CLOSING KEY NOTE: Ashley Bryan--A Tender Bridge

Author and illutrator Ashely Bryan is offering the closing keynote. He started off by leading 1,000 plus people in reciting a poem (which was pretty awesome to witness):

"The night is beautiful,
So the faces of my people.
The stars are beautiful,
So the eyes of my people.
Beautiful, also, is the sun.
Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people"
~ Langston Hughes

As he speaks with young readers he helps open up the words for them by using poetry. Poetry, he says, opens up the voice--poetry needs performers. He thinks of the book as a replacement for the oral tradition.

Ahsley Bryan's hard to blog, dear readers.

He's performing.

He's reciting,

He's energetic.

He's AMAZING.

When was the last time you belted out a poem? Give it a try. PERFORM.