Author Banquet
Friday, November 6 | 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Join colleagues in a delicious meal served in courses interspersed with short author talks from Matt de la Pena, Sonia Manzano, and Rita Williams-Garcia. Dinner will be followed by a roundtable discussion with Matt, Sonia, and Rita. The theme for the evening is “Diverse Authors, Diverse Voices.” Books will be available for purchase and author signing will take place following dinner and the roundtable.
Matt de la Peña has established himself as an author to pay attention to. His books continually garner fantastic praise and award recognition. His first picture book, A Nation’s Hope, received 4 starred reviews, was New York Times Top 10 Illustrated Book of 2011, a Booklist Editor’s Choice Best Book of 2011, and an SLJ Best Book of 2011. Appearance made possible by Penguin Young Readers Group.
Sonia Manzano has been a presence on Public Television since the 1970's. After ten years starring as Maria on Sesame Street, Sonia began writing scripts for the series and has fifteen Emmy Awards as part of the Sesame Street writing staff. Her first picture book, the semi-autobiographical No Dogs Allowed!, was published in April 2004 and adapted into a stage musical. In 2013, The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano, was named a Pura Belpré Honor Book for narrative. Appearance made possible by Scholastic.
Rita Williams-Garcia’s Newbery Honor–winning novel, One Crazy Summer, was a winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award, a National Book Award finalist, the recipient of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and a New York Times bestseller. She is also the author of six distinguished novels for young adults. Appearance made possible by HarperCollins Children's Books.
Registration
An additional registration fee of $65 is required in advance of the event.
An additional registration fee of $65 is required in advance of the event.
Author Breakfast
Sunday, November 8 | 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
End your conference with fireworks! Join friends for brunch as author Rae Carson (Girl of Fire and Thorns) moderates a fantasy panel of Colleen Gleeson (The Clockwork Scarab), Josephine Angelini (Trial by Fire), Kate Messner (All the Answers), and debut author Sabaa Tahir (An Ember in the Ashes.) This promises to be a freewheeling discussion of female character development and the fantasy genre for elementary, middle, and high school interests. Books will be available for purchase and author signing will take place following the discussion.
Josephine Angelini is the internationally bestselling author of the Starcrossed trilogy, Starcrossed,Dreamless, and Goddess. She is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in theater, with a focus on the classics. Originally from Massachusetts, she now lives in Los Angeles with her screenwriter husband and three shelter cats. Appearance made possible by Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group.
Rae Carson’s books tend to contain lots of adventure, magic, and smart girls who make (mostly) smart choices. She is the author of the acclaimed, New York Times best-selling Girl of Fire and Thorns series:The Girl of Fire and Thorns, The Crown of Embers, and The Bitter Kingdom. She especially loves to write about questions she doesn’t know the answers to. Rae Carson is originally from California but now lives in Arizona with her husband. Appearance made possible by HarperCollins Children's Books.
Colleen Gleason is an award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author best known for her urban fantasy series The Gardella Vampire Hunters and Stoker & Holmes, a YA steampunk series. Colleen lives in the midwest United States with her family and two dogs, and is always working on her next book. Appearance made possible by Chronicle Books.
Kate Messner is an award-winning author whose books for kids have been New York Times Notable, Junior Library Guild, IndieBound, and Bank Street College of Education Best Books selections. The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z. was the winner of the 2010 E.B. White Read Aloud Award for Older Readers. Kate also spent fifteen years teaching middle school and earned National Board Certification in 2006. She lives on Lake Champlain with her family and loves spending time outside. Appearance made possible by Bloomsbury Children’s Books.
Sabaa Tahir was born in London but grew up in California’s Mojave Desert at her family’s 18-room motel. After graduating from UCLA, Sabaa became an editor on the foreign desk at The Washington Post. Three summers later, she came up with the concept for her debut novel, An Ember in the Ashes.Sabaa currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family. Appearance made possible by Penguin Young Readers Group.
Registration for the AASL National Conference in Columbus, OH, November 5-8, 2015 opens in early February at national.aasl.org
