Usborne Books & More can provide exciting, inspiring & FUN author visits to your school, library or community event! A big perk of being a book lady is that I get to share the amazing authors that write our books with people everywhere! Take a look at the authors coming for the 2019-2020 School Year for author visits in western Massachusetts & northern Connecticut! Contact me with any questions or to book a visit!
Kathryn Apel– Bully on the Bus 
November 4 – 15, 2019
Kathryn Apel is an Aussie children’s author who writes too much. She paints pictures with words, because much as she’d love to, Kat can’t draw. Kat’s goal is to find the perfect word for every situation. Sometimes that’s a lot harder than you think! With experience as both a teacher and literacy coach, who now devotes time to poetry, Kat will talk about “Bully on the Bus.” Specifically, about the power of words, not just here and now, but about how they stick with us. She covers how the book started as a chapter book but is so much strong as a verse novel. Students will leave understanding why words are placed where they are and be prepared to look for hidden tricks throughout the pages. She’ll follow up with Q&A about both the poetry writing process and the book itself.
Poetry workshops in which Kat engages participants with poetry and wordplay, equipping participants with fun and creative techniques that they can take away and apply to all writing are available. These are recommended for small groups of students (60 or fewer) who have already attended her appearance.
Allow 60 minutes for this presentation, including questions & answers. Consider this opportunity for 3rdgrade through high school, teacher poetry workshops or as a speaker teaching how to use poetry to encourage non-writers to express themselves. The cost is $450 for the first presentation. Options are available for additional presentations or evening family events.
Michelle Nelson-Schmidt 
(September 23-28, 2019; March 2 – 13, 2020 – includes Read Across America week)
Michelle Nelson-Schmidt, who has spoken at over 950 schools in 42 states to over a million students, is not only an author/illustrator, but also a motivational speaker for children. Although Michelle loves to share what she believes is her magical life with students, she also explains how they can have a life just as magical. Her secret of following your heart, believing in yourself and not being afraid to be successful resonates with children and children at heart. Then there’s the art…the big art…it just blows you away!
During her appearance, Michelle will touch on each of her titles: “Cats, Cats,” “Dogs, Dogs,” “Jonathan James and the Whatif Monster,” “Bob is a Unicorn,” “Cordelia,” “Dog and Mouse” and “Cordelia and the Whale”.
View snippets of the experience here:
Allow 50 minutes for this presentation, including questions & answers. Consider this opportunity for Kindergarten through middle school. It is best offered with students grouped in K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. The cost is $650 for one presentation, or two if there are more than 250 students in the school. Options are available for additional presentations or evening family events.
A modified, 30 minute, presentation is available for preschools. This presentation includes “Cats, Cats,” “Dogs, Dogs,” “Jonathan James and the Whatif Monster,” “What if I Know My Feelings” and “What if I Know My Opposites”. The cost is $375 for one presentation. Options are available for additional presentations or evening family events.
Emily Bannister 
(May 4 – 8, 2020)
Emily Bannister, from South West London, writes, illustrates and designs countless children’s novelty and picture books. She feels very lucky to get to do what she loves every day! Emily reads a few titles in story hour format, which may include “Build Me a Home,” “Paint Me a Picture,” “Play Me Some Music” and “Tell Me a Story.”
In “Build Me a Home,” from treehouse to cabin, rocket to skyscraper, this rhyming, rollicking ode celebrates all kinds of abodes but makes clear that where we live together is the best home of all. Working side-by-side with Emily, children will discuss the types of homes and which design is special to them. With provided home building choices, plus some characters from the book, children will color, cut out and stick together to “Build a Home”.
Allow 45 to 60 minutes for this presentation, including the home building activity. Consider this opportunity for ages 3 to 6. The cost of this presentations ranges from $275 to $325. Contact us for more details.
Eric Ode 
(May 11 – 15, 2020)
Eric Ode, the nationally renowned author of “Dan, the Taxi Man,” is also an accomplished singer, songwriter and poet. He brings high-anticipation songs as a springboard to where ideas come from to word choice, character traits, imagery, and sensory details. He shares pages from his own writing notebooks to prove that even adults go through the writing process before leading into a discussion on the rhythm of language before answering the BIG question….where do our good ideas come from?
Eric will highlight four titles including “Busy Trucks on the Go,” “Dan, the Taxi Man,” “Too Many Tomatoes,” and his most recent release, “Otters, Snails and Tadpole Tales.” View a short representation of Eric’s presentation:
Poetry workshops, designed for small groups (60 or fewer students) who have already attended his appearance, focus on word choice and the editing process. Eric leaves students wanting to continue writing and teachers prepared to continue where he leaves off. See a small portion of his workshop:
Allow 50 minutes for this presentation, including questions & answers. Consider this opportunity for grades K-5. The cost of the first presentation is $650 and there are opportunities for additional presentations, poetry writing workshops, and evening family literacy events. Contact us for more details. Eric is also available for preschool presentations and evening events & book signings at a reduced cost.
Having an author visit is a great way to create excitement about reading and writing in your school, library or community! Please contact me with questions, or to schedule your author visits in Western Massachusetts & Northern Connecticut today!
