Press Releases
For Immediate Release: April 22, 2008
Contact:
Deanna Lechman
Reading Festival Coordinator & Collection
Development Librarian
dlechman@ccclib.org
(925) 927-3273
50 Authors, 25 Community Libraries – One Big Party
Contra Costa County Library Reading Festival Hosts Local, National,
Best-selling Authors in Weekend -long Celebration of Reading
The Contra Costa County Library announced today that an impressive selection of fifty local, national, award-winning, and bestselling authors and illustrators have agreed to participate in the Library’s first annual Reading Festival, to be held May 16 – 18, 2008 in all twenty-five Contra Costa County community libraries. With a theme of “Relax, Recharge, Rethink – READ,” the Reading Festival highlights a cast of authors and illustrators whose work represents the full gamut of literature, celebrating the many different reasons people read and the variety of ages and interests of Contra Costa County readers. The Reading Festival is being presented by Target Corporation and is sponsored by the Contra Costa Times.
Throughout the weekend, Reading Festival attendees may visit, among others, Catherine Coulter, whose FBI thrillers and historical romances are often found on the New York Times Bestseller list and Anita Amirrezvani, a Bay Area author whose debut novel, The Blood of Flowers, has become a book club favorite and was recently nominated for the prestigious Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction. The Reading Festival will also feature an online video interview with noted author Susan Griffin, who will talk with County Librarian Anne Cain about her highly anticipated book, Wrestling with the Angel of Democracy: On Being an American Citizen.
Frank Portman, writer of the teen novel, King Dork, a hysterical story of a high school loser’s life-changing experience reading Catcher in the Rye, will entertain teens and for the younger children (and the young at heart) the Reading Festival features twenty-five exceptional writers and illustrators of children’s books, including three-time Newbery Award winner, Zilpha Keatley Snyder; Matthew Gollub, author of the popular Gobble, Quack, Moon; and beloved writer Robert San Souci and his brother, author and illustrator, Daniel San Souci.
"I've always loved libraries," commented Sheldon Siegel, the New York Times bestselling author of Judgment Day and five other courtroom dramas set in San Francisco, who will be appearing at the Clayton Library on Sunday, May 18th. "I grew up in a very urban area in Chicago, and our little branch library was one of our community’s greatest assets. It was a place of knowledge, entertainment, and refuge. It gives me great pleasure to know that my books are now on the shelves of that little branch library. The Contra Costa County Library's Reading Festival provides a unique opportunity for authors and readers to meet and mingle. I can think of no better way to spend a weekend than getting together with people to talk about books."
Authors and illustrators are scheduled to appear at each of the 25 Contra Costa County community libraries and each library will host events throughout the weekend as part of this celebration of reading. All dates and times are subject to change. Please visit the Reading Festival website at ccclib.org/reads for information on specific appearances and events.
Several authors are available for press interviews prior to the Reading Festival. If you are interested in speaking with one of the participating authors, please contact Reading Festival Coordinator Deanna Lechman at (925) 927-3273 or by email at dlechman@ccclib.org.
For Immediate Release: March 26, 2008
Contact:
Susan Lynn
Library Reading and Literacy Manager
slynn@ccclib.org
(925) 927-3249
Celebrate Reading at First Annual
Contra Costa County Library Reading Festival
Relax, Recharge, Rethink - READ
The Contra Costa County Library today announced the first-ever countywide Contra Costa County Library Reading Festival. To be held May 16 – 18, 2008, the Reading Festival celebrates the importance of reading and libraries by bringing 50 authors into 25 community libraries for a weekend of free and fun programs.
“Reading is an essential life-long skill. It can be an activity that recharges you, forces you to rethink an opinion or a subject, or provides a way to relax. With our first-annual Reading Festival, we are celebrating the myriad reasons people read,” said Anne Cain, Contra Costa County Librarian. “With the number and caliber of authors participating in the Reading Festival, and the range of audience and subject matter, there will truly be something for everyone. We look forward to celebrating the joy of reading throughout the county.”
The Reading Festival will offer something for readers of all ages and interests and promote discovery in every chapter of life. Fiction and non-fiction readers alike will enjoy a fabulous line-up of best-selling and emerging authors, including novelists Anita Amirrezvani and Elizabeth Rosner, mystery writer Cara Black, Catherine Coulter, author of bestselling FBI thrillers, and nonfiction authors Peggy Orenstein and Greg Mortenson.
Bring the kids along for an opportunity to meet a variety of wonderful children’s authors and illustrators, including Zilpha Keatley Snyder, Vivian Walsh, marine biologist Wallace J. Nichols, perennial favorites Robert San Souci and Daniel San Souci, and award-winning illustrator Yuyi Morales. Even teens will have something to enjoy – the chance to meet Frank Portman and mystery writer Penny Warner.
Authors will be scheduled to speak at each of the 25 Contra Costa County Community Libraries and each community library will host programs and events throughout the weekend as part of this celebration of reading. All dates and times are subject to change. Please visit the Library’s website at ccclib.org/reads for information on specific authors and Reading Festival events.
The Contra Costa County Library Reading Festival is being presented by Target Corporation.