What will Kentucky Book Festival visitors find on your table?
Visitors will find five books, written by me and illustrated with photos of painted wooden carvings created by famed folk artist Minnie Adkins. These five are—our newest, Mommy Goose’s Appalachian Melodies (University Press of Kentucky); Mommy Goose: Rhymes from the Mountains; Ring Around the Moon: Mommy Goose Rhymes; Bright Blue Rooster; and Sonny the Monkey. I will be accompanied by Mommy Goose herself and several other carvings from Appalachian Melodies.
Whom do you invite to stop by? Who will benefit from reading your book?
Everyone who can as well as those who haven’t yet learned how. These books are typically reviewed as appealing to both children and adults. As writer and former Kentucky poet laureate Crystal Wilkinson says of the newest book, “Mommy Goose’s Appalachian Melodies is a children’s book and an adult’s book simultaneously. It’s part story, part poetry, steeped in whimsy and imagination while sticking to the realities, the humor, the richness of Appalachian life. We relish, we celebrate, another combination of art and language that will delight readers of all ages.”
Could you please tell us something curious about you and/or your book?
There are children’s books that are illustrated with clay sculptures and/or torn paper, but no others that are illustrated throughout with painted wooden carvings. These books are in the true sense of the word, “unique.” For Appalachian Melodies, Minnie created more than 200 one-of-a-kind pieces.
Is this your first time participating in Kentucky Book Festival? If yes – what are you looking forward to the most? If you’ve participated before – what was your favorite experience at the Festival?
This will be my fifth Kentucky Book event, and my favorite experience is talking with visitors— telling them about my work with Minnie Adkins and occasionally, if an appropriate subject comes up, reciting a rhyme. Of course, seeing our books go out into the world doesn’t hurt my feelings either.
