Award-winning authors presenting online for RIPL

Renowned Authors Erika Sanchez and Jason Reynolds Present Online for RIPL in October. The Rock Island Public Library joins more than 200 Illinois libraries in hosting two free online presentations with nationally-renowned authors: Erika Sanchez on Wednesday, Oct. 9, and Jason Reynolds on Tuesday, Oct. 22.

These high-profile authors are presented through Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a collaborative effort featuring virtual events with bestselling and award-winning authors and esteemed speakers. Both events are free and open to all who sign up through the Rock Island Public Library, or any other participating ILP member.

Being Imperfect with Erika Sánchez: Oct. 9

Erika Sánchez, award-winning author of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, presents online during Hispanic Heritage Month. Cynthia Pelayo, also an award-winning author, joins Sánchez in the conversation at 7 pm on Wednesday, Oct. 9.

Erika L. Sánchez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants. Her debut poetry collection, Lessons on Expulsion, was a finalist for the PEN America Open Book Award. Her debut young adult novel, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, was a New York Times bestseller, National Book Award finalist, and Tomás Rivera Award winner. Recognized by Time as one of the best YA novels of all time, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter has also been adapted for the stage at Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago and is being made into a film directed by America Ferrera.

Sánchez' critically acclaimed memoir-in-essays, Crying in the Bathroom, won the Chicago Review of Books Nonfiction award. Sánchez was a Fulbright Scholar, a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent fellow from the Poetry Foundation, a Princeton Arts Fellow, a recipient of the 21st Century Award from the Chicago Public Library Foundation, and a recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. She lives in Chicago with her family.

Cynthia Pelayo is a Bram Stoker Award winning and International Latino Book Award winning author and poet. Pelayo writes fairy tales that blend genre and explore concepts of grief, mourning, and violence. She is the author of Loteria, Santa Muerte, The Missing, Poems of My Night, Into the Forest and All the Way Through, Children of Chicago, Crime Scene, and The Shoemaker's Magician.

Register to receive the participation link by email. To sign up for the free event, visit the library events calendar or go directly to the ILP registration form and mention Rock Island Public Library. For assistance, call the Rock Island Public Library Adult Services Reference Desk at 309-732-7341.

Raise Your Voice with Jason Reynolds (Youth Program): Oct. 22

The Rock Island Public Library is proud to also welcome renowned youth literature author Jason Reynolds, for a special online conversation entitled "Raise Your Voice," at 7pm on Tuesday, Oct. 22.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author, advocate, and mentor served as the 2020-2022 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. The recipient of a Newbery Honor, a Printz Honor, a Carnegie Medal, an NAACP Image Award, and multiple Coretta Scott King honors, Reynolds' beloved and award-winning titles include Stamped (with Ibram X. Kendi), Stuntboy, the Track series (Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu), Miles Morales, All American Boys (with Brendan Kiely), When I Was the Greatest, The Boy in the Black Suit, Look Both Ways, Ain't Burned All the Bright, and Long Way Down.

Reynolds has also appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Late Night with Seth Meyers, CBS Sunday Morning, and more. The short documentary "Dear, Dreamer" is a lyrical portrait of Reynolds' life and work as a rising literary star, as well as a testament to shared experiences and the power of seeing yourself in books. In his podcast, My Mother Made Me, he and his mother, Isabell, explore their shared history and what they're teaching each other.

Reynolds lives in Washington, DC, where he is on faculty at Lesley University, for the Writing for Young People MFA Program.

Registered participants will receive a participation link by email. To sign up for the free event, visit the library events calendar or go directly to the ILP Registration Form and mention the Rock Island Library. For assistance, call the Library's Reference & Adult Services desk at 309-732-7341.

These events are made possible by Rock Island Public Library's membership in Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. Illinois Libraries Present is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Illinois Libraries Present is committed to inclusion and accessibility.

For more information about library services and upcoming events for a wide range of ages, visit the Rock Island Public Library website, call 309-732-READ, or follow the Rock Island Library Facebook and Instagram social media sites.