Gwinnett Reading Festival Activities

For Adults                          For Teens                       For Children

Activities for Adults

Main Stage, Entertainment Building

Meet three of the country's most popular, best-selling authors:

10:30 am: Carmen Agra Deedy

12:30 pm: Rick Bragg

2:30 pm: Steve Martini

Writer's corner, Exhibit Hall

Whether the subject is writing, cooking, or the South, the Writer's Corner has something for everyone.

10:30 am: The Art of Suspense

Meet Mary Jane Clark, a master of romantic suspense and author of the New York Times bestsellers Do You Want to Know a Secret? and It Only Takes a Moment.

11:30 am: Grit Lit

Southern writers discuss the true essence of the "Southern novel." Featuring George Singleton, Patti Callahan Henry, Michael Lee West, and Jackie Cooper.

12:45 pm: Cooking Southern

Popular food writer and television host Nathalie Dupree will serve up a delicious discussion on entertaining Southern-style.

2:00 pm: Original Voices

Meet authors who captivate readers with truly inventive works of fiction. Featuring Doug Crandell, Ad Hudler, and Jim Grimsley.

3:15 pm: Writer's Workshop

"No Matter How Busy You Are, You Can Find Time to Write." Kelly Stone teaches the many ways busy aspiring writers can make time to write, no matter how busy they are. Featuring tips and advice based on her in-depth interviews with 104 successful and bestselling authors.

Authors in their own words

Enjoy informal visits with Festival authors.

11:00 am: Doug Crandell, Jim Grimsley, Ad Hudler, Man Martin, Karen White, Philip Lee Williams

12:30 pm: Jack Bass, Daniel Black, Mary Jane Clark, Judith Ortiz Cofer, Karin Gillespie, A. J. Hartley, Brandon Massey

2:00 pm: Nick Chiles, Jackie K. Cooper, Patti Callahan Henry, Denene Millner, Jackie Miles, Nicole Seitz, George Singleton, Michael Lee West

Sports Corner

11:30 am: The BBQ Pit

Meet David Gelin, author of BBQ Joints: Stories & Secret Recipes from the Barbeque Belt.

1:00 pm: A Dawg's Life

UGA fans, meet Patrick Garbin, author of About Them Dawgs! and When Vince Said to Herschel...

Sumo Suit Wrestling

If you haven't seen it, you can only imagine. Wrestlers don inflatable suits that add 100 inches to their girths; then it's a wrestling free-for-all. Must be 5'2" or taller to participate.

Wii - Hottest new interactive game for all ages

Watch our football screen for the biggest college football games. Scores constantly updated.

Atlanta Braves

Try out Braves T-Ball and meet the Atlanta Braves Mascot Homer.

Local Voices

A different local author will read from their work every half hour. A chance to get to know your friendly neighborhood authors.

Activities for Teens, Teen Tent

11:00 am: Andy Runton, the Eisner award-winning author/illustrator of the graphic novel series Owly, discusses the creative process behind constructing a graphic novel and conducts an interactive drawing demonstration.

Noon: Alan Gratz, author of Samurai Shortstop (one of ALA's 2007 Top 10 Books for Young Adults), gives an informative presentation on the craft of writing, from research to publication. Topics such as writing the first novel, choosing cover art, and the realities of the publishing world will be discussed.

1:00 pm and again at 2:00 pm: Mike Hickey and Sandra Hughes will present a fast-paced and entertaining performance of classic white-faced mime. Both Hughes and Hickey received advanced mime training with world-famous French artist Marcel Marceau and will interactively educate the audience on the art of silent storytelling.

Ongoing: Got game? Come prove it with perennial favorites Dance Dance Revolution and Guitar Hero.

Crafts for Teens: Have fun creating your own personalized Button, Cd Magnet, or Pencil Charm.

Activities for Children

10:00 am: Come to see Aurora Theatre Academy's production class bring the story Miss Nelson is Missing to life.

In this playful adaptation, Miss Nelson disappears. Her students are at first pleasantly surprised, believing they have frightened her away with their bad behavior. But the students soon realize that the sweet and kind Miss Nelson has been replaced by the scary and sometimes even mean substitute teacher Viola Swamp! Miss Swamp runs her classroom with military precision and inundates the students with homework. She even takes their storytime away. What will the students do to get their now beloved Miss Nelson back?

11:00 am: Spider-Man™ presents "The Importance of Education and Reading"

12:30 pm: Rob Cleveland

Master storyteller, comedian, actor, and teacher Rob Cleveland delights audiences of all ages with his retellings of international folktales.

1:30 pm: Spider-Man™ presents "The Importance of Education and Reading"

3:00 pm: Kyle Groves

Kyle was the resident magician at the world famous royal Gorge Bridge and Park, near Canyon City, Colorado. He moved to the Atlanta area to pursue his career in magic. Kyle now performs over 300 shows per year around the world.

Festival Store

10:30 am: Bilingual English-Spanish storytime presented by Gwinnett County Public Library.

Children's Authors and Storytellers

12:00 pm: LaDoris Bias-Davis - International Storyteller and member of the Kuumba Storytellers of Georgia

12:30 pm: Bilingual English-Spanish storytime presented by Gwinnett County Public Library

Other

Fire Safety House

Children learn the basics of fire safety as they tour this facility, equipped with a living room, kitchen and bedroom that simulate fire situations. Life saving skills, such as Stop, Drop, and Roll; Crawling Low under Smoke; and How to Cool a Burn are also demonstrated for children.

Crafts

Make and decorate your own Passport Book. Then visit other areas of the festival to collect stamps and autographs.

Work with the Hudgens Center for the Arts to create your own original book.

You can create your own beads and help the Earth by recycling, all at the same time.

Just for Fun

Test your knowledge of children's literature with the fun family game of Book Bingo.

Have a tail-wagging good time while practicing reading skills at Doggie Tales. Children ages 5-10 are invited to read to a friendly dog. Atlanta TheraPaws dogs are trained and registered members of Therapy Dogs International, Inc. The purpose of Doggie Tales is to help children enjoy and practice reading skills.

Dewey the Dinosaur, GCPL's very own mascot, will be making a special appearance and greeting customers.