Evers-Williams and share her message of hope with the world.

Goodnight Ganesha

Viking Books for Young Readers |
Children’s

A gorgeously illustrated goodnight story that celebrates the nighttime rituals of two young children visiting their grandparents in India.

As nighttime falls over the city, two children visiting their grandparents in India find there’s so much fun to be had! Whether it’s listening to epic stories or observing rituals in the puja room, there are many moments that make this time together special.

In this beautiful, rhyming ode to bedtime, the only thing more universal than getting ready for bed and saying goodnight is the love between children and their grandparents.

Authors-Unbound_icon-web-link.png

Reading Pictures to Tell a Story

In this presentation I show kids how to use deduction skills to write a story from art postcards by living authors. We discuss their choices and what they saw in the art that helped them make the decisions they made. We then take their stories and share them with the author whose card was selected, taking the assignment outside of the classroom.

Authors-Unbound_icon-web-link.png

My Writing Journey

This presentation focuses on my journey to authorship despite rejection, I stay persistent, I keep writing, revising, and submitting until I land my agent and share my growing body of work. Then we discuss something they are working on and what steps they are taking to accomplish those goals.

Authors-Unbound_icon-web-link.png

Using Mentor Texts to Write Bedtime Stories

Before writing my award-winning debut, GOODNIGHT GANESHA, I focus on the research behind the book and how I took apart elements that I liked or felt connected to and used them as tools to write my book. Then we go through the five books I used and I show them the elements that stood out at me and how I tried to apply them to my own work in a fresh way .

Educator Resources for Goodnight Ganesha

Educator Resources for A Voice of Hope

Honors, Awards & Recognition

A Voice of Hope
2025 Bank Street Best Children’s Book
2025 BCALA, SLJ Children and Youth Literary Award for nonfiction
2025 Notable Social Studies Trade Book Award
A #PADIBA Commended book.
Starred review from SLJ
Starred review from The Horn Book

Goodnight Ganesha
Bank Street Best Children’s Book
An ALSC Día Selection
An NCTEWow Dozen Poetry Honor Book

A Rakhi for Rakesh
A tender tale of siblings making amends. – Kirkus
A beautiful and culturally significant book that highlights the importance of family, forgiveness, and tradition. – SLJ

Media Kit

By clicking the link below you will be directed to a Google Docs Folder
where you can download author photos and cover images.

We’ve received your Message!

An AU Representative will connect with you as soon as possible.