Mariama J. Lockington is an adoptee, author, and educator. She has been telling stories and making her own books since the second grade. Mariama’s middle-grade debut, For Black Girls Like Me, earned five starred reviews and was a Today Show Best Kids’ Book of 2019. Her sophomore middle-grade book, In The Key of Us, earned a Stonewall Honor Award and was featured in the New York Times. Her debut young adult novel, Forever is Now, is the 2024 winner of the Schneider Family Teen Book Award. Mariama’s 4th book, I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm is out 10/14/2025.