By Mary O’KEEFE

It was busy weekend at Once Upon a Time bookstore in Montrose. Two authors shared their new books, signed their books and answered questions from their most loyal – and excited – readers.

First of all, there were a lot of kids at these two events. Young readers came from nearby and from miles away and, in the “digital age” where virtual has become part of our everyday existence, it was impressive and uplifting that there are so many young readers who sat and listened to every word these authors spoke and then asked the most insightful and curious questions.

“[Reading] brings me into another world,” said Lincoln Elementary fifth grader Ryan Kam.

Sam Abney-Smith, a sixth grader at Gooden School in Sierra Madre, also shared his love of reading.

“I like sitting down and being quiet,” he said. “It takes you off to a different place.”

He added that he liked reading at night, especially on cloudy, rainy days like we recently had.

And Fremont Elementary third grader Wayne Elkins said reading “was fun.”

The three young readers joined others for the two events that saw well over 100 participants.

David Shannon started the day at 10 a.m. with the introduction of his new book “Gold.”

“Thank you all,” he said to the audience. “This is the first time I have been in front of people [like this] in two and a half years, and it is the first time I am reading this book,” he said, and then joked, “and it’s the first time in about 100 years it has rained here so it’s a good day.”

Shannon is a renowned Caldecott Honor recipient and New York Times  bestselling author. His books, including “No, David!,” “Bad Case of Stripes” and “Duck on a Bike,” have been constant champions of so many young readers. 

This new book is about greed. It is a retelling of the myth of Midas and his golden touch.

“Maximilian Midas was a peculiar little boy. He didn’t much like chocolate and he didn’t play with toys. The first word that he uttered when he was 1-year-old wasn’t Mama, wasn’t Papa. What Maxie said was ‘Gold,’” Shannon began the reading.

He spoke about greed and how that often leads to loneliness and the kids in the Once Upon A Time audience agreed. Shannon took questions about his book and then, being an award-winning illustrator as well, drew Max.

“One thing about this book I [didn’t realize] was how hard it is to draw gold,” he told his young fans. “Gold is very reflective and shiny.”

But he didn’t disappoint as he continued to draw while his audience seemed to hold their collective breath.

Wayne came leaping out of Once Upon a Time holding his book tightly. He was very excited about meeting Shannon. He got in line with his mom and they waited for his turn for Shannon to sign “Gold.”

“My favorite book is ‘No, David!’” Wayne said. When asked what he liked most about the author he said, “He made the book and he drew the pictures.”

The excitement of fans continued in the afternoon when it was the turn of author Stuart Gibbs to meet his young fans.

Gibbs was there to share his latest book in the Spy School series, “Spy School Project X.” It is the 10th in the book’s series.

“Ben Ripley’s longtime nemesis, Murray Hill, has put a price on Ben’s head and accused him of being at the center of a conspiracy on the Internet. Now Ben finds himself in his greatest danger yet, on the run from both assassins and conspiracy theorists,” according to the author’s website.

It is not a surprise that Gibbs was inspired by James Bond. One reader asked if he had ever been in the CIA. Gibbs joked that he couldn’t really say if he was … but he wasn’t.

He told the audience he came up with the idea for Spy School when he was about their age [fifth grade to middle school age kids], and the idea could be traced back to the first James Bond movie he ever saw, “Moonraker.”

“We [he and his friends] all ran around and pretended to be James Bond,” he said.

He wrote a story about Jimmy Bond, James’ son.

“Spy School was a tiny part of that story and I held onto it for many years,” he said.

When he returned to the idea it evolved into the Spy School series.

The audience of young readers asked many, many questions. They wanted to know about future character plots and future series – would there be an 11th book in the Spy School series?

He was also asked how long it takes to write a book from an idea.

“I spend about a year playing around with ideas before I start writing the book,” he said.

He does research for the storyline and then writes a “big outline.”

“Then I write the first draft [that takes] about three to six months, and then after that I can do a bunch of other drafts,” he explained.

After editing, editor notes and about eight to 10 drafts, the book is ready.

He said one of his favorite things about being an author is meeting with young readers, like those at Once Upon a Time bookstore. He added the hardest thing about writing is getting the book started.

Gibbs has four series of books including the FunJungle book series. He told the audience that there would be a new FunJungle book released in February 2023.

        “It is the first book [I wrote] that will take place in LA,” he said.

He then gave a sneak peak of the plot explaining that it starts with a whale that gets washed up on the beach in front of the Malibu Colony but, before anyone can find out why it washed up there, it explodes.

This brought laughter from his fans.

        “[His books] are always exciting and there are explosions,” Ryan said. He added that the Spy School series is his favorite because the story takes the reader around the world.

        “I like the author [because] he can always make it seem fun. I think if someone else was writing this series it would be boring,” said Sam. “[Gibbs] has fun and interesting characters and there is something there for everyone.”

Once Upon a Time is the oldest children’s bookstore still operating in the nation. This is an even more impressive feat since the pandemic caused many stores to shutter but, as long at as there are happy young readers, authors who are as excited about their books as the kids are and a special bookstore like Once Upon a Time, children will be able to celebrate boundless imagination.