Children’s Writers at the University of Connecticut

Previous semesters writers:

Pegi Deitz Shea: Wednesday, March 26th
Half-hour appointments available from 3:30-4:30 and 5:30-6:30.

Pegi Deitz Shea is the author of Tangled Threads (2003), the winner of the Connecticut Book Award for Children’s Literature.  She has published more than 250 articles, essays, and poems for adults and children.  Her latest books include The Boy and the Spell (2007) and Patience Wright, America’s First Sculptor and Revolutionary Spy (2007).

Janet Lawler: Monday, April 7th
Half hour appointments available from1:00-3:00.

An author immersed in poetry for children, Janet Lawler is best known for her marvelous picture books, including A Father’s Song (2006), A Mama Bug’s Love (2006) and the acclaimed If Kisses Were Colors (2003).

Laura E. Williams, Wednesday, April 9th
Half-hour appointments available from 3:30-4:30 and 5:30-6:30.

Laura E. Williams has published picture books, series fiction, middle-grade fiction, and non-fiction.  Among her many publications is the novel Behind a Bedroom Wall (1996), which is currently being developed as a musical.  Her vivid novel, The Executioner’s Daughter, just appeared in paperback.

This is an exciting opportunity to have a one-on-one conversation with a published children’s writer!  All meetings will take place in the CLAS building.  Please email capshaw@uconn.edu soon to schedule your meeting.

Also in April:
Tuesday, April 22nd: Raouf Mama
CLAS 217, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
 “From the Storyteller’s Mouth, Onto the Printed Page, and Into the Ears of Children: A Storyteller’s Creative Adventure”

Raouf Mama is an internationally known bilingual storyteller, the only one in the world today who performs in English and French indigenous tales from his native Benin, a French-speaking country in West Africa. Drawn from one of the richest oral traditions in Africa, Mama’s stories have strong connections to African cultures on both sides of the Atlantic. His first book, Why Goats Smell Bad and Other Stories from Benin, was published in February 1998 to critical acclaim. Kirkus Reviews described it as “a wide-ranging collection from an understudied tradition.” Booklist praised it as “a rich, varied source of lively tales for children and storytellers to enjoy;” and The School Library Journal hailed it as “a fascinating collection of 20 traditional folktales that make the Fon culture come alive… an important contribution to folklore scholarship.” Why Goats Smell Bad and Other Stories From Benin has won a Storytelling World award for the story: “How Hare Drank Boiling Water and Married the Beautiful Princess.”

All presentations are funded through the generous support of the Rightors Fund.