Peek-A-Boo Buckaroo

Thursday morning, November 17th at 10:00 a.m. is Cowboy Time at Stephens Central Library! 

Storytime children, ages birth through five, will be entertained and educated by award-winning cowgirl poet, singer/songwriter, and horsewoman, Aspen Black.  Aspen brings her newest poetry book, "Peek-A-Boo, Buckaroo!" to life through interactive games, call and response, a role-playing craft, musical interpretation, hands-on exploration of authentic saddles, bridles, bits, and other horse items. "Peek-A-Boo, Buckaroo" is currently a Top-Five nominee for 2016 Western Music Association Poetry Book of the Year.

On Thursday afternoon at 5:00 p.m., Aspen will guide teen writers of all genres to tap an endless stream of story ideas in the world around them in her “Everyday Inspirations” writing workshop. Black says, “The biggest problem that writers come to me with is ‘I want to write, but I don’t know what to write about’.  Maybe someone has a general topic in mind, but doesn’t know where to start, or is in the middle of writing a song, poem, novel, blog, or even a series of social media posts, and gets stuck.”  When asked why this is such a common problem, Black replied “I think a lot of people believe that writing has to be formal, fancy, or come from somewhere bigger in the world than what most of us perceive to be our boring, daily, life.  But the truth is, there’s millions of great ideas swirling around us, in each moment, just waiting to be captured. I help writers unbuckle the blinders and open their senses to the unending inspiration popping out of normal, everyday life.”

Aspen Black is a singer/songwriter, poet, non-fiction author, multi-instrumentalist, artist, and horsewoman. Based in Rocky Mount, VA, she travels the country giving children’s programs, concerts of original music and poetry, and workshops for all ages. Aspen’s “Eastern Western Cowgirl” CD won the 2015 Rural Roots Music Commission Female Country-Western CD of the Year. She is a 2016 Top-Five nominee and 2015 Top-Five finalist for Western Music Association (WMA)  Female Poet of the Year, a 2016 Top-Five nominee and 2015 Top-Five finalist for WMA Cowboy Poetry CD of the Year, a 2016 Top-Five nominee for WMA Poetry Book of the Year, and winner of the singing contest at the 2016 National Traditional Country Music Association Festival.

Assisting Aspen will be her eleven-year-old daughter, Alice. Alice lives on the family horse ranch and writes about the western lifestyle, both modern and historical, from a child’s point of view.  She won first place in the youth poetry competition at the Georgia Cowboy Gathering & Western Festival in 2014, was an invited performer at the 2015 Durango Cowboy Poetry Gathering, a finalist in Southwest Virginia’s “Franklin County’s Got Talent” contest as a five-year-old and eight-year-old, and is the youngest member of the Southwest Virginia Songwriter’s Association and the Bald Knob Artists. Alice recently finished recording her first CD, “The Yodelin’ Mule”, for which she wrote all but one selection, sang lead vocals, and played the mandolin and banjo. You can find out more about Aspen and Alice Black by visiting www.aspenblackcowgirl.com.

The Stephens Central Library, part of the Tom Green County Library System, is at 33 West Beauregard in San Angelo. The “Peek-a-Boo Buckaroo” children’s program will be at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 17th.

Everyone is invited to dress up cowboy style and join in the fun.  The teen writing workshop, “Everyday Inspirations,” will take place at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday.  Participants should bring one small object and photo from home, along with a pen or pencil and a notebook.

For more information, contact Sally Meyers, Children’s Librarian, at (325) 655-7321, ext. 1104, or Vanessa Hartel, Youth Librarian, at (325) 655- 7321, ext. 1128.