Friday Highlights @ #alsc14

Friday was a whirlwind of excitement, from start to finish–how can you top a day that begins with Breakfast for Bill and ends at Fairyland? It exceeded all expectations!

Highlights included:

-Gene Luen Yang’s revelation that as a pre-teen, he smuggled home comics in oversized Egyptology library books. He also had an amazing, hilarious–and pretty convincing–theory about how Superman is really Asian.

-Rita Williams-Garcia read aloud parts of her childhood diary, which included a prophetic letter to William Morrow (which later became her publisher).

-Tim Federle’s astute observation that kids don’t classify books and authors as “GLBT” or “Asian.” To them, “books are books.”

-Pam Munoz Ryan said that she personally didn’t become an avid reader until she was in 5th grade. She pointed out that sometimes it just takes some kids a little longer than others and that books enter a person’s life at the right time.

-Author Ginger Wadsworth (First Girl Scout: The Life of Juliette Gordon Low) sat with my group at breakfast; she was lovely to meet. Each table at Breakfast for Bill featured a special guest local author.

-Saroj Ghoting and Pamela Martin-Diaz’s program about integrating math and science into our existing preschool storytime repertoire was inspiring. They made it sound extremely easy, as Erin discussed in her blog post “STEM and Nursery Rhymes.” It’s something I’ll definitely try when I get back to the library.

-Oakland, Oakland, Oakland! The amazing Friday Farmer’s Market, steps from the conference center; markets and restaurants in Chinatown; the sunset over sparkling Lake Merritt; and the wonder that is Fairyland!

-Mingling with #alsc14 attendees, who are so energetic, smart, and fascinating. There was even a group of librarians dressed up like pirates, in observation of “Talk Like a Pirate Day.”

-Fairyland guests Mac Barnett, Daniel Handler, and Jenni Holm, who pulled questions out of a bag and provided spot-on, hilarious answers that kept the audience thoroughly entertained. There were even hot tub jokes. This definitely wasn’t the type of Q&A you’d get during a school visit!

What a delightful day. This is my first time attending an ALSC Institute, and I am having the best time ever!