CT Children's Book Fair 2018: Part 1

It's obvious we love books. There's nothing more magical than falling into the pages of a good story. That's why we get excited in November to visit the Connecticut Children's Book Fair. It's a beautiful season for a drive to the UCONN campus, and the foliage displays made the scene pop this year. We enjoyed perusing the tables of books, chatting with the authors, and learning about their stories.

Fall leaves paved the way, and we found ourselves caught up in story magic. Today we're featuring highlights from the author presentations we attended at the fair on Saturday.

We purchased their books, and we're looking forward to sharing our reviews.



Enjoy our recap in part one of the CT Children's Book Fair, and tune in on Friday for part two.

Happy reading! ~ Jess & Stephanie

Barbara McClintock

Illustrator

Barbara McClintock is a lovely person and a brilliant illustrator. It's always inspiring to hear her talk about her work. The intricate details craftily woven into her illustrations are delightful. What's truly amazing about Barbara McClintock's art is that it's all done by head, heart, and hand—the most ancient and modern forms of technology. The processes involved in creating art like this are extensive. They're not for the faint-hearted and involve a lot of double-stick tape. Wrangling words in line is tricky, but painting numbers in scenes can get sticky.

Creative forces were brewing, casting spectacular colors through the windows. Time was running short, and I didn't get to ask a question, but after learning about the different phases that an illustration goes through before it's a scene in a book, I wondered which part of the process Barbara McClintock enjoys most. There's so much love that goes into this kind of creation, I would be interested to know what part of making art gives her the most satisfaction.

Barbara McClintock & Jessica Haight

It was a pleasure to meet Jennifer Richard Jacobson who talked about her middle grade book, The Dollar Kids. The inspiration behind this story is unique and the characters sound intriguing. This author approaches concepts of death and community from an open and inquisitive perspective, laying the foundation for a thought-provoking story. It's interesting to know that she does not like to world build, but rather uses real places as the settings for her books. This adds a realistic texture to her writing, and we're looking forward to checking out The Dollar Kids and Paper Things.

Jennifer Richard Jacobson & Stephanie Robinson

Stop by Friday for part two of our trip to the CT Children's Book Fair. Featuring:

Robbi Behr & Matthew Swanson, The Real McCoys

Brenna Burns Yu, The Birthday Fortune

Below are highlights from previous Connecticut Children's Book Fairs that we've attended. 

—Click on the year to visit the post for book fair coverage

—Click on author names that are linked to read an interview 

2011
Grace Lin, Sarah Weeks

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2012
Jerry Spinelli, Patricia Maclachlan, Leslea Newman
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2013
Ann Martin, Tui Sutherland, Phoebe Stone, Nick Bruel

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2014
Barbara McClintock, Anika & Christopher Denise, Chris Grabenstein, Nora Raleigh Baskin, Kevin Sherry, Natalie Lloyd
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2015 (part 1)
Pierre Collett-Derby, Tommy Greenwald, Pamela Zagarenski

2015 (part 2)
Cynthia Lord, Wendell & Florence Minor, Jeanne Birdsall

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2017 (part 1)
Marc Brown, Carol Weston

2017 (part 2)
Gordon Korman, Cammie McGovern

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Jessica Haight & Stephanie Robinson are co-authors of the Fairday Morrow books. They have been friends since they met in English class in 9th grade. They enjoyed chatting about books then, and they still do. When they're not solving a mystery with the DMS, they keep up with the book buzz and help spread the news about stories they love.

"It's interesting to find out the story behind the story. There's so much that goes into the birth of a book, and it's fascinating to meet the faces behind the scenes. The Connecticut Children's Book Fair offers a great opportunity for readers, writers, and artists of all ages to connect with each other and talk about books." ~ Jessica Haight

CT Children's Book Fair Spotlight!

Hello, Readers! This week we'll be spotlighting the Connecticut Children's Book Fair, so stay tuned. Featuring...

Barbara McClintock

Nothing Stopped Sophie

Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Paper Things/ The Dollar Kids

Brenna Burns Yu

Hazel and Twig- The Birthday Fortune

Robbi Behr and Matthew Swanson

The Real McCoys

The day was inspirational, and we can't wait to share the books with you! 

Margo's Musings: If the Foot Fits!

October was spooktacular! The Halloween season was full of spirits to get us in the mood for a night of trick-or-treating. Our local library had a special display of spooky stories and my little sister, Margo, loves to be scared (because she thinks it is funny- she’s quite the brave one). Since Margo loves watching Disney’s Cinderella, I thought it would be fun to read a favorite retelling of this famous fairy tale. Cinderella Skeleton by Robert D. San Souci is a book I have enjoyed for ages. Over the last month, Margo and I read it together at least ten times. I’m not sure she understands all the references, but she’s fascinated by the illustrations and she likes the rhythm of the text. Make no bones about it; this book will surely put you in the mood for Halloween. 

Cinderella Skeleton is a lonely ghoul and her evil stepsisters make her life even harder. Living in a mausoleum still means there are chores to be done. Hanging cobwebs, arranging dead flowers- Cinderella Skeleton’s work is never done. When her stepmother doesn’t allow her to go to the ball, she is upset and knows she must find a way to attend. After a visit to the witch in the woods, Cinderella Skeleton finds herself transformed in new clothes and a special evening follows. How will this retelling end? Well, for starters she loses more than a slipper- a bony foot is left behind. Will the prince ever find out who it belongs to or will he live in sadness? Let this book tickle your funny bone as you enjoy all the creepy twists and turns. 

This story will sweep you up into the mystical world of ghouls and spirits! Margo and I love looking at the amazing illustrations by David Catrow. Some may find them a little spooky- but the colors and images gave us just the right amount of spine tingles. Ending the spooky season with this twist on an old favorite was just right. I think it may have influenced Margo’s costume- as she was Cinderella, but she wore her skeleton pajamas underneath!  She can’t get enough of this Halloween tale.

Has anyone else read Cinderella Skeleton? Or have you read another book by Robert D. San Souci? Or perhaps you have read another book illustrated by David Catrow? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy Reading!
~F