LAKE PLACID — The 5th Annual Adirondack Family Book Festival attracts readers of every age to Lake Placid.
Hosted by John Brown Lives! on Saturday, the event runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Award-winning authors and illustrators will be on the historic Olympic Oval, 2624 Main St., to present on panels, meet readers, and sign books. This year’s roster includes: Newbery Medalist Rebecca Stead, Caldecott Medalist Jason Chin, Newbery Honoree Veera Hiranandani, National Book Award Finalist Kekla Magoon, and Coretta Scott King Award Honor winner Varian Johnson, New York Times bestselling author Sara Beth Durst, and award-winning authors Hena Khan and Torrey Maldonado.
“Year after year, festival authors and artists show children a vision of the world as a kind and good place,” Martha Swan, executive director of John Brown Lives!, said in a press release.
“We are grateful to all the people who make this special day possible and help young readers visualize a better and more beautiful world.”
Beloved local authors Loree Griffin Burns, Honni David, Rebecca Donnelly, Maxwell Eaton III, Amy Guglielmo, and Kate Messner, the New York Times best-selling author of “The Trouble with Heroes.”
“Kate and I are on the committee. We were approached by Martha Swan of John Brown Lives! She had an idea for a book festival, the Adirondack Family Book Festival, and she reached out to us as local authors. She had a great committee set up to create this incredible event for kids in the Adirondack region and visitors and to bring in some of the top children authors from around the country. It’s really special that we are hosting this in our backyard. It is a huge opportunity for local kids and book lovers,” Guglielmo said.
The Plattsburgh resident is excited about the festival in general and about Stead’s attendance in particular.
“I’m already nervous because I’m such a fan. Caldecott medalist Jason Chin is coming from Vermont, and he’s just incredible to see him. He draws for viewers, and last year I got to draw with Jason. I was invited to be on the Illustrators Panel. It’s very cool for kids to meet these authors and illustrators,” she said.
Guglielmo and writing partner Jacqueline Tourville’s new book, “Like A Rainbow: The Colorful Story of Cyndi Lauper,” was illustrated by Brigette Barrager and published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
“It’s about Cyndi Lauper who has connections to the North Country, which is so exciting. She ran away from home as a teenager, and she actually went to Quebec to study art and she wound up in Vermont and staring at the Adirondack Mountains for inspiration. She spent a lot of time in Burlington, and was in a home for teens there. I think it is part of her story is that inspired her to help others, and now she has homes for teenagers so that they’ll have a place to go. I think it’s really important part of Cyndi Lauper’s story is coming up here and finding inspiration in the arts and finding a home and people that cared about her. In perfect symmetry, she now does that for others,” Guglielmo said.
Lauper was a brilliant choice as subject matter for the co-authors that have illuminated the lives of Dr. Temple Grandin, Lucille Ball, and Mary Blair, and other women in the arts that they adore.
“We thought that Cyndi deserves a book because she’s such an advocate for others. She’s a kind and caring person and her music lifts people up and invites everyone to the party, so we thought that was a really important person to celebrate and recognize,” Guglielmo said.
It took several years for the authors to research and find Lauper’s story.
“Cyndi was on our wish-list for people and telling her story about her colorful life and how she inspired so many people to be themselves and to express themselves. Cyndi’s story is one about finding her own voice and own path in the world. I think that’s important for kids and readers of all ages to know that there is a place for everyone,” she said.
The co-authors dug deep into Lauper’s Champlain Valley connections and read “Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir” by Lauper with Jancee Dunn published in 2012, “Let the Canary Sing,” a 2023 documentary, and many interviews that included childhood memories of the 73-year-old superstar, whose four-octave vocal range, rare as finding a four-leaf clover or getting struck by lightning, matches her extraordinary life.
“She was a commencement speaker at Johnson State not that long ago and received an honorary degree. We just loved that connection and wanted local kids to know about it and be proud of it celebrating her as a New Yorker and also someone who spent time in Vermont I think is really great. It’s a fun book, but it’s also about being inclusive and kind I think that’s so important right now,” Guglielmo said.
Lauper has a copy of “Like A Rainbow,” but the co-authors haven’t heard from her yet.
“She was very kind. She gave us permissions for photographs and lyrics, which is a really big deal. The text incorporates a lot of Cyndi Lauper’s messages and lyrics from her songs, so that was really cool she let us do that. She knows we exist. She has a copy, and I’m pretty sure she’s going to call me like tomorrow and ask me to go on tour with her. I’m pretty sure we’re going to be best friends,” she said.
Lauper’s “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” was an anthem for many like Guglielmo in the ‘80s.
“The coolest thing is that kids know that song now, and parents know that song. It sort of crosses generations. It’s a feel-good song for everybody. To me, I have that connection of being with my friends and dancing. That song made me feel powerful as a girl. What a nice message. Honestly, I have been playing that song when I’m reading to kids, and they dance, and say, ‘Don’t turn it off. We want to hear the whole song,’” Guglielmo said.
A pre-festival special event, “Birdwatching with Loree Griffin Burns and Orienteering with Maxwell Eaton III,” will be held Friday from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at the John Brown Farm State Historic Site, 115 John Brown Road, Lake Placid.
The festival is free and open to all. The Bookstore Plus will sell books, and the authors will be available throughout the day to meet their readers and sign copies of their books.
In case of poor weather, the festival will be moved indoors at the Lake Placid Middle-High School, 34 School St.
For author bios, featured books, and festival schedule and updates, go to: adirondackfamilybookfestival.com or follow the festival on Instagram @adkfamilybookfest