Rockland site of children’s festival Authors, illustrators to showcase talents at Farnsworth Art Museum

ROCKLAND – Maine authors and illustrators of children’s books will visit with children, read from their works, discuss illustrations and sign books at the Children’s Literature Festival to be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 11 on the Farnsworth Art Museum lawn. This community festival is free to the public and all featured books will be available for sale. Activities directly related to the featured books will be offered at stations under the tent on the lawn. Light refreshments will be served.

Among books to be showcased at the Children’s Literature Festival is “My World of Color,” written by Margaret Wise Brown and published here for the first time, with pictures by Loretta Krupinski. Krupinski, illustrator of many books for children including Margaret Wise Brown’s “Mouse of My Heart” and “Tiny Green Thumbs” by C. Z. Guest, will be present to discuss her pictures. Krupinski also has illustrated her own adaptation of “A Visit from St. Nicholas” and an original historical picture book, “Best Friends.”

Falmouth resident Dawn Peterson will talk about her illustrations in “Miss Renee’s Mice” by Elizabeth Stokes Hoffman. Artist and designer Peterson has illustrated numerous magazine articles and several children’s books. Although “Miss Renee’s Mice” was a technically challenging project, due to small-within-large perspectives, she said it ranks as one of her all-time favorites.

Chris Van Dusen both wrote and illustrated “Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee,” his first book. Van Dusen lives in Maine with his wife, two sons and his dog.

“The Gazebo” by Ethel Pochoki is the story of a young city girl who becomes fascinated with gazebos when she finds a book on the subject in her father’s library. Pochoki will discuss this latest collaboration between herself and illustrator Mary Beth Owens, who also will be present to explain her highly detailed period watercolors. An earlier collaboration between the highly successful Maine-based author-illustrator team, “Rosebud and Red Flannel,” received the Maine Library Association’s Lupine Award.

Also illustrated by Mary Beth Owens is “The Story of the Sea Glass” by Anne Wescott Dodd. Walpole resident Owens will be doing double duty in talking about her vivid illustrations that evoke the warm sun and fresh sea breeze on a Maine coast summer in this touching tale full of love and the importance of seeing the good that come from even sad events.

Rockland’s own Debbie Atwell will comment on her book “River,” which she both wrote and illustrated. Children will travel downstream through time as Atwell’s imaginative text and narrative show life as it was and how it has evolved up to the present day.