Booth Library on the campus of Eastern Illinois University sponsored its 12th annual Edible Book Festival on April 4. It’s been a tradition to kick off National Library Week with this activity.

The edible creations were put on display throughout the day in the library’s foyer, and the public was invited to vote for their favorites. Viewer’s Choice awards were given to the top three vote-getters. Each winning team also received a gift card.

We were happy to present this year’s festival in person after hosting it virtually for the past few years. It’s very difficult to see all of the creativity and details of the entries in a photo! One must really see them in person to appreciate it!

Many community members participate in the festival, and some families enter every year! Some entries are astounding in their creativity and detail, while others garner votes because of their humor. For example, a popular entry this year was titled “Are you There, Cod? It’s me, Margarita,” based on the popular book by Judy Blume.

This year’s winners were as follows:

First place: “Alice’s Restaurant,” based on the book “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” by Lewis Carroll.

Second place: “Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt,” based on the book by Ben Clanton.

Third place: “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” based on the book by Roald Dahl. 

More photos and information about this year’s festival (and past festivals) will be found in the EIU institutional repository, The Keep, at https://thekeep.eiu.edu/edible_book_festivals/.

Throughout National Library Week, special snacks and drawings were provided to library staff to thank them for their hard work and dedication.

In addition, mobile whiteboards were placed throughout the library, and patrons were asked to respond to the prompt, “My Library Connects me to…,” which was the theme of National Library Week 2022.

Patron responses included “a quiet work space”; “great selection of books and a great place to study”; “free printing”; “librarian help”; “free audiobooks”; “welcoming faces”; “a nice environment”; and our favorite: “I have a 4.0 GPA and I’m a junior because of this place.”

Our guest post today is from Beth Heldebrandt, Public Relations Director, Booth Library, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, IL