Spreading the word

Mike Sciacca

The gift of reading will come to life on Tuesday when 50 children’s

authors and illustrators participate in the 12th annual Authors Festival.

The event, sponsored by The Huntington Beach Library and the Friends

of the Children’s Library, will give children the opportunity to meet and

talk with authors and illustrators whose books they may have read and

enjoyed.

The 50 authors and illustrators will make guest appearances that day

at 30 local schools and will be able to reach a reading audience of

15,000 school children at the elementary and junior high levels, said

Ruth Siegrist, co-chair of the festival, along with JoAnne Rankin.

“This is a once-a-year event where these artists converge in

Huntington Beach, and it’s really a time to celebrate their work,”

Siegrist said. “The children do get excited about meeting authors and

illustrators of books that they may have read.”

Siegrist said that most schools within Ocean View School District will

be participating in the day along with private schools at St. Bonaventure

and Sts. Simon & Jude.

Following visits to local campuses, the authors and illustrators will

return to the library for a reception where they will sell and sign some

of their books.

One local author taking part in the event is Huntington Beach resident

Pat Macha, who has written two books and has a new publication -- a third

edition of “Wrecks in the Mountains and Deserts of California,” set to be

released on March 1.

Macha said he has participated in past festivals and plans on doing

four, 45-minute presentations Tuesday. He is scheduled to talk with

students at Spring View Middle School.

“It’s a fun way to reach these students. They seem quite interested in

the subject matter,” he said.

Macha has taught history and geography for the past 34 years at

Hawthrone High School, where he also serves as the school’s social

studies chairman. Recently, he signed a contract with The History Channel

to serve as a guest host for the series called, “Broken Wings,” which

deals with aircraft archeology and wrecks from the first half of the 20th

century in the mountains, deserts and other remote areas.

The reception, which also will include representatives from the

Huntington Beach library branches, administrators and teachers from local

schools as well as city dignitaries, is open to the community.

* MIKE SCIACCA is the education and sports reporter. He can be reached

at (714) 965-7171 or by e-mail at [email protected].

Some authors scheduled to participate in the 12th annual Authors

Festival:

John Archambault, “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom”

Linda Atnip, “Miranda’s Magic Garden”

Marjorie Cowley, “Dar and the Spear-thrower”

Allan De Fina, “When a City Leans Against the Sky: Poems”

Keri Dearborn

MaryAnn Easley, “I Am the Ice Worm”

Mel Gilden, “The Pumpkins of Time”

Marilyn Gould, “Friends True and Periwinkle Blue”

Karen Marie Graves, “Michael Jackson”

Carl Green, “Daniel Boone: Wilderness Pioneer”

Monica Gunning, “Under the Breadfruit Tree: Island Poems”

Caroline Hatton, “Vero and Phillippe”

Dianne MacMillian, “Presidents Day”

Johnny Mascari, “My Light at Night: A Children’s Book”

Maxine Meltzer, “Pups Speak Up”

Gloria Miklowitz, “The War Between the Classes”

Lori Mitchell, “Different Just Like Me”

Marion Rose, “Coyote’s Canyon”

Theresa Smythe, “The Runaway Valentine”

Marianne Wallace, “America’s Deserts: Guide to Plants and Animals”

Karen Winnick, “Mr. Lincoln’s Whiskers,”

Gretchen Woelfle, “Katje, the Windmill Cat”FYI

Authors Festival

WHEN: 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., Jan. 29

WHERE: Huntington Central Library, 7111 Talbert Ave. Rooms C and D

PHONE: (714) 848-7809, (714) 846-5323