*Praise for Chris Grabenstein’s In-Person Author Visits
“Wishing I could bottle up all the joy Chris Grabenstein brought our readers today. He is a gift to children’s literature and certainly a gift for LGES students. It was a magical month of preparing for his arrival from lunch bunch book clubs to scavenger hunts in the library, our kids were so excited to meet the celebrity behind the creation of the books we’ve been enjoying.”
—Bridget Crossman, Librarian, Lake George Elementary School, New York
“I have been a teacher and principal for 35 years and I have seen many author presentations. Mr. Grabenstein’s presentation was by far the best that I have ever seen. He truly engaged the students during the presentation and motivated them to read and write. His charm, wit and sincere joy emanated throughout the presentation. How could one not be captivated while listening to his stories and ideas?”
—Thomas Famulary, Interim Principal, Fairview Elementary School
“All I can say is WOW! Chris Grabenstein’s presentation was fabulous. The kids are still (4 hours later) all abuzz about it. In my many years of being a librarian and having guest authors, this was by far the best. Thanks again.”
—Annette Hilton, Hoover School, Palo Alto, CA
“Both the students and the teachers truly enjoyed your presentation. In fact, a few of the teachers even commented that it was the best author presentation that they had ever attended.”
—Anne Snyder, Libararian, Cranbrook Schools, Bloomfield Hills, MI
“I have never received so many compliments from teachers, (in 7 years of doing 2-3 assemblies each year), who are also saying their students were enthralled by the assemblies. The real music to my ears, though, is from the not-so-enthusiastic young readers, who are stopping me to tell me, “I am already on chapter six in my book!” Could I have some of your magic, please? Aside from this, you are one of the nicest people I’ve ever met! Which is also what I’m hearing from everyone else!
Seriously, it’s not just that everyone is SAYING you were wonderful…they are saying it with great, happy facial expressions, confessions of being inspired to write, and much thankfulness for a terrific experience. I am lucky to have stumbled upon whatever brought you to my attention!”
—Nancy Rodino, Somerset School, North Plainfield, NJ
“The students and teachers all raved about your presentation. ‘Awesome!’ ‘Best author visit we ever had!’”
—Kathy Piscitello, Media Specialist, Highland School, Midland Park, NJ
“Thank you for the wonderful presentations today! I can’t tell you how many students said, ‘He was the best author visit yet!’”
—Mary Lovely, Librarian, The Episcopal School of Knoxville
“You held the audience captive with your insights, instructions, suggestions and your talent. As I said before, if you choose to embark on another career, teaching would be blessed by your presence.”
—Alice Ingle Krug, The Baylor School
APPEARANCES
Still a performer at heart, Chris Grabenstein loves presenting to groups large and small. His keynote speeches at conferences and festivals around the country have been called “funny and inspirational.”
His in-person school visits are semi-legendary. With the addition of STINKY’S STORIES and picture books, Chris now has books for every grade in elementary school.
And, thanks to Zoom and Google Meets and even Microsoft Teams, he loves dropping into classrooms and cafeterias for virtual visits, too.
Conferences, Festivals, and Keynotes
Chris has motivated dozens of conferences with his funny and inspirational “Saying Yes All The Way To Mr. Lemoncello’s Library” talk. If you’d like Chris to speak to your group, please contact Lindsey Kimery to work out all the details.
IN-PERSON VISITS
Chris Grabenstein’s fun in-person school visits are semi-legendary. He uses his skill as an improvisational comedian in presentations that gets kids laughing so much they may not even realize how much they are learning. With the addition of STINKY’S STORIES and picture books, Chris now has presentations for your K-2nd grade kiddos in addition to your 3rd-6th grade readers.
In 2023-24, Chris is only able to do a few, select in-person visits. For more information and rates, please contact Lindsey Kimery at litkeyevents@gmail.com.
VIRTUAL VISITS
Bring Chris Grabenstein into your school, classroom, or library
Chris loves making virtual visits to schools, classrooms, and library groups that have read at least one of his solo books and is now fielding requests for the 2023-24 school year (starting in September).
Priority will be given to schools or districts who’ve read one of Chris’s solo books or Shine! as a class, a grade level, or as a One School One Book event. (Chris does not do Virtual Visits focused solely on the books he has co-authored with James Patterson.)
Virtual visits are FREE as a thank you for buying Chris’s books. If you are selected for a virtual visit, proof of purchase for a minimum of 24 books will be required.
If you’re a teacher or librarian and your class/school/library group has been reading something by Chris (or Shine! by Chris and J.J.), fill out the Virtual Visit Request form, submit it, and our events coordinator Lindsey Kimery will get back to you. Lindsey is a school librarian herself and says:
“One of the best parts of my job as a school librarian is connecting kids with the authors they love. These memories last a lifetime. Over the past 16 years, I’ve hosted over 60 authors and helped numerous librarians organize and host successful author events. I am passionate about helping authors and schools work together to successfully impact the lives of readers.”
If and when your date is scheduled, please send a photo of your receipt, purchase order, packing slip, or documentation of the book donation you received to litkeyevents@gmail.com no later than 30 days prior to the event.
Sessions typically last 30 minutes. Chris will present for approximately 15-20 minutes, and then answer questions for the remainder of the time.
Chris prefers to connect via Zoom or Google Meets—with screen sharing capability turned on. Chris is not able to offer additional time for a tech check and these choices are both easy to access. Experience shows that these Virtual Visits work best when students come prepared with questions.
BONUS: If you want to talk about Shine!, co-author J.J. Grabenstein will join Chris (if she is not in the recording studio).
If you are unable to get on Chris’s calendar (slots fill up quickly), here are links to the next best thing: some FREE fun and instructional videos:
“INSIDE MR. LEMONCELLO’S LIBRARY”—Chris goes behind the scenes and discusses the inspirations for his award-winning Lemoncello series. (23 minutes)
“SHINING TOGETHER”—Chris and J.J. talk about their paths to becoming authors, the Power Of Yes when collaborating, and their co-authored book SHINE! (29 Minutes)
“LIBRARY OLYMPICS GAMES”—Chris is the Lemoncello-esque “game show host” for some Library Olympics games that you can play in your library or classroom.
*Praise for Chris Grabenstein’s In-Person Author Visits
“Wishing I could bottle up all the joy Chris Grabenstein brought our readers today. He is a gift to children’s literature and certainly a gift for LGES students. It was a magical month of preparing for his arrival from lunch bunch book clubs to scavenger hunts in the library, our kids were so excited to meet the celebrity behind the creation of the books we’ve been enjoying.”
—Bridget Crossman, Librarian, Lake George Elementary School, New York
“I have been a teacher and principal for 35 years and I have seen many author presentations. Mr. Grabenstein’s presentation was by far the best that I have ever seen. He truly engaged the students during the presentation and motivated them to read and write. His charm, wit and sincere joy emanated throughout the presentation. How could one not be captivated while listening to his stories and ideas?”
—Thomas Famulary, Interim Principal, Fairview Elementary School
“All I can say is WOW! Chris Grabenstein’s presentation was fabulous. The kids are still (4 hours later) all abuzz about it. In my many years of being a librarian and having guest authors, this was by far the best. Thanks again.”
—Annette Hilton, Hoover School, Palo Alto, CA
“Both the students and the teachers truly enjoyed your presentation. In fact, a few of the teachers even commented that it was the best author presentation that they had ever attended.”
—Anne Snyder, Libararian, Cranbrook Schools, Bloomfield Hills, MI
“I have never received so many compliments from teachers, (in 7 years of doing 2-3 assemblies each year), who are also saying their students were enthralled by the assemblies. The real music to my ears, though, is from the not-so-enthusiastic young readers, who are stopping me to tell me, “I am already on chapter six in my book!” Could I have some of your magic, please? Aside from this, you are one of the nicest people I’ve ever met! Which is also what I’m hearing from everyone else!
Seriously, it’s not just that everyone is SAYING you were wonderful…they are saying it with great, happy facial expressions, confessions of being inspired to write, and much thankfulness for a terrific experience. I am lucky to have stumbled upon whatever brought you to my attention!”
—Nancy Rodino, Somerset School, North Plainfield, NJ
“The students and teachers all raved about your presentation. ‘Awesome!’ ‘Best author visit we ever had!’”
—Kathy Piscitello, Media Specialist, Highland School, Midland Park, NJ
“Thank you for the wonderful presentations today! I can’t tell you how many students said, ‘He was the best author visit yet!’”
—Mary Lovely, Librarian, The Episcopal School of Knoxville
“You held the audience captive with your insights, instructions, suggestions and your talent. As I said before, if you choose to embark on another career, teaching would be blessed by your presence.”
—Alice Ingle Krug, The Baylor School