Tonight I had the pleasure of attending the International Children's Literature Day celebration with Peter Sís as the keynote speaker. I was so excited to meet such an excellent illustrator and children's author because I had the pleasure of reading his works and including it in my blog!
As I walked in, I recognized the Bob Dylan song playing, and the psychedelic illustrations displayed on an enlarged projection screen immediately caught my attention. I sat and watched the video, almost in a trance, just listening to the music. Through his illustrations, I was taken back in time to a place where love and a sense of community ruled our nation. As the presentation began, Peter seemed so humble as he began to tell his life story of growing up in a place that "no longer exists" as he so accurately described Czechoslovakia, which is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. He described his parents, his upbringing, moving to America and the struggles he had gone through as a young adult, and lastly his children. Throughout the entire presentation, Peter consistently showed representations of how art impacted his life. He truly made an impact on me as an aspiring teacher, a published author, and a parent.
I simply couldn't wait to share my wonderful evening of meeting one of my favorite children's authors and personal role models on my blog :)
