Hot on the heels of last Saturday’s successful Independent Bookstore Day, the staff at Left Bank Books jumped right into the celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Children’s Book Week which began Monday.
One of the events on the schedule takes place at 7 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday) when CWE-based author Antony John, above, and Cole Gibson, another local author writer (not photographed), will host a panel discussion for aspiring teenage writters and authors interested in writing for this age group.
The photo above was taken during last fall’s debut of John’s 8th novel, Mascot, for middle readers. At the signing event the author talked to his mostly young audience about the creation of a book, from story line to getting the book published.
As a testament to John’s skills as a writer, many in his targeted audience were so consumed reading Mascot as he spoke, they missed out on his witty presentation. One of the parents emailed me later to say her 5th grade daughter was consumed by the book and had a hard time putting it down. More favorable reviews can be found on Antony John’s website.
As I look at the photo below showing fans of all ages in line for the author’s signature, I’m struck by the realization that, in this age of on-line games and super heroes, an inscription by a creator of stories remains valued.
Other events scheduled for Children’s Book Week include Saturday morning’s Storytime at 10:30 a.m. featuring celebrity author Daniel Wiseman. On Sunday at 4 p.m. there is a mini-comics workshop (with cookies) hosted by artistic LBB staffers. More information can be found here.
Children’s Book Week, which dates to 1919, will be celebrated throughout the year at Left Bank Books, with another weeklong event scheduled for November 4 through 10.
Left Bank Books, 399 N. Euclid, (314) 367-6731.