The Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at California State University, Fresno and the International Wizard of Oz Club will host a national conference, “Oz: The Books,” May 14-16 on the Fresno State campus.
Featured speakers are:
- Gregory Maguire, author of “Wicked”
- Michael Patrick Hearn, author of “The Annotated Wizard of Oz”
- John Fricke, co-author of “The Wizard of Oz: An Illustrated Companion to the Timeless Movie Classic”
- Kathleen Krull, author of “The Road to Oz: Twists, Bumps and Triumphs in the Life of L. Frank Baum”
- Eric Shanower, graphic novelist and author/artist of “Adventures in Oz.” A musical, “Time Again in Oz,” will be performed by Fresno State Theatre Arts Department students, directed by J. Daniel Herring.
Playwright Suzan L. Zeder, who based “Time Again” on the third Oz book, “Ozma of Oz,” also will be a speaker. In addition to the conference events, students in grades 4-12 are invited to enter a short story in “Oz: The Writing Contest,” running in conjunction with the “Oz: The Books” conference. The contest – open to any California student, including those who are home-schooled – challenges young writers to create original fiction based on “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and the 13 other Oz books written by L. Frank Baum. The entry deadline is Jan. 29.
The Arne Nixon Center Advocates will sponsor the conference reception. Community sponsors include Fresno Pacific University and the Fresno County Public Library.
For more information, contact Angelica Carpenter President of the International Wizard of Oz Club and curator of the Arne Nixon Center, at angelica@csufresno.edu or 559.278.8116.
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