Contact: Anne-Marie Despain, Director of Library Services
San Mateo County Libraries
(650) 312-5258
MILLBRAE, CA – San Mateo County Libraries are hosting their second annual YANovCon (Young Adult Novelist Convention) at the Millbrae Library on January 28, featuring exciting writers, breakout sessions and opportunities to meet the authors. This year’s lineup includes prestigious award winners, New York Times bestsellers, and authors whose works will soon be on the big screen, including Neal Shusterman, Andrew Smith, Jessica Brody, Mariko Tamaki and many others.
“We’re delighted to bring such talented and popular writers to San Mateo County,” said Kayla Marie Figard, Teen Services Librarian at the Belmont Library, “The ‘young adult’ category is really thriving. People of all ages relate to the high emotional stakes, personal challenges and intensely imaginative world of young adult fiction.”
Combined, the fifteen participating authors have published scores of books that cover dystopias, coming-of-age stories, babysitting, genetically-engineered insects, depression, intersexuality, small town life, pandemics, witchcraft, love and personal transformation. The convention brings readers and authors together for a half-day of free interactive programming that touches on these wide-ranging subjects and themes.
“This is a very powerful way to establish bridges between libraries, readers and artists,” said Andrew Smith, presenter and author of the critically-acclaimed novel Grasshopper Jungle, “It is going to be fantastic.”
San Mateo County Libraries and the cities of Burlingame, Daly City, Menlo Park, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Mateo, and South San Francisco Libraries, provided funding for the event. Program partners include Books Inc., and the San Mateo County office of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. This year’s convention focuses on youth mental health awareness.
YANovCon takes place on January 28, 1:00-5:00 pm, at the Millbrae Library, 1 Library Avenue, Millbrae, California.
For more information, visit www.smcl.org/YANovCon.
