CHRISTOPHER PAUL CURTIS
LENOX HILL NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE
IN MANHATTAN
MARCH 10 - MARCH 14, 2003

Christopher speaks with children attending Lenox Hill Neighborhood Center's After School Program.

Christopher Paul Curtis met with more than 125 preschoolers, elementary students, pre-teens and teenagers, English for Speakers of Other Languages students, and senior citizens during his week-long residency at Lenox Hill Neighborhood House.

Christopher was a "natural" with seven groups of preschoolers. Because Christopher's books, Bud not Buddy and The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 are geared toward an older audience, Christopher read two picture books to the groups. He read with such animation and energy that many of the children had no trouble reproducing the story afterward in a book-making activity.

As preparation for Christopher's visit, about fourteen adults from the English for Speakers of Other Languages group were given copies of The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 to read. When Christopher arrived, they all wanted to discuss sources of his ideas for many of the scenes in the book. The participants, who hail from Brazil, China, Guatemala, Japan, and Mexico, noticed that all of the characters in the book had a nickname. The session ended with the participants explaining their own nicknames and the meanings behind them.

All photos: Sherrie Young.

Readers ranging from eight to thirteen-years old who attend the Lenox Hill After-School Program met with Christopher to ask questions about his books and his writing life. All of the participants were given one of Christopher's books to keep. He spoke about his career as a factory worker, a dock worker, and a mail clerk before he became a full-time writer. Christopher told them that writing is fun for him and that he can't think of anything else he rather be doing. He left the groups with the message: do what you have a passion for in life.

The teens asked Christopher many questions about his life before he became a writer. Christopher spoke to the teens very candidly about the choices he made in life; for instance, not to attend college after high school because he was making a lot of money working on the assembly line. However, it was the assembly line that gave him the opportunity and the discipline to write. The teens also shared their hopes and dreams with Christopher.

Dell Yearling, an imprint of Random House's Children's Books, generously donated all books for this program.