Happy May!

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Hello... just a moment to wish you all a Happy May! There is so much happening now... so much to look forward to.... so many new books!
First of all, I'm very excited about this years Children's Books Ireland conference, happening the 19th and 20th of May. The theme of this years' conference is 'Weaving A Shared Story'... a what a shared story it will be. We have Alexis Deacon, Eilis ni Dhuibhne, Chris Judge, Paula Leyden, Nicola Pierce, Judi Curtin.... and one of the features of the Sunday sessions will be the Emberly family, sharing their enthusiasm, inspiration and knowledge of picture books. Ed Emberly and daughter, Rebecca will be making the trip from the States; while Michael Emberly and his wife, the wonderful Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick will be joining the conference from a little closer to home.
There will be so much going on at the conference. If you love childrens' books... you really should be there, if only for one of the days!
Here's the conference brochure link:
http://www.childrensbooksireland.ie/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Conference-flyer-.pdf

p.s. Speaking of Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, if you haven't yet read her latest, Dark Warning, it's a brilliant read and I highly recommend it. Set in Dublin in the late 1700s, Taney Tyrell is a young girl gifted with 'the second sight' at a time when such things are dangerous gifts. The sense of time and place are beautifully drawn, the writing itself is lyrical and rich. Dark Warning is an eloquent, vivid read that you won't soon forget.

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