The 10th Anniversary of The Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival to Highlight Banned Books

The 10th Anniversary of the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival (CCBF) will take place on Saturday, September 30, from 10 am-4 pm at the Chappaqua Train Station in Chappaqua, New York. This year’s Festival will be the largest one yet, with 180 authors in attendance and celebrity authors Mary Pope Osborne and Alan Gratz leading the charge. They look forward to introducing the community to new writers joining us this year, like Alex Gino, and reconnecting with returning authors like Bryan Collier. Admission and parking are free, and the event will be held rain or shine (http://www.ccbfestival.org/). CCBF is proud to announce that it is a recipient of the WestchesterArts 2023 Arts Alive grant, given to support community-based arts and cultural projects developed by cultural groups and organizations.

In its tenth year, the annual festival, promoting community, inclusivity, and literacy, will have authors covering different reading levels and multiple genres, including a larger selection of graphic novels than in years past, LGTBQ themes, and books that celebrate diversity. We will have author readings and special presentations, illustrator Demos, Book Signings, a bubble bus, and books for sale. This year, food will be available from gourmet food trucks and our local Chappaqua Farmers Market. CCBF will support literacy programs in area schools.

Fan favorite Pinkalicious author Victoria Kahn returns this year, as well as Sonja Cherry-Paul, Author of Stamped (For Kids), a very important adaptation of the New York Times best-seller introducing kids to the history of racism and antiracism in America.

There are several authors joining this year who are new to CCBF, and we are so excited! Mary Pope Osborne, the author of the Magic Tree House series, is our headlining author; we are so excited to have her. Also new to the festival is Alan Gratz, New York Times best-selling author of 19 young children’s novels, and Maulik Pancholy, a well-known actor from NBC’s 30 Rock and award-winning children’s book author. Mr. Pancholy recently launched his newest novel, Nikhil Out Loud, and his previous book, a middle-grade novel, The Best At It, is a Stonewall Honor Award winner.

The tenth-anniversary celebration festival poster was created by popular and prolific author/illustrator Mark Teague. Mark is an author and illustrator of over 40 books, including the First Graders from Mars series and How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight.?

Joining them this year as a sponsor to celebrate the 10th anniversary is KidLit TV, an educator-led organization that reinforces an appreciation of reading for children through its web-based television. programming and videos that are seen in over 700,000 schools nationwide.

The Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival is a grassroots, all-volunteer effort, with community members working together so children and teens can be inspired by their favorite authors. The festival gives kids and families a chance to meet and interact with the creators of their favorite characters and to appreciate that there is a real person behind the art and the words on the page.

Since its inception in 2013, the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival has grown from 65 authors to 180 and from 4,000 visitors to 8,000 from all over the tri-state region. They hope to have approximately 10,000 visitors this year.

For more information, visit http://www.ccbfestival.org/ or follow the CCBF at www.facebook.com/chappaquachildrensbookfestival.