Middle Grade: Solving Big Problems
Small, but mighty! This session will feature young protagonists tackling big problems with the spirit and determination of a butterfly flying against the wind. In Cathy Camper’s Lowriders to the Rescue, Lupe, Flapjack, and Elirio must join…
(Big) Cats and Dogs
We might not answer the age-old debate of cats vs dogs in this session—but why would we want to, when both are so incredible? With naturalist and educator Tyus D. Williams, we’ll find out what some magnificent big cats—from mountain lions…
Magic Goes Global: The Marvellers
A talented young person with remarkable powers is accepted into an elite magic school, where they encounter new friendships, old rivalries, and plenty of adventure. Think you know that story already? Think again, because in her middle-grade…
Meet the Medalists
We're rolling out the red carpet for some luminaries of children's literature at this year's Festival. Join us in welcoming the two most recent winners of the Newbery Medal, children's literature's most prestigious award, which celebrates its…
Best of the Best 90-Second Newbery Film Fest
Our celebration of the Newbery Medal's hundredth anniversary continues! The 90-Second Newbery Film Festival is an annual video contest, culminating in live events, in which young filmmakers make movies that tell the entire stories of Newbery-winning…
Middle Grade: COVID and Communities
When the world falls apart … This session explores the effects of the global pandemic on both coasts of the Pacific. In bestselling novelist Kelly Yang’s latest standalone novel, New From Here, Knox Wei-Evans stands up to anti-AAPI racism…
Dust Off Those Classics: Innovative and Inclusive Retellings
If you think the classic tales of yore have nothing relevant to say to today’s young readers, these three fabulous creators are here to prove you wrong. In their new works, they challenge and transform those dusty (and sometimes problematic)…
Middle Grade: Sports and Identity
For many athletes, all those hours spent training and competing makes that sport a big part of their identity. But who are these athletes when they aren’t participating in their sport? Rebecca Balcárcel’s Shine On, Luz Véliz! features…
The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza!
During COVID lockdown, when many of us were just trying not to lose it entirely, author Mac Barnett and artist Shawn Harris kept their sanity and exercised their zany brand of creativity with a series of wildly popular live cartoon shows about…
cancelled: Wordplay with Jon Agee
Have you heard of TACO CAT or UFO TOFU? Have you eaten an EVIL OLIVE or STRESSED DESSERTS? You might think you have ailihphilia (that’s a love of palindromes) but only Jon Agee, a true prodigy of palindromes, would have the audacity to write…