CLEARFIELD – The Joseph & Elizabeth Shaw Public Library will host local authors Kerry and Kelly Jesberger on Sept. 18 at 10:30 a.m. Kerry and Kelly will be reading their first children’s picture book A Thief in Sunnyside! The book will be on sale during the event, with activities and a book signing to follow the reading. Refreshments will also be provided on Saturday.
A Thief in Sunnyside! is a mystery/adventure story ideal for children ages 3 through 9. The story is about two friends who are playing ball in the park when they hear a cry for help. The gardener’s flowers have been pulled up by the roots! As they travel deeper into the town, they find that other things have gone missing too! Will Rocco and Mindy, with the help of a bumbling Private Eye, be able to crack the case?
A Thief in Sunnyside! deals with the concepts of stealing, apology, and friendship. It is ideal for children in 2nd and 3rd grade because it helps to build vocabulary.
Twins Kelly and Kerry Jesberger were born and raised in Elk County, Pennsylvania. Both showed a flair for the creative at a very early age. Kelly began drawing around the age of six, and showed a remarkable ability to accurately render pictures that she saw in books. Kerry discovered in elementary school that she loved to write and would spend hours on an old laptop writing stories. Later, she discovered that she also had a knack for using the computer to generate art.
Both girls knew by the time that they graduated from St. Marys Area High School in 2006, that they wanted to enter careers in the arts. In an illustration class during their freshman year at Clarion University, the idea for Sunnyside was born. Assigned as a class project, Kelly drew a comic strip called “Sunnyside Up” that featured the characters of Rocco, Mindy and Hallow. Kerry, thinking the comic strip was quite funny, made the comment that it could easily be turned into a children’s book. Some of the illustrations were revised, drawn and colored more than once. Kerry and Kelly Jesberger, who graduated from Clarion University in 2010 and now reside in Clearfield County, hope that you and your children enjoy the little town of Sunnyside as much as they enjoyed creating it.
Please contact Shaw Public Library at 814-765-3271 with questions or for additional information. The library is open Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., and Fridays from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. Additional information can also be found on Shaw Public Library’s Web site at www.clearfield.org/shaw.