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Childrenʼs Book Festival
September 20
Schedule of Events
Presentations at the Emerald City Stage
11:30 a.m. – Jamaica Stevens 12:00 p.m. – Dev Petty 12:30 p.m. – Shawn Harris 1:00 p.m. – Nidhi Chanani 1:30 p.m. – Fairyland Youth Writers 2:30 p.m. – Malik Sickstein
Presenting Book Creators’ Meet and Greet in the Merry Meadow
12:00-1:00 p.m. – Jamaica Stevens12:30-1:30 p.m. – Dev Petty1:00-2:00 p.m. – Shawn Harris1:30-2:30 p.m. – Nidhi Chanani3:00-4:00 p.m. – Malik Sickstein
Activities
11:00 a.m. – Puppet Show Tío Conejo’s Big Wish at the Puppet Theatre 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m – Arts and Crafts in Miss Muffet’s Garden 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Oakland Public Library in the Chapel Garden 2:00 p.m. – Puppet Show Tío Conejo’s Big Wish at the Puppet Theatre 4:00 p.m. – Puppet Show Tío Conejo’s Big Wish at the Puppet Theatre
Meet and Greet in the Merry Meadow
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. – 2025 Fairyland Youth Writers and Teaching Author/Illustrator, Robert Liu-Trujillo
10:00 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. – Charlotte Cheng, Claudia Walker, Gianna Davy, Helen Taylor, Katrina Liu& Mira Z. Amiras
11:20 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Sarah and Ian Hoffman, Natasha Triplett, Emma Bland-Smith, Bo Lu, Laura Atkins, & Joy Steuerwald
12:30 – 1:40 p.m. – Jenny Andrus and Julie Downing, Katherine Pryor, Laura Lee, Nina LaCour, & Seina Wedlick
1:40 – 2:50 p.m. – Angela Dalton, Barry Fischer, Bethanie Murguia, Cat Fan, Elizabeth Shreeve, & Jane Park
2:50 – 4:00 p.m. – Christine Evans, Claire Bobrow, Eugenia Yoh, Maya Cameron-Gonzalez, Nicole Chen, & Teri Roche Drobnick
Join us for a day where the Bay Area’s most talented kid-lit authors, illustrators, publishers, sellers, and educators come together to celebrate the magic of BOOKS!
- Meet 30+ kid-lit book creators ready to inspire.
- Enjoy captivating stories read aloud by the authors themselves.
- Watch talented illustrators bring stories to life before your eyes.
- Cheer on the remarkable 8 to 12-year-olds from our Youth Writers’ Workshop, hosted by Rob Liu-Trujillo.
- Shop for books by all the participating book creators with Books on B
- Enjoy play-based and educational activities provided by our community partners.
- Check out the family literacy resource fair
- Hosted by Oakland’s beloved educator, Mr. Limata
Speakers Announced for 2025 Children’s Book Festival:
- Shawn Harris: Caldecott Medal honor recipient
- Malik Sickstein: Multi-genre author, graphic novelist, and spoken word creator
- Jamaica Stevens: Early Childhood Educator, author, musician, and dance & yoga instructor
- Nidhi Chanani: Award-winning graphic novelist
- Dev Petty: Award-winning author & illustrator
Creators:
- Shawn Harris
- Jenny Andrus
- Julie Downing
- Nicole Chen
- Charlotte Cheng
- Teri Drobnick
- Cat Fan
- Sarah & Ian Hoffman
- Laura Lee
- Bethanie Murguia
- Natasha Tripplett
- Claudia Walker
- Seina Wedlick
- Eugenia Yoh
- Malik Sickstein
- Maya Cameron-Gordon
- Angela Dalton
- Katrina Liu
- Jamaica Stevens
- Emma Bland Smith
- Christine Evans
- Elizabeth Shreeve
- Joy Steuerwald
- Claire Bobrow
- Nidhi Chanani
- Dev Petty
- Bo Lu
- Nina LaCour
- Helen Taylor
- Jane Park
- Barry Fischer
- Mira Z. Amiras
- Laura Atkins
- Gianna Davy
- Katherine Pryor
Book Seller: Books on B
Host: Peter Litmata
We are so thrilled to spend a day in celebration of books, literature, literacy, and learning with our beloved community!
Children’s Book Festival
Saturday, September 20, 2025
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Included with Fairyland general admission.
The 2025 Children’s Book Festival is sponsored by:
Aurora School, Chronicle Books, Association of Children’s Librarians, Broadway Children’s School, Five Little Monkeys, Grand Lake Montessori, and Montclair Pediatric Dentistry
The Youth Writers Workshop is supported by
