These links are waiting for you...and they're still hot.

It's a glittering extravaganza out there. Here's what's happening:

• PBS Parents has started a children's literature blog: Booklights. All there really is to say about that is it's about time. On a side note, a fellow member of the ALSC committee I'm on is one of the bloggers: Susan Kusel also blogs at Wizards Wireless. Thanks to Chicken Spaghetti for the info.
• Can't get a rezzie at Babbo? Cooked Books has the info on how you can recreate their dishes at home. I'm thinking of trying the Two-Minute Calamari Sicilian Lifeguard Style.
• 7th Annual Grilled Cheese Invitational. Need I say more?
• New York Public Library is having another literary cafe this weekend: Fantasy in New York. It's on May 2nd at 2:00 p.m. at the new 42nd St. library. Once again, I will have to miss it - I haven't been to one yet! But check it out - there's a great line-up of authors: Katherine Marsh, Kirsten Miller, and Delia Sherman.
• Books of Wonder has a ton of events going on - in particular, I would love to see Kristin Cashore and Melissa Marr on Saturday, May 30th from 1-3 p.m. I might stop by and say hi (hi Kristin!). Also, this weekend - Sunday, May 3rd from 1-3 p.m. - there is a veritable who's who of picture book/graphic novel authors/illustrators: Peter Brown, Jason Chin, Shaun Tan, and Harry Bliss. WOW. In particular, I'd love to meet Jason Chin - I just received a review copy of Redwoods yesterday, and I now see what all the buzz-buzz is about.
• For all you baking type people, I'm hooking you up - again - with a recipe: Maple Walnut White Chocolate Chip Cookies. You're welcome.

In other news, I realized that yesterday's post was my 400th. Yowza! Just thinking about it makes me exhausted. And in six weeks from yesterday, I'll be starting culinary school. And in four weeks from tomorrow, I'll be on the SLJ Day of Dialog panel. All I need now is to get appointed to an awards committee and my life would officially be my bizarro life.

Eat, drink, and just go with the flow.

HarperCollins Spring 2008 Preview

It’s that time of year! Publisher events galore! Autumn is like Christmas for us book loving people! I went to the HarperCollins Spring 2008 preview last Wednesday, and I just RSVP’d for an event with Shaun Tan and a party to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Redwall. And I have nothing to wear to any of them. And I believe I’m one of the few librarians who actually worries about such things. Don’t believe me? Check out the fashion at an ALA conference. I rest my case.

So…the HarperCollins preview. First off, it was the first publisher event I’ve been to since I started this job where I felt completely comfortable. I don’t feel like the new person anymore who knows no one or nothing. Instead, I got to single-cheek-kiss Michael Santangelo and have Kate McClelland tell me how beautiful I am (*blush*). I got to congratulate Patty Rosati on her new baby and talk about the cover of Melissa Marr’s next book with Anne Hoppe. Needless to say, I exhaled a huge sigh of relief.

So what goodies did I see? So many, soooooo many. This is going to be a long post.

1. The next Septimus Heap book, Queste. Unfortunately, I don’t have a cover but, nevertheless, this is going to make lots of kids (and librarians) happy come April 2008.

2. Roscoe Riley Rules, a new intermediate series by Katherine Applegate, promoted as “Junie B. Jones for boys”. We’re always in need of more “boy books” so I’m thrilled with this one. (June 2008)

3. You’re a Bad Man, Mr. Gum! by Andy Stanton, described by Michael Stearns as Monty Python-esque. I don’t know if that’ll help its kid appeal, but I know I’m excited for it! Check out the link for an excerpt. (March 2008)

4. A new picture book by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Gris Grimly: The Dangerous Alphabet. Unlike Wolves in the Walls, the editor says this will be a “true picture book”, in that it will actually be appropriate for the younger crowd. (May 2008)

5. Erin Hunter is also coming out with a new series: Seekers. The first book is The Quest Begins. It’ll be huge, of course. (June 2008)

6. I got goosebumps over the cover of the sequel to The Secret History of Tom Trueheart by Ian Beck: Tom Trueheart and the Land of Dark Stories. The plot sounds awesome – lots of strong female characters, per the editor – and the cover is super dark and foreboding. Chills! (June 2008)

7. Kevin Henkes has a new novel coming out: Bird Lake Moon. I don’t have a pic of the cover for you, but I thought it was a bit too subdued. Nevertheless, I expect greatness inside. (May 2008)
8. I got really excited about a debut author, Jody Feldman, and her book The Gollywhopper Games, which was described as “Encyclopedia Brown goes to Charlie’s chocolate factory.” Ooooh, intriguing! I have the galley and can't wait to read it. (February 2008)

9. The pièce de resistance! Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly! I’m such a Fancy Nancy geek and this one does not disappoint. It’s trés magnifique! That’s a fancy way of saying it’s wonderful. (February 2008)

10. And I’m just at the tip of the iceberg! I didn’t talk about Gail Carson Levine’s Ever, the Kanns’ Purplicious (sequel to Pinkalicious), Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis, or Laurence Yep’s Dragon’s Child. Not to mention an adorable picture book called Woolbur by Leslie Helakoski and illustrated by Lee Harper. Keep your eyes open because you will no doubt see Woolbur with face-out placement on B&N’s ubiquitous wall o’ picture books.

Phew! I’m exhausted. I still didn’t tell you about everything, but I think this is enough for now.

Note: A big thank you to HarperCollins for all these links and photos!

Lunch with Melissa Marr 9.17.07

So last week, Monday, I went a lovely lunch hosted by HarperCollins. It was an opportunity to meet Melissa Marr, author of the young adult novel Wicked Lovely. I was eager to go because I had heard that Melissa was super nice and I also wanted to hang out with the HarperCollins folks, who I previously have not had a chance to get to know.

It was a very small group – Melissa, Dina Sherman (HC publicity), Melissa’s editor (whose name, unfortunately, has escaped me), LuAnn Toth (of School Library Journal), and me. So five of us. I was initially intimidated – small groups means that I have to keep up my end of the conversation a little better – but I had no need to worry.

We talked about Wicked Lovely and Melissa’s next book in the series, Ink Exchange. The good news is that Ink Exchange is not really a sequel but, rather, it’s a companion novel about two of the less major characters in WL. She's also working on a manga book as well. We also talked about Melissa’s kids and the types of books they’re reading. And we talked a lot about MySpace and the up-and-coming generations that would rather chat with friends over the computer…and will not have the ability to hold a conversation with an actual person. Oh, and of course, we talked about tattoos. Melissa is fond of piercings and tattoos – I think she has an ink guy in every major U.S. city and maybe even some in Europe – so it was fun to talk about those. Often publishers will have these lunches because they know their author represents themselves so well and makes a wonderful impression. That was the case with Melissa. She's wicked smart - pardon the play on "wicked" - and really fascinating to talk to.

The food was very good, of course. LuAnn somehow scored a different menu than the rest of us and was able to order a gnocchi that really wasn’t supposed to be served. Lucky gal!

Overall, it was a wonderful jaunt into the city, and I enjoyed the conversation. I can recommend Wicked Lovely, particularly to all you Stephenie Meyer fans. WL is like Twilight, but with really evil fairies instead of vampires. Enjoy!