When I was younger, I was painfully shy. Put me in a room full of people and you wouldn’t even know I was there because an intense fear would overcome me and paralyze my ability to speak. Fast forward 15 years and I hardly recognize the younger version of myself. Standing in the presentation tent at Saturday’s tenth annual Princeton Children’s Book Festival as an aspiring librarian, my job was to introduce high profile authors and illustrators to a large audience that remained steady all day.
While thousands descended upon Hinds Plaza, I spent the afternoon living a dream chatting with big names in the children’s literature world such as Steve Light (“Have You Seen my Dragon”), Rosemary Wells (“Max & Ruby”) and Zachariah Ohora (“Wolfie the Bunny”). The books that these authors write and illustrators create are the ones that parents spend time reading to their children every night. These are the books that have the power to spark imagination in a child’s mind and inspire them to follow their dreams. Under the tents were over 80 authors who brought a sense of magic and excitement to the children who stopped to talk to them, get books signed, and get the sense of who the people who write the books they love actually are. The day ended with what appeared to be an endless parade of happy families, and, for me, moments of incredible self-reflection. No longer that painfully shy little girl, I’ve been lucky to find what I’m meant to do while working at the Princeton Public Library. The Children’s Book Festival is one of a wide variety of programs we offer. Please join us. Our aim is to help you find everything you’re looking for. It’s worked for me.
Click here for more about the Children’s Book Festival, as well as a full list of the presenters.