In My Mailbox 19

Last month I went to the ALA Midwinter Conference in Dallas. I had most of my ARCs shipped back to me, so here they are now.


Here are what we call, "F&G's" - meaning, folded and gathered, picture book ARCs.

Here are books that are currently already out.

Books being published in February and March.

Books being published in April.

Books being published in May.

Books being published in June and July.

I'm not sure of the pub dates on these:

And here's a last minute bonus package of items... These are on the tip-top of my TBR pile.

NOT PICTURED: Bitterblue, by Kristin Cashore, due out in May. I've already read it, but won't post my review until much closer to the release date. And I've already handed it off to another eager reader, who couldn't wait to get their hands on it.

Decatur Book Festival 2011 Report

Last week I was at the Decatur Book Festival! How did it go? Saturday was the day before the weather finally broke so was a hot, hot day, at the end of a long, hot summer, but the crowds were still out in force. I had the opportunity to tell some stories at the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library tent - even though it was a little tough to scare up an audience, considering there were so many other competing delights to be had at the Festival. There was a Skippy Jon Jones parade, a hula-hooping event and so much more. I spent quite a bit of time, scoping out all the booths - how heartwarming it was to see so many literature lovers gathered in one place! Honestly, I might have a longer and better report of the festival if I talked about all of the things that I missed: there were nearly 500 authors scheduled to appear. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see Libba Bray or Beth Revis, and I also missed seeing Andy Runton, creator of the wonderful, nearly wordless Owly graphic novels. I'm told that Andy Runton is a local to the greater Atlanta area, so maybe I will run into him at some future event. There also was a Pete the Cat parade, full of fans of Eric Litwin and James Dean. Local (and famous) authors Jackson Pearce and Laurel Snyder were there too. It's difficult to say how many people were there, but it was a massive crowd. Some estimates go as high as 80,000 attendance over the long weekend, a number I can easily believe.

What I did make time for was some shopping... I picked up this gorgeous leather-bound journal.

I also stopped to check out this art installation. Passersby were invited to share what they were reading on these faux bookshelves.

What were most people reading? Let's just say I saw a lot of The Hunger Games noted on the "shelves."

Interestingly, the mood that I picked up on was a lot of sadness and worry. I can't tell you how many people told me in wistful tones that they missed the library, and they were disappointed with the e-books revolution because it meant that books wouldn't be around anymore. It felt really good to reassure people that the library, as an institution, isn't going anywhere (at least, I hope not!) A lot of people thought that they didn't qualify for a free library card, when in fact, they do. We got a lot of library card sign-ups that day. Everyone that I talked to was shocked, shocked to learn that yes, you can get e-books at the library. One gentleman asked me if I felt "disloyal" when I read e-books, and I told him, no, I appreciate books in all of their forms. I embrace the future, even as I retain my love for old books.

I pointed out to several people that e-books probably are bad news for cheap mass market paperbacks, but honestly, I have seen the quality of hardcover books increase dramatically ever since e-books have really taken off. Foil embossing, ingenious and beautiful cover designs, reversible dust jackets, deckled edge pages... publishers are pulling out all the stops to make books in their physical form really worth having.

More than one person told me that they felt that they were one of the few people around who appreciated books... part of a rare breed. I took great delight in waving my arms about, gesturing to the 40,000-odd people in the crowd and saying, "Look! There are all your fellow book lovers! Books aren't going anywhere, not when there are so many people who love them."

In My Mailbox 10

The Smurfs: Off to School
by Peyo
Simon Spotlight
May 2011


Just one title this week. It's an easy reader. I plan to give it away as a Summer Reading prize. I'm pretty sure the kids at my library will go nuts for it! School is fresh on their minds, as school starts ridiculously early here, in August. The folks at Columbia Pictures have been so generous! They also sent along Smurf-themed t-shirts and posters to promote the new movie - more great summer reading prizes.

In My Mailbox 9

I was pleased to find these two books, both waiting for me on my doorstep this week.

Spoiled 

by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
Poppy
June 2011

The creators of Go Fug Yourself have come out with a book! I expect hilarity and viciously catty remarks on the state of Hollywood, when Molly Dix discovers that her father is actually a famous movie star.

Pretty Bad Things
by C.J. Skuse
Chicken House
July 2011

Just from looking at the back cover, this looks like a fast-paced and funny roadtrip crime spree of a twin brother and sister.

ALA Swag 2011

Here it is, the bounteous swag that I obtained at the ALA Annual Convention in New Orleans this past week. Breathtaking, right? I am so amazed that I snagged so many books that I've been dying to read... items from my To Be Read list, as well as books that I hadn't heard about but look wonderful. I got the last copy of The Girl of Fire and Thorns at the booth! I got a copy of the long-awaited Super Diaper Baby sequel (already given away as a Summer Reading prize to a much delighted kid at my library), Maggie Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races, The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell, Lauren Oliver's Liesl and Po. Yeah, I made out like a bandit. Not pictured: about 30 or 40 posters I picked up to decorate the children's area of my library with. And several dozen bookmarks. There were a few things that I had hoped to pick up, that I didn't get my hands on. I wanted a copy of Allie Condie's Crossed! But, there was a huge line for it, and I didn't have time to wait. I really wanted to get a peek at Brian Selznick's Wonderstruck, and someone tweeted when they were doing the Wonderstruck giveaway, but by the time I got to that part of the convention floor, they were all gone. Not as many tote bags this year, either. I love this READ bag which I think I got from Demco, a library supply company, but there was a TinTin bag that I absolutely lusted for and couldn't find. Rats.

The feeling on the convention floor was surprisingly negative! Lots of librarians grousing that they wanted MOAR FREE STUFF. Lots of publishers charging for books that they once might have given away for free. There was even one publisher (I won't say who, but it was a small press) who was selling ARCs. They said they believed in charging for content. ARCs have come a long way. These days they look like glossy paperback editions. I remember when ARCs had no cover art, plain blue or tan covers, tons of typos and cryptic messages like "Art TK" instead of illustrations. Publishers definitely spend a lot more time and money creating ARCs nowadays. Still, I feel if a book has the words Advance Readers Copy, Not For Resale printed on it, I shouldn't have to pay money if I'm not supposed to resell the book. Although, shamefully, some people do just that, as any trip to ebay will tell you. Most publishers were having author signings with finished hardcovers selling for $5... still an amazing bargain.

Weirdly, there were a lot of books there that I could have gotten, but didn't because I already had the ARC at home. I had several publishers try to push books into my hands, mostly romance novels and adult crime fiction.  I politely explained that I wasn't picking up anything I couldn't use for work or my blog and they all exclaimed with astonishment how "honest" I was. Gosh! I don't know about that... but I can tell you, I do try to keep the size of my book collection to a (somewhat) reasonable level. And with my TBR list as long as it is, I certainly didn't need a copy of everything on the convention floor. I'm just grateful that I get any advance copies of books at all!

What I did appreciate was that there seemed to be more authors than ever on the convention floor. It was awesome meeting so many famous writers. Authors are totally my rock stars! I liked that there were so many stages in the back of the Expo hall, with graphic novel panels and new fiction readings, and even cooking demos from cookbook authors. Overall, it was a great time.

In My Mailbox 4

Wow! I got a fantastic package in the mail this week. Thank you so much, Kane Miller, for this awesome selection of 2011 kids titles.

Here's the list of titles:

The Dog Who Loved Red - Anitha Balachandran
Dorje's Stripes - Gwangjo and Jung-a Park, illus. Anshumani Ruddra
Hush Little Beachcomber - Dianne Moritz, illus. Holly McGee
Rope 'Em! - Stacy Nyikos, illus. Bret Conover
Seasons - Anne Crausaz
What Does the President Look Like? - Jane Hampton Cook, illus. Adam Ziskie
The Bloomswell Diaries - Louis L. Buitendag
Anna Hibiscus #3: Good Luck, Anna Hibiscus - Atinuke, illus. Lauren Tobia
Anna Hibiscus #4: Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus - Atinuke, illus. Lauren Tobia

Can't wait to read all of these!

In My Mailbox

I don't normally post these, but it looks like this week, mail forwarding finally caught up with me, providing me with a bounty of reading material.

I got this middle-grade finished novel in the mail. Kind of random.

I just started reading this one.

It seems like I've been waiting to read Delirium forever! I can't believe it's finally here!












Here's an ARC that's been lost in the mail for a very long time... The cover is so lovely. I deliberately went out and found the first book, just so I can read this one.

Swag, beautiful swag

I have to admit, I was getting pretty worried. I shipped all the Advance Reader Copies I'd obtained at ALA this year, but when my package failed to arrive I started to get impatient. And then, nervous. What if it'd been lost in the mail? Or sent to the wrong address? What if I never saw all those lovely, lovely ARCs ever again? Happily, after some double-checking, it turns out it did get here all right. Here it is! My sweet, sweet haul from ALA Annual 2010. I promised myself I wouldn't go to hog-wild... but then, the box the shipping company provided still had so much room in it, I ended up going back for more. The books are (very roughly) arranged in order of publishing date.

I picked up a few book bags as well. Everyone was jealous of my Judy Moody bag. I never did manage to track down the much-coveted Vladimir Tod bag, or the cute Hello Kitty book bag.  I'm psyched to dig in and start reading all of these!

West Hollywood Book Fair 2009

Last week, I made it out to the annual West Hollywood Book Fair. It's certainly a much smaller and easier book festival to navigate than the gargantuan Los Angeles Festival of Books that I attended earlier this year. The organizers estimated a crowd of 40,000 for the West Hollywood Book Fair, compared to a whopping 130,000 for the Festival of Books. To be honest, I think 40,000 might be a tad generous. The Fair did manage to feel bustling but not overwhelming. I was only there for 3 or 4 hours, but I managed to see a lot. The weather was just perfect, with just a hint of snap in the air and clear blue skies.

New this year, I noticed several reading tents set up. I loved them! So simple and cozy with plenty of soft chairs to plop down on with one's latest finds. I confess, I expected to see a corporate sponsor for the reading tents, and was a little pleased and surprised when there didn't seem to be one.

One of the first things to catch one's attention was the yaoi booth set up prominently at the Fair entrance. Oh my!

A little further in, I found this Halloween themed booth.

I'd hoped to see Francesca Lia Block, who was signing copies of her newest book, Wood Nymph Seeks Centaur, but unfortunately, I missed her. I did run into June Sobel who was signing over in the children's area though! Other random celebrities present that weekend included Bob Barker and Carol Channing.

I hit up a couple of science-fiction/fantasy panels. A group from World of Warcraft publishing gave a presentation about their upcoming line of tie-in novels. I also listened in on "Comics on Comics" a group of podcasting comedians who provide commentary on comic books.

The children's area had a craft table that looked pretty busy, and several presentations of Shakespeare by kids, some in costume, paraded across the kids' stage. Teens were occupied on the mikes, sharing poetry.

Halloween's around the corner, so I was glad to see this ghost-stories tent. Inside was sufficiently darkened to lend a spooky atmosphere to the dramatic readings shared.

There was plenty of swag to be had at this Fair. Much more than usual. I lucked out and happened to win a raffle prize of free books right away. I also got several recycled cloth bags. I wasn't shy about snagging some kids' posters for my library, either. Speaking of which... the Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on freebies for bloggers. It occurred to me, as I was leaving West Hollywood that I hadn't really mentioned my blog to anyone. I'm fairly confident that none of the free books I received were in consideration of that. I will start mentioning where I've acquired my books in future reviews, however. I'll have more to say about that in upcoming post.