Author draws library crowd
By ASHLEY LUTHERN
A summer reading program has been held every year since the 1970s.
BOARDMAN — Five little monkeys helped draw a crowd of more than 250 people to the Boardman library on Wednesday for the summer reading kickoff program.
Parents and kids attended the first event of the annual program. It featured Eileen Christelow, a children’s author and illustrator, known primarily for her book “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed” and the rest of the “Monkeys” series.
The crowd filling the meeting room for the “Bee Our Guest” program was abuzz with excitement as Christelow read two of her books, drew illustrations and answered questions.
“I’ve read a couple of the monkey books and I thought it was pretty cool to see her, and it was fun to see how she drew the monkeys,” said 11-year-old Micah McPherson of Boardman.
A younger fan of the same book series, Gianna Pinciaro, 3, attended with her mother Laney Pinciaro and 17-month-old brother, Tony, all of Boardman, and said that she likes library visits and “playing on the computers.”
“We’ve borrowed [Christelow’s] books several times. My daughter loves to read and the library is one of her favorite places. A lot of people don’t realize the resources the library offers. It’s a lot more than checking out books,” said Laney Pinciaro.
After her presentation, Christelow chatted with her young fans and signed books for any child that wanted one.
“I thought it was awesome that she drew and took a lot of time with the kids. [Her books] are really popular,” said Kris Shannon, a mother of five from Boardman. The entire family is doing the summer reading program and having a friendly who-can-read-more competition with their neighbors, she said.
Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County has held a summer reading program every year since the 1970s. This is the third time that an author has come to speak at a summer event, said Janet Loew, the communications and public relations director for the library system.
“It’s a wonderful thing when children can identify an author to go with the book,” said Josephine Nolfi, manager of children’s services of the county libraries. Christelow “has such a broad appeal, and she’s illustrated rhymes that are so well known.”
The fact that Christelow is both an author and illustrator also adds to her popularity, Loew said.
“As an illustrator, she can reach out to all learning styles and those kids who like creativity and art,” she said.
For those creative kids who want to someday write their own children’s story, the imagination that goes into writing a children’s story should not be underestimated, said Christelow, who found the inspiration for one series of books about a pig from a newspaper story.
“Just because picture books are short, doesn’t mean that they’re easy to write. It’s like writing poetry and you have to choose just the right word,” she said.