Storytime from around the World

Alan Alexander Milne (1882–1956) was the son of a Scottish schoolmaster. Milne won a scholarship to Westminster School and later read mathematics at Cambridge. His real interest was in lighthearted writing; he edited the undergraduate magazine Granta and at twenty-four he became assistant editor of Punch. After serving as a signals officer in World War I he won additional acclaim as a playwright. His great success, however, came as a writer of children’s literature after publishing a series of verses about his young son Christopher Robin (When We Were Very Young and Now We Are Six). Following the acclaim received for the Winnie-the-Pooh books, Milne published several novels as well as an autobiography, It’s Too Late Now (1939).

Lorena Romero is an author, narrator, certified Spanish translator, and a public librarian specializing in early literacy and outreach to Spanish-speaking communities. She loves to write stories that Spanish-speaking children may relate to, often drawing on her own experiences growing up as a child in Mexico City, and as a teenager in California.

Lauren Kratz had been a children’s librarian for fifteen years, including at The New York Public Library in the Bronx and now the Los Angeles Public Library. Lauren manages the Octavia Lab, a DIY makerspace at the Los Angeles Public Library. She also works as a content developer for the 2022 and 2023 Modern Library Platinum Award Winner LibraryCall, where she develops and records original and diverse stories which children can listen to from around the country.

Lorena Romero is an author, narrator, certified Spanish translator, and a public librarian specializing in early literacy and outreach to Spanish-speaking communities. She loves to write stories that Spanish-speaking children may relate to, often drawing on her own experiences growing up as a child in Mexico City, and as a teenager in California.

Lauren Kratz had been a children’s librarian for fifteen years, including at The New York Public Library in the Bronx and now the Los Angeles Public Library. Lauren manages the Octavia Lab, a DIY makerspace at the Los Angeles Public Library. She also works as a content developer for the 2022 and 2023 Modern Library Platinum Award Winner LibraryCall, where she develops and records original and diverse stories which children can listen to from around the country.

Molly Milazzo is a librarian based in Sacramento. She also has experience with audio and film production, translation, and writing. With years of experience working with refugee resettlement organizations, and having worked with many cultural groups in which knowledge is passed down primarily through oral tradition, she is a fierce believer in the importance of multi-format storytelling, and in finding ways to make stories equitable, accessible, and inclusive.