I’m off to the airport to go HOME!!! And this time I get to STAY home for two months!!
::dances around hotel room:::
Here are the final pics from the IRA conference.
Ambassador Scieszka was in the house.
So was Ashley Bryan.
And Sharon Draper!
Who can resist a photo with Skippyjonjones?
Penguin publicity people in Skippyjonjones regalia.
And the highlight of the day for me…. drum roll
Here are a couple of quick photos from yesterday before I dash out the door.
The world-renowned Minneapolis Sisters of the Book Shirt showed up in Wintergirls shirts and brought one for me!
Then Jordan Sonnenblick stopped by to say hello.
I signed books with Jane Yolen and her son Adam Stemple, and Steve van der Ark.
And was on an awesome panel with John Green, David Yoo, Adam Sanchez, and Sean Beaudoin.
So. My trip to New York City last Thursday?
Yep! I was invited to the offices of The New York Times. The very nice people there are running a review of WINTERGIRLS on May 10th, and wanted me to come in to record a podcast for their website. As soon as it’s up, we’ll post the link.
And yes, my little heart was going pitter-pat, pitter-pat, pitter-pat the whole time because growing up in my house the Times was revered as the top of the mountain in terms of both journalism and culture. Being invited there to speak about my work was an incredible honor.
I came very close to swooning as I was leaving because the next author recording a podcast was Colson Whitehead. But I managed not to.
The weekend was one giant celebration because
our Officemouse graduated from college!!! Not only did she graduate, but she graduated summa cum JOB: two jobs actually; a substitute teaching job that starts next week and goes to the end of the school year, and a full-year job as an 8th grade science teacher starting in September.
The entire clan turned out to celebrate.
Here is Officemouse with her village of parents: stepmom Sue, her dad, Officemouse (aka Meredith Anderson), me and BH. We are incredibly proud of her!!!!
And now I am in Minneapolis for the International Reading Association conference. Today I’ll be signing at the Scholastic Bookfair booth and the Anderson’s Bookshop booth (both in the exhibit hall), then speaking on a panel this afternoon with John Green, David Yoo, Alex Sanchez, and Sean Beaudoin. Tonight, I’ll be speaking outside the convention. I’m not sure if it is open to the public or not. Here are the details:
7pm: TEEN EVENT AT THE LOFT LITERARY CENTER
Location: The Loft Literary Center
1011 Washington Ave S, Ste 200
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Phone: (612) 215-2571
I’ll try to take lots of pics today, I promise!
See… I TOLD you I’d do it. But I’m going to make it quick because I leave on the next journey in 10 hours.
The LA Times Book Festival was off the hook. It is by far the largest and most prestigious book festival in the country. I suspect that attendance came close to 150,000 people. Most of them were pushing strollers. I also saw four dogs. And 300 booths, all book or story related.
Multiply this picture by a factor of one thousand and you’ll get a sense of the day.
Our panel: moderator Jonathan Hunt, me, Nate Powell, Jacqueline Woodson, and Suzanne Phillips managed to fill Moore Hall, which seats 400.
Those 400 people all went out and grabbed their best friends after the panel and stood in long lines to have their books signed.
Jackie and me appreciated everyone who came out. Thank you!!!!
And as I was walking back to the car, I had a Brush With Greatness, courtesy of my author nannies and Derry Wilkens, a publicist who knows all the right people.
I got to meet Peter Yarrow, of Peter, Paul, and Mary!!! His picture book, PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON, is out now. He was so sweet, I thought he was Santa Claus in disguise.
Just got the word that WINTERGIRLS will be on the NY Times Bestseller List for Week #6! Thank you, everyone! If you haven’t heard about the book yet, check out blogger Vania’s review.
I’m off to NYC in the morning for an interview that I can’t quite tell you about yet. After that comes a few days of family goodness, then it’s off to Minneapolis, MN for the International Reading Association Conference. I will be blogging from MN, I promise!!
OOOHHH… But mark this on your calendars right now! FRIDAY MAY 1ST IS BUY A BOOK AT AN INDIE BOOKSELLER DAY!!! Go to your local indie or order from one online! Support local businesses and books and make the world a better place.
(Truth in advertising: I went to my indie, River’s End Books in Oswego, NY, today to buy my books. But I think it still counts.)
I was in LA for the Festival of Books all weekend, came home sick, and am now preparing to leave again tomorrow.
But I swear to you I will post a blog today!
Until then, I have a question: I have a picture book coming out next month. A silly one. Are any of you interested in me discussing the timeline of the creation of the story and the tangled tale of its eventual publication?
