QC children’s author performs at Rock Island Library

The Rock Island Public Library will host local children’s author Allen McCaulley on Tuesday, July 16 as part of the library’s “Read, Renew, Repeat” summer reading program.

The 11 a.m. event will be held at the library’s Watts Midtown branch, 2715 30th St., Rock Island. McCaulley is the author of a series of hand-drawn picture books about “the wonderful moody Max,” a poodle-like character inspired by the author’s real-life dog. McCaulley will share what inspired him to become a writer and details about his series of stories starring Max.

He graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in economics and later received an MBA from the University of Iowa. In addition to his writing and other pursuits, McCaulley is the former mayor of Moline, where he still lives with his wife, Linnea. His author bio states, “My wife and I shared our lives with this incredibly smart and mischievous dog for 17 years, and when he died, it became my passion to write about him and share his spirit. I want to make young children laugh and smile, and I want them to become good readers so they can join Max on his adventures.”

The Whimsical Max series includes the first book, Max Makes Pancakes, followed by Max’s Merry Christmas and Max Sings ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game.’ Wooden puzzles are also available on the author’s website here.

The event is free and open to all ages. For more information, click here, call 309-732-READ or follow the Rock Island Library on social media.

The library’s Read, Renew, Repeat summer reading challenge runs through July 31. The library encourages adults, children and teens to read for at least 1,000 minutes, which is about 16 minutes per day. The library has set a community goal of 500,000 minutes for the challenge for all ages, and participants can sign up at any time.