Recently authors spoke at the PEN America Festival; an author-illustrator closed her book tour speaking with White House officials; a writer was surprised by a former teacher; and authors teamed up to discuss middle grade magic.
The Power of the PEN
Authors gathered in New York City on May 13 for a portion of the PEN America World Voices Festival, where authors (from l.) Ruta Sepetys, Zetta Elliott, Padma Venkatraman, Kyle Lukoff, and Traci Sorell spoke on the “Writing Truthfully About Today’s Issues for Kids” panel.
A ‘Big’ Finale
For the final event of Vashti Harrison’s (r.) book tour promoting her picture book Big (Little, Brown), Harrison held an event on May 15 at the Oxon Hill Library in Maryland in partnership with Mahogany Books in Washington, D.C. Harrison appeared in conversation with Karine Jean-Pierre (l.), White House press secretary and assistant to the President.
Childhood Surprise
During Kirby Larson’s (c.) event promoting her early reader Shermy & Shake, the Not-So-Nice Neighbor (Candlewick) at Brick & Mortar Books on May 21, the author welcomed a surprise guest: her sixth-grade teacher Steve Craig (r.) and his wife, Karen (l.).
Do You Believe in Magic?
Little Shop of Stories in Decatur, Ga., welcomed Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev (l.) and Laurel Snyder (r.) on May 16 to celebrate their middle grade releases There Flies the Witch (Greenwillow) and The Witch of Woodland (Walden Pond).
