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CSN Offers You $80

June 4, 2010 by

After receiving an offer to put together and review a bookshelf, CSN Stores has decided to offer $80 to one lucky reader to purchase anything from any of their stores, although shipping is not covered.

With over 200 stores to choose from and offerings that range from lighting and bookshelves to cookware, it may take some research on your part to decide.  You can be sure I’ll be exploring the other stores after recently receiving my bookshelves from CSN.

I think you should do the same while you wait for the end of this giveaway.

To enter:

1.  Leave a comment on this post about what you need to spruce up your house or apartment.

2.  Spread the word via Twitter, Facebook, etc. and leave a link here.

Deadline if June 11, 2010, at 11:59 PM EST

Filed Under: giveaway Tagged With:

New York City, the Last

June 4, 2010 by

First, since I take a ton of photos when I leave on trips, check out the slide show below:

Second, let’s talk about the panel I saw at BEA and then let’s talk Book Blogger Convention.  I had grand plans to sit down and take in the panels and speakers, but unfortunately, I only attended one panel — Copyright in Motion.

Christopher Kenneally, leader of Copyright Clearance Center, introduced himself and his ties to a copyright service firm before showing a slide show on copyright law and how many in Corporate America and elsewhere fail to understand the protections that copyrights provide.  Copyrights must be managed on a daily basis through every action, and copyrights are not global protections.

Recommendations entail getting permission anytime there is doubt about a copyright protection.  Anytime someone uses information from a magazine or other subscription service, they should check the licenses attached to those subscriptions and how material can be used.  Each subscription has different rights attached to it.  Moreover, translation rights and transforming works from one form — say a novel — into another form — like a screenplay — involve an additional set of permissions.

There is a movement in place to create a global copyright through the Berne Convention, but there also are organizations working on coordinating copyrights on a larger scale.

Unfortunately, this is the only panel I attended during BEA.  If you want to hear more about my misadventures in NYC with my partners in crime, visit Diary of an Eccentric.

I took a little video during Book Blogger Con of keynote speaker, Maureen Johnson, so check that out:

There were even funnier parts to this speech, but I ran out of room on the memory card; don’t you hate when you are so exhausted that you forget half of what you wanted to bring along to the conference?!

One of my favorite parts of the speech was when she discussed the penchant for crime shows on television to demonize the Internet and its capabilities; Johnson said they often refer to the “Tweet of Doom” and other horrible actions stemming from the Internet that will come to get us all.  Another of my favorite parts of the speech were when Johnson talked about her Catholic high school and the painting or mural image at the entrance of the school that depicted nuns being shoved into a mass grave by Nazis.

I’m not going to talk about the other panelists because I think Wendy at Caribousmom did an awesome job recapping the convention.  There is no way for me to top that one.  Also, if you are interested in the swag from BBC, please visit Ticket to Anywhere; she did a great job going through the entire bag.

Lastly, I want to say that it was great to meet a number of the book bloggers I talk to online in person and to meet Caitlin Summie from Unbridled Books, Paul Samuelson from Sourcebooks, Allie Greenwald from Inkwell Management.  It was also great to see Hachette Book Group‘s Miriam Parker and Online Publicist Lisa Roe again.

I’ll be resuming normal book reviews and content next week.  Feel free to share your thoughts and experiences with me about your week and convention fun.

Filed Under: BEA, Events Tagged With:

BEA vs. Book Festivals

June 3, 2010 by

Before leaving for Book Expo America, I received an email from Jill at Rhapsody in Books, who wanted to know about the differences between festivals like the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C., and Book Expo America.

She’s full of great ideas, so I took her up on it.

BEA is a publishing industry-sponsored event to talk about the new fall releases, current releases, the state of the publishing industry, and an all around networking event for those in the publishing industry.

Local book festivals, like the one in D.C., are often supported through donations from organizations like newspapers, retailers, etc., and provide a venue through which people can hear authors talk about books, themselves, reading, etc.; meet their favorite authors; and buy books they normally would not have heard of whether new to the market or banging around bookstores for a few months.

I can’t tell you which event to attend or which event is right for you, but I can give you some guideline questions to answer and what I would recommend.

1. Do you want to meet the publicists, authors, publishers, etc., you’ve been working with?

BEA would be your best option for this because there are booths and you can set aside specific times to talk with these people and discuss books, upcoming releases, etc.  However, you can talk with authors for short spurts at book festivals as well, but if you want more one-on-one time, head to BEA.

2.  Interested in publishing trends on the horizon or learning more about e-readers, online publishing, e-publishing, etc.?

BEA will provide you with panels chock full of information, and in some cases, so much information that your head will hurt.  It depends on what you want out of your blog and where you see the future of your blog heading as to whether this information will be useful or important to you.

3.  Do you want to meet your favorite authors, chat with them, get signed books?

Either BEA or book festivals or even author signings can achieve these goals.  Just go with what suits you and your budget most.  If there are authors visiting your area that you love, see them.  If the authors you love don’t visit your area but go to BEA, get on a plane, train, or drive into NYC and see them.

4.  Are you going to get free books? (Someone had to ask it.)

In this case, you would want to attend BEA, rather than a book festival because more than likely you have to pay for the books.

5.  Want to meet with other book bloggers in real life?

Again, this depends on where you live and who you know that lives near you and blogs about books.  If you live in a well populated blogging community, your best option is to meet with them through a meet-up you agree to or at the local book festival because trying to find your blogging buddies in BEA without a plan is like looking for a contact lens beneath a million people’s shoes.

6.  Interested in what the publishing industry is really like?

You’re going to want to be at BEA, especially when tours of the offices are offered and you get to meet with publishing industry staffers to discuss how bloggers fit into the equation or how you can get a better working relationship with publishers.  However, if there is a large group touring these facilities, etc., it may be hard to glean out the information you are looking for specifically unless you have one-on-one time.

Regardless of what avenue you choose, just remember to make the most of these events for you and your blog.  I tend to be in awe of everything and do follow up emails with my questions.  Its good to remain in contact with everyone you meet, even if it is to just say how lovely it was to meet the person.

I attend both formats because I’m interested in the publishing industry and where its going, but I also like celebrating reading, which is what I believe book festivals focus on for the most part.

One drawback for me at BEA every year has been the lack of poetry discussion or promotion.  And since one of my goals for my blog is to raise interest in poetry, my job will be continuous until BEA starts talking poetry, though I was glad to see Graywolf Press in a booth this year and some of their poetry selections.

What are your thoughts on book festivals versus Book Expo America?

Filed Under: BEA, Events, National Book Festival Tagged With: ,

Author Signings at BEA

June 2, 2010 by

Author signings at Book Expo America almost always have really huge lines, and in some cases, attendees have to get up early to get free tickets to get books signed by certain, popular authors.  Tickets are given out each morning at 6:45 AM and many of them go quickly, especially for high profile and prolific authors like Joyce Carol Oates.

The only author at the Expo that I wanted a ticket for was Oates because I’ve loved her writing ever since I was younger, and I grew to appreciate it even more in college.  I’d like to say I’m her biggest fan, and I do love hearing stories about her need to write and her eccentricities.

However, after getting up at 5 AM to get my ticket when I was on vacation and didn’t have to get up early for work, I was sorely disappointed after waiting in line for nearly 40 minutes to get Oates’ new book, Sourland, signed and to meet one of my all-time favorite authors.

We were told she was stuck in traffic and would be at Javits soon, but after 20 minutes more of waiting, they told us that they would hand out the books so we didn’t have to wait in line.  Authors are only given between 30 minutes and an hour to sign books, and ticketed authors don’t even guarantee that everyone with a ticket will get to meet the author or receive a signed book.

For me, waiting for my writing inspiration in line for more than 40 minutes only to find out that she couldn’t be bothered to show up at the appointed time was more than disappointing to me.  I had heard that she doesn’t like public functions and that she doesn’t like when fans talk to her in autographing lines, but I still wanted to meet her and have my book signed, but to me, her absence was a slap in the face.  I have vowed to meet her someday regardless of this incident.

I do want to share with you some photos of author signings for non-ticketed authors.  The Girl from Diary of an Eccentric got to meet R.L. Stine and I got to meet the poetic YA author, Beth Kephart, and The Lace Reader author Brunonia Barry.

What authors were you anxious to see? Tell me about your author signing experiences.

Filed Under: BEA, Events Tagged With: ,

My First Publishing House Tour

June 2, 2010 by

Entering into the Scholastic building, the lobby has a number of classic icons from literature, including Harry Potter.  It was great to see some bloggers I’ve met before, but also to meet some new-to-me bloggers.

We were taken on a tour of the building, the offices, and the archives in the basement.  Diary of an Eccentric‘s daughter, known as The Girl, took over the camera for the bit in the archives and she took a number of photos, but I’ll only share one of them with you.  You should have known that she was going to take pictures of R.L. Stine books.  There are some other photos of Sweet Valley High and more “classics.”

The Girl also got to meet Rick Riordan and Ruth Ames, two great YA authors.  I let her take the photo of Riordan, while her mom took a shot of Ruth Ames, who also writes adult fiction under another name.  Check them out:

I’ve got a couple of group blogger shots.  One group shot was taken by The Girl, includes Kathy of Bermudaonion, Julie of Booking Mama, Laura of I’m Booking It, Pam of Bookalicious, and Swapna of S. Krishna’s Books.  The second shot was taken by the Scholastic staff.  Thanks to all of you.

Filed Under: BEA, Events Tagged With: , ,

Food and NYC

June 1, 2010 by

Everyone will be talking about Book Expo America and Book Blogger Convention, but I wanted to start off my discussion with food.  I love food!  I love eating in new places, and I am growing to like trying new things.  Hot & Crusty is a great place for breakfast with yummy pastry and so-so coffee, though the hot chocolate rocked!

One of my goals last week was to eat from a street vendor’s truck, and I accomplished it by eating a hot dog, though I think that I was less thrilled with the actual hot dog than I thought I would be.  Rather, I would recommend eating at Gray’s Papaya in NYC, in which patrons can get 2 hot dogs and a smoothie for a mere $5.  I really loved the hot dog and the pina colada.

Here’s a couple photos of us (Anna and The Girl from Diary of an Eccentric and me) outside the great standing-room only place:


Junior’s was another great restaurant we tried, though I didn’t get to have any of their highly recommended cheesecake.  We couldn’t find the location in Times Square, but we did find a little version in Grand Central Station.  I had a great chicken Caesar salad, but the appetizers of pickled beets and pickles made my day!  They were delicious.  I’ve always loved beets for some reason, probably brings me back to my nana’s garden when I was younger.  Check out the beets and the cool chair with the silverware . . .

There are only two other meals I want to talk about and show you, bear with me.

Ted’s Montana Grill was one of the best places we ate in NYC, and it is the place I ventured farther from my norm — I had a bison burger.  I was so hungry that I forgot to take a photo of my burger and any of the other meals, but I did take a photo of the yummy homemade pickles and the dessert.

Another great thing about this restaurant is the care taken to remain earth-friendly from the recycled paper products to the differing flush control for liquid versus solid wastes.

We only got one dessert, a strawberry shortcake with homemade biscuits and freshly made vanilla ice cream that was smooth and very cold.  Can I just tell you that it was to die for.  Yes, we finished off the entire thing.

Finally, we had a great family-style dinner at Tony’s DiNapoli with a bunch of bloggers, including our table with Amanda from The Zen Leaf, Amy of Amy Reads, Natalie from In Spring it is the Dawn.  Talk about getting to know one another over dinner — what foods do you like to eat and more importantly what foods are you willing to share?!  LOL  We opted for an appetizer of fried zucchini and two pasta dishes — Alfredo Tortellini and Ravioli Bolognese.  All were delicious, and I really loved the white wine sangria.

I’ll leave you with these photos from dinner:

What kind of food did you eat in NYC? Or what kind of food is outside of your normal comfort zone?

Filed Under: BEA, Events Tagged With: , ,

Rumor Has It by Jill Mansell

May 31, 2010 by

Jill Mansell‘s Rumor Has It departs somewhat from the romantic comedies she’s written previously in that it tackles tough issues of acceptance, compassion, and tragedy.  Mansell has a writing style that will make readers stand up and pay attention as well as fall of their chairs in laughter.

“Normally she could shave her legs without incident in two minutes flat, but tonight — OK, probably because she’d given herself half a dozen razor cuts and the shower had ended up looking like the one in Psycho.  Then, having stubbed her tow against the chest of drawers in the bedroom, she’d managed to drop the hairdryer on her other foot.”  (page 67 of ARC)

“‘Bloody hell,’ complained Max, just home from a meeting with a client in Bristol.  ‘You’d think I was threatening you with a night in a torture chamber having your ribs cracked without anesthetic.'”  (page 133 of ARC)

Tilly Cole leaves London for Roxborough when her live-in boyfriend abandons their apartment when she’s at work.  She becomes a “Girl Friday” for a suburban family led by an interior designer, Max Dineen.  She’s thrilled to have an out and to be near her friend Erin.

Tilly has sworn off men and is prepared to step into her role as Girl Friday until she meets Jack Lucas, a man with a severe reputation as a philanderer.  He’s to die for, but he should be ignored because all he does is break women’s hearts.  Tilly fights her passion for him on many occasions, but Mansell does not get overly melodramatic with the love triangles she creates.  In fact, she uses humor to illustrate the social ineptitude of her characters.

“But since he wasn’t stupid, he couldn’t really think that.  The chemistry between them was inescapable; there was a crackling electricity in the air that only a turnip could miss.”  (page 219 of ARC)

From down-to-earth Tilly to her loyal friend Erin and conceited Stella, Mansell creates a cast of characters who are fun to watch and be around.  At times, they make stupid decisions, but doesn’t everyone?  Rumor Has It has everything you need in a beach read, a quick read, and a moment of entertainment on a train ride.  Mansell is a fantastic comedic writer, but she also has the skill to deal with more tragic topics such as death and trying to fit in knowing that you are a social outsider.

Thanks to Sourcebooks for sending me a copy of Rumor Has It for review.  If you pick up a copy to read, you’ll probably notice a quote from my blog on the back.

Filed Under: ARC, chicklit, Read in 2010, sourcebooks Tagged With: ,

Mailbox Monday #83

May 30, 2010 by

Before we get to today’s Mailbox Monday, I wanted to let everyone know that I am still recovering from Book Expo America and Book Blogger Con, which occurred last week.  I had a great time prior to the conventions exploring New York City — Central Park, the subway system, New York’s Hudson River, and other sights.

I also want to prepare you . . . this is going to be a long post about the books I received while gone and from the conventions.  Watch out there are some good ones in here that are going to make your own TBR lists grow.

Marcia at The Printed Page and Kristi of The Story Siren both sponsor memes in which bloggers share what books they’ve received in the past week.  I’m going to continue calling these Mailbox Mondays, but The Story Siren also has In My Mailbox.  Just be warned that these posts can increase your TBR piles and wish lists.

Here’s what I received in the mail:

1.  The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli — two copies for the end-of-year giveaway at War Through the Generations.

2.  I Am Ozzy by Ozzy Osbourne — one copy for review from Hachette, and the funny story about this book is that it has been sitting in my leasing office since February, and yet, I’ve been to the leasing office at least a dozen times since February to pick up other books, and yet, no one bothered to give me this one.  Gotta love it.  I started reading this one and it is hilarious from page one!

3.  The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner — one copy for review.

4.  War on the Margins by Libby Cone — one copy for review from the author.

5.  The Wishing Trees by John Shors — one unexpected copy for review from the author.

Here’s what I picked up at the Expo for me mom:

Tess Gerritsen and Lisa Gardner both signed their books and told me to tell my mom to review their books on Savvy Verse & Wit.

The others:  Suitcase Full of Dreams by Hoy Kersh, Think of a Number by John Verdon, and Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives by Josie Brown were books I got her just for fun.

Ok, my haul from BEA and BBC is huge, so I took two photos.  Totally Crazy!  I did ship a box home via postal service, since it was far cheaper than shipping through the convention and FedEx.  But the rest I had to find places for in my suitcase, which was already full.  I’m surprised the bag didn’t burst.

Check out these shots:


Ok, let’s start from the top:

1.  The Map of True Places by Brunonia Barry, which is my signed copy and I will be reviewing soon.

2.  Wading Home by Rosalyn Story, which is a novel about a son trying to find his father after Hurricane Katrina.

3.  Sourland by Joyce Carol Oates, which is a collection of short stories that I waited in line for more than 30 minutes to get signed and the author did not show.

4.  The Gendarme by Mark Mustain, which I picked up at random.

5.  The Forgotten Highlander by Alistair Urquhart, which is another WWII story.

6.  The Keepers’ Tattoo by Gill Arbuthnott, which looked really great at Scholastic with its hint of paranormal.

7.  Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead, which I waited in line to get signed and was told not to take pictures of the author.

8.  Red Moon Rising by Peter Moore, which is another vampire/werewolf young adult novel.

9.  Murder in Vein by Sue Ann Jaffarian, which is the first in a fang-in-cheek series of vampire novels.

10.  Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin is another paranormal young adult series.

11.  The Year of Goodbyes by Debbie Levy is another true story about the Holocaust and WWII.

12.  Emma and the Vampires by Wayne Josephson because you know I love Austen and vampires.

13.  This Totally Bites by Ruth Ames, which I got from Scholastic.

14.  Dangerous Neighbors by Beth Kephart, which I was so thrilled to stand in line for and meet the author in person.

15. Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives by Josie Brown, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

16.  The Great Lover by Jill Dawson, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

17.  The Outside Boy by Jeanine Cummins, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

18.  The Nature of Jade by Deb Caletti, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

19.  Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

20.  Unincorporated Persons in the Late Honda Dynasty by Tony Hoagland, which I got from the booth of Graywolf Press and is the only poetry book I was able to find.

21.  The Bucolic Plague by Josh Kilmer-Purcell, which I got from BBC.

22.  Semper Cool by Barry Fixler, which Heather at Age 30+ . . . A Lifetime of Books gave to me to read for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge.

23.  The Enemy by Charlie Higson, which is a zombie novel I picked up for my husband.

24.  The Zombie Chasers by John Kloepfer, which is a young adult zombie novel for my husband.

25.  Pariah by Bob Fingerman, which I picked up for my husband as well because it was supposed to be a graphic novel, but there are only about 5 images in it.

26.  Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson on audio, which I got from BBC in a swag bag.

That’s about 2 weeks worth of books. You’ll probably see some of these in my blogiversary giveaway in June.

Wow. . . now I’m tired.  But please do share what you got in your mailbox?

Filed Under: mailbox monday

47th Virtual Poetry Circle

May 29, 2010 by

Welcome to the 47th Virtual Poetry Circle.

I’m on my way back to Maryland from New York City and the wonderful gathering of book bloggers and publishing industry peeps that was Book Expo America and the Book Blogger Convention.  I’m probably too exhausted to post anything once I arrive home, so with this future self in mind, I’m pre-posting today’s virtual poetry circle.

The poetry discussion must go on!

Remember, this is just for fun and is not meant to be stressful.

Keep in mind what Molly Peacock’s books suggested. Look at a line, a stanza, sentences, and images; describe what you like or don’t like; and offer an opinion. If you missed my review of her book, check it out here.

We’re taking a step back in time to visit with the classic verse of Sara Teasdale:

Barter 
Life has loveliness to sell,
All beautiful and splendid things,
Blue waves whitened on a cliff,
Soaring fire that sways and sings,
And childrens's faces looking up
Holding wonder in a cup.

Life has loveliness to sell,
Music like a curve of gold,
Scent of pine trees in the rain,
Eyes that love you, arms that hold,
And for your spirit's still delight,
Holy thoughts that star the night.

Spend all you have for loveliness,
Buy it and never count the cost;
For one white singing hour of peace
Count many a year of strife well lost,
And for a breath of ecstasy
Give all you have been, or could be.

Let me know your thoughts, ideas, feelings, impressions. Let’s have a great discussion…pick a line, pick an image, pick a sentence.

I’ve you missed the other Virtual Poetry Circles, check them out here. It’s never too late to join the discussion.

Filed Under: virtual poetry circle

Alex Cross’s Trial by James Patterson and Richard DiLallo

May 28, 2010 by

While I attend some great panels and meet some authors and publishers in New York City this week, I didn’t want to leave my readers high and dry for reviews. My mom, Pat, has supplied me with enough reviews to get you through until my return. Please give her a warm welcome. If you want, check out my thoughts on Alex Cross’s Trial.

Alex Cross’s Trial by James Patterson and Richard DiLallo begins with Alex Cross transcribing the story of his great uncle Abraham to make sure his children know there is more than one hero in the family.  The story takes place in Eudora, Mississippi, in the 1900s.  Ben Corbett has been asked by President Roosevelt to investigate ruors of the Ku Klux Klan and lynchings of Black folk in the south.

In this story, attorney Ben Corbett heads back to his hometown in the south to investigate the rumors.  Dealing with slavery, racism, and more, Alex Cross’s Trial is an action packed, suspenseful story.  It will have readers on pins and needles at all times, keeping you interested until its conclusion.  Another five-star read from Patterson.

Thanks to Hachette for sending a free copy of this book for review.

Filed Under: Hachette Books, historical fiction, Pat review, review copy Tagged With: , ,