Inspiring Young Writers in Jax
Every summer, Jacksonville's up-and-coming young writers compete for cash prizes and scholarships in the James Weldon Johnson Young Writers Festival. The brainchild of Matriarch Sharon Coon, Founder of The Friends of Brentwood Public Library, Inc., the event includes includes a three-day workshop series for youth in grades 3-12 and a student showcase.
This year, Michael L. Printz and Coretta Scott King award-winning author Greg Neri joins the Festival as a guest of honor. He is also the next featured author in our Junior Lit Chat author series! So, whether your kids are participating in the Festival or they just love books, they'll have a chance to meet him and possibly get inspired to become a published author themselves!
FREE Author Talk & Book Giveaway
Join us for a Junior Lit Chat with Greg Neri from 4:30 to 5 p.m. on Friday, June 13, at Brentwood Branch Library. Note: A limited number of copies of My Antarctica will be given away to school-age children in attendance, (on a first-come, first-served basis). An audience Q&A and book signing will follow.
Check out Greg Neri's books from the Library!
Greg Neri is the author of the bestselling Yummy: the Last Days of a Southside Shorty and Ghetto Cowboy, which was made into the movie, Concrete Cowboy, starring Idris Elba. His books have been translated into multiple languages in over 25 countries. They include My Antarctica, Safe Passage, The Collectors, Tru & Nelle, Grand Theft Horse, Christo and Jeanne-Claude Wrap the World, Hello, I’m Johnny Cash, and Chess Rumble.
In 2017, Neri was awarded the first of two National Science Foundation grants that sent him to Antarctica; he is currently co-chair of the Antarctic Artists and Writers Collective. In 2023, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from SUNY for his literary and Antarctic output. He writes full-time while living on the Gulf Coast of Florida with his wife and daughter.
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