Downers Grove Grade School District 58 invites the community to the Author Fest Book Sale and Signing on Friday, April 21 from 6-8 p.m. at the Downers Grove Public Library. Families can enjoy a meet-and-greet, photo opportunity and book signing with six prominent children's authors and illustrators –Troy Cummings, Kate Hannigan, Chris Rylander, Michelle Schaub, Miriam Busch and Larry Day.
The book signing will conclude the 2017 Author Fest. The annual District 58 PTA-sponsored Author Fest event alternates each year between north side and south side schools. This year, El Sierra, Fairmount, Indian Trail, Kingsley and Whittier will welcome authors into their schools on April 19-21. The authors will share fun, hands-on insights about the writing/illustration process with students.
About the authors:
Troy Cummings started writing and illustrating as a child, and he hasn’t stopped! Cummings has written the children’s books, “Giddy-Up, Daddy!” and “The Notebook of Doom” series. He has also published illustrations for opera backdrops, greeting cards, jigsaw puzzles, games, newspapers, magazines and more. He resides with his family in Greencastle, Indiana.
Chicago author Kate Hannigan writes the “Cupcake Cousins” book series, and she recently published the stand-alone novel, “The Detective’s Assistant,” which received the 2016 Golden Kite Award for best middle-grade novel. A former journalist, Hannigan thoroughly researches her book topics to produce her best work.
Chris Rylander writes books for children and teenagers, most notably the award-winning “The Fourth Stall” and “Codename Conspiracy” trilogies. His writing style infuses mystery with humor to captivate a wide range of middle-grade readers. A native of North Dakota, Rylander and his family currently reside in Chicago.
By day, Michelle Schaub serves as a literacy teacher at the Avery Coonley School in Downers Grove. However, in her free time she writes for children’s magazines and educational books. She recently published her first book, “Fresh-Picked Poetry.” This book features a collection of poems that take young readers to a day at an urban farmers market.
Miriam Busch and Larry Day comprise a wife-husband, author-illustrator team. Together, they’ve written and illustrated two children’s books, “Lion, Lion” and “Raisin the Littlest Cow.” “Lion, Lion” earned many accolades, including an NPR Best selection and an Illinois Reads selection, among others. “Raisin the Littlest Cow” was just published this March. In addition to their book collaborations, Larry Day has also illustrated several other children’s books, including the award-winning “Not Afraid of Dogs” and “Colonial Voices, Hear Them Speak.”