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Spring Book Fair hosts award-winning authors

Darcy Vance, Helen Frost, and others at Canterbury book fair pril 18

By Eddie Torres

Fort Wayne Reader

2012-04-05

A chance to talk with award-winning authors tops the list this year of engaging additions to Canterbury School’s Spring Book Fair.

Open to the public, the book fair runs Tuesday through Thursday, April 17-19.

On Wednesday, April 18, the book fair stays open late for the Author Fair, featuring some of Indiana’s premier authors of young adult fiction and poetry.

Visitors can talk to award-winning authors about their books and the craft of writing in an informal setting. Author sessions begin on the half-hour starting at 5 p.m.

Helen Frost’s novel-in-poem, Keesha’s House, won the Michael L. Printz honor from the American Library Association; was selected in 2011 by Ivy Tech Community College as its choice for a Community Read; and was adapted to the stage and performed by the Fort Wayne Youtheatre in 2004. Frost’s book, Hidden, was chosen as a 2012 Honor Book for the Lee B. Hopkins Poetry Award. She received three Artist Fellowships from the Indiana Arts Commission and a Literature Fellowship in Poetry from the National Endowment for the Arts. Her other books have won numerous awards, including Diamond Willow and Crossing Stones, selected as Best Books of Indiana.

Darcy Vance’s novel, The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading, won a YALSA award for 2012 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults.

Curtis Crisler is the author of Tough Boy Sonatas and Dreamist.

John Baumgartner is the author of Rori’s Ghost: The Secret of the Stone Stairs and Like Losing Your Left Hand.

Karen Lenfestey, a Midwest Writers Fellowship winner, recently published What Happiness Looks Like, a sequel to her first novel, A Sister’s Promise. Elsa Marston’s first book of stories received a Middle East Outreach Council award for fiction followed by Santa Claus in Baghdad, an expanded collection about teens in Arab societies. Visitors can even sample recipes from Fort Wayne’s Junior League cookbook.

“The authors are excited to participate, and we hope many teens, parents and aspiring writers will join us to meet some of Indiana’s finest writers in person,” says Laurie Gray, co-chairperson of the book fair.

Canterbury’s Spring Book Fair features thousands of hand-selected quality books for students and adults, plus original artwork from favorite local artists. Gallery Guests, on hand daily, include local authors Laurie Gray, Julianne Will, Claire Ewart, Mary Quigley, John Baumgartner, Natacha Sanz-Caballero, Helen Frost, Elsa Marston, Bonnie Manning, Tracy Richardson, Suzanne Rogers, Cheri Hallwood and Brian Hill. Other guests include Byron Lamm, Steve Presser, Laura Semba and Marcia Presser. Artwork by Vicki Junk-Wright and Jane Berner will be for sale.

More than 35 categories, including specialized books for each grade level from Kindergarten through middle school, are selected by parent volunteers, school librarians and teachers.

“We have everything from cookbooks to classics,” says Shelby Lamm, book fair co-chairperson. “It is a marketplace atmosphere, fun for all ages to browse for books and local fine art.”

“Planning for the book fair began last fall when a committee of parents and teachers researched and selected all of the books,” says Helen Burkart Presser, Canterbury Lower School librarian, author and book fair coordinator. Volunteers also plan an informal Bistro Lunch during the book fair. “The lunch is a favorite among parents because it features a panel of experts discussing quality literature recommendations for specific grade levels,” says Presser.

The lunch is held in the Canterbury Lower School Commons on Wednesday, April 18, from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Cost for the lunch is $8, and the deadline to register is April 12. All events are open to the public.

For more information about the Spring Book Fair or to register for the Bistro Lunch, contact Helen Presser at hpresser@canterburyschool.org.

Canterbury Book Fair
Tuesday and Thursday, April 17 and 19 — 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, April 18 — 8:30 am to 8 pm

Canterbury Lower School
5601 Covington Rd.

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Author Fair, April 18

5 pm — John Baumgartner
5:30 pm — Darcy Vance
6 pm — Karen Lenfestey
6:30 pm — Curtis Crisler
7 pm — Elsa Marston
7:30 pm — Helen Frost