Winner of the 2014 National Book Award for Children’s Literature will speak at Bexley High School on December 1, 2016
Children and adults will have a variety of opportunities to explore the books of Bexley Community Book Club’s 2016 Selected Author, Jacqueline Woodson, prior to her visit to Bexley High School on December1. Not only will Bexley students read and discuss the bestselling author’s work in class, but Bexley Public Library and Thurber House have collaborated to create a series of free public workshops intended to encourage discussion of Ms. Woodson’s work as well as stimulate writing, reading, conversation and lifelong learning.
Woodson, a bestselling author of literature for both children and adults, was the winner of the 2014 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. She was the Poetry Foundation’s Young People’s Poet Laureate for 2015, and she is a four-time Newbery Honor medalist. During her December 1, 2016 visit, Woodson will spend time with Bexley students during the day. In addition, Ms. Woodson will give a community presentation at Bexley High School at 7:30 p.m. on December 1. The evening presentation will be open to the public and free of charge, thanks to the exclusive sponsorship of Giant Eagle.
In anticipation of Ms. Woodson’s visit, Bexley’s 7th grade students focused on her memoir for their summer reading while 8th grade students are hosting literature circles with four of Woodson’s novels. Cassingham Elementary has adopted Woodson’s book Each Kindness as the overall theme for the school year.
In addition, Bexley Public Library and Thurber House have organized three community events:
POETRY WRITING WORKSHOP FOR ADULTS
with Thurber House & Charlene Fix
Thursday, October 13, 6:30-8:30pm, Bexley Public Library
Inspired by Jacqueline Woodson’s memoir-poem, Brown Girl Dreaming, this workshop will help you prepare for the author’s December 1 visit by learning to write your own poetry. In partnership with Thurber House, join award-winning poet Charlene Fix, professor of literature and creative writing at the Columbus College of Art and Design, for a free workshop that will inspire and give practical writing steps. The workshop is limited to 20 adults. Register online or call Bexley Public Library: (614) 231-2793.
BATTLE OF THE BOOKS: JACQUELINE WOODSON (GRADES 4-6)
Wednesday, November 16, 4:00-5:00pm, Bexley Public Library
Challenge your friends to a trivia book battle. Read the following books by Jacqueline Woodson””Brown Girl Dreaming, Locomotion, and Feathers””and come ready to show off your comprehension skills. Food, fun, and prizes for all who accept the challenge. No registration is necessary for this event.
POETRY WORKSHOP WITH THURBER HOUSE (Grades 4-6)
Thursday, November 17, 4:00-5:00pm, Bexley Public Library
Teachers from Thurber House will lead a poetry writing workshop for fourth through sixth graders. If you’ve been inspired by Jacqueline Woodson’s poetry in Brown Girl Dreaming and Locomotion, this workshop is for you. This workshop is limited to 20 4th to 6th grade students. To register your student, stop by the youth services desk, call (614) 231-2878, or register online.
Jacqueline Woodson is the 2014 National Book Award Winner for her New York Times bestselling memoir, Brown Girl Dreaming. The author of more than two dozen books for young readers, she is a four-time Newbery Honor winner, a recipient of the NAACP Image Award, a three-time National Book Award finalist, a two-time Coretta Scott King Award winner, a recipient of the Young Adult Library Services Association’s Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement, and was recently named the Young People’s Poet Laureate by the Poetry Foundation.
Woodson’s books include The Other Side, Each Kindness, Beneath a Meth Moon, the Caldecott Honor Book Coming On Home Soon, Feathers, and Miracle’s Boys, which received the L.A. Times Book Prize and was adapted into a miniseries directed by Spike Lee. She has received Newbery Honors for the books Brown Girl Dreaming, After Tupac & D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way. Her most recent book is the adult novel Another Brooklyn, published last month.
Woodson, who was born in Columbus and grew up in Greenville, NC, writes about characters from a variety of races, ethnicities, and social classes. Woodson’s books also feature strong female characters and she often writes about friendship between girls. “I can’t write about nice, easy topics because that won’t change the world. And I do want to change the world””one reader at a time,” says Woodson. For more information about Woodson and her upcoming visit to Bexley, go to www.bexleyeducationfoundation.org
About the Bexley Community Book Club
Now in its ninth year, Bexley Community Book Club (BCBC) is a yearlong community read of the works of a Selected Author that culminates in a daylong visit with the author. Past Selected Authors include James McBride (2015), Russell Banks (2014), Jennifer Egan (2013), Jonathan Safran Foer (2012), Billy Collins (2011), Ann Patchett (2010), Tobias Wolff (2009), and Pete Hamill (2008).