The Connecticut Writing Project at Fairfield University was thrilled to work with teacher leaders in support of the event and to see so many young people and their families in attendance. The smiles were amazing and the joy of hearing the author read his new work left an impression they will carry them for quite a while (one young man was so proud of the book, he was reluctant to hand it over to the author for an autograph). He held the book tight to his chest as if to say, "No way, sir. You're not getting this book away from me."
Lucky for us, we debuted the book in southern Connecticut as its official release date is today, January 20th, and is now available for order through Possible Futures, or anywhere you love to get great books for kids. The day was absolutely incredible, and now we head of to a local middle school to share the book there, but also to get classroom sets of Hands into the hands of adolescent readers in honor of Martin Luther King's legacy and celebrations.
Today begins the first night of graduate classes and after the school visits, I'm off to start another semester of literacy excellence and demonstration of why diverse books matter in the hands of our children. I am entering this Tuesday with tremendous pride for the work we do and what is possible when great minds unite in support of young people and the reading opportunities we give them.
