Everybody Counts

As a New Hampshire and Vermont radio broadcaster, Matt Forrest Esenwine spent a good part of his time writing and producing commercials and comedy bits. He also wrote poetry, which was published in various national journals and anthologies including the Donald Hall tribute, “Except for Love” (Encircle, 2019). Little did Matt know all this short-form writing would lead to his debut picture book, “Flashlight Night” (Astra Young Readers, 2017), which received numerous positive reviews including a Kirkus star and was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the Best Books for Kids 2017. Encyclopedia Brittanica also featured it in their list of “11 Children’s Books That Inspire Imagination!” Other children’s books followed, including “Don’t Ask a Dinosaur” (POW! Kids, 2018), co-authored with Deborah Bruss, “Once Upon Another Time” (Beaming Books, 2021), co-authored with Charles Ghigna, and “I Am Today” (POW! Kids Books, 2022), recipient of the 2023 NH State Literary Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature. Meanwhile, Matt’s children’s poetry can be found in numerous anthologies like “The National Geographic Book of Nature Poetry” (National Geographic Children’s Books, 2015), “Construction People” (Wordsong, 2019) and his debut anthology, “A Universe of Rainbows” (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2025). Connect with Matt at www.MattForrest.com.