Buckeye Book Fair a book lover's paradise
If you love books, there’s no better place to be on Nov. 7 than Fisher Auditorium, on the campus of OARDC, for the Buckeye Book Fair.For the last 22 years, the Buckeye Book Fair has brought the best of Ohio’s authors to Wooster and this year will be no exception. Ninety-six authors, illustrators and photographers will be on hand for this year’s event to showcase 255 different books on such varied topics as Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and a children’s book about the lives of fairies.
Billed as the largest one-day literary event in Ohio, Buckeye Book Fair exclusively features the works of Ohio authors and illustrators or books on Ohio topics. Since its inception in 1987, nearly 1,000 authors have participated and signed more than 187,000 books. At last year’s event alone, thousands of book lovers from throughout Ohio and beyond flocked to Fisher Auditorium and purchased over 7,000 books.
The opportunity for book lovers to meet their favorite authors and have the books personally autographed has long been the major draw for the Buckeye Book Fair, as well as the well known local celebrities that are on hand to autograph books and mingle with their fans.
On hand this year will be Springfield’s David Catrow, whose signature cartoon style was showcased in the animated film Horton Hears a Who, which was released in 2008. Catrow, who has also illustrated more than 60 books, including Plantzilla and Doggone Dogs, will be on hand to autograph his newest work, Max Spaniel-Dinosaur Hunt, which he both illustrated and wrote.
Award winning Cleveland born author Tony Abbott will also make a special appearance to sign the latest installment of his wildly popular Secrets of Droon young adult fantasy series entitled The Lost Empire of Koomba.
Two local Cleveland television personalities will also make special appearances at this year’s Buckeye Book Fair.
Fans of the annual WVIZ public television auction will instantly recognize the name Terry Kovel, who will make a special appearance to sign the 42nd edition of the book that antique collectors from across the nation consult on a regular basis, Kovels’ Antiques and Collectibles Price Guide.
“Big Chuck” Schodowski also returns to the Buckeye Book Fair to autograph his book entitled Big Chuck! My Favorite Stories from 47 Years on Cleveland TV. The Cleveland TV legend’s memoir chronicles his nearly five decade long career on Cleveland television, including his association with long time friend Little John Rinaldi.
This year’s Buckeye Book Fair will also include a series of special events, including a NASA event commemorating the 40th anniversary of the moon landing and a talk at 2:30 by Jim McCormac of the Ohio Division of Wildlife based on his book Wild Ohio.
The Buckeye Book Fair is also packed with special hands-on activities for children.
At 1:30 children can don their favorite fairy attire and join Bobbie Hinman as she reads aloud from her latest book, The Belly Button Fairy, and leads a fairy parade. Children can also join Carmella Van Vleet to make a model of an Egyptian reed boat and make a tiger mask inspired by Betsy Snyder’s Have You Ever Tickled a Tiger? Young visitors can also draw with illustrator Tammie Lyon and join Hinman to color a fairy picture and have their faces painted.
Funds raised during the Buckeye Book Fair are used to provide grants to Ohio literacy programs, community libraries and schools. Since its inception in 1987, the not-for-profit organization has awarded 247 grants totaling well over $196,000 to programs throughout the state.
For more information on the Buckeye Book Fair, log on their Web site at www.buckeyebookfair.com.