Storytime at the Welty House!

During the spring and summer, the Mississippi Library Commission and the Eudora Welty House and Garden teamed up to present Storytime in the Garden. MLC employees, Eudora Welty House employees, and Eudora Welty House docents all took turns reading a children’s book while sitting in the beautiful gardens of the Eudora Welty House. The featured books included a wide range of biographies focused on blues musicians, famous inventors, labor organizers, and Congressmen. These storytimes were broadcast on the Eudora Welty House and the Mississippi Library Commisssion's Facebook page.

While the storytime sessions could only be featured on Facebook for a short time, the Mississippi Library Commission has a copy of each book featured in Storytime in the Garden that can easily be checked out via our curbside checkout. The titles, authors, and a brief description of the books are listed below.

The Amazing Age of John Roy Lynch by Chris Barton and Don Tate talks about the childhood and career of John Roy Lynch, one of the first African American U.S. Congressmen and the first African American elected to serve as Speaker of the Mississippi House.

The Boo-Boos that Changed the World by Barry Wittenstein and Chris Hsu is a history of the invention of the Band-Aid and how this medical marvel went from patching up kitchen wounds to being used in battlefields.

Brave Girl by Michelle Markel and Melissa Sweet details the 1909 New York shirtwaist strike through the eyes of labor organizer Clara Lemlich.

A Computer Called Katherine by Suzanne Slade and Veronica Miller Jamison is a biography about NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, from her childhood love of math to her experiences in working on the first manned mission to the moon.

How Emily Saved the Bridge by Frieda Wishinsky and Natalie Nelson focuses on architect and engineer Emily Warren Roebling and how she helped build the Brooklyn Bridge.

Muddy by Michael Mahin and Evan Turk is a lushly illustrated biography of the Mississippi blues musician Muddy Waters.

Preaching to the Chickens by Jabari Asim and E.B. Lewis is a boyhood story of U.S. Congressman John Lewis as he practices his oratory skills at his family’s farm.

Shark Lady by Jess Keating and Marta Alvarez Miguens is a biography of scientist and biologist Eugenie Clark and the start of her lifelong fascination with sharks.

Overall, the program was a massive success. Each story routinely got likes, comments, and shares in the double digits. Each broadcast had over 350 views, with one book in particular topping out at a whopping 1,200 views! That book was Shark Lady, read and broadcast on Shark Awareness Day.

It was wonderful to partner with the Eudora Welty House and Garden for this storytime project and we hope to partner with them again in the future! The Eudora Welty House is currently offering tours, Tuesday-Friday, at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. Reservations are required, so please call or email ahead of time.