By COLLEEN ALMEIDA SMITH Staff Writer on Oct 23, 2012, at 1:37 PM Updated on 10/23 at 3:51 PM
Katy Kelly, author of the "Lucy Rose" and "Melonhead" series, recently spoke at Martin Regional Library in Tulsa.
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Author Katy Kelly was in town earlier this month, and I took my 8-year-old daughter to hear her speak.
Kelly, who appeared at the Martin Regional Library, is the author of the "Lucy Rose" and "Melonhead" series of books.
As a second-grader, my daughter is getting into chapter books, and I will do almost anything to get her away from her favorite: Junie B. Jones. Junie is a walking disaster, which the kids love, but the (purposely) poor grammar and spelling in the books just grate on my editor's ear.
Although we had never picked up a Katy Kelly book, I have to admit I was attracted by the name Lucy Rose, since Rose is also my daughter's middle name.
Both series take place in Washington, D.C., where the author was raised and still lives.
Kelly spoke about growing up on Capitol Hill and playing in the bushes around the Supreme Court building. She also recalled serving lemonade to people as they walked by her house by the thousands to take part in the March on Washington with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Kelly encouraged the half-dozen children at the program to keep a journal to record their thoughts and dreams and even snippets of stories or dialog.
She also had everyone participate in an exercise where she went around the room asking for charters and a plot for a story. It was fun to hear the children (and even adults!) build on the ideas of others and take the story into different directions. That was by far my daughter's favorite part of the evening.
In addition to reading parts of both a Lucy Rose book and a Melonhead book, Kelly took questions from the audience. Her interaction with the children was patient and informative.
She autographed copies of her books, and I bought my daughter one Lucy Rose book and one Melonhead book. These souvenirs will hopefully remind her of Katy Kelly's visit for years to come. (I know I treasure my autographed books -- especially my signed copy of "A Wrinkle in Time" that my mother gave me when I was in college.)
To my surprise, my 8-year-old has gravitated to the Melonhead book. Last night she read me several pages before bed.
I think this will be the start of a great relationship with a new author.
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