Book Fair Notes

Heading into the Book Fair

A parade of families streamed into the 20^th CT Children’s Book Fair this weekend to visit with authors and illustrators and slap high fours with The Cat in the Hat.  Tomie dePaola, Mo Willems, and Jane Yolen all signed during the day Sunday when as many as 700 people per hour entered the Rome Ballroom on the UConn campus.  It was packed, and interesting, and silly, too.  Special thanks to Suzy Staubach and Terri Goldich for a smashing event.

I had fun on a panel with fellow dystopian writers Suzanne Weyn, Michael Northrop, and Jeff Hirsch.  Moderator Nikki Mutch asked provocative questions about what has inspired so many writers to tackle dystopias these days, and the replies encompassed our latest Irene and pre-Halloween snowfall disasters and the zeitgeist authors tap into.  An attentive audience followed up with questions about fanfiction, what should be read in school, and how writers keep their books fresh when so many cover similar themes.

My favorite part was definitely meeting kids who are writers.  They are fearless.  They come right up and start talking about why they love writing and how it’s all they do.  They talk about loving words and stories and voices.  Their parents stand shyly a few feet back, looking proud, and like they know they’re already way out of their league, trying to keep up with their kids.

Honestly, if we can just get out of their way, the children know what to do.  It’s the most inspiring thing to see, even in glimpses in a packed room.  “Celebrating children and the books they read” was the tagline of the fair, and truly, the children were the highlights of the day.

Suzanne Weyn, Jeff Hirsch, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Caragh O'Brien, and Michael Northrop