Teller of African tales at ECU lit conference

GREENVILLE, NC   (Mar. 28, 1994)   —   Ashley Bryan, an acclaimed writer and illustrator of books containing African stories for young people, will be the guest speaker for the East Carolina University Children’s Literature Conference, April 8.

Sponsored by the Department of English, the conference attracts public school teachers, librarians, writers, professors and interested citizens. Sessions begin Friday morning at the Willis (Regional Development Institute) Building. Bryan’s address will begin at 1 p.m. A native New Yorker, Bryan teaches painting and drawing at Dartmouth College and is the author and illustrator of a dozen books for children. Most of his books are stories from Africa. His latest release, “The Story of Lightning and Thunder,” was published in 1993 by Atheneum Publishers. Several other books, including “What A Morning!,” and “Walk Together Children,” are illustrations of Black American spirituals. Bryan lives on a small island off the coast of Maine. When he is not working on a book project, he paints landscapes from the island. He said he developed his interest in African stories while studying at the Cooper Union Art School. He later started retelling the African stories associated with some of the art found in New York museums and libraries. 

The author will participate in the ECU event as the Nellvena Duncan Eutsler Lecturer. In addition to the main speaker, three other children’s literature specialists will give presentations at the conference. They are Ann Sullivan of Greenville’s Sadie Saulter School, Constance Mellon of the ECU Department of Library Science, and Frances Bradburn of the ECU Joyner Library staff. 

For additional information about the conference and to register, call the ECU Division of Continuing Education and Summer School at (919) 757-6143.