This week, Brian Selznick gets snazzy for the Wonderstruck premiere; Christmas comes early to Abilene, Tex.; a book event has a cuteness overload; Kamilla Benko takes readers on a unicorn quest; Sanae Ishida meets readers in Portland; and Will Kostakis gets his pizza and eats it too.

A ‘Wonder-ful’ Premiere

Brian Selznick came dressed to the nines for the Los Angeles premiere of Wonderstruck, held at the Los Angeles Theater on October 17. The film is based on the novel that Selznick wrote and illustrated (published by Scholastic in 2011); he also wrote the screenplay for the film, which is directed by Todd Haynes.

When Santa Calls…

Author and illustrator William Joyce celebrated the 24th anniversary reissue of his picture book Santa Calls (Atheneum) on October 21 in Abilene, Tex. The book, which is set in a fictionalized Abilene, is about a boy who travels to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus. Soon after its publication, the mayor of Abilene at that time, Dr. Gray McCaleb, reached out to Joyce and, together, they hatched the idea for the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, which opened in Abilene in 1997. The event featured a reenactment of Santa Calls. Here, Joyce and attendees are northward bound with a statue based upon a scene in the book—one of 24 children’s book-themed sculptures in Abilene.

Pig or Treat!

Author Sue Lowell Gallion took part in a storytime event at Rainy Day Books in Fairway, Kans., on October 19. She read from her Halloween-themed picture book, Pug & Pig Trick-or-Treat (S&S/Beach Lane), illustrated by Joyce Wan. The event included a tattoo station, Pug and Pig cookies, Pug and Pig masks, and a very special guest. Seen here is Eva, an eight-week-old piglet with Benjamin, Lowell’s two-month-old grandson.

Make Way for Unicorns

Author Kamilla Benko spoke to readers from Quest Academy in Palatine, Ill., on October 26. Benko discussed her inspiration for The Unicorn Quest while readers enjoyed a pizza dinner, hosted by Anderson’s Book Fair Company at their warehouse in Aurora, Ill. Here, she displays a spread featuring unicorn tapestries.

Little Lions

Sanae Ishida visited schools in Portland, Ore., to share the second title in her Little Kunoichi series, Chibi Samurai Wants a Pet (Little Bigfoot). Here, she joins students from James John Elementary School in front of their library mural.

Kicking It

Will Kostakis, author of The Sidekicks, joined Jen Lancaster, author of The Gatekeepers (both from Harlequin Teen) for a conversation and pizza feast on October 24. The event was hosted by Boswell Book Company at the Cedarburg Library in Cedarburg, Wis. Kostakis enjoyed a slice with bookseller Kelli O’Malley, who moderated the discussion.