Bookworm International Literary Festival 2012: Peter Brown
I have to confess that even though there are a few adult events I have and will be attending at the Bookworm's Literary Festival, I am most excited for the children's books authors. There's always such joy with kids and books, and none of the cynicism of contemporary adult fiction. I really could live in the Children's Room at the Carnegie Library. It is rather close to the in-library Crazy Mocha, too.
Monday morning the kids and I met up with my friend Sarah and her daughter Julia, excused for the morning from school, to see Peter Brown, author of Children Make Terrible Pets and The Curious Garden, among others. The focus of his talk was the promotion of his newest book, You Will Be My Friend. We bought this book a few weeks ago, and it's been read many times since then. Brigid refers to it as "My Lucy Book."
What is so great about Peter Brown is that not only does he know how to connect with kids with his picture books, he really also understands how to connect with them in person.
More after the jump
Before he read his most recent book, he showed the audience, all kids under the age of eight, the first book he ever wrote and illustrated. He was six years old, and he dictated the text to his mother. He was inspired by his dog running away for one night. He really underscored the word "inspired" several times in his talk.
Following this, he read from You Will Be My Friend. Even as the mom who has read this book aloud a dozen times, I could not stop laughing when he was reading it with his own inflections. To have this same experience at home, be sure to emphasize the "will" in the title, and pause briefly before saying the "be." Then continue to read Lucy Bear as rather sweetly oblivious to how pushy she is being.
In the last part of his talk he demonstrated how Lucy Bear is drawn. Again, he really connected with the kids because he showed that Lucy is composed of very simple lines and basic shapes.
Afterwards, the children were invited to try to copy this technique to draw their own Lucy Bear. Brigid started with a circle, then lamented her inability to draw the tutu, or any other part of the Lucy. "I only know how to draw the circle." Myles has been considering this in light of characters he has already been drawing and fleshing out for his multitudes of works-in-progress.
As with all the author events, there was book signing afterwards.
Right before we left for lunch, Brigid told me she had to go thank "Peter Brown." She did, and all week since she has been talking about "Peter Brown" often and how she remembered to thank him.
Monday morning the kids and I met up with my friend Sarah and her daughter Julia, excused for the morning from school, to see Peter Brown, author of Children Make Terrible Pets and The Curious Garden, among others. The focus of his talk was the promotion of his newest book, You Will Be My Friend. We bought this book a few weeks ago, and it's been read many times since then. Brigid refers to it as "My Lucy Book."
What is so great about Peter Brown is that not only does he know how to connect with kids with his picture books, he really also understands how to connect with them in person.
More after the jump
Before he read his most recent book, he showed the audience, all kids under the age of eight, the first book he ever wrote and illustrated. He was six years old, and he dictated the text to his mother. He was inspired by his dog running away for one night. He really underscored the word "inspired" several times in his talk.
Following this, he read from You Will Be My Friend. Even as the mom who has read this book aloud a dozen times, I could not stop laughing when he was reading it with his own inflections. To have this same experience at home, be sure to emphasize the "will" in the title, and pause briefly before saying the "be." Then continue to read Lucy Bear as rather sweetly oblivious to how pushy she is being.
In the last part of his talk he demonstrated how Lucy Bear is drawn. Again, he really connected with the kids because he showed that Lucy is composed of very simple lines and basic shapes.
Afterwards, the children were invited to try to copy this technique to draw their own Lucy Bear. Brigid started with a circle, then lamented her inability to draw the tutu, or any other part of the Lucy. "I only know how to draw the circle." Myles has been considering this in light of characters he has already been drawing and fleshing out for his multitudes of works-in-progress.
As with all the author events, there was book signing afterwards.
Right before we left for lunch, Brigid told me she had to go thank "Peter Brown." She did, and all week since she has been talking about "Peter Brown" often and how she remembered to thank him.
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