Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival

So I just got back from the Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, MS. This was my third trip to this CBF and it was as expected: AMAZING!!

This was the 50th anniversary of the Children's Book Festival and the folks who put this together sure know how to celebrate. There were countless published authors and illustrators there to talk about their experiences in creating children's books and why they do what they do.

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Pat Mora, Kwame Alexander.

Shall I keep going?

Okay, I will.

Kate DiCamillo, Andrea Davis Pinkney, Bryan Collier, Wendell and Florence Minor.

The list goes on and on.

Classes by other librarians and people in the book world giving us great book recommendations, advice on storytelling, ideas to incorporate into story time. Plus, just the networking and getting to hang out and share thoughts with like-minded people is always so exciting.

Besides the great speakers and classes, the University of Southern Mississippi also houses the deGrummond Collection, one of the country's most extensive collections of children's books, original manuscripts, and illustrations. I am always amazed that this incredible collection exists, all because one woman started calling authors and asking for the papers they were throwing away.

If you are a librarian or an educator or just a general children's book lover, you should look into the Kaigler Book Fest. It is beyond inspiring and truly does affirm that I have found where I belong: in the world of children's books.

Kate DiCamillo- What a joy to hear her story and get to chat about Walt Disney World!