Seven of children's literature's biggest names are descending on North Kansas City this weekend, headlined by Matthew Burgess and Cátia Chien, the author-illustrator pair behind Fireworks, the picture book that won this year's Randolph Caldecott Medal. The Lucky Rabbit Literature Festival runs October 1 through 3, mixing school programming, a free public book signing and a full day of sessions for adults at the National WWI Museum and Memorial.
The festival is presented by the Rabbit hOle, the children's-book-centered museum located at 919 E 14th Ave in North Kansas City, which is hosting the event in partnership with Missouri Humanities, according to rabbitholekc.org. Beyond Burgess and Chien, the lineup includes Cece Bell, Nina Crews, Shawn Harris, Taylor Norman and Mark Alan Stamaty, presenters whose collective honors include the Caldecott Medal, a Newbery Honor, an Eisner Award and the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, per the same organization. Registration and event details are available at LuckyRabbitFest.org, though the host notes that space for each event is limited.
Fireworks Follows Siblings Through a City Night
Fireworks, published by Clarion/HarperCollins on May 13, 2025, tells the story of two siblings on an adventure through the city that culminates in a fireworks display, according to reporting from KCUR. NPR described the book similarly, noting it follows two young siblings as they eagerly await the start of a July 4th fireworks show. Chien's illustrations relied on a mixed-media approach, built with pastels, pencils, paint and scratch board, as detailed on matthewjohnburgess.com.
The book has drawn recognition beyond the Caldecott. KCUR's report states that Fireworks received the Charlotte Zolotow Award for Outstanding Writing in Picture Books, while matthewjohnburgess.com describes the same honor as a Charlotte Zolotow Honor for Outstanding Writing in a Picture Book. Chien received the Caldecott Medal specifically for her illustrations, per KCUR's account, while Burgess is a poet, educator and author and Chien works as an illustrator and painter.
A Close Creative Partnership Going Back Years
Burgess and Chien have collaborated before, including on The Bear and the Moon, published in 2020. Burgess has said his collaboration with Chien is unusually close, and KCUR's report notes that he specifically wanted Chien to illustrate Fireworks. Chien, for her part, has said that reading Fireworks reminded her of her sister and of childhood memories in Brazil, according to the station's reporting.
Kids Day and the Adult Conference Schedule
The festival's programming splits across two main events. Kids Day happens Friday, October 2, at the Rabbit hOle, with a morning session for grades 1 through 3 running 9 to 11:30 a.m. and an afternoon session for grades 4 through 6 from noon to 2:30 p.m., according to rabbitholekc.org. A free public book signing follows that same day, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the museum.
The adult conference takes place the next day, Saturday, October 3, at the J.C. Nichols Auditorium inside the National WWI Museum and Memorial at 2 Memorial Drive in Kansas City, Missouri. The host site lists the conference running 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and open to ages 18 and up, aimed at educators, writers, artists, parents and book lovers, while KCUR's account describes the day's sessions running 9 to 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 to 3 p.m. Tickets for the adult day are $80 for the full conference or $45 for a single session, according to the same KCUR report.
Burgess and Chien are set to appear at the festival on October 2 in North Kansas City, alongside the five other presenters rounding out this year's lineup. With registration capped and space limited across events, organizers are directing interested attendees to LuckyRabbitFest.org for the latest availability.
