When Edith Tarbescu was a child, her father spoke of a boy from his Hungarian village whose tongue got stuck to a wrought-iron fence and stayed frozen that way till the spring.
She never knew whether to believe the tale or not, although he insisted it was true. She later embellished upon his story and published her own folktale, “The Boy Who Stuck out His Tongue.”
She will present this and another children’s book, “Annushka’s Voyage,” during the 13th annual Contra Costa Jewish Book Festival’s KIDZcorner on Sunday, Nov. 4 at the Contra Costa Jewish Community Center in Walnut Creek. The festival runs through Wednesday, Nov. 14.
Tarbescu, who has “had a library card from the time I could barely write my name,” will travel from her home in Placita, N.M., to take part in the festival. She will be speaking at noon and 1 p.m.
“I think it’s important to engage children in reading,” she explained. “You can travel all over the world, even into outer space, through books. You can relate to characters who make you feel less weird and you can also learn about yourself, as well as other cultures.”
Along with Tarbescu, KIDZcorner will feature other authors of children’s books, such as Matt Biers-Ariel of Davis, the former education director of the Marin JCC. At 1:30 p.m. he will present “Solomon and the Trees,” a midrash about King Solomon, which comes to explain why Jews plant trees on Tu B’Shevat.
“I’ve always felt Judaism and environment are very closely entwined,” said Biers-Ariel, who is currently working on another children’s book about the environment, “The Seven Sacred Species of Israel.”
“My message to children is it’s not enough just to know about our environment. We have a visceral feel for it, take responsibility for it, get out into the woods and have an emotional attachment to the world.”
Also at KIDZcorner, Professor Shira Lubliner, the author of “A Practical Guide to Reciprocal Teaching,” will talk to parents about improving their children’s reading skills at 12:30 p.m.
A magic show with the Amazing Leo Luna, storytelling with Nina Auslander and a puppet show with Jen Miriam Kanter will take place as well. Complimentary arts and craft activities, including one to create-your-own bookmark, will be held throughout the day, along with face painting.
“The idea is to make it fun for the kids so they can associate books with enjoyment and not merely a part of their school life,” said Riva Gambert, director of community programming for the Jewish Federation of the Greater East Bay. The federation’s Center for Jewish Living and Learning and the CCJCC are sponsoring the KIDZcorner, now in its second year, as well as the festival. Other KIDZcorner sponsors include Mount Diablo ORT and the Contra Costa Jewish Day School.
“Reading opens up a door that allows them to meet other people, time-travel, learn how to do things, be contemplative,” said Gambert. “It should be considered a positive experience.”
Tarbescu wanted to get involved in the book fair because it exposes a “large spectrum of books to people who might not otherwise find them.” Jewish book fairs, she said, “have it all — Jewish history, spirituality, religion as well as novels, nonfiction and children’s books.”
Biers-Ariel, a public school teacher, hopes that KIDZcorner will encourage children to come up with stories of their own.
“It’s a profound experience to be able to create your own story and show it to friends. A book festival kind of gives them that permission,” he said. “There is magic in it, but everybody has the magic. Everyone has the creative ability.”
The festival will also feature many authors and activities for adults. For instance, Edwin Black will speak on his investigative book “IBM and the Holocaust” on Wednesday, Nov. 7. Author Amy Borowsky will tell the comedic tale of her mother as detailed in “Amy’s Answering Machine,” on Saturday, Nov. 10. And on Wednesday, Nov. 14, Iddo Netanyahu — the brother of the former prime minister — will offer an insider’s view of his brother Jonathan’s role in Israel’s 1976 Entebbe hostage rescue mission.