Matteo by Michael Leali

Prairie Lights

Please join Prairie Lights and the LGBTQ Iowa Archive and Library for a free in-store event with author Michael Leali on Sunday, June 11th at 2:00pm! Prairie Lights will donate 10% of the day’s profits to the LGBTQ Iowa Archive and Library. Perfect for families and readers ages 8 and up, Michael Leali will read from and sign copies of, Matteo, his new novel which is a modern retelling of Pinocchio.

Matteo breathes new life into the classic story of a wooden puppet who wants to be a real boy, using the story of Pinocchio to explore themes of queer coming-of-age, toxic masculinity, community, family, and friendship. Award-winning author Cynthia Leitich Smith (Sisters of the Neversea) says about Matteo, "This enchanting, modern homage to Pinocchio reminds us anything is possible if we're true to ourselves."

Michael Leali is a graduate of the University of Iowa (2013), and is the author of the Golden Kite Award winning and Lambda Literary Award finalist, The Civil War of Amos Abernathy. Leali is an award-winning writer and educator living in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. He earned his MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Learn more about Michael at michaelleali.com and follow him @michaelleali on Instagram and Twitter.

Please join us for the reading and signing and support the LGBTQ Iowa Archive and Library!