Schedule
Saturday Events
Come As You Are Storytime!
Saturday | 10am Decatur Library Auditorium
Matt Phelan (Bartleby) and Laurel Snyder (Shrinking Violet) share two delightful picture books about self-acceptance and personal growth. Let’s celebrate who we are!
Get Your Steps In with Derrick Barnes and Frank Morrison
Saturday | 10:45am Decatur Library Auditorium
In their new collaboration, Seven Million Steps: The True Story of Dick Gregory’s Run for the Hungry, two award-winning creators, Derrick Barnes and Frank Morrison, tell the true and fascinating story of one man’s quest to spread awareness about food insecurity and poverty in America.
When the Going Gets Tough, The Girls Get Going!
Saturday | 11:30am Decatur Library Auditorium
Aisha Saeed (Hafsa’s Way) and Brenna Thummler (Gumshoe) talk about their new books with some of Little Shop’s favorite young readers, Asha and Maggie.
A Little Bit of Magic with Philip Stead
Saturday | 12:15pm Decatur Library Auditorium
Award-winning author/illustrator Philip Stead returns to Decatur with his middle grade debut, A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic: Or, Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm, a quirky, one-of-a-kind story that will make you and your kids laugh out loud.
Live D&D with Authors
Saturday | 1:30pm Decatur Library Auditorium
Middle grade and YA authors role-play their characters as DM Jackson Pearce (The Double Cross: (and Other Skills I Learned as a Super Spy)) leads them on adventure. Join Melanie Dale (Girl of Lore), Lindsey Duga (Royal Liars), Jill Baguchinsky (May the Dead Keep You), Delilah S. Dawson (Ride or Die), Terry J. Benton-Walker (Alex Wise vs The Gods of the Apocalypse) as they thwart evil, fix magical mishaps, and fight the good fight!
Clue, Live at Little Shop!
Saturday | 12pm Little Shop of Stories
Inviting all mystery fans! Some of your favorite authors have been murdered and we need YOUR help to discover which of their characters may have done it! Participating authors include Michele Leathers (They All Had a Fear), Ryan Douglass (The Great Disillusionment of Nick and Jay), Michael Buckley (The Weirdies), and Christyne Morrell (The Case of the Scarlet Snakebite). All ages welcome! Registration for this event is required! Join the game and join the fun by signing up!
Cards Against Book-sanity!
Saturday | 1:15pm Little Shop of Stories
Do you love a certain fill-in-the-blank party game that turns your average personality and lackluster social skills into hours of fun? Join Sophia Glock (Before We Wake), Delali Adjoa (The Free Verse Society), and Julian Winters (Prince of the Palisades) for an all-ages version where all the answers are from these amazing YA authors’ books! Registration for this event is required!
Super Dory-Fantastic Party with Abby Hanlon!
Saturday | 5pm Little Shop of Stories
Join us in welcoming Abby Hanlon, creator of the beloved Dory Fantasmagory series, for a celebration filled with crafts, treats, giveaways, a book signing, and a chance to win a grand prize. Don’t miss this unforgettable evening of pure Dory fun! Registration is required!
Sunday Events
Firefighter Parade and Storytime!
Sunday | 10am Decatur Library Auditorium
AG Ford, illustrator of the popular Goodnight Goodnight Construction Site series, is joined by Decatur FD Assistant Captain/Fire Marshall Ninetta Violante for a reading of Construction Site: Firefight! Let’s meet at Fire Station 1, located at 230 East Trinity Place, at 9:45am and march together to the library! Everyone is encouraged to come dressed as their favorite everyday hero!
Stem for Everyone with Shelli Johannes and Katrina Moore
Sunday | 10:45am Decatur Library Auditorium
Calling all young builders! Calling all young scientists! Play a larger than life game of Jenga with authors Shelli Johannes (Penny, The Engineering Tail of The Fourth Little Pig) and Katrina Moore (Who’s Building?) as they attempt to answer some of science’s toughest questions – with your help, of course!
Are You Smarter Than a Kid’s Book?
Sunday | 11:30am Decatur Library Auditorium
Curious Kid Alert! Rachael Allen (Professor Thomas Cat’s Guide to Understanding the Human Brain: The Dyslexia Files) and Allie Millington (When You Find a Question) go head-to-head answering questions from kids books! Does Rachael Allen have a big enough brain? Or does Allie Millington have all the answers? Can you help one of these amazing authors rise to victory? Who Will WIn?
Space Cowboy Draw Off with Max Brallier, Drew Brockington,and Ward Jenkins
Sunday | 12:15pm Decatur Library Auditorium
Drawing duel at high noon:15! Max Brallier (Last Comics on Earth: Across the Doodleverse), Drew Brockington (Castronauts: Cosmic Clutter), and Ward Jenkins (Space Case: The Graphic Novel) battle it out with markers in hand. Audience participation required, of course! This piece of paper ain’t big enough for the three of them!
Stormy With a Chance of Queso, with Ernesto Cisneros and Saadia Faruqi
Sunday | 1:15pm Decatur Library Auditorium
What do you get when you bring together two inspiring and celebrated mid grade writers? You get stories of equally inspiring kids overcoming great obstacles, of course! Ernesto Cisneros (Queso, Just in Time) and Saadia Faruqi (Some of Us Are Brave) talk about writing for today’s young readers.
Sour Ones!
Sunday | 2:15pm Decatur Library Auditorium
We’re Little Shop of Stories and you’re watching Sour Ones. It’s the show with tangy questions and even more sour candy! We’re taking inspo from one of our favorite web-shows and getting into it with authors Becky Albertalli (Amelia, If Only), Adib Khorram (One Word, Six Letters), and Kelly Quindlen (Her Name in The Sky), asking them increasingly juicy questions as they eat increasingly sour candy!
Lipsync for Your Life!
Sunday | 3:15pm Decatur Library Auditorium
We’re closing out the festival with a celebratory round of Lipsync for Your Life! Authors AND audience members are invited to get on the stage and mouth the words to their favorite song- or, feel free to belt it out as well! This is meant to be LOW pressure and NO judgment! But, please don’t mess it up! ; )
Cozy Crafting, Coffee, and Conversation!
Sunday | 10am Little Shop of Stories
Some of our favorite local YA authors have new books on the not-so-distant horizon, and here’s your chance to find out more about them before anyone else! Join us for a morning of coffee, conversation, and crafting with YA authors Kelly Quindlen, Hugh “H. D.” Hunter, Delilah S. Dawson, , and Julian Winters. Our author guests will read from their yet-to-be-released titles as you enjoy some crafting time, and a cup of coffee and breakfast treat from our friends and partners at Bellwood Coffee! Afterwards, you’ll have the chance to chat with our authors and pre-order a signed and personalized copy of their upcoming books!