Banned Books Week annually celebrates the freedom to read. Highlighting the value of free and open access to information, Banned Books Week brings together librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types in shared support of the freedom to seek, to publish, to read, and to express ideas. The Library is hosting a series of events September 25-October 1 celebrating the freedom to read with some of your favorite children's authors! 

• Sun September 25: Author Event with Gene Luen Yang 
• Wed September 28: Tough Topics in Middle Grade: Author Panel 
• Thurs September 29: Stranger Things in Middle Grade: Author Panel (at Bklyn Library) 
• Sat October 1: Author Event with Katherine Paterson 

Reading Without Walls: Author Event with Gene Luen Yang (and special guest Walkaround Grover!)

Join the New York Public Library in partnership with Sesame Workshop (the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street!) on Sunday September 25 from 10:30 AM-12 PM (doors open at 10:15 AM), as we welcome the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Gene Luen Yang, joined by his furry friend, Sesame Street’s Walkaround Grover, to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the Sesame Street classic storybook,The Monster at the End of this Book. Yang will read aloud this time-honored tale (first published in 1971 by Little Golden Books) and will discuss his 'Reading Without Walls' initiative, which encourages readers to explore books of diverse voices, genres, and formats. 

This ticketed event is free and open to the public. Registration required. 

Tough Topics in Middle Grade: Author Panel 

Presented in partnership with iLoveMG please welcome the following guests* to the library Wednesday September 28 from 6-8 PM: 

• Paul Griffin: When Friendship Followed Me Home
• James Howe: The Misfits series 
• Kathleen Lane: The Best Worst Thing
• Nora Raleigh Baskin: Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story
• Rita Williams-Garcia: Gaither Sisters series (One Crazy Summer, P.S. Be Eleven, Gone Crazy in Alabama) 

With special Guest Moderator author Phil Bildner.

*Author Panel subject to change due to author availability 

This ticketed event is free and open to the public. Registration recommended. 

Stranger Things in Middle Grade Author Panel (at Bklyn Library) 

Presented in partnership with iLoveMG please welcome the following guests* to the library Thursday September 29 from 6-8 PM

• Tracy Baptiste: The Jumbies 
• Kelly Barnhill: The Girl Who Drank the Moon 
• Max Brallier The Last Kids on Earth series
• G.D. Falksen: The Transatlantic Conspiracy
• Chris Gabenstein: Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library and Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Olympics
• Doogie Homer: Kid Legend series (Kid Presidents, Kid Athletes, and Kid Artists) 

With Moderator Christopher Lassen from the Brooklyn Public Library and New York Public Library.

*Author Panel subject to change due to author availability 

This ticketed event is free and open to the public. For more information visit: https://goo.gl/iLW2ND 

The Great Gilly Hopkins: Author Event with Katherine Paterson 

Join the New York Public Library Saturday October 1 from 2-3 PM as we welcome Katherine Paterson and her sons, David and John, to discuss Ms. Paterson's enduring young adult classic THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS and new feature film version of THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS debuting in theaters and On Demand October 7. 

This ticketed event is free and open to the public. Registration recommended.