Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini

Today I did another book signing with Rachel Crandell, the co-author of The Forever Forest. This time we met up at Main Street Books in St. Charles, MO. Rachel arranged this event, and it was good to catch up with her, since she has also been doing all kinds of school visits with the new book. She had just returned from a week of Earth Day events in Macomb, IL. I think with two of us touring, we will really get the message out about this book and the Children’s Rainforest. 🙂

To help celebrate Earth Day, Rachel Crandell and I were invited to do a book signing with our new book, The Forever Forest: Kids Save a Tropical Treasure, and my very first book, A Walk in the Rainforest. 🙂

As many couples do, my husband Gabriel and I alternate spending the holidays with one side of the family and then the other. This year we celebrated Thanksgiving with my family here in St. Louis, MO and Christmas with his family in Orinda, CA. Since The Lord’s Prayer, (my newest book with the Christian Science Publishing Society) had just been released, my mother-in-law kindly set up a signing for me at her local Christian Science Reading Room, which is a kind of Christian bookstore/study center. It was a perfect place to have a festive Christmas event. I sold a bunch of books, and lots of kids came by. I read to them, and they colored some wonderful pictures. There were also cookies and hot cider. Thanks for organizing this event, Anna Lisa!

Tonight, after speaking with the McMullen students during the day, I came back to the library for a book signing. It was a fun time. There wasn’t a huge crowd, but it gave me an opportunity to talk a little more with the students who were really interested in writing or illustrating. I brought copies of my new book about journaling, Words With Wings, and sold a few. After the signing, my host teachers took me out to a cute little cafe for a delicious dinner. Thanks, everyone!

This weekend I autographed books at the Webster University Children’s Literature Conference. It’s a really great opportunity for authors and educators to connect here in St. Louis, MO. There were several other authors here at the conference, and I got a chance to have a wonderful conversation with Patricia McKissack, a very well-known author who also lives in St. Louis. She visited my college children’s lit class when I was a student, and I hadn’t seen her in a long time. I love getting a chance to talk with other authors and teachers because most of the time I am working alone in my studio making my books. It’s fun to hear what the teachers would like to read and how different authors and illustrators approach the process. Thanks, Webster!

Come join me at Forest Park in St. Louis, MO for Arthur’s Picnic in the Park! Sponsored by KETC Channel 9, this family fun festival will feature your favorite PBS characters, and several St. Louis-based storytellers, authors and illustrators. As part of the Literacy Roundtable, I will be reading from my second book, A Swim through the Sea, from 12:40 – 1:10pm at the Share a Story Tent. All five of my books will be for sale in both hardback and paperback. See you there!