Karen Leggett Abouraya, author of the children’s book Hands Around the Library: Protecting Egypt’s Treasured Books, will share the true story behind her book and the the joys and challenges of writing for children — including whether you can make a living at it — at the April meeting of the MWA’s Montgomery County Chapter on Saturday, April 6, 2013, at 10:00 a.m. in Room PE 135 in the Physical Education Building on the Rockville campus of Montgomery College, 51 Mannakee Street, in Rockville.
The title of Ms. Abouraya’s presentation will be “Why Write Books for Kids: How a Veteran Journalist Joins a Successful Children’s Illustrator to Write an Inspiring Story about the Middle East.” She will discuss the true story of protesters who held hands around the great library in Alexandria, Egypt, to protect it from vandals during the 2011 revolution, and how she and illustrator Susan Roth turned that story into a children’s book. Ms. Abouraya will also share slides of Ms. Roth’s exuberant collage art from the book during her presentation.
Guests are asked to please park in student parking as designated by the white lines.
About the speaker:
Karen Leggett Abouraya was a broadcast journalist for many years on WMAL Radio in Washington, where she hosted a news program that included discussions of children’s books. Her reviews have also appeared in The New York Times, the Baltimore Sun, Washington Parent and other periodicals. She is a former president and very active member of the Children’s Book Guild of Washington, DC. Currently, Karen writes for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Wildlife Refuge System, Voice of America, International Educator magazine, and other periodicals. Ms. Abouraya graduated from Brown University and met her Egyptian husband in Washington. They have two children and have been lucky enough to visit Egypt many times — especially Alexandria, her husband’s home town. You can find out more about Hands Around the Library at its official website and on Facebook.
For more information about the meeting, visit the Montgomery County Chapter website. Click here for directions to the Physical Education Building of Montgomery College’s Rockville campus.
Keyboard in Hand 