Last Minute Notes on SLJ DoD and BEA

This evening I'm hopping a bus to New York City for four book-filled days at School Library Journal's Day of Dialog and Book Expo America. Before I left I thought I'd highlight some of the things I'll be prioritizing during my time there and also give a few quick tips and tricks that have served me well in past years.  Both SLJ and Kirkus have created their own BEA guides, so if you want more info. on all that there is, check there. Oh, and PW has an article Galleys to Grab.

Where I'll Be:

Day                 Time         Session                                          Location
Wednesday 8:30-6         SLJ Day of Dialog                          Faculty House, Columbia University
Thursday         9:30-10:20 Getting Kids Reading                 1E12/1E13
Thursday         10-10:50         Young Adult Editor's Buzz          1E14/1E15
Thursday         11:00-11:50 Journey of a Young Adult Book  1E16
Thursday         3:30-4:20         eBooks From Libraries                1E10
Friday         10-10:30         Meet Young Adult Authors Buzz  Uptown Stage
Friday         12-12:30         Writing Genre for Boys                  Uptown Stage
Friday         1-1:50         Libraries + Tumblr                    1E09
Friday         3-3:30         Realistic Fiction                          Uptown Stage
Friday         3:30-4:45         ABC/CBC Tea                          1E12/1E13
Friday         4-5                 The New Graphic Novel                  Uptown Stage
Saturday         11-11:50         New Adult Crossover                  Midtown Stage

What I'm Wearing:

• Dark Wash Skinny Jeans (casual, but classy...ish)
• Flats or Sandals (gotta be kind to my feet what with all the walking)
• Short Sleeve or Half-Sleeve Top (casual, but classy...ish)
• Sweater (which I'll take off and put on as temperature necessitates)
• Scarf (which I'll take off and put on as temperature necessitates)

What I'm Bringing:

• Backpack (for comfortably stashing ARCs and personal items)
• iPhone (with BEA mobile app already downloaded)
• Wallet (duh!)
• Snacks (food in the convention center is expensive, so I'm packing granola bars, fruit and yogurt and will probably buy a bagel with cream cheese en route to the Javitz Center)
• Paperback book (to read when I arrive at BEA early and must sit on the floor until doors open)
• Collapsible tote (just one, just to get me started)

Priorities on the Exhibit Floor:

• Avoid the stampede of crazies when the doors first open by heading to smaller publishers first
• Head to the HMH booth (1657) ASAP to get their awesome tote bag, which is large and zips
• Pop over to Scholastic (1639) to say hello and secure goodies for Hunger Games Camp and perhaps snag one of the Harry Potter lithographs at 10am on Thursday (unless it's too crazy)
• Take only the ARCs I really want and plan to read.  My "must haves" are below. Other than those ones, I'll take only what I can carry to the post office and ship in one of those $14.95 "if it fits, it ships" boxes.

My Must-Have ARCs:

• Elizabeth Wein's Rose Under Fire (Disney/Hyperion, 1721 on Thursday)
• Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl (St. Martin's Griffin, 1557)
• Robison Wells' Blackout (HarperCollins, 2309)
• A.S. King's Reality Boy (Little, Brown 1829)
• David Levithan's Two Boys Kissing (Random House, 2739 on Thursday @ 12:30)

I'm really looking forward to some good sessions at SLJ DoD and BEA and seeing some library peeps.  Plus, I'm staying with a good friend, and on Friday night, we're going to see/experience Sleep No More, so that should be fun.

Oh, and if I run into you, and you know me from my blog (even if you've never commented), say hi!  It's always cool to meet folks in real life and know that someone is reading, even if quietly.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Coming Up: Book Expo America 2013

There's one book event that I make sure to get to every year: Book Expo America.

My reasons are simple:

1. Special "Librarian" Pricing: 3 days of exhibits, author panels, signings and sessions for $104. Absolute steal.  You can also get a 1 day pass for a lower rate.  There are rates for book bloggers and sellers too!  If you're not a book professional, you can still attend.  On Saturday, they're offering a "Power Reader" day pass.

2. Editor's Book Buzz: My favorite session of the expo.  A first look at what's coming in the fall.  Witty banter and book talks from the editors. And sometimes, free ARCs of the recommended titles!

3. ARCs: The first 30 minutes of BEA is the worst 30 minutes, because greedy rude people push and shove and mob publisher booths to get copies of ARCs.  They don't tend to care what books they are getting, they just grab.  I want no part in that, so I usually take this time to scout out a booth where they are giving away a large sturdy tote bag and then seek out smaller/less frantic publisher booths where I can try to snag a copy of one of the ARCs on my "priority" list.  Then, after the initial mob scene, I work my way around to specific booths looking for other books on my list.  If a book isn't on my list (usually ~25 books make the cut) I decline to take it unless it a) sounds so amazing that I can't figure out how I missed putting it on my list or b) sounds like something that one of my students would absolutely love and I can picture exactly who that is.

4. School Library Journal's Day of Dialog*: This is actually my favorite part about BEA, but I put it last because it's not technically part of BEA.  This day-long librarian-only event happens the day before BEA.  It's a day filled with panels and authors and it's all focused on children's and YA lit.  I love it.  So much.  I think the best part is the happy hour where you can talk to authors and other librarians and make plans for hypothetical school visits and just talk YALit while munching and sipping.

Just writing this post is getting me excited for all that is to come.  If you haven't already, make sure to register!

* Registration for SLJ DoD hasn't opened yet, but if you go to the "Librarian" page on the BEA website, you can sign up to be notified when it does.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Back From SLJ and BEA!

So, technically I got back on Tuesday evening, and I never even mentioned I was going, but regardless of these facts, I'm back! Did you miss me? No? Oh well.

Anyhoot, I had a great few days up north, first visiting family and friends and then heading off to Monday's SLJ Day of Dialog and Tuesdays BEA.  It was a whirlwind trip that left me exhausted, but also excited about the plethora of upcoming releases and anxious for the next school year, even though this one hasn't quite ended just yet.  There's so much to say that I could blab on and on about it, but instead, I will limit myself to my Top 5 Takeaways for each of the two conference days.

Top 5 Takeaways from SLJ's Day of Dialog:
1. I don't think it is possible to have spent a better $29.99 (I'm an SLJ subscriber) on anything, ever. Breakfast, ARCs, author panels, lunch, author signings, a cocktail party AND the company of school librarians? Unbeatable.
2. Katherine Paterson's keynote shows she's quite the character.  And here I confess that I don't believe I've ever read any of her work.  Addressing this ASAP.
3. Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket) is just as witty and sarcastic in person as he is on paper.  Moreover, though I think Tim Curry (a favorite of mine) does the voice work on his audiobooks, I highly recommend he do it himself, as his voice is rich and just simply amazing and his timing spot on.
4. Dave Roman and John Green (no, not THAT John Green, another one) are partnering to bring you the graphic novel Teen Boat.  It's inspired by the 80s cartoon Turbo Teen (think one part Night Rider, one part Teen Wolf, all parts awesome), which probably no one other than me and my three siblings has ever heard of, but I'm so excited about this that it's embarassing.
5. Adam Gidwitz looks like a young Edward Norton.  And more to the point, even though I haven't yet read A Tale Dark and Grimm, he's so approachable and funny that I'm going to look into having him come to my school next year.

Top 5 Takeaways from BEA:
1. People are ruthless and fairly ridiculous about getting free ARCs.  Most of them don't even seem to care what the book is, as long as it is free.
2. Speed Dating with Children's Authors was dizzyingly and amazingly fantastic.  I arrived early and scoped out the table that had stacks of bound sample pages from James Dashner's Death Cure and waited patiently for his arrival.  He was early and I got to chat with him for several minutes before the event began. Rock!
3. Lunch options at the Javitz Center are NOT tasty and are VERY expensive.  Next time, I'm registering for the Librarian's Lunch, which is free AND tasty.  Mad props to the SLJ/LJ Librarian's Lounge which picked up the Javitz Center food offerings slack by providing tasty nibbles and beverages, a place to sit and compose oneself and good company.
4. If you are nice and not grabby and greedy, the publisher staffs can be really great resources.  So friendly and helpful and willing to grab an ARC from the locked cabinet for you if you let them know you won't be there for the signing the next day, are really excited about a specific title and are both a school librarian and blogger.
5. The YA Editor's Buzz never fails to disappoint.  The only thing that could have made it better would be not forgetting to have someone put out the ARCs at the end.  They were stacked in the back in boxes, but no staff person manned the operation.  ARC craziness ensued.

The SLJ Day of Dialog and BEA are definitely two of my favorite book events.  I'll be writing more about the ARCs I picked up as soon as I get a chance to read them.  Until then, I'll be looking to see how everyone else enjoyed their SLJ Day of Dialog and BEA!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

The Spoils of BEA

Another successful BEA and my first (of what I hope to be many) SLJ Day of Dialog!


Not only did I get to see so many of my beloved fellow librarians and book-ish friends while at the conference, but I also came away with several signed copies of books and totes full of ARCs and gained valuable perspective on topics including Steampunk, Tweens*, and Nonfiction*...and an author reading from a soon-to-be-published work, that just blew.my.mind.


Most of the ARCs have already been distributed amongst students who just could not get over the idea that they would have the opportunity to read books before they were even published.  I allowed any student who wished to "check out" one ARC, provided they read it, bring it back and let me know whether it was a good book to purchase for the school's collection.   One student almost cried because she was so excited**.  I guess that makes up for the student who asked "And how much are you paying us?"  The rest of the ARCs are coming with me to Chicago this summer!  Though my student population is 11-14, I actually prefer older YA titles for my personal reading, so I scooped up a couple of titles that I was most excited about.  And what, you might ask, are my favorite takeaways from BEA?


Splendor by Anna Godbersen (signed copy)
Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness (ARC, third in the "Chaos Walking" trilogy)
Delirium by Lauren Oliver (ARC, author of "Before I Fall")


And what did I really want, but couldn't find?


Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (I wish!)
Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson (though I hear some folks got this!)
Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia (totally could've gotten this one, but flaked)
Reckless by Cornelia Funke*** (again, I wish, but I was in a session when they handed these out. So foolish!)


How about you?  Did you go?  What did you get?  If you were not in on the BEA action, is there an ARC I could send your way that would make it all better?  Let me know!


* Interesting, because as noted in sessions on each of these topics: Should we define something by what it is not?  Tweens are in-between and thus neither children nor teens (though I'd submit they're children) and Nonfiction is not fiction...But, dare I ask, what are each of these things, then?
** And this is why I love my job and my students. 
*** Whose name, contrary to my previous belief, is not pronounced "Funk," but rather, "Funk-ay," which I must admit, I kinda like!

On the Way to BEA

Technically I won't be "on my way to BEA" until Monday at 5 o'clock when I board an Amtrak bound for NYC.  That said, I'm still super-pumped about this year's BEA (Book Expo America), which I'll be attending on Wednesday and the SLJ Day of Dialog I'll be attending on Tuesday.

I haven't been to the SLJ Day of Dialog in the past, so other than reading the agenda and knowing what the sessions are, I really have absolutely no idea what to expect.  As a middle school librarian, I'm most excited about the "Care and Keeping of Tweens" session, which I'm hoping will give me insight into the minds of my sixth graders.  They're so different from seventh and eighth graders in terms of maturity and reading interests.  Hopefully I'll get some good stuff!

I attended last year's BEA and was lucky enough to come away with ARCs of Suzanne Collins' Catching Fire and Justine Larbalestier's Liar, among tons of other great titles.  I've been so busy these last couple of weeks, however, that I haven't had time to figure out what'll be available this time.  Thankfully, others have done a bit of that legwork for me, and I've created my list of books to look for from Abby (the) Librarian's list and the Publisher's Weekly list.

I'm going to head off to make my list of ARCs to find and sessions to attend.  I can't wait!

Belated BEA Recap: Part 2: YA Editor's Buzz

I told myself I wouldn't blog about anything else until I finally got around to finishing and posting Part 2 of my Belated BEA Recap. Well, here it is!

Probably the coolest part of BEA (which now was so long ago that it almost seems like a dream) was attending the Young Adult Editor's Buzz and getting the scoop on (and ARCs of) the biggest fall novels from the folks at the publishing houses who've already read what's coming and know what's going to be big.

Six editors were on the dais and each described one upcoming release. Then afterwards, they had a chance to mention other titles both from their publishing house and others that they were really excited about. Everything they mentioned sounded awesome, and I was lucky enough to get a few (but not all) of the ARCs before they seized upon by other hungry ARC hunters.

But onto what all the buzz was about…

Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor (Arthur A. Levine Books) – Due out October 1st, Lips Touch contains three supernatural short stories, each of which revolves around a single kiss. I wasn’t lucky enough to nab an ARC, but this one sounds like it’ll suck you in and be hard to put down (or maybe Arthur Levine the man is just really good at marketing). Liz B. at Tea Cozy did get an ARC and has already raved about Lips Touch on her blog.

The Devil’s Kiss by Sarwat Chadda (Disney/Hyperion) – The first in a trilogy, The Devil’s Kiss is Sarwat Chadda’s debut novel about a girl who has often unwillingly sacrificed her normal teenage life to train and become the youngest and only female member of the Knight’s Templar. I’ve only read the first few pages thus far, but it sounded really dark and suspenseful from the booktalk. I’m thinking this might be a good recommendation for those who enjoyed Graceling and maybe The Hunger Games. Due out September 1st.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner (Delacorte Press for Young Readers) – Think Lord of the Flies meets the movie Cube meets anything ever written by M. Night Shymalan. My husband is reading this one right now, and I’ll hopefully be getting to it soon. It sounds really good, and again, edge of your seat, nail bitingly suspenseful! The premise: Every 30 days, a new boy arrives in “the Glade,” transported by an elevator which he doesn’t remember getting on. Not only doesn’t he remember how he got there, but he can’t remember anything about his previous life, except for his first name. Each morning, stone doors open onto a maze. Each night, they close tight. One day, a girl appears from the elevator bringing a disturbing message.

Refresh, Refresh by Danica Novgorodoff’s (First Second Books) – This one sounds like it might be a tear-jerker. Based on the award-winning short story by Benjamin Percy, Refresh, Refresh is artist Danica Novgorodoff's graphic interpretation, of the story of three boys about to graduate high school who are trying to figure out their future as they wait for their fathers, who are serving in the Iraq War, to come home. Anxiously awaiting communication from their distant fathers, they continually refresh their e-mail again and again. Look for it at the end of September.

The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander (Feiwel & Friends) – Another debut and another potential tear-jerker. The story centers around Austin and her quest to wind up on the hood of a pick-up truck as the “Sweetheart of Prosper County.” She owns a rooster named Charles Dickens and from what I’ve heard there’s a scene with her, Charles Dickens and some fishing that is particularly emotional. It sounds like it is in turns sweet, silly and sad, and it’s most definitely on my TBR pile. On September 1st it’ll make it’s way to your library bookshelf.

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani (Harper Collins Children's Books) – Best-selling author Adriana Trigiani has decided to throw her hat into the YA ring with her first in a trilogy. As I understand it, this book, which hasn’t even been published yet, has already been turned into a screenplay and is in pre-production. A friend is borrowing it, and I haven’t had a chance to give it a read yet, but I remember something about her being fashionably different and going to boarding school, (maybe to experience “real life” since she’s a movie star?) and I typically LOVE boarding school books, as I see boarding school as this really cool environment where kids are tasked with being adults before they are really ready and all sorts of deep, meaningful experiences happen. My friends who’ve attended boarding school tell me it’s more about drinking, sneaking around, and awaiting care packages from parents. Alas, I’m still intrigued. Get it September 1st.

So, that’s a couple starts to trilogies and even more debuts, all of which sound like they’re going to be terrific reads. I’m very excited for September to roll around and bring the bounty of fall publishing releases. In the meantime, I’ll be working though the ARCs I have and picking up a few more at the ALA Conference, which kicks off in less than two weeks in good ol’ Chicago.

Belated BEA Recap: Part 1

So, I probably should've posted this about a week ago, but things have been busy in LibrariYAn land, so it just didn't happen. Alas. A week later than planned, here's my recap...

From start to finish, my day at BEA was pretty fantastic. I went in armed with the following plan:

Step 1: Get ARC* of Catching Fire
Step 2: Visit publisher booths and collect as many cool YA ARCs as possible
Step 3: Attend the YA Editor's Buzz to learn about hot upcoming fall titles
Step 4: Depart en route NJ with bags of books

And pretty much, that's exactly how the day went, except that I was able to acquire two ARCs of Catching Fire and once I was there I learned of another hot ARC that I HAD to get my hands on before proceeding to Step 2. What ARC was that, you ask? Why, it was the second book in Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking Trilogy, The Ask and the Answer. The first book in the trilogy, The Knife of Never Letting Go, was a big hit, and many people I've talked to thought it was even better than the first book a certain other trilogy whose second book I was quite hungry to get my hands on at BEA. But, they'd given out all the ARCs. Luckily, one of the kind folks at the Candlewick booth took down my info. and had one shipped to me! It arrived yesterday and is patiently waiting on my TBR pile.

But on to Step 2: The collection of cool YA ARCs from the exhibitor booths. It seems every librarian I've talked to collected a completely different set of ARCs than I did. I'm jealous of some of theirs, and proud of mine. Since I'm headed to a middle school come the fall, you'll note my titles span for ages 12-18. Here's what I brought home and will reading this summer:

Bloomsbury
Forest Born by Shannon Hale (fourth book in Books of Bayern/Goose Girl series)

Girl in the Arena by Lise Hai (a gladiator's daughter steps into the arena - sounds Hunger Games-esque)

Lady Macbeth's Daughter by Lisa Klein (what if MacBeth had a daughter?)

Liar by Justine Larbalestier (unreliable narrator tells her story)

A Whole Nother Story by Dr. Cuthbert Soup (Series of Unfortunate Events-ish)

Walker Books (for Young Readers)

Demon Princess: Reign or Shine by Michelle Rowen (girl learns she's part demon, and is heir to the throne)

Breathless by Jessica Warman (semi-autobiographical tale of talent, boarding school and family secrets)

The Tear Collector by Patrick Jones (vampires that feed on your tears)

Little, Brown

School of Fear by Gitty Daneshvari (scaredy cat kids go to an exclusive school to help overcome their fears and find there's more to afraid of than they thought)

Soulstice: The Devouring Book 2 by Simon Holt (demons inhabit human bodies; trouble ensues)

Amulet

Troy High by Shana Norris (retelling of Homer's Illiad with rival high schools and football)

Charlesbridge

The Importance of Wings by Robin Friedman (fitting in and standing out)

Kids Can Press
Recipe for Disaster by Maureen Fergus (the arrivel a new girl threatens to burn Francie's perfectly baked life)

I've about halfway through Liar and plan to finish it today. It's pretty good, and I'm just waiting for that "gotcha" moment when it all comes together - or falls apart. Not sure which I'll read next, but am open to suggestions, if there's one you'd love for me to preview on the blog. Let me know in the comments.

But back to the Expo...After a morning of schlepping around, it was time for some lunch. With tote bags filled to the brim and aching shoulders, my next stop was the Young Adult Editor's Buzz.

Stay tuned for my next installment of the Belated BEA Recap to see what editors are forecasting to be this fall's biggest YA books.

* For those new to the terminology, an ARC - Advance Reader's Copy - is an uncorrected proof. Publishers create these and distribute them to reviewers, librarians and booksellers in advance of the release of a book to generate buzz for a upcoming title. ARCs are generally low-quality, unpolished, unfinalized versions of the books they will become. They are NOT items for sale and are NOT the real book. There's typically additional copyediting, artwork and sometimes entirely rewritten passages before the ARC becomes a published book.

LibrariYAn's First Contest: The Catching Fire Giveaway!

As you may recall, I've been plotting since January on how to acquire an ARC of Catching Fire Suzanne Collins' sequel to the SLJ Battle of the Books-winning The Hunger Games.. The actual book won't be released until September 1st, and I knew that that was just too long to wait for greatness. So there I was at BEA today, and what do you know, I was able to acquire not one, but TWO copies of the ARC! Of course, I don't need two copies. I only need one, so I'm giving one away!

Have I piqued your interest? If so, read on for the details on whatcha need to do to win. If not, what is wrong with you that you don't want an ARC of Catching Fire? You clearly have your priorities in disarray! But I digress...

The Prize: Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of Suzanne Collins' novel Catching Fire (sequel to The Hunger Games) AND a mocking jay button*

The Winner: The person who gets the most *new* people to comment on my blog by midnight on Monday, June 1st. Tell everyone you know about LibrariYAn and get them to leave a comment on this post. Make sure you get credit for the comment by also having them include your name as the person who did the referral. (Sample comment might be "Love your blog! Stacy told me how much she loves your posts and that I just *had* to pop over and start reading. I'm so glad I did, and will keep coming back. I too loved The Hunger Games!"). I get new readers, and the person with the most referrals wins a cool prize. Sound fair? Good!

Looking forward to a few new readers!

* similar to the one Katniss wears, but obvi not as cool, since it's just a round black and yellow button and not a classy gold pin.