Festival Offers Free Workshops
for Adults, Teens and Children
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Interested in honing your creative writing skills in Spanish? Want to learn more about ekphrastic writing or writing poetry for electronic media? Or maybe you have kids who are interested in exploring their creativity through writing, journaling, or developing characters and illustrations? Whatever the interests, the 10th annual Gaithersburg Book Festival has a FREE workshop just for you, or your kids.
In addition to a great slate of author presentations, the Festival will offer a full day of free workshops for both adults (ages 16+) and children of all ages.
~ Adult & Teen Workshops ~
~ Children's Workshops ~
For more information about instructors, visit the Adult & Teen Workshops or the Children's Workshops pages on the Festival website. No pre-registration is required for these free workshops. Participants should plan to show up at the time their preferred workshop is scheduled to start.
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Top 10 Things for Kids to Do
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Literature will come to life for children of all ages at the Festival through a host of interactive activities, workshops and story times, crafts, games and more. The Festival’s Children’s Village, sponsored by Washington Parent, also will be the place where youngsters can meet their favorite authors (and discover new ones) during presentations, readings and book signings.
Check out the top 10 things for kids to do in the Children's Village:
#1 – Join in the 10th anniversary literary costume parade.
Come to the Festival dressed as your favorite book character. Participants should plan to meet at 1:30 p.m. for a group photo at the Marvin Gaye Stage (City Hall Concert Pavilion), then the parade will proceed through the Festival grounds.
#2 – Meet your favorite authors and discover new ones.
Dozens of award-winners and best-sellers will be featured in presentations throughout the day, signing books for their fans afterwards.
#3 – Visit with book characters at The Storybook Nook.
Readers dressed as Belle (“Beauty and the Beast”), Jack (“Jack and Beanstalk”), Mouse (“Quiet as a Mouse”) and Horton (“Horton Hears a Who”) will be sharing stories and posing for photo ops.
#4 – Participate in free workshops.
From creating characters to creative writing, with a drawing game show thrown in for extra fun, local writing instructors and published authors will inspire young authors and illustrators.
#5 – Grab a selfie with the Cat in the Hat.
Dive in to the world of Dr. Seuss, play games, make crafts and enjoy story time with the Montgomery College Early Childhood Education Club.
#6 – Write and illustrate your own story.
Hosted by the Kentlands Community Foundation.
#7 – Get your favorite book character painted on your face.
Visit the talented artists of the Quince Orchard High School Color Guard to take on a new identity.
#8 – Play braille games and make tactile bookmarks.
Gain an understanding of how children with low and no vision read; hosted by The National Federation of the Blind, Sligo Creek.
#9 – Roll up your sleeves and play word games.
Excavate for A, B, Cs, flip the cubes and spell words with Backyard Boggle, play Swat It!, match sounds and compete in the A,B,C bean bag toss with Kiddie Academy of Gaithersburg.
#10 – Find Waldo.
Enter to win a fabulous gift basket full of Waldo books and merchandise in our Where’s Waldo Scavenger Hunt.
For full details about all the happenings in the Children's Village, check out our website.
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Vote for Your Favorite
Poetry Contest Finalist
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Finalists for the Gaithersburg Book Festival poetry contest for high school students were announced earlier this month. The top 10 were:
- Emma Allen – Eleanor Roosevelt High School
- Chloe Cattaneo – Washington Latin PCS
- Olivia Cordle – Quince Orchard High School
- Esther Palmer – Oakton High School
- Rowan Smith – Poolesville High School
- Emily Tian – Richard Montgomery High School
- Rachel Tsai – Oakton High School
- Lydia Wei – Richard Montgomery High School
- Olivia Yu – Oakton High School
- Rachel Hannah Zozobrado – Winston Churchill High School
The finalists' poems have been posted to the Festival website so visitors can read the entries and vote for their favorite. Fan favorite voting will close on Monday, May 6, at 11 p.m. ET.
“This was our first-ever poetry contest and we were so happy with the level of participation and the high quality of the entries,” said Jud Ashman, founder of the Festival and Mayor of the City of Gaithersburg. “There are some genuinely talented young writers and poets in our region, and it makes us all proud to give them a big spotlight at the Gaithersburg Book Festival.”
Maryland Poet Laureate Grace Cavalieri, who also is a featured presenter at the Festival, will serve as the 2019 judge, selecting the top three entries.
Prizes for first-, second- and third-place winners, provided courtesy of Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County, are $250, $100 and $50, respectively. The fan favorite winner will receive $25.
Contest winners will be announced during a presentation at 2:30 p.m. on the Marvin Gaye Stage at the Festival, with Poet Laureate Cavalieri presenting the awards.
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More Featured Authors Added for May 18
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Here's a look at the latest authors who you'll be able to hear and have sign your books on May 18.
~ Children's and Middle Grade ~
 Alan Gratz is the New York Times best-selling author of several books for young readers, including "Grenade;" "Refugee;" "Projekt 1065," a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2016; "Prisoner B-3087," a Junior Library Guild selection that was named to YALSA's 2014 Best Fiction for Young Adults list; and "Code of Honor," a YALSA 2016 Quick Pick. Alan lives in North Carolina with his wife and daughter.
~ Young Adult ~
 Jessica Long, a 13-time Paralympic Swimming Gold Medalist, is advancing global adaptive sport. Jessica is training for Tokyo 2020, her fifth Paralympic Games. Adopted from a Russian orphanage, Jessica had both legs amputated below the knee at 18 months old. By age 12, she was competing at the international level and is now the second-most decorated U.S. Paralympian in history, with 23 Paralympic medals. Jessica’s first book, "Unsinkable: From Russian Orphan to Paralympic Swimming World Champion," launched in June 2018. Co-authored with her sister, Hannah Long, the work inspires inclusion, self-acceptance and empowerment, encouraging young women to assume control of their lives.
 James L. Swanson is the award-winning author of the best-seller "Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer." His other books include "Chasing Lincoln's Killer," an adaptation of "Manhunt" for young adults, and his follow-up, "The President Has Been Shot!: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy," which was a finalist for the YALSA-ALA Excellence in Young Adult Nonfiction award. He will be speaking about "Chasing King's Killer: The Hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Assassin." James has held a number of government and think-tank posts in Washington, D.C.
~ Non-Fiction ~
 Tressie McMillan Cottom, Ph.D., has been called one of the most exciting public intellectuals and voices working today. She is a sociologist by training, writer by commitment and southerner by the grace of God. She has spoken across the nation and the world on technology, higher education, race, gender, class and social inequality. "Thick" joins her other books, including the acclaimed "Lower Ed," in a genre-busting academic career that spans public policy to cultural critique. Her work has been featured by The Washington Post, NPR’s Fresh Air, The Daily Show, The New York Times, Slate and The Atlantic, among others. She lives in Richmond, Va., where she is an assistant professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University.
 Malaka Gharib is deputy editor and digital strategist of "Goats and Soda," NPR's global health and development blog. She reports on topics such as the humanitarian aid sector, gender equality and innovation in the developing world. Before coming to NPR in 2015, Malaka was the digital content manager at Malala Fund, Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai's global education charity, and social media and blog editor for ONE, a global anti-poverty advocacy group founded by Bono. Malaka graduated from Syracuse University with a dual degree in journalism and marketing. She will be speaking about her book "I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir."
 Tony Massenburg, from Stony Creek, Va., played 13 record-setting seasons in the NBA, culminating in a championship with the 2005 San Antonio Spurs. He is the only Maryland Terrapin to play for legendary coaches Charles “Lefty” Driesell, Bob Wade and Gary Williams. His remarkable journey from the devastating loss of a teammate, All-American Len Bias, through the twists and turns of professional sports, earned him recognition as “the strongest man in the NBA.” Massenburg can been seen on NBC Sports Washington covering the Washington Wizards and the NBA, and he is a color analyst for Monumental Sports and Entertainment.
 Walt “The Wizard” Williams was the seventh pick of the 1992 NBA draft and played 11 sharp-shooting seasons in “The League.” He is a member of the University of Maryland Athletics and Washington, D.C., Sports halls of fame, and his sublime loyalty to Maryland during difficult times helped the University and Naismith Hall of Fame Coach Gary Williams rebuild Maryland Basketball into a championship program. Walt is an accounts vice president/financial advisor with UBS Investment Bank, and a sideline analyst for Maryland Sports Radio Network/CBS Collegiate Sports Properties. He was born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Temple Hills, Md.
~ Fiction ~
 Charis Michaels is a USA Today best-selling author who believes a romance novel is a long, entertaining answer to the question, “So, how did you two meet?” She loves making up new ways for fictional characters to almost not meet, but live happily ever instead. She grew up on a peach farm in Texas and gave tours at Disney World in college, but now can be found raising her family and writing love stories from her screened-in porch in Northern Virginia. Her latest book is "All Dressed in White."
 Sally MacKenzie, a USA Today best-selling author and D.C. native, writes funny, sexy romances set in her favorite time period (other than the present): Regency England. Two of her books—"The Naked King" and "Bedding Lord Ned"—made ALA Booklist’s 101 Best Romance Novels of the Last 10 Years: 2017 Edition. A former federal regulation writer, recovering parent volunteer, mother of four (and grandma to three) and middle-of-the-pool Masters swimmer, Sally loves to research historic sites and hike through—and frequently get lost in—the English countryside. "The Merry Viscount," the second in her Widow’s Brew series, releases September 24. Sally will be moderating our "Historical Romance" panel, featuring authors Cathy Gohlke, Carrie Turansky and Roseanna M. White.
 Jennifer Bort Yacovissi’s debut novel, "Up the Hill to Home," tells the story of four generations of a family in Washington, D.C., from the Civil War to the Great Depression. Jenny is a member of PEN/America and the National Book Critics’ Circle, and writes a monthly column and reviews regularly for the Washington Independent Review of Books. She is serving as chair of the 2017 and 2018 Washington Writers Conference, and is president of the Annapolis chapter of the Maryland Writers’ Association.
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10th Annual Gaithersburg Book
Festival
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Saturday
May 18, 2019
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On the Grounds of
City Hall in Olde Towne Gaithersburg, Md.
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Interested in spending the day rubbing elbows with today’s literary stars and helping your community? If so, consider volunteering for the 2019 Gaithersburg Book Festival.
A wide array of volunteer opportunities are still available.
Visit our website to learn more.
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Getting to the Gaithersburg Book Festival is a snap. Located on the grounds of Gaithersburg City Hall (31 S. Summit Ave.) in historic Olde Towne, the Festival offers free parking, free shuttles and easy access from public transportation.
Driving? Take advantage of free parking at Lakeforest Mall, and enjoy an easy five-minute complementary accessible shuttle ride that drops you right off at the Festival grounds. Satellite parking also is available at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park (506 S. Frederick Ave.), which is a short half-mile walk away. Please note that only service animals are permitted on the shuttle busses and Festival grounds.
Coming by Metro? Take the Red Line to the Shady Grove station and hop on the free shuttle. The Metro shuttle runs every 30 minutes, starting at 9:15 a.m., with the last shuttle leaving the Festival grounds at 6:30 p.m. To find the shuttle, exit left off the first escalator, take the second escalator up to street level, and continue straight ahead on the sidewalk, past the last bus shelter, to the area near the bike racks.
Don't want to wait for the Metro shuttle? You can also take Ride-On Bus #55/Germantown Transit Center or #57/Lakeforest, and exit the bus at the intersection of Rte. 355 and Summit Ave. by St. Martin's Church.
Taking Lyft, Uber or a taxi?
The recommended address for drop off and pick up is 21 S. Summit Ave.
Need accessible parking? The festival grounds are wheelchair accessible, and accessible parking will be available just off of Wells Avenue in the Wells/Robertson House parking lot, adjacent to the MARC train parking lot in Olde Towne Gaithersburg. An official sticker or tag will be required in order to park in this lot.
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May 10-11 Writers Conference
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The Gaithersburg Book Festival thanks the organizations
that have recently pledged
their support of our
10th annual event.
~ Presenting Sponsors ~
Linowes and Blocher, LLC
Retail Properties of America
~ Book Lovers ~
Art of Problem Solving Academy
LeafFilter Gutter Protection
PM Pediatrics
Red Carpet Remodeling
Xfinity
Sponsoring the Gaithersburg Book Festival is a great way to show your company's support of the community and the arts, while gaining visibility with our attendees, who are among the region’s best-read and most well-educated individuals.
We offer sponsorships to fit a variety of budgets, or we can tailor a sponsorship plan to fit your needs.
Visit our website for more information and to see sponsorship options.
call 240-805-1635.
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~ Partners ~
~ Festival Sponsors ~
~ Festival Sponsors ~
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Share the GBF News with your friends, family and book club members so they can see what we're planning for 2019! Simply click the "Send to a Friend" button at the top of the newsletter to pass along this issue.
To become a regular GBF News subscriber, visit the Festival website and click "Join Our Mailing List."
Subscriber contact information will be used solely for the newsletter and will not be shared or sold to other parties.
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