Smyth-Bland Regional Library will host the amazing Storyshowing skills of Mackenzie “Toogy” Vanover this week as Family Fun Night concludes for the summer! Mackenzie, nicknamed Toogy, began showing stories when she was very young.
She began competing in public speaking as a middle school student and went on to be the Virginia High School League champion in Children’s Storytelling in 2007. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from University of Mary Washington and her Master of Arts degree in Children’s Literature from Hollins University. It is Toogy’s hope that through her original stories, workshops, and performances she will have a positive impact on children’s approach to learning and reading.
She will be here this week with the following schedule of appearances!:
Marion — July 23rd at 6pm
Chilhowie — July 23rd at 1pm
Saltville — July 23rd at 3:30 pm at the Palmer Mill Theatre
Bland — July 22nd at 10:30 am
She was kind enough to share some of her favorite books with us:
“One of the most important elements I enjoy in literature is humor. Who doesn’t love to laugh? And through humor, many other literary lenses can be explored, such as “girl power.” My absolute favorite picture book is “Wolves in the Walls” by Neil Gaiman. He uses a quirky situation to prove that Lucy, the protagonist, is strong enough to solve the problem independently. Jerry Spinelli’s “Stargirl” and Plum McCauley’s “It All Started with a Bicycle” are two examples of this type of fiction for middle grade readers. I adore McCauley’s book, of which I was fortunate enough to narrate the official audiobook (found on Amazon), because the author additionally uses the excitement of mystery and the chase of adventure to allow her protagonist to overcome her challenges. In my own story writing and storyshowing, I seek to let the underdog prevail. There are so many wonderful stories that embrace this type of resolution, one in particular is Berkeley Breathed’s “Edwurd Fudwupper Fibbed Big.” Humor allows the reader or, in the case of storyshowing, the observer to connect with the authors’ messages in a familiar way.”
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