Scores of families and children turned out for the inaugural Chronicles of Coryn Children's Book Festival, held at Sound Forge, on October 1.
The atmosphere was busy, with children of all ages present – from babes in arms to teenagers. People lined up to enjoy the bouncy castle, get their faces painted, play football and Scrabble, indulge in cotton candy and snow cones, get food from food carts, and buy books and crafts from the vendors present.
Some sat in an area close to the front of the stage on cushions to watch performances and interact with the performers, including Coryn herself.
[caption id="attachment_1039044" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Characters Rapunzel, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White perform a skit at the Chronicles of Coryn Children's Book Festival at The Sound Forge, Port of Spain, on October 1. - Ayanna Kinsale[/caption]
Port of Spain deputy mayor Abena Hartley said the event was a special one. She presented Coryn with the Coryn Ayanna Clarke award “for inspiring the children of TT to read and go after all of their dreams.”
“I met Coryn about two weeks ago, and the mayor and I were so happy for her to come and visit us at City Hall, because we thought 'wow, look at this young brilliant mind that has written seven whole books,' and it’s always a good inspiration for us all to always use our imagination and never think we need to put any limits on ourselves.
“We are very proud of you and we encourage you to continue to create these types of events for our children so that we can all step out of our minds and into our imaginations. In the city we will continue to create spaces for children that are child-friendly, because in our society, if we don’t create such spaces, we see the end results."
She thanked parents for bringing their children out to support Coryn.
“This is a true testament of, if you pour into your child, what can come out and the sky’s the limit.
[caption id="attachment_1039045" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Cirron Rigault shows off his football skills at the Chronicles of Coryn Children's Book Festival. - Ayanna Kinsale[/caption]
“So I want every parent here today to be inspired. If tomorrow they bring up the most unimaginable thing, I want you to say, 'let’s try it out,' because Coryn has shown us that in seven years, seven books is possible,” Hartley said.
Port of Spain mayor Chinua Alleyne said he is always happy to support any education-centric activity.
“I had the opportunity to meet Coryn when she did a courtesy call at my office. She’s a brilliant, amazing, bright young lady, I think she has an amazing future and anything I can do to support that, I’m happy to do that.
[caption id="attachment_1039046" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Author Coryn Clarke with Paper Based Bookshop owner Joan Dayal, at the Chronicles of Coryn Children's Book Festival at The Sound Forge, Port of Spain. - Ayanna Kinsale[/caption]
“The turnout is amazing. I’m aware there’s a lot of interest for us to do this event in other places, and I don’t think any
