The inclement weather in September coincided with an important event: Bookmarks' Festival of Books, a literary arts festival that brings authors from all over the country to Winston-Salem. Some of these authors visit schools during the festival, and when school had to be cancelled last Friday, so did many author visits to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.
Fortunately for Cook Literacy Model School and Kimberly Park Elementary School, one author, Stacey Abrams, was willing to reschedule her visit. Abrams is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of While Justice Sleeps, Our Time Is Now, Lead from the Outside, and the NAACP Image Award-winning picture books Stacey’s Extraordinary Words and Stacey’s Remarkable Books. She has launched multiple organizations devoted to voting rights and tackling social issues at the state, national, and international levels.
Abrams joined the students and staff of both elementary schools virtually this morning to participate in a moderated discussion and read her new book Stacey Speaks Up, which is inspired by her legacy of activism and advocacy and is the third in her Stacey series illustrated by Kitt Thomas. Each student received a copy of Stacey Speaks Up back in September.
The discussion was moderated by Jaesiah Wardlow, a fifth grader from Cook and an aspiring artist. Wardlow worked for weeks to review Stacey's previous work. He read an advanced copy of Stacey Speaks Up and generated questions to guide his discussion with Stacey. When asked how it felt to interview Ms. Abrams, Wardlow smiled and said "amazing."
Wardlow admits he was nervous during the preparation process, but he had advice for students who have big opportunities, such interviewing a famous person like Abrams.
“It's okay to be nervous and feel like people may judge you,” he said. “Just move with the flow."
This event would not have been possible without Bookmarks, a literary arts non-profit that strives to cultivate community through books and authors, who brings authors into schools annually as part of their festival and worked tirelessly to reschedule author visits after school closed during their festival.
Many thanks to Stacey Abrams, Lupe Penn, Yvette Evans, and David Johnson for making this event possible!
Submitted by Madelyn Hughes, Media Coordinator at Cook Literacy Model School