Snapshots from an Overflowing Life

What day is it? Where am I? Let the games begin. Here are some photos from travels, as we barrel through the week of IRA and skid into the weekend family party.

First, Monica Woolf is the librarian extraordinaire who coordinated my visit and Jerry Pinkney's to Beth Yeshurun Day School in Houston, where every spring they hold a young author's day. What a great day with all these young authors, and what a meaningful time we had together.

As I flew in from Houston, Coleen Salley flew toward me from New Orleans, and we met at baggage claim, then drove to a late supper in Candler Park, and home to crash in bed. The next day we slept in, let our hair down, and spent some time catching up and telling stories.



What happens when you give a storyteller and children's literature advocate a brand new book? She reads it out loud, of course. This is Coleen reading Ted and Betsy Lewin's new book, HORSE SONG.

She reads it once through to herself, smiling all the while. Then she begins an out-loud reading, gathering her crowd (me and Jim) around her. We huddle close -- just to listen to this voice telling story is such a treat.


The climax! With a flourish!









Winding down to the denouement...











Appreciating and admiring...










Toasting the listeners! That's our IRA material, spread all around the breakfast table.








Coleen got all prettied up for her ride to nearby Lawrenceville, where she would be presenting in schools on Friday. We'll meet up again tomorrow at IRA.










IRA! Oh, Lord. Time for me to get prettied up, too. What a time. I spent yesterday in an Institute with some of my favorite people, Nancy Johnson and Cyndi Giorgis: Side by Side, When Literature and Literacy Intersect. We had a packed house, all day long, and had such a fantastic time -- so much to learn! That yellow blur in the back is Ralph Fletcher dashing back to his seat after a break.

And here we are, presenters and organizers alike, in our tired glory,
after it's all over... whew. Friend Deborah Hopkinson came home with me, we did some catching up, crashed into bed, and now -- it's off to IRA again this morning, where I sign at Harcourt's booth from 11-12, at Scholastic Book Fairs from 2-3, and at Simon & Schuster from 3-4. See you there at Atlanta's World Congress Center. It's a beautiful day, an overflowing day; it's good to work hard and do good work, isn't it?