ALSC preconference to focus on The Literature of Fact

Contact: Meredith Parets


312-280-2166

For Immediate Release


March 5, 2003

ALSC preconference to focus on "The Literature of Fact"

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA) has announced that its annual preconference will focus on informational materials for youth. Titled "The Literature of Fact," the preconference will take place Thursday, June 19, and Friday, June 20, before the start of the ALA Annual Conference in Toronto.

"I trace the term 'Literature of Fact' to the name of a seminar that my favorite American essayist, Pulitzer Prize-winner John McPhee, has long offered at Princeton," explains ALSC President Barbara Genco. "This term is synonymous with all that is exceptional and valued in contemporary American expository writing. With the advent of the ALSC-administered Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award in 2001, we have seen a growing awareness of distinguished factual writing for children in libraries, in schools, and in the marketplace. This preconference will both celebrate the essence of Sibert Medal-winning books and explore the entire process of bringing an exceptional informational book from writer to reader."

The preconference will open with a program Thursday evening, 7-9 p.m. at the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) Studios. Following welcoming remarks by Genco, Sydney Taylor Award winner Karen Levine ("Hana's Suitcase") will speak. A reception and tour of CBC studios will conclude the evening's events.

Friday's day-long program will feature panel discussions on topics including "Selecting and Evaluating Nonfiction for Children's Collections," "The Work of the Writer in Nonfiction," and "Fabulous Informational Websites for Children." Other speakers will include Robert F. Sibert Award winners Jim Giblin ("The Life and Death of Adolf Hitler"), Susan Campbell Bartoletti ("Black Potatoes"), and Marc Aronson ("Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado").

Registration
for the ALA Annual Conference and the ALSC Preconference in Toronto is now available.