Children's Book Festival in October

Some of you in the eastern part of the state might be interested in attending the fourth annual Sheboygan Children's Book Festival. The theme is "The Ways of Looking."

This year it will take place on October 11-13. Events will take place at the Mead Public Library, the John Michael Kohler Arts Center and Bookworm Gardens. The festival includes visits from children's authors and illustrators over a three-day period.

For more information on the festival, check out the website.

Sheboygan Children's Book Festival: October 14-16

Are you going to the Sheboygan Children's Book Festival this year?

If its not already on your calendar, perhaps it should be. They have a great line up of authors including:

• Candace Fleming
• Catherine Gilbert Murdoch
• Francisco X. Mora
• Henry Cole
• Jerry Pinkney
  
• Liz Garton Scanlon
• M.T. Anderson
• Stacey Williams-Ng
  and
  
• Tom Lichtenheld

For more information about the festival visit http://sheboyganchildrensbookfestival.org/.

2nd Annual Sheboygan Children's Book Festival, October 14-16, 2011

http://sheboyganchildrensbookfestival.org/

We are extremely pleased to release the names of a few of the exceptional and critically-acclaimed authors and illustrators participating in this year’s Sheboygan Children’s Book Festival!

• Jerry Pinkney has been creating children’s books since 1964 and has more than 200 fine children’s books to his credit. He has received the Caldecott Medal, five Caldecott Honors and five Coretta Scott King Awards, among many other awards.
  
  
• Candace Fleming says she has always “enjoyed telling a good story…and seeing my listener’s reaction.” Her award-winning books include picture books for young children, novels for older children, and scrapbook biographies of famous Americans.
  
  
• Henry Cole has written and illustrated picture books and novels and has illustrated picture books for authors Pamela Duncan Edwards, Jonathan London, Margie Palatini, Julie Andrews, and many others.
  

We invite you to check out our website and browse our author bio pages to learn more about these authors and illustrators and their books.

Sign up for e-mail updates to receive the latest author announcements and festival news.

More authors and illustrator announcements will be coming soon!

Sheboygan Children's Book Festival

By: Karin Menzer, Youth Services Manager, Mead Public Library

An exciting event for children's book lovers is coming to our area this fall. The Sheboygan Children's Book Festival (SCBF) will take place on October 15-17, 2010. It will bring outstanding children's authors and illustrators to our community for a three-day celebration of books, reading, writing, art, workshops, and discussion.

The book festival is being planned by an ad hoc committee of community members and local organizations. Partners include Mead Public Library, the Eastern Shores Library System, the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Bookworm Gardens, the University of Wisconsin-Sheboygan, The Next Chapter Bookshop in Mequon, and the Sheboygan and Kohler School Districts. Funding for the festival is through grants, in-kind donations and matching funds.

Dave Weinhold and Paula Siefert from the Eastern Shores Library System, Trixine Tahtinen, Director of the Oostburg Public Library and Karin Menzer, Youth Services Manager at Mead Public Library are members of the SCBF steering committee.

Many wonderful authors and illustrators have agreed to take part in the SCBF, including Newbery Award winning author Avi; Newbery Honor author, Kathi Appelt; Caldecott Honor writer and illustrator, David McLimans; Caldecott Honor writer and illustrator, Lois Ehlert; Charlotte Zolotow Honor writer and illustrator, Keiko Kasza; humorous poet and illustrator Calef Brown; popular Wisconsin authors Barbara Joosse, Gerald Morris and Jo Ann Early Macken; and Wisconsin illustrator and Sheboygan native Renee Graef.

A variety of programs are being planned, including "My Name is Avi," a dramatic performance reading of his works, interspersed with biographical anecdotes and the stories of key books and how they came to be. Avi will also present an informal writing workshop for teens, providing a rare opportunity for would-be young writers to engage in a dialogue about writing with this popular and highly-regarded author. On Friday evening a reception to "Celebrate Wisconsin Authors and Illustrators Who Call Wisconsin Home" will be held at Mead Public Library. This reception will allow the public to engage in informal conversation with Wisconsin writers and artists.

This summer, during Mead's summer reading program, I plan to raise awareness of the festival by presenting some book discussion programs featuring several festival authors. School-aged children have more time for reading and discussion programs during the summer and the opportunity to meet the author in the fall will add extra appeal.

Many of Avi's books will be great for discussion programs, especially Crispin: The Cross of Lead, The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, the Poppy series and, for teens, Nothing but the Truth: A Documentary Novel. Kathi Appelt's The Underneath and Gerald Morris's A Squire's Tale will also make interesting discussion titles. Teachingbooks.net, available through BadgerLink, is a great resource for planning book discussion programs. I will be putting some book discussion materials together so if any of you are interested in doing some book discussions in your library this summer or fall, please let me know. If there is interest, we may also be able to organize some book sharing for the discussion programs through the system.

More information about the Sheboygan Children's Book Festival will become available soon, including a website. Meanwhile, mark October 15-17, 2010 in your calendars so you don't miss the fun!