Local Black authors, comic artists and booksellers are scheduled to be at Western Avenue Elementary in Flossmoor on Thursday, Feb. 12, and Friday, Feb. 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., for a Black History Month Book Fair.
The book fair will be open exclusively to Western Avenue students, staff and parents or guardians.
Nafeteria Coleman and Jocelynn Cribbs, Western Avenue parents and Parent-Teacher Organization members, organized the fair after receiving approval from the school.
The event is set to include authors Vivian L. King, Imani Spencer and Dameron Cribbs and comic creators George Gant and Ryan Francis, Coleman and Cribbs said. Da Book Joint, a Black-owned bookstore in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood, also will sell books at the event, they said.
Beyond the Book, a Black-owned bookstore in Homewood, provided 500 free bookmarks with the store’s logo to give to kids at the fair, Coleman said.
“You don’t always have to look too far for greatness,” Coleman said. “Greatness can be right in your circle, right in your neighborhood. These are people you know you can see, you can reach, you can touch.”
Parents can pre-order books before the fair, organizers said, adding that students will pick up the pre-ordered books at the event. Coleman compared this book-buying process to the Scholastic Book Fair.
“I’m hopeful that we’ll restore the love of reading to our students,” Cribbs said. “For those that shy away from reading, we want to let them know that there are all types of genres and things they can read about.”
Regarding Black History Month, Coleman said, “It’s always important to talk about the past because that’s how culture and traditions are created. At the same time, it’s important to talk about those making strides in the present.”
Gant, a comic strip artist on Chicago’s North Side, said he’ll bring copies of his book, Toddlerhood! A Beware of Toddler Collection, art prints and stickers to the fair.
“Toddlerhood!” is a book of humorous comic strips about a Black stay-at-home father, his toddler-aged daughter and their daily lives. The cover features an illustration of a man slipping on toys on the floor while his daughter runs and writes on the wall with crayons.
“It’s always nice to introduce your work to a new audience,” Gant said about the fair. “Today’s readers will become tomorrow’s authors. And if I have a small role to play in that, then I’m all for it.”
Francis, a comic book writer and artist in Joliet, said he’ll bring cat-themed and dog-themed stickers and his self-published comic books, “Shirley’s Day,” “Incident At the Game Store” and “The Pizza Man,” to the fair.
“Obviously, I’ll have to take some time away from my day job,” said Francis, a bus driver for Joliet Public School District 86. “But I’m always really good at doing that, because art is more my passion overall.”
