On May 2, Free Comic Book Day will kick of the 96th annual Children’s Book Week, the annual celebration of books for young people and the joy of reading. To celebrate, our friends at First Second have organized “Five Questions with Kids Comics Authors,” a blog tour featuring the biggest names in kids comics!
Starting on April 27 and running through May 30, the “Five Questions” tour will feature daily interviews award-winning kids comics artists and writers. More details from First Second:
Celebrate kids comics with Q&As with fantastic children’s cartoonists for Children’s Book Week! Join us as great authors talk about their own creative work and the graphic novel industry throughout April and May. Comics for kids are reaching a time of unprecedented acceptance in the American literary scene, and it’s now true that there are comics for everyone. All interviews are conducted by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado (Dragons Beware!).
Monday, April 27
Cece Bell interviewed at Sturdy for Common ThingsTuesday, April 28
Kazu Kibuishi interviewed at Geek DadWednesday, April 29
Joey Weiser interviewed at The Brain LairThursday, April 30
James Kochalka interviewed at Bumbles & Fairy TalesFriday, May 1
Mariko Tamaki interviewed at A Book and a LatteSaturday, May 2
Jorge Aguirre interviewed at The Windy PagesSunday, May 3
Luke Pearson interviewed at Mr. Schu ReadsMonday, May 4
Jeffrey Brown interviewed at For Books’ SakeTuesday, May 5
Cecil Castellucci interviewed at WinterHaven BooksWednesday, May 6
Frank Cammuso interviewed at Reading with ABCThursday, May 7
Hope Larson interviewed at The Book WarsFriday, May 8
Eric Orchard interviewed at Alice MarvelsSaturday, May 9
Kean Soo interviewed at Jenuine CupcakesSunday, May 10
Dave Roman interviewed at Amy the Frog QueenMonday, May 11
Gene Luen Yang interviewed at Finding WonderlandTuesday, May 12
Nathan Hale interviewed at Kid Lit FrenzyWednesday, May 13
John Allison interviewed at Supernatural SnarkThursday, May 14
Maris Wicks interviewed at The RoarbotsFriday, May 15
Jenni and Matt Holm interviewed at The Busy LibrarianSaturday, May 16
Craig Thompson interviewed at The Book RatSunday, May 17
Chris Schweizer interviewed at Panel PatterMonday, May 18
Sara Varon interviewed at Sharp ReadTuesday, May 19
David Rubin interviewed at Teen Lit RocksWednesday, May 20
Adventures in Cartooning interviewed at Word SpelunkingThursday, May 21
Mike Maihack interviewed at BookishFriday, May 22
John Patrick Green interviewed at Haunted OrchidSaturday, May 23
Rafael Rosado interviewed at Shae Has Left the RoomSunday, May 24
Faith Erin Hicks interviewed at Good Books and Good WineMonday, May 25
Dan Santat interviewed at Lib Laura 5Tuesday, May 26
Andy Runton interviewed at The Hiding SpotWednesday, May 27
Colleen AF Venable interviewed at Graphic PolicyThursday, May 28
Jay Hosler interviewed at My Bookish WaysFriday, May 29
Eleanor Davis interviewed at Love is Not a TriangleSaturday, May 30
Ben Hatke interviewed at YA Bibliophile
On May 2, comic book stores will kick off Children’s Book Week (May 4-10, 2015) by giving away over two million comics to younger readers on Free Comic Book Day! With over two dozen kid-friendly titles to choose from, there’s a free comic book available to help every young reader get into the spirit of Children’s Book Week, which will be celebrated the following week with more fun book-themed events, appearances from beloved children’s book authors and illustrators, and more in all fifty states.
Comics industry leaders Diamond Comic Distributors and Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) are partnering with Every Child a Reader and the Children’s Book Council to bring greater focus to what comics offer kids, with cross-industry promotions and targeted resources for parents and educators during Children’s Book Week. In addition to Free Comic Book Day, the organizations will partner with authors, publishers, and comics specialty and book retailers to create Children’s Book Week events spotlighting comics and the joy of reading at locations all over the United States!
Throughout Children’s Book Week, comic shops and bookstores, libraries, and community groups host events in every state including storytime, author appearances, displays, and more! CBLDF, the Children’s Book Council and Every Child a Reader will announce events on their websites. To get yours included, please email info@cbldf.org and cbc.info@cbcbooks.org. In the weeks to come, Diamond and CBLDF will also be creating event resources encouraging comic shop retailer participation.
To learn more about Children’s Book Week, and how you can join the fun, please visit www.bookweekonline.com. Check out official events from coast to coast at www.bookweekonline.com/official. To learn more about Free Comic Book Day, please visit www.freecomicbookday.com.