LIVE AT THE WRITERS HOUSE: CHILDREN'S BOOK AUTHORS
Hosted by Alli Katz
Monday, February 17, 6:30 PM
Join us in the Arts Café for the recording of our next installment of LIVE AT THE WRITERS HOUSE. This episode of LIVE has a lineup made up of some of Philly's best children's book writers, including Hilda Burgos, author of Ana María Reyes Does Not Live in a Castle; Amy Ignatow, author and illustrator of The Popularity Papers; Alyssa Reynoso-Morris, author of Plátanos Are Love & Los plátanos son amor; Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, author of Your Name is a Song; and Greg Pizzoli, the author/illustrator of the Baloney and Friends series. The musical guest will be Emily Rush. Kids are welcome to attend!
This event is free and open to the public. Masks are welcome. Please stay home if you feel ill.
HILDA BURGOS
Hilda Eunice Burgos is the author of the middle grade novels Ana María Reyes Does Not Live in a Castle and Miosotis Flores Never Forgets, the picture book The Cot in the Living Room, and most recently, Bodega Cats: Picture Purrfect and Bodega Cats: Just Kitten Around, which are the first two installments of an illustrated three-book series about New York City bodega cats and their human friends. The third book in the series, Bodega Cats: Pawsome Pals, is slated for publication in July 2025. Hilda is the daughter of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, and she grew up in New York City. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School, she lives in the Philadelphia area, where she and her husband raised their two grown children. Please visit her website at hildaeuniceburgos.com.
AMY IGNATOW
Amy Ignatow is the author and illustrator for The Popularity Papers, and The Mighty Odds trilogy, as well as the author of Jedi Academy: The Christina Starspeeder Stories (with Jarrett Krosoczka), The Cutest Thing Ever (with Hsinping Pan), and Symphony for A Broken Orchestra (with Gwen Millward). The Popularity Papers is now a live-action television show that can be seen on Hulu/Disney+. Amy lives in Philadelphia with her family and is usually pretty good at parallel parking.
ALYSSA REYNOSO-MORRIS
Alyssa Reynoso-Morris is a queer Afro-Latine/x Dominican and Puerto Rican award-winning storyteller, author, and motivational speaker. She is also a mother and community organizer. During the day, she works with community members, non-profit organizations, and government officials to make the world a better place. Then she puts on her writer’s hat to craft heartfelt stories. Alyssa was born and raised in The Bronx, New York, and currently lives in Philadelphia, PA, with her family. She is the author of Plátanos Are Love & Los plátanos son amor (a NCTE Charlotte Huck Recommended Read); The Bronx Is My Home; Gloriana Presente: A First Day of School Book & Gloriana Presente: De la República Dominicana al Bronx; Bold, Brilliant and Latine: Meet 52 Latine and Hispanic Heroes from Past and Present; and Pieces of Home. She hopes you enjoy her stories. You can learn more about her at alyssaauthor.com
JAMILAH THOMPKINS-BIGELOW
Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow is a Philadelphia-based author of popular educator-recommended children’s books. She is a two-time winner of the Muslim Bookstagram picture book award, and she has earned the prestigious Walter, Irma Black, and Golden Kite award honors for her work. Her books continue to make many “Best of” lists, including Time’s “10 Best YA and Children’s Books of 2021” and Book Riot’s “20 Best Children’s Books of All Time.”
GREG PIZZOLI
Greg Pizzoli is the Three-time Theodor Seuss Geisel Award-winning creator of the Baloney and Friends graphic novel series, as well as the author and illustrator of the picture books The Watermelon Seed, Good Night Owl, and Pizza: A Slice of History, among many others. Greg Pizzoli lives in South Philadelphia with his wife and two daughters.
EMILY RUSH
Emily Rush is an educator and creative person. They reside in Philadelphia with their dog, Franklin. When they are not singing songs, they can be found playing on the swings at Bartram's Garden.
LIVE AT THE WRITERS HOUSE
"LIVE at the Writers House" is a long-standing collaboration between Kelly Writers House and WXPN (88.5 FM). Six times annually between September and April, the Writers House records a one-hour broadcast of poetry, music, and other spoken-word art, for broadcast on WXPN. "LIVE" is made possible through the generous support of BigRoc.
