FROM THE SHELF
CHECKING OUT THE
WORLD OF BOOKS
13
MAY 18�25, 2022
Josephy Center presents ‘Word Gobblers’ program
Go! staff
J
Ellen Morris Bishop/For the Wallowa County
Chieftain
Catherine Matthias of Joseph will read from
her “The Word Gobblers” on May 20 at the
Josephy Center.
OSEPH — The Josephy Center for
Arts and Culture will present a book
reading of “The Word Gobblers” with
author Catherine Matthias and illustrator
Joan Gilbert on Friday, May 20, 7 p.m.
The book is described as “a hand-
book for parents working with children
who struggle to read.”
Matthias will read from the book,
which is an extension of her work as an
Irlen Syndrome Screener. According to a
press release from the Josephy Center,
one in six people worldwide suff ers the
eff ects of Irlen Syndrome, which is the
inability of the brain to process certain
light waves or colors.
Matthias, who lives in Joseph, is the
author of six early reader picture books
published in English and Spanish by
Children’s Press and Scholastic Books.
Her two nonfi ction books were part of a
career series titled “I Can Be a Police Of-
fi cer” and “I Can Be a Computer Opera-
tor.” Her fi ction titles are “Over-Under,”
“Out the Door,” “I Love Cats” and “Too
Many Balloons.”
She fi rst heard of Irlen Syndrome and
the Irlen Institute from a retired college
counselor. Matthias said her two oldest
grandchildren struggled with reading,
and her friend mentioned Irlen Syn-
drome. She started doing research, and
began writing a book that became “The
Word Gobblers.”
As research, she got involved and
eventually became an Irlen Screener.
For the book, Matthias sent her manu-
script for review to Helen Irlen, origina-
tor of the study of the syndrome and
director of the Irlen Institute, who wrote
the foreword.
Gilbert has spent 30 years in graphic
design and illustration. In 2019 she
moved toward fi ne art and launched a
project titled “Wallowa Lake: 55x55” —
three-year journey exploring Wallowa
Lake while exploring mediums, styles
and techniques will culminate in a one-
person show at the Josephy Center in
October 2022.
In addition to a career in graphic de-
sign, Gilbert has volunteered teaching art
to kids in schools and camps. She worked
with the 2012 Enterprise sixth grade on a
fi ve-month animation project which led to
a six-minute animated short fi lm “Wallowa
Lake – the REAL Story,” and then, three
years later, into a children’s book of the
same name.
She has written and/or illustrated three
other children’s books: “‘Twas the Night
Before Round-Up” (author Nancy At-
terbury, 2009); “Little Prince Spaghetti”
(2011) and “The Word Gobblers” (author
Catherine Matthias, 2021).
In 2014, Joan expanded into exhibit
design where she created permanent
exhibits for the Josephy Center and de-
signed a major portion of the exhibits for
the Wallowology Natural History Discov-
ery Center.
The Josephy Center is at 403 N. Main
St. Learn more at josephy.org.
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May 24th
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