Families across Hyde Park, Oakley, and Mount Lookout have a free downtown option to kick off the school year: a live performance by Eric Litwin, the original author of the Pete the Cat picture books, at the Cincinnati Public Library's Main Library on August 8.

The "Rockin' into School" event runs from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at 800 Vine St. Litwin will sing, play guitar, and perform for kids, followed by a book signing and photos. The event is free and open to the public.

Beyond the main performance, the library is filling the space with activities aimed at elementary-age children: a Pete the Cat mascot meet-and-greet, a button-making station, a dance floor, games including Pin the Button on Pete and Tic-Cat-Toe, coloring pages, airbrush tattoos and balloon animals from Little Fox Faces, and Kona Ice.

Litwin's Pete the Cat series has sold more than 16 million copies and won 26 literacy awards, including a Theodor Geisel Seuss Honor. A former special education teacher, he built the books around music, movement, and call-and-response to help early readers engage with text. Joseph-Beth Booksellers will sell his titles on-site, with a portion of proceeds going to The Library Foundation.

School supply drive runs through August 10

The library is also using the event to collect donations for Operation Backpack, a Volunteers of America drive that provides school supplies to children who need them. The drive accepts donations at the Main Library through Monday, August 10.

Suggested items include new backpacks, spiral notebooks, binders, crayons (24-count), markers (8-count), pencils, folders, scissors, rulers, and pens. Hygiene products such as deodorant, toothpaste, and shampoo are also welcome, according to WLWT.

Nationally, Volunteers of America distributed 59,000 backpacks through the program in 2025.