The Disney previews are always fun. Dina Sherman, a former school librarian, loves story-time and story-time is what attendees get. Sometimes, usually at Annual, it is the actual authors who read, but the editorial staff step up at midwinter and entertain.
I am particularly excited for Elizabeth Wein's newest, The Pearl Thief, due out in May. Code Name Verity remains strong on my list of all-time favorite reads. It is a book I have reread at least twice and would do so again were I not so backlogged with reading. This is a prequel of sorts to Code Name Verity. We revisit Verity as fifteen-year-old Julia Beaufort-Stuart, who has just landed in the hospital after an accident that might not have been an accident.
Gum Girl returns in June with book two: Gum Luck. Keeping her superpowers secret is hard work! Plus, she may have a cavity! Oh no!
On April 4, Bruce makes a cameo appearance in Be Quiet! by Ryan T. Higgins. This go round, it's time for the three squatting mice from Hotel Bruce to star. Rupert is planning a sophisticated wordless book only his two sidekicks can't keep quiet. Hilarity ensues.
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7 Ate 9 by Tara Lazar is due on May 16. Get your best "Just the facts, ma'am," voice on for this numerical whodunit and just try to keep a straight face!
I always love sitting in on Notable Books discussions. They show slides featuring the covers of the books under discussion and speak into mics so that their thoughtful appraisal of each book can be heard. Unlike the BFYA list, I have read or own most of the non-picture book titles in my library. We own a fair number of the picture book titles because #nevertoooldforpicturebooks.
These books are supposed to be featuring 60 of the "best of the best," so the committee can sometimes sound a bit nit-picky. In some ways, I like the work of this committee over single award committees because more than one brilliant work can be spotlit. Spotlighted?
This committee works past the announcements of the YMA since they incorporate the winners into their list. If it's already a title under consideration, great. If not, room is made for surprises.
I regret not having the time to trot up the hill and down the hill to the Hilton to sit in on Notable Recordings.
Woke up rather early on this cloudy, dreary day in Atlanta.
My view from my hotel room Saturday afternoon:
My view this morning:
I had only two appointments on tap. So I decided to head over to the convention center and drop in on the Best Fiction for Young Adults session.
I'm an arrive-around-ten-minutes-early kind of gal so when I showed up at the room where the BFYA committee was supposed to meet at 8:15 for what was in my scheduler and on the poster an 8:30 start, I was a bit dismayed. Luckily, I brought my laptop so I sat and worked on a blog post. Committee members started drifting in and I was informed that they decided to push the start time back. I replied that it would've been nice to have posted a note on the session poster. Oh well.
Once they started the discussion (ten minutes late), I noticed how inhospitable the entire set-up is. Used to be, I dropped in on these discussion meetings and there was a projector set up showing the cover of the book, so you knew where the conversation was; there were microphones so that the audience could actually hear the discussion; AND there was a moment set aside to invite brief audience comment. While I am grateful that this is an open meeting, it is not as open and welcoming as it could be, as it has in the past.
I was sorry that I couldn't attend the teen feedback session yesterday afternoon. That's always refreshing. Late yesterday, I attended the first straw poll and that was illuminating. Quite a few of my favorites of 2016 did quite well. Here's hoping.
Today started real early with the famed Little Brown Breakfast Preview. Victoria is back (!) and five editors gave a spectacular overview of their spring releases. I am so excited about, well, the entire list. Each one seems like my next favorite book. I have already shipped my arcs and inadvertently shipped the handout with the lists, so I may circle back and blog about the titles later. My big takeaway: Jerry Pinkney has retold and illustrated The Three Billy Goats Gruff!! So excited for this. Of course, there were no fngs, but he's an automatic purchase for both my school and personal libraries.
Next up was Scholastic's Picture Book Salon, featuring Peter H. Reynolds, who I finally got to meet in person, Kate Messner and Carmen Agra Deedy. Each spoke from the heart of their newest picture books and they are all books I cannot wait to share with my students and teachers back at school.
It was pouring rain by the time we left the Picture Book Salon and the walk back to the convention center was interesting. Does rain ruin leather? Tried my best to protect my horde of books. Priorities.
After dumping my books and changing my clothes, I had some time before my next publisher event so I returned to the exhibit hall after learning that Notables was back where I had just come from! Aargh! Typical conference mess-ups. On top of that, my room key stopped working and I'm staying at a hotel that requires a key to use the elevator.
I picked up another bunch of arcs this go-round. Then headed to the Simon and Schuster Middle Grade Luncheon, which featured Hena Khan and her newest middle grade novel that is launching S & S's Salaam imprint. I am very excited to read Amana's Voice, releasing in March. I was also psyched to hear about Barbara Dee's next book, Star Crossed, also due out in March.
I briefly considered joining the Women's March, which started a couple of blocks away at the Center for Civil Rights and proceeded past my hotel, but opted instead to sit in on Best Fiction for Young Adults. I sadly could not make the teen feedback session, which I always find refreshing. Instead, I sat in on the first straw poll of the list. I read a fair number of books on the list, but am still behind on my YA reading. I was gratified that some of my faves of the year did well in the polling. We'll see what the final list brings.
I am heading out to dinner with Barb Langridge of abookandahug.com in an hour or so. Curiously, I am rather hungry. After all the eating I did this morning, I thought I would not eat until tomorrow. Let's hope all the lugging of bags of books (twice) to the FedEx office burned off some calories. It sure did a number on my lymphedema.
I can't wait to read what I sent home. I chose books with specific students in mind.
