April Lindner Author Visit

Last night, 23 people came out to hear author April Lindner talk about her book, Jane!  The high school book group recently read and enjoyed this book, but we had more than just them at the event.  Lots of different people showed up including members of the Teen Advisory Board (TAB), people from the middle school book group, other teen readers, and even some adults!  This event was funded by the TAB with money raised from the Random-A-Thon.

April Lindner is a poet and English professor at St. Joe's, so we were really pleased that she could squeeze us into her busy end-of-the-semester schedule.  April talked to us about how she started writing for young adults, read us sections from Jane and her January 2013 release Catherine, and answered a lot of questions!

We learned that since Jane was originally written with adults in mind, the character was 21.  But, when it was published as a teen book, April decided to change Jane's age to 19.  Also, April is working on another retelling (in addition to Catherine, which is a retelling of Wuthering Heights), this time of A Room with a View by E. M. Forester.  At the end of the event, April signed copies of Jane.  Some people already had books, others bought them from me, and I was also able to snag some copies for summer prizes.  The whole event was a lot of fun, and we'd love to have April back again sometime!

If you liked Jane, go like it on Facebook!  Also, visit April's website for information about her life, her books, and where to see her in person if you missed this event.  These pictures are the best I got from my phone (I forgot my camera...again), but at least you can see April and the group in action!

Author Visit Tonight!

We have three wonderful Pennsylvania authors appearing at Sellers tonight!  Come meet Josh Berk, Marie Lamba, and Allison Whittenberg at 7:00 p.m. in the adult library.  Hear about how they became writers, learn about their books, and ask them your questions.  The event is free, but you can buy the authors' books and get them signed if you are interested.  Hope to see you there!

Multicultural Author Visit!

Join us for an amazing author event on August 17, from 7:00 to 8:00 pm! To wrap up our summer theme of One World, Many Stories, Pennsylvania authors Marie Lamba, Josh Berk, and Allison Whittenberg will all be a part of a discussion on multicultural teen fiction. This event is made possible by a grant from the Wal-Mart Foundation. The program will be held in the adult library, so all are welcome to attend.

All of the authors will be available for book signing after the event. Bring your wallets (or your parents with their wallets) because book sales will be provided by Children's Book World from Haverford. They take cash and credit!

Want to read the books before the event? Check them out of the library! Allison Whittenberg is the author of Sweet Thang, Hollywood and Maine, Life Is Fine, and Tutored. Josh Berk is the author of The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin. Marie Lamba is the author of What I Meant... and Over My Head.
You don't have to register for this event, but anyone can accept our Facebook invitation!

Allison Whittenberg

On Friday, 30 teens and 3 adults came out to meet author Allison Whittenberg! It was our first after-school author visit and our first visit by an African-American author. It was great to have such a big group! Allison talked a bit about her two current books, Sweet Thang and Life Is Fine. She also told us about Hollywood and Maine, a companion to Sweet Thang, which will be released in January 2009. We had a great question-and-answer period, and even talked about a few of my discussion questions for Sweet Thang. We finished up the program with snacks and a book signing.

One thing I learned is that Allison started her writing life with plays and poetry. Because of this, she uses a lot of dialogue and leaves space for the reader to fill in meaning in her novels. I really like her writing style because you can read it quickly, but still be actively engaged in the story. The humor in Sweet Thang reminded a lot of us of The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. But Allison said that, although she has heard that comparison a lot, she has never read his book!

Thanks to everyone who showed up, especially the members of our Read & Rant Book Discussion Group. And big thanks to the Teen Advisory Board, whose active fundraising made this visit possible!!

More Lubar Pix!

Nancy Trimbur, a member of our library board, came to the David Lubar author visit on March 5 and took pictures! Here are some of her shots from the evening:

A lot of people purchased books.

The book sales area was always packed.


David working the crowd!

There was a long line for book signing.

David took time with everyone, which was really nice.

Some older fans, and a new one!

Lubar Was Here!

Tonight, a record-breaking 54 people came to our library to meet author David Lubar! It was really cool. We kept having to get out more chairs, and everyone was crowding around the table to buy books! There were a lot of different people there, including book group members, parents, teachers from several UD schools, students who wanted extra credit, and others who were just curious. There were people who use our library regularly and people I've never seen before!

David (who teased me for calling him Mr. Lubar) talked for about 1/2 hour about all kinds of things. We all knew he was an author, but we learned that math actually helped him be a writer. And that his philosophy degree helped him design video games. And that weird "what if" questions are central to his writing. His presentation was offbeat and a lot of fun. He hardly talked about his books at all until the Q&A part of the evening. Of course, then we talked about why his short story books all have "weenies" in the title. We learned that his future books include another "weenies" book, three books in a creepy new series, and another young adult title.

Thanks to the staff at Children's Book World for doing book sales, and to library page Nate who moved so much furniture. Thanks to Delaware County and Margie Stern who brought David to our library. And, of course, huge thanks to David Lubar for being awesome!

An action shot

What a great audience!

My brush with fame.

A smiling, but unwilling, victim of my photo frenzy.

Talking with David Lubar.

Everyone wanted to get books signed...

...even these teachers from BH!

Countdown to Lubar

Only 5 1/2 more days until David Lubar is at our library!! He will be here Wednesday, March 5, at 7:00 pm for an author talk and book signing. In honor of his visit, the blog poll is asking you to select your favorite Lubar books. If you want to know more about his books, check out David Lubar's website.

Marie Lamba Lovefest Continued

I wrote a review of Marie Lamba's visit to our library, which included some quotes from teens who were at the program.

Here is my review:

Marie Lamba was one of the best young adult authors we have ever hosted at our library. Even though the weather was not cooperative, 23 readers in grades 4 to 12 attended the program, as well as some parents. Talking about both her journey to publication and the plot of What I Meant…, Marie created a meaningful hour-long presentation around the themes of inner strength and determination. She also encouraged listeners to find their own inner resources to deal with their dreams and challenges. Highlights of the presentation included readings from What I Meant…, great advice about writing, and a large pile of actual rejection letters. The students were very impressed with the quality of Marie’s answers to the questions during the Q&A session, and 16 people enthusiastically purchased books to be signed at the end. I would highly recommend inviting Marie to your school, library, or bookstore!

Here are the quotes:

“I liked how she described the publishing process and her difficulties with it.” --Amy, age 16

“She was very honest and in-depth about rejections.” --Caitlin, age 17

“Marie was a great guest speaker and I am really looking forward to reading about the lifeguard in her new book.” --Arwa, age 16

“I liked the fact that she was finally able to put her book In and Out of Time aside to work on a new project. It taught me that I could stretch further as a writer.” --Stephanie, age 15

“After hearing about What I Meant…, I wanted to stab that aunt in the eye with a blunt object.” --Katie, age 16

Here is Marie's response:

Thanks so much for doing this! It really is so helpful. I'll be sure to include your comments in the press I hand out at the ALA Midwinter meeting in Philly. I'll be at the SCBWI booth on Friday, the opening night. Maybe I'll see you there!

BTW, LOVED the eye-poking comment. You have such a great group of teens there. I bet you have a blast with them. And please let Arwa know that the book about the steamy bad-boy lifeguard just got mailed to my agent yesterday. Fingers crossed that it'll be accepted by a publisher soon!

Marie Lamba Author Visit!

On Sunday, 26 people braved the weather to meet Marie Lamba at our library. It was a yucky day, but we had a great time. Of course, Marie did readings from What I Meant... and talked about the ideas and themes in the novel. Marie also talked a lot about writing and her journey to publication, including giant stacks of rejection letters, some of which were absolutely ridiculous. The worst one was written on an unevenly cut piece of green construction paper with red crayon scribbles on the back! The audience asked great questions and 15 copies of the book were sold to new fans. Hopefully, we will see more books from Marie in the future!

What an attentive audience!

An aeriel view

Marie shared her piles of rejection letters!

An action shot

Getting books signed

Everyone was happy!

Charm school?

Can't wait to read!

Woohoo, signed books!

Marie Lamba Author Visit

Next time you're in the lobby, look at the display I did for our author visit on Sunday, December 2. Marie Lamba will be here from 2:00 to 4:00 to talk about her Young Adult book What I Meant..., answer your questions, and sign copies of her book. Find out more about the author and her book by checking out the display!

You can buy a copy of the book that day, but if you want to buy a copy before the program, just ask me! (Either way, the cost is $11 because we are giving you the library discount.) Thanks to the Teen Advisory Board for sponsoring this author visit. You are the coolest!

Special thanks to library employee Aparna Hindupur for loaning the sari and jewelry in the display!!

A Brush with Fame

On Friday night, 11 teens and 2 adults came by to meet local author Jeffry Johnston and hear about his YA book Fragments. Although he had a lot of experience with writing articles and short stories, it took him 25 years and 6 books to write a novel that actually sold! Patience and practice were his words of advice to aspiring writers. Interestingly, the people who attended asked him a lot of questions about his background in theater, which he was totally unprepared for. We sold 9 copies of the book and everyone enjoyed getting theirs signed. Jeff even offered to come back and talk to our book groups if we were ever reading his book for a meeting, which I thought was really cool. If you missed the event, you can always check Fragments out of the library!

My lobby display to promote the event.

Jeff talking to the group.

Storytime!

Jeff read the first chapter aloud to the group.

People wait in line to get their books signed.

Fanboy Friday!

Last Friday, 32 people came to hear Barry Lyga talk about The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl. It was fun, with a great reading from the book and a lot of time for Q and A. It's always cool to hear about the creation of a good book. For example, in the original drafts, Kyra was a really minor character. Later, she took over the story and got her name in the title!

Everyone asked thoughtful questions, and Barry was impressed with how many of you had already read the book! My favorite question was from Kara, asking Barry about the craziest thing he has ever seen at a comic book convention. Other memorable questions were about his favorite books and movies, and whether this book will have a sequel (the answer: maybe). And one exciting thing we learned is that he was recently on an author panel with John Green and Stephenie Meyer! After the talk, 17 people bought books to get signed. ( I still have a few more, unsigned but a deal at only $11!)

We found out that his next book, Boy Toy, will be released in October 2007. This is a story, told in flashbacks, of of 12-year-old boy who has a relationship with his teacher. It sounds pretty depressing, but everyone was very interested in reading it. Barry is planning to send us an ARC when one is printed, and there is already a waiting list!

And the coolest thing...Barry said we were his best public library event ever. Oh yeah!!!

Q and A

You CAN Judge A Book By It's Cover!

Amy said it, and I agree. In the case of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl, it's actually true! The cover is not some marketing trick...it's a book worth reading.

Incidentally, just in case you forgot, author Barry Lyga will be here TOMORROW NIGHT AT 7 PM to talk about his book. Be here!!!

Real Live Author Visit

It's really happening. Barry Lyga, author of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl, is coming to Sellers Library on Friday, November 3, starting at 7 pm!!!!!

It all began with my blog post about the cool title, before I even read the book. Barry sent me an ARC (read my review), and then volunteered to come visit us since he lives about 2 hours from here! Woohoo!

Barry will be talking about his book, doing a Q & A, and signing copies for you!! The book is on sale now in stores, and we will also have copies available for sale that night. You can also check out a library copy. Put your hold in now!

This book is a release from a major publishing house, people. We are talking REAL AUTHOR. How cool is this!!! Tell your English teachers they should give extra credit for those attending the event!