The Friends of the Maynard Library are excited to bring you our 5th Annual Book Festival on Saturday, April 2. We have great events planned for people of all ages and we hope you'll come and stay the whole day! Each event is described below, and you can download a printable calendar of events here.

If you've never experienced an author reading, you're in for a treat! Listening to any craftsman talk about his or her work is fascinating, but authors are especially observant and thoughtful and imaginative, so these discussions are guaranteed to be insightful and thought-provoking. Another thing--you don't need to do any homework to enjoy the Festival! We hope you will be inspired to read books by one of more of our visiting authors, but there are no quizzes. For those of you in need of refreshment during the festival, we'll have some light snacks on hand or you can dine at one of Maynard's fine eating establishments.

The first festival event will be held before the official festival date, to welcome a new art exhibit to the library. Our friends at ArtSpace on Summer Street will be exhibiting works from 23 of their artists. We'll have a reception where you can view the artwork, meet the artists and enjoy some light refreshments from 5-7 pm on Thursday, March 31. If you can't make it to the reception, you can enjoy the exhibit at the Festival and through most of April.

The Festival begins with 10:30 a.m. with the acclaimed children's author Sara Pennypacker who writes for all ages of kids. She is the creator of the delightful series of books starring 3rd grader Clementine, who has trouble sitting still, but really is paying attention, just not to what her teachers think she should be. Pennypacker is also the author of the acclaimed chapter book Pax, which tells the tale of a boy and his pet fox who get separated by circumstance and fight against the odds to reunite. Other books include Meet the Dullards, Summer of the Gypsy Moths, and Sparrow Girl. We're very excited that we'll get a preview of the first book in new series--Waylon. Porter Square Books will be at the library with books for sale from all our festival authors and each author talk will be followed by a book signing.

Our book festival is about more than author visits--we want to encourage creativity as well! In keeping with our recent series of art and craft classes, local artist Gail Erwin will lead a workshop at 11:30 a.m. in the art of making books. Participants will make a standard accordion book and then experiment with some variations, perhaps an extended back accordion or concertina. Depending on time, the class can begin to add some drawings or collage to the books. No experience is necessary for the workshop, but there will be cutting, folding, gluing and possibly sewing. Class size is limited, so please register at the Reference Desk by calling 978-897-1010 x103.

At 12 noon, we welcome a trio of authors to discuss horror, fantasy and the writing life. The panel includes Christopher Golden, author of Snow Blind, a modern ghost story; Dead Ringers, a horror thriller; and the urban fantasy series The Shadow Saga. Golden will be joined by James A. Moore, a Bram Stoker award nominee for Serenity Falls and the author of the Seven Forges series and numerous short stories. Rounding out the panel will be New York Times best-selling author Craig Shaw Gardner, creator of the Changeling War trilogy; A Cold Wind in July, a short story collection; and numerous novelizations. Come hear about how these authors invent new and often frightening worlds for readers.

At 1:30 pm, there will be a creative writing workshop for teens ages 12 and up. The class will be led by Lynette Benton, a published writer, blogger and instructor of writers of all ages. Lynette has visited the library before, and was very popular with teens. Maynard High School students may register at the school library. Others can register by visiting or calling the Children's Desk at 978-897-1010 x105.

Author events continue at 1:30 pm with a presentation about one of the most exciting engineering challenges in Boston's history and one of its biggest rivalries. This is the original Big Dig and although the baseball season is about to start, has nothing to do with the Red Sox and Yankees. Over 130 years ago, traffic in Boston was appalling, as it is today, and the city undertook the challenge of providing mass transit by creating the first subway system in the nation. Author and journalist Doug Most will be joined by Maynard native, author and illustrator Joe McKendry to discuss their respective books, The Race Underground and Beneath the Streets of Boston. Their presentation will include historical photographs and original artwork. The talk is geared toward adults but will also be appropriate for older children.

At 3:30 pm, the festival concludes with New York Times bestselling author Anita Diamant! Her most recent novel, The Boston Girl, has been called  “a page-turning portrait of immigrant life in the early 20th century” including World War I and II, Prohibition and the Spanish flu epidemic. Diamant has been a book club favorite since the publication of the acclaimed and much-loved book The Red Tent, based on a short but intriguing biblical passage from Genesis. She is also the author of the novels The Last Days of Dogtown, Good Harbor, Day After Night, as well as a number of non-fiction books about contemporary Jewish life.

All events are free and open to the public. Each author event willl be followed by a book signing by the authors. Books by all the authors will be available for sale all day, courtesy of Porter Square Books. Refreshments will be served. Please be sure to register for workshops, as space is limited!