51ĀŅĀ×

Although those in academic libraries donā€™t often get to venture into the world of childrenā€™s literature, one University Librariesā€™ staff member has authored colorful and heartwarming picture books that explain kindness and family to even the youngest readers.

Judy Carey Nevin, manager of library services for the Hannah V. McCauley Library at OHIOā€™s Lancaster campus, will be speaking at this yearā€™s virtual Buckeye Book Fair. Carey Nevin is the author of several childrenā€™s books, and she will be participating in a Kids Book Showcase Zoom panel on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 11-11:45 a.m.

Carey Nevinā€™s most recent work, which she will speak about at the Buckeye Book Fair, is titled ā€œAll Kinds of Kindnessā€ and was released in June 2020. The book was on Amazonā€™s Best Books List for ages 0-2 for the month of July.  

ā€œI love that the book demonstrates that you can be kind, and that being kind affects you,ā€ she said. ā€œThe highlight is that there are different ways, big and small, to be kind, and that kindness makes your heart sing. Itā€™s not just about being kind to other people ā€“ it makes you feel better.ā€

Although she worked in childrenā€™s book publishing for a while, Carey Nevin said that she never thought she would be an author. When her daughter was born, however, she felt that there werenā€™t enough books about fathers, which inspired her to write her first book, ā€œWhat Daddies Like.ā€ Carey Nevin then wrote ā€œWhat Mommies Likeā€ and ā€œAll Kids are Good Kids,ā€ the latter of which was illustrated by Susie Hammer, the same person who illustrated ā€œAll Kinds of Kindness.ā€  

Carey Nevin was also asked to give a keynote lecture on working with picture books for kids ages 0-7, which focused on the importance of childrenā€™s picture books for literacy and education.

is an annual event, typically held in Wooster, Ohio, to promote Ohio authors and literacy projects. This year, the event will be held totally online on Nov. 6-14, with author lectures, interviews and panels taking place on Zoom. 

ā€œThereā€™s a lot of really good people on these panels this year, so [participants] will get to hear insights from a bunch of their favorite authors,ā€ Carey Nevin said. ā€œIā€™m hoping there will be a wider range of people attending this year because itā€™s so easy to participate in a virtual conference.ā€ 

The Book Fair also features an online book shop where authors sell signed copies of their books, and all of the proceeds from the event go toward funding literacy projects in Ohio. All of the books that authors will be presenting have been published in the past year, so Carey Nevin said that the Buckeye Book Fair was a good opportunity to hear about new releases. 

Attendance for the Buckeye Book Fair is free, but registration for each event is required. 

Register for Carey Nevinā€™s . 

Graphic design by Victor Lowe/51ĀŅĀ× Libraries