MotherReader

I said I’d be back on Monday, and technically, it’s still Monday.

Okay, so the National Book Festival. I had big plans for the National Book Festival. Having never attended a book festival before, the possible mix of literature and funnel cakes was altogether intriguing to me. Attending would be a challenge in and of itself, given that I needed to be at my high school reunion that night and had to work that day. I pushed off my reunion appearance until the last possible time, skipping the afternoon picnic. As for work, I begged, pleaded, and finally bribed someone to work next Saturday instead. My point being that I was pretty invested in this event.

I brought my whole family along for the ride and in doing so, made us later than I had planned. While I am able to get out the door pretty well on my own, when everyone becomes involved, it gets a little... well, involved. So, we arrived about twenty minutes after the thing had started. This would not have normally been a problem, especially as my husband dropped the kids and I off and went to park the car, but today...

We’ll get back to that.

The girls and I ended up at the far end from where we needed to be — the Children’s tent, of course. We got there just in time to hear the last part of Tony DiTerlizzi’s session.

Why did I not know what a snazzy dresser he is?

As we crammed ourselves into the full tent, he was challenging the audience to give him some words with which to make up a rhyme. I believe a toilet was involved. He wrote a funny little poem on the spot and then asked the audience what the monster in the poem looked like. He drew that with the audience’s ideas as well. Then he did a little Q-and-A session. It was mostly children that asked the questions. One asked about his favorite book that he had written, and he said that while it was less known, he really liked his picture book Ted. Someone asked about The Spiderwick Chronicles, and he mentioned that the movie was currently being filmed. He mentioned an actor that was going to be in the movie and specifically mentioned that we could go home and put it on our blogs, but of course that was when my daughter decided to ask me where Daddy was, so I didn’t hear it. Sorry.

Now you’re also wondering, where was Daddy? He was looking for a parking place, thirty minutes after he had dropped us off. We’ll get back to that.

As Tony DiTerlizzi’s session was wrapping up, I had been able to move into the tent enough to take a picture. I took one shot, and then the camera died. But no problem, since I had brought along extra batteries. Which apparently were uncharged. But no worries, since the author certainly wouldn’t be hanging around so people could take pictures. Except he was. So I missed it. He has great photos on his elaborate website. Go there.

There were more authors and illustrators to come. I’d need those batteries. I called my husband to ask him to buy some after he parked the car.

After he parked the car. If only I knew then how silly that phrase was.

Tomorrow: Betsy Lewin talks about her new book, and MotherReader and Mo’s destined meeting is on the horizon.