Ruby Bridges Reading Festival

I got to participate in a truly amazing event over the weekend. I was one of four chosen authors to be featured by the National Civil Rights Museum at their annual Ruby Bridges Reading Festival. It was Ruby Bridges herself, two New York Times best selling authors, and my self-published self. The introductory press conference was a little intimidating — I still think of myself much more as an artist than an author, but the other authors were incredibly inclusive and gracious to me, and I had a ball all day. I did two sessions of signings (and ran out of the 100 books the museum had bought to give away), talked through the M is for Memphis alphabet from the stage with a group of rapt kids, and watched kids of a variety of ages wander around clutching armfuls of books with enormous grins on their faces. That was truly the best part.

The signings were fun — I did a small drawing in the front for each kid (and occasional adult, which also delighted me). There was a steady stream of folks wanting my book, and everyone was having a great day out. The great Ella Fitzgerald’s foundation had given the museum 2000 books to distribute to kids, and my middle school book nerd self was delighted to be there as an author but also to see so many kids just delighted about new books.

The day was beautifully organized and went like a well oiled machine. The museum was kind enough to give me the end space in the signing tent so I had a fan and some fresh air coming in to combat the crowds of folks. With my long covid still such a factor in my life, crowds continue to make me a little nervous. All the authors had a dedicated all-day volunteer, and I totally won the lottery with Ewa from International Paper. She was kind, involved, and offered to take a whole string of photos while I did my reading, which hadn’t occurred to me at all. I’m so glad to have those memories of this fantastic day. Here we are below at the start of the day, at the end of the press conference and ready to dive in. I can’t say enough how honored I was to be invited to participate. The NCRM is the spiritual center of Memphis. It was definitely a career moment for me.