Virtual Events and Special Guests
October 13-14, 2022
The Latinx Kidlit Book Festival is a virtual celebration of Latinx Kidlit authors, illustrators, and books. We are proud to be a community partner.
December 9-10, 2021
The Latinx Kidlit Book Festival is a virtual celebration of Latinx KidLit authors, illustrators, and books for all students, educators and book lovers everywhere. The festival will open its virtual doors from December 9-10, 2021, and present two free days of panels, craft sessions and illustrator draw-offs with your favorite Latinx authors and illustrators of picture books, middle grade, young adult, graphic novel, comic books and poetry. The sessions are geared towards ALL schools, educators, students and book lovers, not just those identifying as Latinx. Everyone is welcome!
December 1, 2021
The Big Question: If Bees Have a Queen, Where's the King?
Dr. Leslie Day explains the world of bees and their missing kings. Kids will have an opportunity to ask the expert questions and learn more about NYC ecology. For kids ages 5-8 and their grown-ups!
Wed, 3:30 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Register to get the Zoom link.
Presented in partnership with Brooklyn Public Library
September 29, 2021
Join author Salma Waly for a picture walk-through of her book Maryam The New Yorker: Meets an Ecuadorian Friend at the Unisphere. Then keep watching for a virtual trip to Queens, NY to see many of the places in the book.
Salma Waly is a professor of education and the founder of Universal Narratives Consultancy and Podcasting. She lives with her husband and two multicultural bilingual daughters in New York City.
Follow Salma on Instagram: @_salma.waly_
or visit www.universalnarratives.com
August 15, 2021
Can you guess the animal? Play this rhyming game with author Lucy Bermingham to find out! In this short video, Lucy reads aloud her book Tickety Boo in the Ocean Blue. See if you can figure out the answer to the clue before she reveals it on the next page. Thanks to Lucy for this fun reading and for donating many copies of her book to Brooklyn Book Bodega.
August 1, 2021
Andrew Mapp has been a supporter of Brooklyn Book Bodega from its very first days, spreading the word and enticing community members to attend our first events. Read about Andrew’s volunteering on our blog and then listen to him read aloud Wednesday at Weeksville by his father, historian Dr. Edward Mapp.
Weeksville is a historic Brooklyn neighborhood, now part of Crown Heights, founded by free African Americans in the 1830s. Listen to Andrew read his father’s book about a very eventful day in the life of fictional character Andrew Sampson and check out our blog post to see photos of Weeksville today.
June 15, 2021
Listen to Brooklyn author Brian Wray read aloud his book Maia and the Very Tall Wall. After or while listening, pause and talk about why the wall grows as Maia grows. What is happening? What does it symbolize? Then, talk about how you or your child connect to it. What walls have “grown” in your life and what can you do to start to overcome them?
Learn more about Brian and his books on his website.
MAY 14, 2021
Take a tour of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn with the author of Halal Hot Dogs, Susannah Aziz. She shares why this area of Brooklyn is her favorite spot to enjoy Muslim American culture. Watch to find out where to shop and what to eat in her neighborhood. There is even a stop in a bodega!
MARCH 14, 2021
Listen to author/illustrator Daniel J. O'Brien read aloud his book I am the Midnight Robber. Then visit our blog for a Q&A with Daniel and learn about his creative process and how he incorporates his Trinidadian, Caribbean-American culture into his writing and drawing.
February 10, 2021
Listen to illustrator Paula Assadourian read aloud the delightful picture book The Mindful Cat. This book is a collaboration between Brooklyn-based writer Amy K. Cheung and Oakland-based Story Artist Paula Assadourian.
All ages can appreciate it on different levels—preschoolers will enjoy the illustrations while older children can use the imagery of the ball of yarn as a way to talk about their emotions and feelings. Visit our blog for a Q&A with author Amy K. Cheung.
January 30, 2021
Thank you for joining our virtual event with Daka Hermon, author of Hide and Seeker, a horror/thriller geared to middle grade readers.
She published her first book, Hide and Seeker in September 2020. It is a horror/thriller geared to middle grade readers. She will share her background and inspiration for the novel. We will share participant questions and have a discussion about her writing process.
November 5, 2020
An interview with Louie Chin, author of Bodega Cat. Hear him read aloud his book and then listen as he shares some interesting tidbits about his writing process and his inspiration for the book.
October 15, 2020
Author Rashmi Bismark of Finding Om shares her book. This is the story of Anu, an Indian African girl who explores the mantra Om with her beloved grandfather, Appuppa. In this must see video, Rashmi opens up about the many cultural artifacts in the book and connections to her own life.
May 26, 2020
Author Kelsey Kloss, creator of Malty the Blue Tiger shares five tips for supporting literacy at home. In her video, she explains types of questions to ask while reading aloud to your child, strategies for building fluency, and techniques for building engagement while reading aloud.
She also discusses why rereading books they love is so important for children. She says that rereading allows children to fine-tune their interests and that hooking into a series boosts their reading confidence.
May 19, 2020
Watch this narrated video by Xindi Yan about her new illustrated book Grandpa Grumps written by Katrina Moore. Xindi discusses why she made some of her artistic choices, what it meant for her to grow up within two cultures, and her relationship with her own grandfather.
We see this video as a springboard for conversations at home about relationships, love, and tension within families.
Xindi has included a step by step of How to Draw Daisy, the main character. It is a must-see for any budding illustrator in your household.
For more about illustrator Xindi Yan, check out her website and Instagram.
May 3, 2020
Watch this video clip of Lisa Zaretsky, an early childhood educator who developed playAGAIN, a unique program for children that incorporates and celebrates RePurposed items. You can follow her on Instagram where she choreographs witty and delightful moments for kids and their grown-ups.
Were you inspired to create your own story after listening to Lisa’s story about Pearl? Here is a graphic organizer to help get you started.
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Events may be photographed and recorded. By attending events, you give Brooklyn Book Bodega and its official partners permission to use photographs and video for publicity, copyright, illustration, advertising, web content, and related promotional purposes.