Long Overdue BEA Wrap-up!

Once again, I am way behind! Had a family emergency that has occupied all of my time since returning from BEA. Things are going better now, for which I am profoundly grateful! Anyway, I was in New York from May 24 thru the 29th for Book Expo America. Last year was so much fun, I didn't think it could be more fun or exciting this year, but it was! There were so many bloggers there, old friends and new, and it was exciting to see everyone. Plus, on Friday I attended the first ever Book Blogger Convention! Michelle, Trish, Natasha, Nicole, Amy, Rebecca and everyone involved in the organization of it did a fantastic job. It was interesting, educational and the keynote speaker, author Maureen Johnson, was an inspired choice. She was hilarious and so much fun to listen to! I don't buy very many books but she completely won me over, I'll be going out to buy all of hers!

Show Floor

But I'm getting ahead of myself. The first exhibit day was Wednesday, it was crazy! So many people everywhere...not to mention the books! I had more than I could carry within the first hour. Time to start being more selective! It is very hard to limit yourself when fantastic books are being thrust at you from every direction. I admit, BEA is heaven for someone like me. Nothing but books, authors, book publicists, book publishers, book lovers, book bloggers....very fun and exciting. So, Wednesday was great. But it was Thursday that was fantastic!

Me and Clinton Kelly

You'll think I'm very silly, but I was so excited to meet Clinton Kelly from TLC's show What Not to Wear. I love the show, have been watching it for ages and learning from it! (I put a LOT of thought into what I would wear on Thursday!) He was signing at 10am and I got in line early. He was so nice! Even complimented me on my outfit (whew!)...you know I couldn't meet him and have him thinking "Wow, YOU need to be on my show..."!! What is a fashion guru doing at BEA? He has a book coming out, not until October, called Oh No She Didn't. We didn't actually get the book, it was a little preview pamphlet which he signed for me.

As you walk down the aisles at BEA one of the things that you notice immediately is the lines that form around the booths. There is a separate autographing area where authors sign at scheduled times, but many publisher booths have authors signing, too. So, as you walk by a line you get curious and lean in to ask who everyone is waiting to see. This happens over and over again during the course of BEA (at least for me, I'm always curious to know who is causing all the excitement at the moment). Now, I make up a schedule before I go of who I want to see, so I usually don't stop. But early afternoon on Thursday I walked by a line that had just started to form...only about 15 people in it. When I asked who it is for I was told Kathryn Stockett would be signing copies of her bestseller, The Help ! This was completely unannounced, probably for crowd control reasons, but I was thrilled. The Help has been out well over a year and is still at the top of bestseller lists (#11 right now on Amazon). And I had yet to get a copy, let alone a signed one. And then I got to meet the author, too! I tried to get a picture but the one I manged to take was horribly blurry...to many people jostling around to get a second shot.

Me and Tim Gunn

At 1 pm Thursday, Tim Gunn (he has had a long career in the fashion world but is best known for Project Runway) was scheduled to sign his new book Gunn's Golden Rules, which will be out in September. I got in line at noon because I knew that the line would get incredibly long. The signing started exactly on time but the line moved extremely slowly. Tim is so friendly and nice, he chatted with each person, called them by name, asked about them, taking 2-3 minutes for each of us. Which translated to a long wait in line that was completely worth it! What a gracious man. I was probably about 40th in line and it was a bit after two when I finally got to meet him (the goofy picture of me is above). He was only scheduled to sign for ONE HOUR, from 1-2. After I saw him there were still hundreds of people in line behind me. When I left the room at 4:15 pm he was still there, looking like he had just stepped out there, smiling and generous with each and every person. He stood there for as long as it took to see everyone who wanted to meet him. I was very impressed.

A night out with Caitlin and the crew from Unbridled Books was a perfect way to end a perfect day! We all had a great time at Hudson Bar & Books, an appropriate spot for us!

After Friday's Book Blogger Convention we decided dinner was in order. Allie (Hist-Fic Chick) and Nicole (Linus' Blanket), our resident New Yorkers, led the way to Dos Caminos where we had twenty something bloggers all together for some great mexican food and, of course, margaritas. I wish I had time to chat with everyone but the conversation was non-stop. It was a great evening. The bill was well over $1,000! So much fun, a perfect end to a perfect trip!

Jen (Devourer of Books), Allie (Hist-Fic Chick) and Me

And there you have it, a fantastic BEA! Can't wait for next year! (Thanks for sharing the above photo, Allie!)

Review and Blog Tour: Secrets to Happiness by Sarah Dunn

"Holly Frick had had the worst kind of divorce: the kind where you're still in love with the person who is divorcing you. Not "fond of," not "still attached to," not "building a life together" - hopelessly in love with. And it was a year ago exactly that Alex had left her, a fact that had somehow slipped her notice up until earlier that evening, when she went to hail a cab and saw the dried-out Christmas trees heaped in sad piles on the sidewalk. Alex had left her on January third. Kind of like a benevolent CEO who holds off on the pink slips until after the holidays."

Poor Holly. She can't seem to get over Alex, her novel was a flop and her career as a television writer is not going that well, either. For support she leans on friends. Unfortunately, those friends have a whole host of their own problems. Amanda and Mark are married and have a one year old son but Amanda is dissatisfied and considering an affair. Leonard, Holly's drug addicted television writing partner, can't get over the fact that he used to be a huge success and isn't anymore. Spence Samuelson, Holly's ex boyfriend from before she got married (and inspiration of the central character in her failed novel) is commitment-phobic with a ton of girlfriend troubles and an overbearing mother. How is this bunch ever going to help her?

Throughout the novel, Holly struggles with the difference between people doing what they want and what is right. What will make you happy? Doing exactly what you want, regardless of the effect on others? Doing the right thing and consoling yourself with your own goodness? I don't think those questions ever get answered.

I really enjoyed the author's writing style, she is witty and fresh and the book was a fast read. And I thought the premise behind the story was a good one. Unfortunately, it just wasn't a very good fit for me. I didn't understand why Holly was friends with someone like Amanda, though I thought Spence was a great portrait of a bachelor in his thirties who is just realizing that it isn't a great idea to live the rest of his life the way he did his twenties. His growing pains were the best part of the book, in my opinion. The whole story reminded me quite a bit of Sex in the City, a show which I seriously dislike, and that probably contributed to my feelings about it.

For a complete list of blogs participating in this tour, click here. The tour is actually on June 12, so you will find the reviews up then. You can find out more about Sarah Dunn and her books on her website. Thanks to Miriam at Hachette for sending this to me for review!

Secrets to Happiness is published by Little Brown, ISBN 978-0-316-01358-1

Review: The Tory Widow by Christine Blevins

For eighteen year old Anne Peabody, May 20, 1766 was far from the happiest day of her life. It was her wedding day. Her father was thrilled with the match that he had arranged with old Peter Merrick, a printer like himself, though Anne felt more than a little like she had been traded in a deal. As soon as the ceremony was over, the city seemed to erupt and a couple of printer's apprentices brought the news that the hated Stamp Act had been repealed. One of them, Jack Hampton, swung Anne around and kissed her soundly. A sharp contrast to the cabbagey-smelling old man's kiss that she had received only minutes before. It made quite an impression on her.

Nine years later, New York City is a different and dangerous place. The Continental Army is massing to attempt to expel the ruling English, the city is deeply divided and Anne is recently widowed. She continues to run her late husband's press with the help of her maid, Sally, and her freed slave Titus. She is walking a fine line, trying to make enough money to keep food on their table while not offending either side. Opening a coffee house in the front of the print shop deflects attention from some of her printing jobs, but the Sons of Liberty raid her establishment anyway, looking for Tory materials that she is rumored to have printed. To Anne's astonishment, the leader of the destructive little band is none other than Jack Hampton. She has never forgotten him.

Nor has he forgotten her, it seems. There is an undeniable attraction between them and the sparks fly almost immediately, especially when Jack suspects that Anne might not be a whole-hearted patriot. Events overtake them quickly and Jack, along with his new friend Titus, are swept deep into spying on the Redcoats in the early days of the Revolutionary War. Anne and Sally do their best to bend in the prevailing political wind, changing the name of their shop according to who has control of the city.

It is a dangerous game they play, but Anne is doing something that is important to her, maintaining her own independence while doing what she can to contribute to the future independence of an entire nation.

One of my favorite things about this novel are the chapter headings. Each one begins with a quote from Thomas Paine's Common Sense, which serve to remind the reader of the deep feelings of the American citizens in the 1770s and their longing to be free of Britain.

"Tis not the concern of a day, a year, or an age; posterity are virtually involved in the contest, and will be more of less affected, even to the end of time, by the proceedings now."

Thomas Paine, Common Sense

I was struck by how timely these quotes still are today, hundreds of years in a future that Mr. Paine could never have imagined but somehow managed to grasp anyway.

The author has painted what feels like a realistic portrait of New York City and its divided residents during the beginnings of the American Revolution. I loved the characters, they are all depicted with positive attributes as well as flaws whether they are American or English. There are gentlemen (or gentlewomen) and villains on both sides and I appreciated the author's even handed depiction of them. She brings colonial New York to life and I thought the passages concerning the great fire that destroyed a huge part of the city were particularly well done.

I read and reviewed Ms. Blevins' first book, Midwife of the Blue Ridge , last year. It was a wonderful historical fiction novel and I eagerly awaited this second book. I thought this one was excellent, too. It is the first in a trilogy, so there will be more great Historical Fiction to come from Christine Blevins!

You can visit the author's website here and if you are reading either of her books for a reading group, you can find Reader Guides here.

The Tory Widow is published by Berkley. ISBN 978-0-425-22601-8