Chester Public Library joins more than 200 Illinois libraries participating in Season 3 of Illinois Libraries Present, a collaborative effort featuring virtual events with bestselling and award-winning authors and esteemed speakers. The season continues with Food, Family, and Folktales: A Conversation with Grace Lin, award-winning and New York Times bestselling author/illustrator of picture books, early readers, and middle grade novels. The event will be held via Zoom on Tuesday, October 17, at 7 PM. Register by scanning the QR code or by clicking here.

Lin will discuss why she writes books for the youngest readers through middle graders, how she illustrates them, her latest Chinese Menu: The History, Myths, and Legends Behind Your Favorite Foods, and will lead an interactive drawing activity.

Lin was recognized in 2016 by President Obama’s office as a Champion of Change for Asian American and Pacific Islander Art and Storytelling and, in 2022, was awarded the Children’s Literature Legacy Award from the American Library Association. Her work received the Chinese American Librarians Association Annual Best Book Award. 

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Lin’s awards include a 2010 Newbery Honor for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, a 2011 Geisel Honor for Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same, and a 2019 Caldecott Honor for A Big Mooncake for Little Star. When the Sea Turned to Silver was a National Book Award Finalist. 

Lin also presented the TEDx talk, “The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf,” and the PBSNewHour video essay, “What to do when you realize classic books from your childhood are racist?” 

Lin will be joined in conversation with Brian Wilson, Children’s librarian at Evanston (IL) Public Library since 2001. Wilson served on the Children’s Literature Legacy Award Committee when the award was given to Grace Lin in 2022. He participated in the 2017 Caldecott Award Selection Committee as well as the Monarch, Bluestem, and Odyssey Awards committees. 

Season 3 of Illinois Libraries Present will continue in November with A Taste of Love with Maya-Camille Broussard aka Justice of the Pies. Join Broussard, star of Netflix’s Bake Squad and owner of Chicago based Justice of the Pies, for a demo from her kitchen just in time for Thanksgiving. The event will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, November 8 at 7 PM.