It’s the Saturday after spring break, and the halls of Haddonfield Middle School are buzzing. Children and parents alike stand excitedly in line, eager to see what awaits behind the gym doors. Opening promptly at 1 p.m., they find a room filled with books and 23 authors and illustrators who created them.
The third annual South Jersey Children’s Book Festival has begun.
As the children rush in, they discover that even more activities await. There are stations for button-making, face-painting, blackout poetry writing, and a huge sheet of paper affixed to the gym floor, which kids are free to draw on.
The festival was conceived before COVID but had to be put on hold for obvious reasons. The first iteration was finally realized in 2024 and has been growing every year since. It was imagined as a way for the organizers to positively push back against the rise in book-banning, which heavily impacts children’s books, as well as a way to showcase the plethora of incredible authors local to New Jersey and just across the river in Philadelphia. With no similar festivals in South Jersey, the founders saw a gap in the market and decided to fill it.
With many of the organizers living in or around Haddonfield, it was the natural choice for location. The community has been incredibly welcoming and supportive, with many local businesses involved with preparations or on the day.
“Reading as a kid was a way to be transported, to feel less weird, to feel connected,” said Megan Atwood, an associate professor in the Writing Arts department at Rowan University, describing the South Jersey Children’s Book Festival’s mission. “It’s a privilege to now be able to speak to kids going through those big, raw emotions and telling them, through storytelling, ‘I see you, you’re not alone.’” She is also a festival board member.
“It’s a celebration of reading,” said Megan Atwood of the festival’s mission. She is a festival board member and an associate professor in the Writing Arts department at Rowan University. “Reading for kids is so vitally important. It develops empathy, vocabulary. It’s educational but it’s also fun! It’s also a really cool way to connect with community.”
While the focus is on children’s literature, the event welcomes all ages. Writers and illustrators, published and aspiring, had plenty of opportunities to connect and learn.
The schedule, while only three hours long, was jam-packed. This year’s panel discussion “So You Want to be an Author” with panelists Laura Parnum, Nicole Melleby, Hilda Eunice Burgos, and Alex London drew kids and adults alike.
Hands went up from both groups to ask questions — a reminder that people of all ages have big dreams and are looking for guidance on how to realize them. While the advice shared was applicable to writers of all kinds, the focus was, of course, on children’s books.
Atwood, the panel’s moderator and a children’s author of over 80 books ranging from picture books to YA (Young Adult), encapsulates the specific joy of writing for children.
“Reading as a kid was a way to be transported, to feel less weird, to feel connected,” she said.
“It’s a privilege to now be able to speak to kids going through those big, raw emotions and telling them, through storytelling, ‘I see you, you’re not alone.’”
For those more interested in the pictures, “Draw with an Illustrator” gave kids a chance to learn from artists Anne Lambelet, E.B. Lewis, and Lynnor Bontigao, who each delivered a mini masterclass in their own unique style.
All this was made possible thanks to a group of over 20 volunteers, which included local high school students eager to revisit their old stomping ground and Atwood’s own writing students from Rowan University, excited for the opportunity to network with established authors. Experiencing the energy of the day, it’s evident that the area’s literary community is a passionate one. Everyone is rooting for each other, a sentiment echoed throughout the panel discussion. Laura Parnum gave this piece of advice to aspiring writers, “Surround yourself with community.”
That was already happening.
At midday, prior to the start of the festival, the 23 authors and illustrators — the biggest line-up to date — sat down to a lunch prepared by CK Catering, the catering arm of Cathedral Kitchen, which provides a range of services to the people of Camden and beyond.
The festival is an ambitious undertaking.
Julie Beddingfield, board member and owner of Inkwood Books, highlights how important it is to give children as much opportunity as possible to meet and interact with the authors and illustrators.
“The aim is to get children excited about reading and to stretch their curiosity across all kinds of genres,” she said. ”And what better way to convey the joy of reading than hearing the authors themselves excitedly talk about the stories contained within the pages of their books?”
This is why the event and all its activities were free. The organizers wanted to make sure there were no barriers for entry into the festical.
Thanks to the success of their annual fundraiser — held at Tonewood in Barrington this year — the festival was able to extend its first special invitation to 85 students from Bellmawr Park Elementary School. Each student received a bag of goodies, including a voucher for one free book. The biggest takeaway when speaking to parents was the encouragement their children gained from the invitation to attend the event and the encouragement to keep reading and keep imagining.
With over 600 attendees — their highest number to date — the book fair was a rousing success. Organizers are already starting to look to the future. They want to keep growing, to keep spreading the joy of reading to as many children as possible and are even hoping to expand further into the world of young adult readers.
In the meantime, regular visits to Inkwood Books or your local school or public libraries should keep the excitement of reading alive until next year’s event. Happy reading.
