Winter Newsletter
PIttsburgh Through the pages
Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books It’s coming May 14, 2022
• In East Liberty / Bakery Square + Beyond
• Come celebrate community literacy
• Hear more than 30 authors - representing many genres
• Listen to poetry – all day long!
• Kids! Bring your parents – lots of amazing stories and fun activities
• And enjoy puppetry, jazz, drumming and more
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THANK YOU! KDKA
The Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books is pleased to announce KDKA TV as its Presenting Sponsor. As our Media Sponsor we are thrilled to have the support of Pittsburgh’s premier TV station in supporting our community of literacy and promoting this inaugural year.
“This is an exciting development for our vision of literacy and the Pittsburgh community,” said Marshall Cohen, Founder of the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books. “KDKA has a long and strong history of supporting our communities, and we couldn’t be more pleased that the station has embraced this concept of a free, diverse, and inclusive festival to promote reading and education.”
“We are extremely grateful to KDKA for its support, which will provide a huge opportunity to highlight wonderful writers and illustrators. Together we are creating a strong community of literacy,” said Laurie Moser, Co-Chair of the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books.
“There is no more critical skill than that of literacy. Literacy is the foundation of our development and provides us the opportunity to better understand societal differences, better employment, brightening our days and gaining a better perspective of the world around us. Partnering with the Greater Pittsburgh Book festival is an opportunity for us to help spread the importance of literacy and we look forward to a relationship that lasts for many years,” added Chris Cotugno, Vice President and General Manager of KDKA-TV.
HOLIDAY GIFTS
“A book is a gift you can open again and again.” - Garrison Keillor
“When I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.” - Maya Angelou
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” - Dr. Seuss
What are the best gifts at holiday time (and throughout the year)? BOOKS! Pittsburgh has a wonderful group of independent bookstores who are ready and able to help you select the perfect read: Amazing Books and Records, City Books, City of Asylum, Mystery Lovers Bookshop, Penguin Bookshop, Riverstone Books, Spark Books, White Whale and The Tiny Bookstore. Please click here for more information.
What’s a Book Festival without Children’s Lit?
Meet some of our friends who will share their creativity and joy of reading with our children on Festival day.
Sing a Song: Lift Every Voice and Sing
with Kelly Starling Lyons - Saturday, May 14, 2022
Kelly Starling Lyons is a founding member of The Brown Bookshelf, teaching artist and award-winning children’s book author. Her mission is to center Black heroes, celebrate family, friendship and heritage and show all kids the storyteller they hold inside. Two of our favorites are Sing a Song: How Lift Every Voice & Sing Inspired Generations, Going Down Home with Daddy. A native of Pittsburgh, she lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with her family. Meet Kelly Starling Lyons.
Karen Lynn Williams & Jessica Betancourt–Perez
Bring A Thousand White Butterflies to the Festival
Karen Lynn Williams has been writing for children for thirty years. She has published more than sixteen chapter books and picture books and have been featured on Reading Rainbow, the New York Times Books Review and Kirkus Book Reviews. Recent works include A Thousand White Butterflies (co-authored with Jessica Betancourt- Perez), Facing Fear and The Spirit of the Cheetah. Click here for more information about Karen Lynn Williams. Jessica Betancourt-Perez is originally from Palmira, Colombia, and moved to the US when she was fifteen. She currently works as a school psychologist in York, Pennsylvania with grades 4-6. Jessica speaks English and Spanish fluently and has a passion for advocating for families and children in need. A Thousand White Butterflies is her debut picture book. Click here to learn more about A Thousand White Butterflies.
Hear Sharon Flake to present The Life I’m In
A warm welcome to Sharon Flake. If you haven’t read her latest, The Life I’m In, drop everything and head to your local bookstore to purchase this outstanding book. It has received multiple starred reviews and answers the question, “Why do some people bully others?” Her themes include: second-chances, redemption and trafficking. In the novel, Char, a teenage runaway, attempts to find her way home through tenacity, the help of a friend whom she once bullied, and her former 7th grade teacher, who remains committed to students to the end.” Ms. Flake will be discussing The Life I’m In on May 14 at the GPFB. Visit www.sharongflake.com for more info.
NEXT NEWSLETTER / JANUARY Poetry: Pittsburgh is the national hub for poetry. Learn more about the Center for African American Poetry and Poetics at Pitt to the Madwomen in the Attic at Carlow. Look for some interesting interviews with our poets.
