This is a busy weekend all around the Twin Cities.  It’s like we are coming out of hibernation or something.  The Red Balloon Bookshop is no exception.  The have four events this weekend.  So I’m just going to do a cut and paste here.  I love the wine and cheese idea for celebrating poetry month together.  For family poetry time, you could make it grape juice and add fruit, meatballs and some cut veggies; and don’t forget your berets and striped shirts.

Joyce Sidman Poetry Reception Friday, April 13, 7pm

To celebrate National Poetry Month, join us at this wine and cheese reception with Minnesota’s own beloved poet, Joyce Sidman. Known for her fresh, inventive poetry for children — School Library Journal recently said of Sidman, “Her skill as a poet accessible to young people is unmatched” — Sidman has received numerous accolades for her poetry picture books.Her newest children’s book, Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature, reveals the spirals that occur in our world — from snail shells and sheep horns to tornados and galaxies. Described as “exquisitely simple and memorable” by Kirkus Reviews, Swirl by Swirl honors the beauty and usefulness of the captivating spiral shape.Sidman’s other award-winning books include Dark Emperor (A Newbery Honor Book), Song of the Water Boatman and Red Sings from Treetops (both Caldecott Honor Books), Butterfly Eyes (Cybils Award), and This Is Just to Say (Claudia Lewis Poetry Award).

Giggle, Giggle, Quack Storytime with Stages Theatre Company Saturday, April 14, 10:30am

Meet playwright and actress Jennifer Kirkeby from the Stages Theatre at this special Giggle, Giggle, Quack storytime. If you remember Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type, you will remember a certain very literate and mischievous Duck; this duck wreaks havoc once more when Farmer Brown takes a vacation and asks his brother Bob to watch the farm using his written instructions. Guess who finds a pencil and begins writing his own notes for brother Bob to find and follow? The Stages Theatre production of “Giggle, Giggle, Quack” runs from April 13 to May 13, 2012. See www.stagestheatre.org for more information.

Mary Losure, The Fairy Ring Saturday, April 14, 2pm

The Fairy Ring is the enchanting true story of a girl who saw fairies and another with a gift for art who concocted a story to stay out of trouble and ended up fooling the world. St. Paul author Mary Losure presents this true story as a fanciful narrative featuring the original Cottingley fairy photos and previously unpublished drawings and images from the family’s archives. A delight for everyone with a fondness for fairies and for anyone who has ever started something that spun out of control.

David Geister, illustrator of Surviving the Hindenburg Sunday, April 15, 2pm

Historical artist and illustrator David Geister introduces us to his latest book, Surviving the Hindenburg, where his detailed, dramatic artwork helps this story of the doomed airship come alive for young readers. Told from theperspective of Werner Franz, the ship’s 14-year-old cabin boy, Surviving the Hindenburg details the events leading up to this giant German airship’s destruction by fire as it attempted to land on May 6, 1937. Remarkably, of the 93 people on board, 62 survived, including Werner Franz. Today, Franz is one of the two survivors still living.

Tags: Dark Emperor, David Geister, Giggle Giggle Quack, Jennifer Kirkeby, Joyce Sidman, Mary Losure, National Poetry Month, Stages Theatre Company, Surviving the Hindenburg, Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature, The Fairy Ring, The Red Balloon Bookshop