In-Store Meet & Greet: Mac Barnett, Make Believe

Stop by for an informal lunchtime meet & greet celebrating the release of Make Believe, Mac Barnett's new book for adults about writing for children. Chat with Mac and get a signed copy of Make Believe (or one of Mac's many children's books)!

Note on Format: This event is in-store only.

Preorder your copy of Make Believe in Eventbrite checkout as an add-on to your ticket.

ABOUT MAKE BELIEVE

Compulsively readable and doesn’t require a higher degree to appreciate. “Fiction is a kind of game, and reading is a way of playing.’ This has the sound of a koan at a poetry workshop, and yet the grateful reader of Make Believe can make believe they understand it. And making believe is the first step toward making sense. Kudos to Barnett.”—Gregory Maguire, The New York Times Book Review

“Conversational essays on wonder . . . A meditation on what gives life meaning. . . . A loving sermon on the rewards of children’s books.” ―Kirkus Reviews

Make Believe is bestselling children’s author Mac Barnett’s rallying cry for art and imagination, and a celebration of the power of storytelling in all our lives. It’s an incisive, intimate, and timely invitation to approach children’s literature not only as an art form worthy of deep study and criticism, but as a portal into the lives of the children. And at a time when we are faced with a national literacy crisis, he champions the profound joys of literature and the importance of reading for pleasure.

What if children are a great audience for art?
What if they are in fact better equipped to engage deeply with stories than adults?
What if humans’ ability to appreciate art is, if not innate, awakened early in childhood?

Well, then we’d better do our best to make some good kids’ books.

Written with humor and academic rigor, Make Believe reads like a letter from your smartest and funniest friend.

Includes spreads from Goodnight Moon and Busy, Busy Town, illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Jon Klassen, and cover art by celebrated illustrator Carson Ellis.

Mac Barnett is the ninth U.S. National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, appointed by the Library of Congress and Every Child a Reader. He’s a New York Times-bestselling author of stories for children and the writer, with Jon Klassen, of Looking at Picture Books, a newsletter for adults about how picture books work. Barnett’s work has been translated into more than 30 languages and sold more than 5 million copies worldwide. His books have won many prizes, including two Caldecott Honors, three New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Awards, three E.B. White Read Aloud Awards, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, Germany’s Jugendliteraturpreis, China’s Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award, The Netherlands’ Silver Griffel, and Italy’s Premio Orbil. He lives in Oakland, California.

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