The 22nd annual Orange County Children’s Book Festival will take place Sunday, September 20, at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa. The free event runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will use areas across the campus, including the Main Quad and OCC Planetarium, according to Orange Coast College. Free parking will be available in Lots C, D and E.
Program includes authors and family activities
Author and illustrator Rachel Ignotofsky is scheduled to present in the OCC Planetarium Dome at 11 a.m. Comedian and children’s author Jesús Trejo, comedian Melissa Villaseñor and KidTime StoryTime are also on the program, according to Orange Coast College.
The festival will offer author interviews and live readings on four stages, along with character encounters, hands-on activities, food trucks and free train rides, according to the Los Angeles Times and Orange Coast College.
Charity Harris is returning
Accessibility at Orange Coast College
For accessibility planning, Orange Coast College's Accessibility Resource Center says the college's vision is a universally accessible campus whose programs, services and environments are usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for accommodations or adjustments, according to Orange Coast College's Accessibility Resource Center.
Villa Park author Charity Harris is scheduled to return after participating in the festival every year since 2019. The Los Angeles Times reports that she has published 21 children’s books, including What If We Were All the Same.
Festival history
The festival began in 2004 and was co-founded by Pat Burns and Barry Ackerman, according to the OCDE Newsroom. An Orange Coast College Foundation board agenda from January 2023 listed acquisition of the event as an agenda item, and the college and its foundation now present the festival, according to Orange Coast College Foundation.
