Last month ended not with a bang but with an acoustic rooster song; authors celebrated the Asian Pacific American Experience; writers held a panel to tickle the funny bone; and a con commemorated the launch of the third installment in a YA series.
Barnyard Boogie
Running through November 28, Kwame Alexander's musical Acoustic Rooster's Barnyard Boogie Starring Indigo Blume premiered at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Co-written by Mary Rand Hess with music by Randy Preston, the musical tells the story of Indigo Blume who meets the barnyard band in her quest to overcome stage fright and perform at her community festival. The picture book by the same name was published by Sleeping Bear Press in 2020.
I Am an American
On November 20, the Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience located in Seattle, hosted (clockwise, from top l.) authors Martha Brockenbrough and Grace Lin, and illustrator Julia Kuo for a virtual launch event for their new picture book I Am an American: The Wong Kim Ark Story (Little, Brown). Rahul Gupta, director of education and tours at the Wing Luke Museum, served as moderator. Brockenbrough and Kuo filmed their discussion at the museum, while Lin joined virtually.
A Comical Confab
The Writing Barn hosted the first ever Funny Women of Kidlit Confab from November 13–14, with more than 100 attendees. The virtual event’s faculty included Tammi Sauer (Not Now Cow, Abrams), Frances Gilbert (Go Girls Go!, Beach Lane), Crystal Allen (The Laura Line, Balzer + Bray), Cynthia Leitich Smith (Ancestor Approved, Heartdrum), Betsy Bird (Long Road to the Circus, Knopf), Sudipta Barden-Quallen (Chicks Rule!, Abrams), agents Regina Brooks and Erzsi Deak, and editors Sydnee Monday and Kait Feldman.
Soaring Skyward
To celebrate the release of Cytonic (Delacorte), the third book in his YA Skyward series, Brandon Sanderson launched Dragonsteel Mini Con in Provo, Utah, which ran from November 22–23. More than 700 people attended (some in costume), and more were present virtually, watching the livestream.
