Illustrators have long loved children's books for the freedom they offer to explore a wide range of styles. That range was on display Saturday as some of South Orange and Maplewood's top illustrators showed off and talked about their work at the SOMe Book Fest at Sparkhouse Kids and the South Orange Public Library.

The Book Fest, done in collaboration with Main Street South Orange and Celebrate South Orange, is a celebration of local talent. The aim is to spotlight people "right here in our backyards," in the words of SOMe Book Nook owner Marietta Zacker.

"Sometimes local libraries and schools reach out to authors in, let's say, California," Zacker said, "while there are so many local authors they can easily call and say, 'Why don't you do a school visit?'"

"South Orange pulls many people who used to live in New York City and it's an artist community in all kinds of ways," said participating writer Meredith Sue Willis. Both South Orange and Maplewood "have become popular with people in the arts. It's a very welcoming community."

Patch photographer Barry Kaufman was on hand to capture some of the magic at Saturday's discussion.