2026
Bookmarks Festival of Books and Authors Bookmarks Festival of Books and Authors
Some book events are about looking for your next book, while others are about meeting the people who make those books possible. Bookmarks Festival of Books & Authors brings both together, creating a place where readers can meet writers, listen to their stories, and enjoy books with other people who love them. The festival has become the largest annual book festival in the Carolinas, welcoming more than 30,000 attendees each year and bringing together authors from different parts of the country.
The value of the festival comes from the simple connection between readers and authors. With talks, discussions, signings, and events for different ages, Bookmarks gives people a chance to experience books in a more personal way. The 2026 festival is also bringing well-known voices such as John Green for its opening keynote and Jodi Picoult for its closing keynote, giving readers even more reasons to come together around stories.
For Kravitz and Sons, being part of a celebration like this means more than simply putting books on display. It means giving our authors and their stories another chance to meet readers who may be looking for something new.
And speaking of stories worth discovering, Created Critters with Fur and Wings by Ben Cooper brings a fun way of looking at animals, faith, and the world around us to the festival. The book explores the beauty and variety of God’s creation, taking readers from animals that fly through the skies to creatures that walk across the land. With rhymes, animal facts, life-like illustrations, hidden critters, and biblical lessons, the book gives families something to read, look for, and talk about together.
A Writer Who Loves Creation
There are some writers who write about a subject because they find it interesting, and then there are writers who have spent much of their lives around it. Ben Cooper belongs to the second group. Growing up on a family farm in Western Pennsylvania gave him an early connection with animals and the outdoors. That interest later led him to study Agricultural Science at Penn State University and work for more than 30 years with the Maryland Department of Agriculture as an Agricultural Specialist.
Cooper also brings his faith into his work. He graduated from the Cornerstone Bible Institute and has spent years speaking about God’s creation, teaching beekeeping, mentoring students, serving through his church, and taking part in short-term mission trips. His work with animals and nature gives his writing a personal feeling because the subjects he writes about are things he has spent years observing and learning from.
His writing career has also grown beyond the Created Critters books. Cooper is a contributing writer for Guideposts’ All God’s Creatures devotional series and has written for other faith-based collections. His earlier book All Nature Sings has received multiple awards, including a Silver Medal in the 2020 Illumination Awards and both the Wright Medal and Maxwell Medal from Serious Writer. He was also recognized with the Maryland Freestate Beekeeper Citizenship Award in 2017 for his work involving beekeeping legislation.
Discovering the World of Critters
Created Critters with Fur and Wings is built around a simple idea: animals can teach us something about the world and about ourselves. The book brings together creatures from the land and sky, showing their different traits through rhyming verses, animal facts, detailed illustrations, and biblical connections. Instead of simply telling children facts about animals, the book gives them several things to do while reading.
One of the fun parts is the hidden-image feature. Young readers can look closely through the illustrations and search for hidden critters while learning about the animals on each page. This gives parents and children a reason to slow down and explore the pictures together. The rhymes also make the information easier and more enjoyable for younger readers, while the faith-based lessons add another part for families to discuss.
The bigger lesson of the book is about creation, purpose, and faith. Each animal has its own special traits, and those traits are connected to ideas about God’s wisdom, creativity, love, and care. The book also reminds young readers that they are part of that creation and are wonderfully made with purpose. It can be enjoyed at home, in a classroom, or during family devotion time, making it more than just a picture book.
A Book to Explore Together
Books can teach children many things, but the best ones can also make them stop, look closer, and ask questions. Created Critters with Fur and Wings does exactly that by mixing animals, rhymes, pictures, hidden surprises, and faith into one family-friendly reading experience. If you are looking for a book that children can enjoy while also giving parents something meaningful to talk about, this is a book worth opening.
Created Critters with Fur and Wings
A Fun and Faith-Filled Journey Through God’s Amazing Animal Kingdom
Discover the creatures, uncover the hidden surprises, and celebrate the wonderful creation waiting on every page.