young writers read from their work

Activities for children and families are an important part of the Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written WordSM. At the Festival, in addition to the many children's and young adult authors, the Children's Stage operates Saturday and Sunday during the event and features special activities for children of all ages. Musicians, poets, songwriters and storytellers encourage children to read, share stories and sing songs.

Birthday parties are held each year on the stage for the anniversaries of major children's books, with special appearances by the book's characters.

The Festival program features more than 200 authors each year, and approximately forty are children's authors and illustrators. Each participates in a panel discussion or offers a solo presentation, and each has a book signing immediately following his/her session.

2008 Children's and Young Adult events

This year's children's and young adult schedule is provided here. The official even program will be available at the event.
All numbered rooms are in the Legislative Plaza.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

9:00-10:00 am, Room 30 : The Language of Positive Parenting : Stacey R. Kaye

9:00-10:00 am, Room 12 : Lazy Little Loafers : Susan Orlean

9:00-11:00 am, Sheraton Suite 6 : Me Against the World: Courageous Characters in Historical Fiction : Helen Hemphill, Margaret McMullan, Ted Dunagan, Carole Boston Weatherford, Wilmoth Foreman

9:30-10:00 am, Children's Stage : Paco and the Giant Chile Plant : Elizabeth Dulemba

10:00-11:00 am, Room 30 : Words and Images: Crafting Graphic Novels : Scott Christian Sava, B. Albers Jackson

10:00-11:00 am, Room 12 : Two Award-Winning Picture Book Authors Present Their Latest Works : Gloria Jean Pinkney, Patricia McKissack

10:30-11:30 am, Children's Stage : The Adventures of Octopus Rex : Barbara Hart

11:00-12:30 pm, Room 30 : Illustrative Writing: Penning Perfect Picture Books : Lynne Berry, Laurel Snyder, Mike Artell

11:00-12:00 noon, Room 12 : On Beale Street : Ronald Kidd

11:00-12:30 pm, Sheraton Suite 6 : Heartbreak and Hope: Novel Approaches to Teen Issues : Heather Hepler, Varian Johnson, David Macinnis Gill

12:00-1:00 pm, Children's Stage : The Amazing Step-By-Step Art Card Studio : Linda Ragsdale

12:00-1:00 pm, Room 12 : Score! 50 Poems to Motivate and Inspire : Charles "Father Goose" Ghigna

12:30-2:00 pm, Room 30 : Authors and Illustrators: Collaborators and Loners : Sallie Lowenstein, Stacey R. Kaye, Elizabeth Dulemba, Martha Hannah, Larry Dowell

12:30-2:00 pm, Sheraton Suite 6 : Mystery Men: Three Authors Keep You on the Edge of Your Seat : Roger Reid, Jack Ferraiolo, William Sleator

1:00-2:00 pm, Room 12 : Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out : Mary Brigid Barrett, Patricia McKissack, Fredrick McKissack, Lynda Johnson Robb

1:30-2:30 pm, Children's Stage : Audio Books for Kids : Katherine Kellgren, Brian Hull, Ellen Myrick

2:00-3:00 pm, Room 30 : Alpha-kidZ: Reading Adventures A-Z : Cindy G. Foust

2:00-3:00 pm, Sheraton Suite 6 : Tipping the Scales: Humor and Body Image in Fictional Journeys : Susan Vaught, Suzanne Supplee

2:45-3:15 pm, Children's Stage : A 20th Birthday Party for Lars the Little Polar Bear

3:15-3:45 pm, Children's Stage : I the Fly : Maggie Margaret Turner

3:00-4:30 pm, Sheraton Suite 6 : Not Your Mother's Fiction: Modern Novels for Teens : D. Anne Love, Susan McBride, Kathryn Williams

4:00-5:00 pm, Children's Stage : The Sock Fairy and The Knot Fairy : Bobbie Hinman

4:00-5:30 pm, Room 30 : The Class of 2k8: Three Debut Middle Grade Novelists Tell All : Jenny Meyerhoff, Laurel Snyder, Kristin O'Donnell Tubb

4:30-5:30 pm, Sheraton Suite 6 : Calling All Sleuths: Unraveling the Clues in Two Mystery Series : Tracy Barrett, Alan Gratz

Sunday, October 12, 2008

12:30-1:30 pm, Children's Stage : A Party for the 20th Annual Southern Festival of Books

1:30-2:30 pm, Children's Stage : The Sock Fairy and The Knot Fairy : Bobbie Hinman

3:00-4:00 pm, Children's Stage : The Ghost of Hampton Court : Martha Hannah

This year's children's and young adult authors include:

  • Sherman Alexie was named one of Granta's Best Young American Novelists and has been lauded by The Boston Globe as "an important voice in American literature." Sherman Alexie is one of the most well known and beloved literary writers of his generation. His five works of fiction have received numerous awards and citations, including the PEN/Malamud Award for Fiction and the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Award, and have been translated into eleven languages. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian
  • Mike Artell lives in Covington, Louisiana. He is an award-winning author, illustrator, TV cartoonist, conference speaker, musician and humorist. He is a member of the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor. Three Little Cajun Pigs
  • Mary Brigid Barrett is a children's book author and illustrator; a professional educator; and the founder, president, and executive director of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance (NCBLA). She has won numerous awards for her books, including an Oppenheim Gold Award and the National Storyteller's Association's "Best Book of the Year" award. Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out
  • Tracy Barrett is the author of numerous fiction and nonfiction books for young readers. Tracy is the Midsouth Regional Advisor for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She was awarded an NEH grant in 1994 and the SCBWI Work-in-Progress Grant in 2005. She holds a BA in Classics from Brown University, and an MA and PhD in Italian literature from the University of California at Berkeley. Author website: tracybarrett.com. The Sherlock Files: The 100-Year-Old Secret
  • Lynne Berry graduated from Wellesley College with a BA in Biology and from Vanderbilt University with a PhD in Cell Biology. She left the world of petri dishes and microscopes in 1997 to write for children. Her first book, Duck Skates, was called "A lovely treat for the lap-sit crowd" by Booklist. Duck Dunks
  • Larry Dowell's skills in fine arts, graphic arts, web/multimedia design, photography, and writing have earned him a number of awards. He traveled across Europe collecting tidbits and creative inspiration for The Ghost of Hampton Court, which he illustrated and his wife, Martha Hannah, wrote. The Ghost of Hampton Court
  • Elizabeth Dulemba is an award-winning illustrator of several children's books. She received a BFA in graphic design from the University of Georgia. She drew a portrait of Master Storyteller Ray Hicks one year while listening to him share some Jack Tales, and that experience solidified her love for all things Appalachian and Jack Tales in particular. She also enjoys teaching at the John C. Campbell Folk School. Paco and the Giant Chile Plant
  • Ted Dunagan was born in 1943 in rural southwestern Alabama. He attended Georgia State University, and served for three years in the Army as a member of the 101st Airborne Division and Special Forces Training Group. Dunagan is now retired after a career in the cosmetics and fragrance industry. He writes features and columns for The Monticello News in Monticello, Georgia, where he lives with his wife. A Yellow Watermelon
  • Jack Ferraiolo is the writer and developer of the animated series WordGirl for PBS. He was also an editor and producer of Home Movies for Cartoon Network and O'Grady for The N. This is his first book. He lives with his wife and young daughter in northern Massachusetts. The Big Splash
  • Wilmoth Foreman has an MFA in writing from Vermont College. She is a newspaper columnist and an Artist in Residence for the Tennessee Arts Commission. Her first novel was on the 2006 Volunteer State Master Reading List and was named a TriState (PA, DE, NJ) Young Adult Book of Note. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it "warmly, quitely memorable." Summer of the Skunks
  • Cindy G. Foust is the president and author of Alpha-kidZ. She has released twelve children's books featuring the letters A-L, and she will release fourteen more books (featuring the remaining fourteen letters) in Spring of 2009. She has traveled extensively, presenting to more than 400 schools and libraries during an eighteen-city book tour. She is a member of the Publisher's Association of the South, the Association for Children's Book Authors and Illustrators, the Southeast Book Seller's Association, and the Northeast Louisiana Reading/International Reading Association. Author website: www.alphakidz.com. Alpha-kidZ: Reading Adventures A-Z
  • Charles Ghigna (Father Goose) is the author of more than forty award-winning books of poetry for children and adults. His books have been featured on Good Morning America, NPR and have been selected by the Book-of-the-Month Club. Author website: FatherGoose.com. SCORE: 50 Poems to Motivate and Inspire
  • David Macinnis Gill's stories have appeared in several magazines, and his biography of Graham Salisbury was published by Scarecrow Press. He holds a bachelor's in English and a doctorate in Education from the University of Tennessee. He is the president of ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Soul Enchilada
  • Alan Gratz has written plays, articles, more than 6,000 radio commercials, and a few episodes of A&E's City Confidential. He grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee and now lives in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife and daughter. Something Wicked
  • Martha Hannah is a nationally acclaimed performing artist, author and educator who has delighted audiences with her performances for more than twenty years. She brings the Middle Ages and Renaissance to life through her character Maid Martha. The Ghost of Hampton Court
  • Barbara Hart has been writing songs for most of her life. While living in Nashville she earned a Grammy nomination for work on a collection of lullabies. She has also been nominated for two Emmys for her work creating clever "answers" for the television game show, Jeopardy! The Adventures of Octopus Rex
  • Helen Hemphill holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College and is an education Artist in Residence for the Tennessee Arts Commission. Her first novel, Long Gone Daddy, was published to considerable critical acclaim and was included in the New York Public Library's 2006 "Books for the Teen Age." A native Texan, she currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee and Austin, Texas with her family. The Adventurous Deeds of Deadwood Jones
  • Heather Hepler has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Southern Maine. She has taught young adult literature, children's literature, and various other writing courses for several colleges and universities. She has also worked as a book reviewer and contributor for several publications, including The New York Times. She lives in Tyler, Texas. Jars of Glass
  • Bobbie Hinman has a BS degree in elementary education and, along with her ten grandchildren, is right at home when it comes to children's literature. Her previous book, The Knot Fairy, is the recipient of several literary awards and continues to delight children everywhere. The Sock Fairy
  • Brian Hull works as a Children's Program Specialist for the Nashville Public Library. He has adapted several popular children's books and folktales for the library's puppet theater, and he writes and directs shows for Dollywood. The Nashville Scene called Brian "one of Nashville's creative treasures."
  • B. Albers Jackson is an award winning screenwriter and film producer. Her video, Forgotten Son, won the Educational Short Award at the 2007 International Family Film Festival. She won Best Feature Animation Screenplay for Rama at the 2003 International Family Film Festival. She is a professor of chemistry at Tennessee Technological University. Rama: The Legend
    • Reading to kids
  • Varian Johnson was born and raised in Florence, South Carolina. He now lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and two cocker spaniels. My Life as a Rhombus
  • Stacey R. Kaye, MMR, is the mother of two girls and a self-described "Parenting Lecture Groupie." As her first daughter grew into a feisty toddler, Stacey searched for language that would discourage tantrums and still encourage confidence and emotional growth. The result is her ParentSmart/KidHappy books. Ready for Bed! and Ready for the Day!
  • Katherine Kellgren has appeared onstage in London, New York and Frankfurt. Her recent work includes the role of Laura in a regional production of The Glass Menagerie and appearances on Comedy Central. She has recorded numerous plays and dramatizations of novels for the radio, including winners of the AudioFile Earphones Award and the Peabody Award. She is a graduate of The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
  • Ronald Kidd is the author of Dunker, a winner of a Children's Choice Award; Second Fiddle, an Edgar Award nominee and Library of Congress Children's Book of the Year; and Sizzle & Splat, a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year. He is a two-time O'Neill playwright residing and working in Nashville, Tennessee. On Beale Street
  • D. Anne Love is the author of several novels. She won the Writers' League of Texas Teddy Award for The Puppeteer's Apprentice, and she has been recognized by the American Library Association and the National Council of Teachers of English for her work. A former professor of children's literature, she holds a PhD from the University of North Texas and is a popular speaker at writers' and educators' conferences. A native West-Tennessean, she currently resides in New Albany, Ohio. Defying the Diva
  • Sallie Lowenstein is the author and illustrator of four picture books and six illustrated young adult novels. Her books have been honored by the American Library Association, the Bank Street College of Education, the NY Public Library and been selected for the Accelerated Reader Program and by the Fund for Educational Excellence for classroom libraries in Baltimore schools. Lowenstein combines her love of writing with her love of children by mentoring three groups of young writers, one in Montgomery County, Maryland, and two in Arlington, Virginia, who have begun to receive national recognition in their own right. She and these groups were the subject of a 2004 Reading is Fundamental video, broadcast nationally. Author website: www.lionstonebooks.com. In the Company of Whispers
  • Susan McBride shifts from mystery to YA with The Debs, the first of a new series. She's also penned five Debutante Dropout Mysteries, which won the Lefty Award, two Anthony Award nominations, and a William Rockhill Nelson Award nomination. Visit her web site at SusanMcBride.com and check out her YouTube trailers at www.youtube.com/thedebsbooks. The Debs
  • Fredrick McKissack and his wife, Patricia McKissack, have written more than 100 books about the African-American experience. They have won countless awards and received much critical acclaim, all the while bringing enjoyment and information to young readers. Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out
  • Patricia McKissack is a children's book author and illustrator; a professional educator; and the founder, president, and executive director of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance (NCBLA). She has won numerous awards for her books, including an Oppenheim Gold Award and the National Storyteller's Association's "Best Book of the Year" award. Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out and Stitchin' and Pullin': A Gee's Bend Quilt
  • Margaret McMullan lives in Evansville, Indiana with her husband and son. She is an English professor at the University of Evansville. She was born in Newton County, Mississippi, which is near where How I Found the Strong is set, and the main character is based on her grandmother's great uncle. How I Found the Strong was her first novel for children, and the sequel, When I Crossed No-Bob, was published in November of 2007. When I Crossed No-Bob
  • Jenny Meyerhoff is the author of two novels. She studied writing at the University of Michigan and received a Master's in Education from Northwestern University. She then became a kindergarten teacher. She is now a full-time writer and mom and lives in Riverwoods, Illinois with her husband and three children. Third Grade Baby
  • Ellen Myrick has been reading books aloud for children for over ten years. She performed in The Red Hot Rattoons by Elizabeth Winthrop and provided the narration for Stop the Train by Carnegie medallist, Geraldine McCaughrean, produced by Full Cast Audio. Ms. Myrick has led and moderated panels, programs and workshops on the production and marketing of audiobooks for both local and national organizations.
  • Susan Orlean is an author, staff writer for The New Yorker, and a devoted dog owner. Her New York Times bestselling book, The Orchid Thief inspired the movie Adaptation. Lazy Little Loafers is her first children's book. Lazy Little Loafers
  • Gloria Jean Pinkney met her husband, illustrator Jerry Pinkney, while attending high school in Philadelphia. They have collaborated over the years in making quality books for children. Back Home, her first book, is based on memories of a family reunion in her hometown and is illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Daniel and the Lions
    • a performance on the children's stage
  • Linda Ragsdale is an award-winning author/illustrator who teaches and demonstrates art in schools and libraries. Her work has been published in such magazines as Pack-O-Fun and Looney Tunes Kids, and she has been featured on a variety of crafting television shows. The Amazing Step-By-Step Art Card Studio
  • Roger Reid is a writer, director, and producer of the award-winning Discovering Alabama series from the University of Alabama's Alabama Museum of Natural History, in cooperation with Alabama Public Television. Space
  • Lynda Johnson Robb is the elder of the two daughters of United States President Lyndon Baines Johnson and his wife Lady Bird Johnson. She served as First Lady of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 and as Second Lady of Virginia from 1978 to 1982. She served as chair of the board of Reading is Fundamental, the nation's largest children's literacy organization, from 1996 to 2001. In 2002 she received the Ella Dickey Literacy Award for her work in promoting literacy. Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out
  • Scott Christian Sava is known throughout the entertainment industry for his versatility as a storyteller. He attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco and became a member of the New York Society of Illustrators at the age of 24. He has served as designer, art director and producer for such popular video games as StarCraft 64, X-Files, Alien vs. Predator, and Fight Club. He was lead animator for the Universal Film Casper and is a weekly contributor to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Digimon, Spider-Man and Nascar Racers. With his company, Blue Dream Studios, he now handles animation projects for Disney, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network and more. The Dreamland Chronicles
  • William Sleator is the author of more than thirty young adult books, including Interstellar Pig, The Green Futures of Tycho, and The Spirit House. He lives in Thailand and Boston and travels extensively on speaking tours. Test
  • Laurel Snyder is the author of Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains and Inside the Slidy Diner. A graduate of the Iowa Writers Workshop and commentator for NPR's All Things Considered, she lives with her family in Atlanta, Georgia, and online at laurelsnyder.com. Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains
  • Suzanne Supplee grew up in a small town in Tennessee. She now lives with her husband, three daughters, and two Jack Russell terriers near Baltimore, Maryland. Artichoke's Heart
  • Kristin O'Donnell Tubb grew up in East Tennessee, near Cades Cove. She lives in middle Tennessee with her husband and two children. Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different
  • Maggi Margaret Turner is a published songwriter and writer who lives on Green Pastures Horse Farm in Brentwood, Tennessee, with her husband, Cal. She supports community organizations such as the Blair School of Music, the Nashville Institute for the Arts, the Tennessee Dance Theater and the Nashville Zoo. I The Fly began as a poem, one of more than five hundred that the author has written. I The Fly
  • Susan Vaught is the author of many award-winning books including Stormwitch, Trigger and Big Fat Manifesto. She is a practicing neuropsychologist and lives in Tennessee. Big Fat Manifesto
  • Carole Boston Weatherford earned a Master of Arts in publications design from the University of Baltimore and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. She teaches at Fayetteville State University and live in High Point, North Carolina with her husband Ronald and their son and daughter. Becoming Billie Holiday
  • Kathryn Williams has written for Newsweek, The New York Observer, NewYorkMag.com and Shecky's, among other publications. This is her first novel. Author website: kathrynswilliams.com. The Debutante

For more information, contact Emily Masters at 615-770-0006, ext. 15 or emily@humanitiestennessee.org

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