Authors inspire kids at Southwest Florida Reading Festival in Fort Myers

Reporter: Jolena Esperto
Published: Updated:

The 26th annual Southwest Florida Reading Festival is set to kick off this weekend in Lee County. The free, family-friendly event celebrates the power of reading.

The festival offers a unique opportunity for children to meet authors and get inspired. Young readers will have the chance to get their favorite books signed by authors like Nicole D. Collier and Molly Idle.

“Reading would keep your brain alive, so your brain’s not slowly losing brain cells, and you can really lose yourself in a book,” said McKayla Butler, expressing her passion for reading.

Fourth grader Piper Barraco shared her insights from Collier’s book about the essence of friendship.

“Friendship is basically about trusting, caring and kindness. To me, that’s the three main ingredients to make friendship,” said Barraco.

Fifth grader Lana Isidor gained a valuable lesson from “Just Right Jillian.”

“You shouldn’t let other people try to, like, make your personality or let other people affect how you think of yourself,” said Isidor.

Both authors visited Edison Park Elementary on Friday, sharing their love for books and reading with students.

“It’s only through developing a love of reading, not that it’s a chore, not that it’s an assignment, but that it’s something that you love, sets you up for a lifetime of being able to the world is your oyster,” said Idle.

“It took me 40 years to gather the courage to actually go after the dreams that 8-year-old Nicole had,” said Collier, “and that really is the seed of all of my books, is really, what if I had a little bit more courage.”

The Southwest Florida Reading Festival will take place Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the plaza of the Fort Myers Regional Library on First Street downtown.

The event is free, welcoming all ages, and every child and teen will leave with a free book.

WINK News is a proud sponsor of the event.

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