Monsters at the Decatur Book Festival!

Author Reception at Little Shop of Stories

     I was so eager to get to the author reception at Little Shop of Stories that my heart was pounding in my chest.  I was wondering who I would see when we arrived.  My legs started to tingle.  I opened the door and I saw authors galore!  At this point I probably looked like a geek, because I was jumping up and down and smiling wildly.
     I calmed down and then my friend introduced me to the photo booth where we dressed like hams and posed for the camera.  We thought the camera might run out of batteries so we let other people have a turn.
     My mother called me over to where she was standing.  There was Joan Holub!  I immediately started jumping again.  I was about to fan-girl it.  I love her Goddess Girl books and have read all of them.  Once I calmed down, we chatted like the Goddess girls at MOA Academy.  Joan Holub was very kind and I really enjoyed meeting her.
     After I said and did all the things I possibly could with Ms Holub, I went upstairs to play with my friends, Jenny and Phoebe. Soon, my brother, Marsh, came to get me so I could meet some more authors.
     My mom wanted me to meet the author of Beautiful Creatures, Margaret Stohl.  I loved her variety of glasses--she had, like, six pairs in her purse.  Lucky duck!  She introduced me to her friend named Meg.  I had no idea it was Meg Cabot, author of the Allie Finkle books.  I was thrilled to meet her!
      After meeting Ms Cabot, I stayed downstairs for a while and had a funny conversation with Shannon Hale, Author of The Princess Academy series, about our favorite green people.  That was another highlight of the night.
     When I went to say goodbye to Joan Holub, I met the author Kenneth Oppel--he wrote a super-scary book called This Dark Endeavor.  He signed my copy of the book!
     I had so much fun that night.  Thank you Little Shop of Stories!

Emiline

This is me and Meg Cabot! (Thanks, Margaret Stohl)

Decatur Book Festival

    This year was the 7th annual Decatur Book Festival.   I think this festival is a great place for everyone to interact and get to know what her favorite authors are like.  I got to meet Heather Brewer, Joan Holub and got the best author signature ever from Shannon Hale!  I loved seeing Tom Angleburger, Rania Telgemeier, Nick Breul, and Peter Brown.  They were all at the children's stage. (This things they said was serious comedy gold.) 

     They also introduced the book for this year's ON The Same Page on the children's stage.  I can't wait to read it.  (P.S., it's Holes by Louis Sachar.)

This makes me laugh.

I'm holding the newest in The Goddess Girls Series!!

I love Joan Holub! You should read her series The Goddess Girls.

We are On the Same Page and reading Holes!

Monsters at Decatur Book Festival!

     

     The 7th annual Decatur Book Festival just ended and I think they had the best selection of authors ever!  We went to a super fun author reception at the Little Shop of Stories to kick off the book festival. It was a really great opportunity to meet authors and illustrators and have fun.  There was even a photo booth with silly props, so we got take lots of funny pictures with the authors.  Peter Brown, author and illustrator, was probably the best model there. 

     I also got to talk to Dave Pilkey, the author of the Captain Underpants; he stayed for 3 hours signing books! What a great person.  I saw Tom Angleberger, who also likes to be called Larry, just don't call him Tom AngleBOOGER.  He was great with the crowd.  And I saw Heather Brewer, author of The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, The Slayer Chronicles, and her newest book, Soulbound.  She is my favorite author!  I didn't get to see everyone there, but I still had a great time.

     We also revealed the On The Same Page book selection for 2012, Louis Sachar's Holes, by dancing with shovels to a song from the movie!  Make sure you get On The Same Page with us.

     This year we had a great festival and I am looking forward to next year.  Thank you to AJC, Little Shop of Stories, and the City of Decatur.

Marsh

I'm On the Same Page! After you read Holes you sign the poster.

This is me with Auntie Heather. I was so nervous.

To find out more about the Decatur Book Festival click here:

http://www.decaturbookfestival.com/2012/index.php

To get On the Same Page with us click here for information:

http://weareonthesamepage.org/

It's Almost Here!

The countdown has started for the announcement of this year's On The Same Page!

Last year we participated in a community wide reading program, On The Same Page.  We have been not so patiently waiting for the announcement of this year's book selection.  Everyone can be a part of the fun, even if you don't live in our area.  If you do, make sure you head to the Decatur Book Festival.  Here's the info you need http://www.decaturbookfestival.com/2012/schedule/event-details.php?id=144

We love this program (read below to find out why).  Make sure you check out 

On The Same Page.

       

          I thought that On the Same Page was a great opportunity for everyone to read.  Lots of kids in Decatur read Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth in the classroom and many people who may not normally read, read this also and found that they liked reading.

            I thought it was a smart idea to build up suspense by not showing the book until the last moment.  I also thought it was funny to think that almost everyone in town was reading the same book.  They brought in the author after everyone read the book and everyone enjoyed hearing his talk and asking him questions.  It was a great experience and I am looking forward to doing it again this summer.

           

            Marsh, 11

            I enjoyed On the Same Page because of the marvelous book they picked.  Norton Juster’s  The Phantom Tollbooth is a classic and I liked all of the characters—lots.  I especially liked Tock, because I like to tell time, and because I love dogs.

            On the Same Page is a great idea because it encourages people to read more and it helps knit families together.  I liked that everyone reads the same book, then everyone gets to talk about the same book and then everyone gets to meet the author.  I loved that I got to meet the author and learn about his view of the book.

            It’s amazing how one independent bookstore started this marvelous program.  That shows kids that they can do anything!

            Emiline, 8

Please visit Little Shop of Stories website for details on this wonderful program:

http://littleshopofstories.com/same-page.php

And make sure you check out the Decatur Book Festival:

http://www.decaturbookfestival.com/2012/index.php

Marsh and Emiline are On the Same Page

http://www.littleshopofstories.com/same-page.php

     We are so excited to be participating in On the Same Page!

     At the Decatur Book Festival it was announced that The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster would be the selected book for On the Same Page for the city of Decatur.  Both of us are reading the book and so are our parents. To find out more about On the Same Page click on the link above.  On The Same Page is a citywide reading  program.  This is a great idea!!  See if your city has this, if not, read along with us or get your city On the Same Page.

Emiline's Review of The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

     First let me say a big Thank You to On the Same Page for introducing me to this wonderful book, The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  Let's get to my summary and review!

     One day ten year old Milo was walking home.  When he got there, in his room was a quite large package.  Inside the package was a tollbooth with a note and a map taped to it.  On the map there was a place called Dictionopolis.  It sounded good to Milo, so he set off, ready to go.  He went into the windy weather and got into his little car.  Milo didn't know exactly how to get there, so he held onto the map with one hand and with the other hand he held onto the wheel.  He drove all night and he finally got to Dictionopolis.

     When Milo was wandering around Dictionopolis he ran into a person named Humbug.  Humbug was selling words.  Milo tripped and dumped out all of Humbug's words.  Everyone was upset and then a police man commented on how clumsy Milo was, and because of that Milo went to jail!.  When Milo was let out of jail he had to see the King of Dictionopolis.  When Milo got to the palace the King told Milo to find the two princesses, Rhyme and Reason.  Can Milo find them?  Find out in The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.

     I thought that The Phantom Tollbooth was a great book.  Even though it is very old I still loved it. I also really enjoyed the illustrations because they made the book fun.  It is a great book for your family to read together.  So, get On the Same Page and read The Phantom Tollbooth!

Overall I give The Phantom Tollbooth 5 MONSTERS!