In 1969 the school established an annual Festival of Books for Young People. Past Festival speakers have included these nationally known authors, illustrators, and editors.

Look through the lists of speakers and topics, arranged by year, or look at an alphabetical listing
of past speakers.

Year

Speakers

Topics

1969

Virginia Putnam
Jeannette Eyerly

What's New in Children's Books
Writing for Children

1970

Virginia Mathews
Mavoureen Iten
& James White
Donnarae MacCann

Begin at the Beginning: The Children's Right to Read
New Approaches to Sharing Books

Contemporary Picture Book Illustrator

1971

Jean Karl
G. Robert Carlsen

Patterns of Change in Children's Books
Today the Young Adult is Reading...

1972

Helen Huss
Ruth Tarbox

Children's Books: An International Experience
Wherever I Go I Find Chilren's Books
Group Meetings by Country

1973

Karen Nelson
Peggy Sullivan
Frank S. Hanlin

Children's Books: Yesterday and Today
Media Mix
Preserving Children's Books: A Bouquet of Weeds and Flowers
Children's Books and ALA History
Gems from the Leary Collection

1974

Madeleine L'Engle
Louane L. Newsome

Sharing Books With Children
Invitations to Literature I and II
How Long is a Book?
Storytelling

1975

Marcia Brown
Louane L. Newsome

Picture Books and Folklore
Picturing Folk Tales
Storytelling
Approaches to Literature I and II

1976

Myra Cohn Livingston
Louane L. Newsome

Approaches to Poetry
Farewell, Mr. Nobody: Rhyme versus Poetry
Storytelling
Approaches to Poetry I and II

1977

Jean Fritz
Louane L. Newsome
Barbara Poston

Historical Fact and Fiction
Multimedia Introduction to the Historical Works of Jean Fritz
Climbing Into America'a Past
Storytelling
Sing a Song of Yesterday
Approaches to Authors and Books

1978

Betsy Byars
Louane L. Newsome
Brian Way

Sharing Fiction With Children
Multimedia Introduction to Betsy Byars and Her Works
Writing Books for Children
Storytelling
Images in Action

1979

Hilma Wolitzer
Leonard Everett Fisher
Louane L. Newsome
Nancy Renfro

What You Know
In Search of Life & Other Artistic Matters
Storytelling
Puppet Workshop

1980

George Shannon
Ellin Greene
Shannon, Greene & Newsome
Augusta Baker

Storytelling
Storytelling & the Folk Process
The Literary Fairy Tale
A Round of Stories
The Art & Technique of the Storyteller

1981

Norma Klein
Lynn Hall
Betsy Hearne
G. Robert Carlsen

Contemporary Realistic Fiction
Censorship in Children's Literature
Realism: Reflections on Reflections
Realism: A Reviewer's View
Breaking Out, Big Deal!

1982

Selma Richardson
William Sleator
Louane L. Newsome
Marc Brown
Jean Karl

Modern Fantasy & Science Fiction
Fantasy Is
Fantasy versus Security: The Precarious Life of a Writer
Storytelling
In School I Used to Get in Trouble For It
One Minute in the Universe

1983

Ginny Moore Kruse

Laurence Pringle
Mary Jett-Simpson
James Cross Giblin

Informational Literature for Young People
Of Wolves and Bombs and Chimney Sweeps: Evaluating Informational Books for Children & Teenagers
The Wisdom and Passion of Science
Using Informational Books with Children
Both Sides of the Desk: The Different Outlooks of Author and Editor

1984

Margaret Mary Kimmel
Jean George
Judy Delton
Jan Irving

Books Are For Sharing
A Gift of Story: Reading Aloud and Today's Child
The Wild Company I Keep: Research in Writing Children's Books
The Fact Behind the Fiction
Turn Off, Open Up, Get Together

1985

Gordon N. Cantor
Dorothy Broderick


Lois Duncan

Transitions: Child to Young Adult
Teachable Moments
Materials Selection: When the Children You Are Dealing With Are Really Adolescents
Introducing New Books
Changing Taboos in Children's and Young Adult's Literature

1986

George Shannon
Robin McKinley
Hazel Rochman

Folklore, Fairy Tale, and Fantasy
New Melodies From Old
Girls Who Do Things--Continued
Beyond the Paperback Romance: Quality Trends in Recent Young Adult Literature
Introducing New Books

1987

Susan Roman
Lois Lowry
Howard Schroeder

Series and Sequels
Can't Stop Reading Them: Books in Series
Lois Lowry Again, and Again, and Again
Pathways to Print
Introducing New Books

1988

Louane L. Newman
Betsy Hearne
Madeleine L'Engle
Ashley Bryan

A Celebration of Story: Our 20th Year
Storytelling
The Long and Short of Story: A Twenty-Year Perspective
Why Do I Write and Who Do I Write For?
A Celebration of Afro-American Arts: Folklore, Poetry, Song
Introducing New Books

1989

Pat Cummings
Nancy Willard
Gary Paulsen

Poetry, Prose, Pictures
Imagining a Reality
1989 Newsome Lecture
Fiction as Enhanced Truth
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1990

Kevin Henkes
Patricia MacLachlan
Bruce Brooks

Family Connections: Contemporary Families in Children's Literature
Finding a Family to Call Home
1990 Newsome Lecture
Family as a Soure of Fictional Imagination
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1991

Allen Say
Russell Freedman
Jean Little

Life Stories
Once Upon a Boyhood
Bring 'Em Back Alive: Writing History for Young People
A Little Goes a Long Way
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1992

Merri Lindgren
Pam Conrad
Thomas B. Allen

A Sense of Place
"My Place": Multiple Meanings in a Complex World
The Writer's Gift
Evoking the Experience
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1993

Anita Silvey
E.L. Konigsburg

Jerry Pinkney
Brian Jacques

Festival 25: A Celebration of Books for Young People
Only the Very Best in Anything is Good Enough for the Young
The Big Bang, the Big Picture, and the Book You Hold In Your Hand
Personal Visions
Is It a Good Yarn?

1994

Candy Dawson Boyd
Marion Dane Bauer
Joanned Ryder

Discovering, Wondering, Affirming
Many Voices--Deeper Understanding
A Writer's Journey, From Life to Fiction
My Father's Hands: Sharing Nature With Children
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1995

Gail Gibbons
Natalie Babbitt
Chris Cruthcher

Windows to Our World and Ourselves
A Book From Beginning to End
But Where Do You Get Your Ideas?
Stotanic Verses
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1996

Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Barry Moser

Books as Mirrors: Seeing Ourselves in Stories and Pictures
Family Stories as Mirrors and Windows: We All Have Our Aunt Flossies
My Midwest Legacy
Backyards, Birdhouses, and Toy Wars
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1997

Penny Colman

Joan Lowery Nixon
Ted Lewin

Those Were the Days! Bringing History to Life in Pictures and Words
Bathrooms, Biographies, and Burials: A Guide to Doing Ordinary and Extraordinary Historical Research
America's Secret: The Orphan Train Migration
Putting It All Together
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1998

James E. Ransome

Gary Soto
Joseph Bruchac

Heritage
Aunts, Uncles, Flowers, A Quilt, a Mask, Many Stars, A Spotted Dog, and a Pair of My Best Red Dancing Shoes
Local News: A Writer's Career
Hidden But Not Forgotten
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

1999

Tim Egan
Carol Lynch Williams

Todd Strasser

Reading for the Fun of It
Writing for Children, From an Illustrator's Perspective
So Did That Really Happen to You? Writing From Life Experience
Most Unlikely: The Story of How a C Student, Poor Reader, and Terrible Speller Became the Author of More than 90 Novels for Teens and Pre-Teens (But Still Has Difficulty Spelling)
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

2000

Amy Hest
Nikki Grimes
Will Hobbs

Imagine That!
My Favorite Heroine--Me--and Why I Look Better on Paper
The Power of Poetry
Have Hobbs, Will Travel
Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

2001

Kate DiCamillo

Avi

Chris Soentpiet

Capturing the World

How I Got Here Today…And It Wasn’t By Limousine
The Gift of Story
A Multicultural World through the Eyes of an Artist

Introducing New Books: Concurrent Booktalk Sessions

2002

Gillian Engberg

Emily Arnold McCully

Gail Carson Levine

Fancy That: Reinventing the Heroes in Today’s Stories
Vivid Characters, Great Stories: Talking up Books that don’t talk down to kids

Risk and Imagination

Abracadabra

2003

Anna Grossnickle Hines
Elizabeth Partridge

Chris Raschka

Sights and Sounds: The Rhythm of Stories
Following my Heart
Reaching the Difficult, Edgy Teenager:
Why I Write Biographies About Colossally Difficult, Edgy Artists
Making Little Books for Little Hands I Cannot See

2004

Kashmira Sheth
E.B. Lewis
Jacqueline Woodson

Hopping the Fence: Stories That Help Us Connect
Walk With Me
Words and Art...What a Wonderful World. A Comprehensive
The Other Side: Writing Across the Lines of Race, Class, and Gender

2005

Kathleen T. Horning
Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Virginia Euwer Wolff

Walking in Their Shoes: Understanding Others Through Story
The Art of Nonfiction
Mrs. Walsh, Warriner's and the Best Nonfiction Lession I Ever Learned
How We Get to Here and What Here Turns Out to Be