Tag Archives: Author Events

NCTE/ALAN 2011 Recap

30 Nov

From November 18th-21st I was in Chicago for the NCTE/ALAN Annual Convention.  I ended up going by myself again this year, but unlike last year, I stayed longer and had friends to hang out with the entire time.  It was an exhausting weekend because we were constantly busy going here, there, and everywhere, but it was completely worth it.  And did you know that lugging around 20 lbs of books really wears you out? Who knew?! :)

Jillian (@heisereads) and I met in real life (!) for breakfast Friday morning and went to most of the same sessions.  My first session was about using graphic novels in the classroom.  It was a fantastic way to start the day because all of the presenters brought great information to the table.  One of the presenters told us about how she uses Post-it Note Diaries by Arthur Jones as an introduction to teaching the personal essay.  You can find their handouts and presentation information on the NCTE Annual Convention website.  Actually, all of the presenters were encouraged to upload their materials to the website for those who couldn’t attend certain sessions and those who couldn’t attend the conference.  Anyway, I’ve been interested in reading more graphic novels and after this session I can’t wait to find ways to use them in my classroom.

Part of my first haul of books!

Jillian and I went to the second session together, but we ended up disappointed and left.  It was about bullying but the presenter came off as arrogant and most of what she said I disagreed with.  Jillian and I decided to head down to the exhibit hall, aka the dungeon, to get in line for the John Green signing.  Unfortunately he wasn’t signing ARCs of his newest book, but we did get a chapter sample.  The exhibits were crazy when they first opened!  I have to admit that I was embarrassed for some of the teachers there.  While we waited to be let in, there was a group of teachers standing in front of us with suitcases on wheels and game planning over how to get the most books.  I completely understand being excited about free/cheaper books, but these teachers ran into the exhibit hall and bombarded the booths.  I heard teachers walking up to people working the booths and asking them what they had for free.  Really?!  Jillian and I took our time talking with the editors, publicists, marketing team, etc to find out which books were their favorites and which books they recommend for our students.  It was an excellent way to find out about new books and we formed some relationships in the process.  And you know what?  The people we spoke with were more likely to offer us books after talking with us.  So yes, some of the teachers surprised me, but most of them were doing exactly the same thing as we did.

After lunch and taking some time to rest our shoulders after lugging around 15+ books each, we went to a session on teaching grammar better.  I was exhausted by this point and couldn’t retain that much information anymore.  I was happy to attend the session, though, because they had a PowerPoint prepared that we can use with out students and they also had some good ideas on making grammar more relevant for our students.  I even sent my department head a text letting her know about the session because so many of the teachers in my department are concerned with teaching grammar.

Me, S.J. Kincaid & Jillian

Friday night ended on a high note when Jillian and I went out to dinner with HarperCollins editor Molly O’Neill and upcoming debut author S.J. (Shelley) Kincaid.  Shelley’s debut novel, Insignia, releases in July, but we were fortunate enough to get an ARC before the conference.  If you work with teenage boys, make sure you get this book.  I know some girls will enjoy it, but I can’t wait to hand this novel to my reluctant boys and my sci-fi fans.  It’s full of action and humor and just a fun read (my review will be posted soon).  Molly also invited Becky Anderson of Anderson’s Bookshops and Becky’s daughter.  I’ve only heard great things about Becky’s stores, so it was really cool getting to meet and connect with her.  Shelley is wonderful and really intelligent.  After spending some time with her at dinner, I’m really looking forward to reading more of her books in the future.

I attended my first ALAN breakfast on Saturday morning.  I met more of my Twitter friends like Jen (@mentortexts), Kellee (@kellemoye), Mindi (@mindi_r) and so many more.  It was really cool meeting everyone for the first time!  The breakfast itself was a cool experience and I really enjoyed listening to Sharon Draper speak.  The best part of her speech was talking about how our life is our dash and we need to fill it with great stories.  What a wonderful way of looking at life.  Jilllian and I were constant buddies during the convention, so we perused the exhibits and met some authors during signings.  I met Laurie Halse Anderson and now have a signed copy of Speak (squee!).  My favorite session of the day was on writing and revision.  Four teachers presented their teaching writing and revising strategies.  One of the teachers uses NaNoWriMo in her classroom.  The way she does this is so cool and something I’d love to try.  Another teacher is using writing mini-lessons for different paper assignments and has stopped using letter grades.  She has a rubric for her students and grades them on Exceeding Expectations, Meeting Expectations, and Needs Improvement.  The students have pieces to work on according to different rubrics and are graded on their improvement during the trimester.  This way of teaching sounds like something I could adapt in my classroom, so I’m excited to check out her resources.  For information on using NaNoWriMo in your classroom check out her website: msansbach.wikispaces.com  If you want to learn more about eliminating letter grades and refocusing on writing as a process, check out her website: msshortlearnstwice.blogspot.com

Sara Zarr!

Saturday night was tons of fun because we had a Twitter friends dinner at Carnivale.  The food and drinks were delicious and the restaurant is bright and vibrant.  I was sitting at the end of the table with Katherine (@katsok), Cindy (@CBethM), Lea (@leakelley) and Chris (@ckervina).  At the other end of the table was Jillian, Aly (@alybee930), Cathy (@Cathy_Blackler), Mindi (@mindi_r) and Jillian.  The conversations were great and so was the experience in general.  I really miss my Twitter friends.

Picture from Jen's blog--Jillian, Jen & Me

Sunday and Monday were simply awesome.  There weren’t that many sessions on Sunday, but I did go to a good one about using YA in a traditional curriculum.  Some of the titles were outdated, but the ideas on discussing themes were very cool.  One of the presenters discussed the idea of using theory and heuristics. They also said their handouts would be on the convention website.  The best part of Sunday was the ALAN cocktail party.  I geeked out over so many authors!  I met Sarah Dessen, Stephanie Perkins, M.T. Anderson (because after meeting John Green & telling him a story of how his books and M.T. Anderson’s books hooked one of my boys John took me to meet him and tell him the story), and so many others!  I had a chance to talk with A.S. King which was awesome after how she and I have connected since I read and reviewed Everybody Sees the Ants.   The Twitter group met up with Donalyn Miller (@donalynbooks) and Teresa (@rdngteach) there as well.  Donalyn has no fear and helped us get the courage to approach some of the authors.  Heidi (@hmz1505), a librarian and blogger, spent a lot of time hanging out with us as well.  All of us had fangirly moments over different authors :)

A.S. King!!

Unfortunately I couldn’t stay for the entire ALAN portion of the convention.  I was there most of the day on Monday, but I had to head home since we had finals going on for the end of the trimester.  Listening to Matt de la Pena, Chris Crutcher, Sarah Dessen, and so many other authors speak was inspiring.  Our entire Twitter row was tweeting what the authors said like crazy.  Matt de la Pena was probably my favorite speaker of the day.  Besides the fact that he’s eloquent and thoughtful, he represents so many of our reluctant readers.  I’m really bummed that I missed Laurie Halse Anderson’s presentation.  I will admit that I was happy to return home because I missed Keith, my small cats, and I was exhausted.

Overall, I can’t encourage teachers enough to attend this conference in the future.  Next year it’s going to be in Las Vegas, so I’ll start saving after Christmas.  It’s the perfect way to connect with authors and other teachers.  It’s also an excellent way to learn from other teachers.  What I liked most about the sessions is how excited the teachers were to share with us; so many told us to email them with any questions.  I loved meeting my Twitter friends and I can’t wait to meet up again! :D

In My Mailbox (20)

24 Jul

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme sponsored by The Story Siren.  It’s a way for bloggers to share what books they’ve received for review, borrowed from the library, or bought from the store.

My weekends have been really busy these past two weeks, so I’m behind with my IMM posts.  This week’s IMM consists of two weeks worth of books!

Dinner Party w/Lisa McMann:  I have an entire post about how awesome this was here.  Before the party I bought hardcover copies of the Wake trilogy to get signed and brought along my ARC of Cryer’s Cross.  Lisa told Simon & Schuster about inviting all of us over, so they sent us some awesome presents!

Received from HarperCollins:

Variant by Robison Wells (Goodreads): This one sounds really suspenseful.  Plus, it has boy appeal.

Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver (Goodreads): I’ve been on a middle grade kick lately, so I’m pumped to read this one. I’ve read some great reviews from bloggers and teachers I trust.

Don’t Breathe a Word by Holly Cupula (Goodreads): After reading her debut Tell Me a Secret, I don’t think it’s possible not to like this book.  She’s incredibly talented, so I have high hopes for this one.

Eve by Anna Carey (Goodreads): I’m really into dystopian novels, and this 2011 debut sounds promising.

I told my contact at HarperCollins about a freshmen English class full of struggling readers that I’m teaching this fall.  I’m thinking that offering these students more middle grade novels will be a good idea, so I was sent these five titles to see if they’ll work!  Thank you, HarperCollins!!

Dragons of Silk by Laurence Yep (Goodreads)

Wolf Storm by Dee Garretson (Goodreads): I already know that out of the 26 students scheduled for this class, 20 of them are boys.  This one sounds like a great action/adventure title for them to read.

Deep Zone by Time Green (Goodreads): The description isn’t up yet on Goodreads, but based on the cover I’m going to guess there will be some interest in this book.

The Family Hitchcock by Mark Levin & Jennifer Flackett (Publisher): There isn’t a cover on the Goodreads page, but the cover on my copy is really cute! And since there isn’t a description on the Goodreads page either, I’m linking to the publisher’s page.  It sounds adorable.

The Goblin War (Gobline Wood #3) by Hilari Bell (Goodreads)

Received from Little, Brown and Company:

Boy21 by Matthew Quick (Goodreads): I was sent this one because it will probably appeal to my boys in class.  I love the cover and even though it doesn’t come out until March, I think I’m going to read it this summer because it sounds awesome!

Wintertown by Stephen Emund (Goodreads): An illustrated novel that appeals to boys?!  Yay!  Plus it’s blurbed as “Garden State meets Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” which sounds like all sorts of awesome.

The Rivals by Daisy Whitney (Goodreads): I really liked The Mockingbirds, which has become a favorite in my classroom.  I can’t wait to see what happens in this sequel.

Received from Tor, Random House, Simon & Schuster:

I didn’t want to waste space and take three individual pictures, so I put these three together.

7th Sigma by Steven Gould (Goodreads): I’m really picky about sci-fi, but this one sounds like a book a few of the boys that borrow books from me all the time would like to read.  Plus, I promised one of them that I would read more books that are specifically books he enjoys to read.

Don’t Expect Magic by Kathy McCullough (Goodreads): Kathy signed up to be interviewed by my students this fall for my Students Want to Know feature.  Now my students will be able to read her book before the interview :)   Also, I’m featuring the trailer for Don’t Expect Magic in this week’s Book Trailer Thursday.  It’s a wonderful trailer with music that fits perfectly!

Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez (Goodreads): Jessica is another 2011 debut author that signed up for my Students Want to Know feature.  This book has a lot of what my students are interested in–music, addiction, relationships, etc.

Book Launch for Bad Taste in Boys by Carrie Harris:

Carrie Harris is another debut author signed up for my Students Want to Know feature (how awesome are these 2011 debut authors?!).  Her book launch was yesterday, and she invited me and some other bloggers to get lunch with her before the party.  Lunch was really fun and a great way to finally meet Kelly from Stacked and some other cool bloggers as well.  It was awesome to get to know Carrie, along with her husband.  The launch itself was amazing because Carrie is incredibly funny, read a great section from her book, Nicola’s Books might be my new favorite book store, and two of my students made the trip down to Ann Arbor to get their books signed :)

I bought my second copy of Bad Taste in Boys (it’s incredibly funny), along with some other books as well.

  • Small Town Sinners by Melissa Walker (Goodreads)
  • Everything Beautiful by Simone Howell (Goodreads): I’m reading this one right now and REALLY liking it.
  • Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman (Goodreads): I thought this wasn’t coming out until August, but I decided not to question it and bought a copy since it was there!

 

Purchased:

Beautiful (Goodreads) and Clean (Goodreads) by Amy Reed: Both of these have been highly recommended and sound exactly like what many of my students in class want/like to read.

Forever by Maggie Stiefvater (Goodreads): Is anyone else sad that this is the last book??

Teacher and Librarian Dinner with Lisa McMann

18 Jul

I had the most awesome weekend because I got to hang out with Lisa McMann, the author of the Wake trilogy, Cryer’s Cross, and the upcoming release The Unwanteds.  She’s been staying in her hometown Holland this month and wanted to get together with some Michigan English teachers and librarians.  She and I chat sometimes on Twitter, and when she told me about this and asked if I would want to come, I of course said YES!  She made the whole thing even better because she emailed the teachers and librarians she invited and told us we could bring another English teacher or librarian as our guest.  I invited Lindsay since she’s my best friend and she told me about Wake :)

Lindsay & I were kind of excited when we arrived :)

It’s a bit of a drive to get out there, so Lindsay and I got up early Saturday morning to get ready and head out.  The party started at 4:30, so we had time to check into our hotel and get lunch.  A bunch of times throughout the day we were geeking out about this whole thing.  When we arrived at the condo, we did get a little confused about where the condo she’s renting is exactly, but thankfully we weren’t the only ones!  Once we found the condo, Lisa was there greeting everyone and giving hugs.  She’s incredibly sweet and thoughtful.  She had name tags for us so we knew everyone’s name.  She also had them for our tote bags, courtesy of Simon & Schuster.  She told them about her party, so they sent us presents!  Everyone received an ARC of her upcoming books The Unwanteds (Aug. 2011) and Dead to You (Feb. 2012).  We also received an ARC of Where It Began by Ann Redisch Stampler, which is a March 2012 debut, and a finished copy of Accidental Hero by Matt Myklusch.  Obviously, we were all excited about this!

I think everyone had a wonderful time.  It was really fun to meet other teachers and librarians and spend the evening sitting on the balcony, watching the sunset over Lake Michigan and talk about books and teaching.  Lisa had appetizers and drinks to start before our dinner was catered.  Wow, was the food awesome!  The chicken satay and peanut sauce was my favorite, with the twice baked redskins following close behind.  Seriously, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.  Her sister made us the best cupcakes I’ve ever had.  The lemon cupcakes with raspberry filling were fabulous.  I could have eaten my weight in those cupcakes.  As we ate, Lisa mingled with all of us.  Some of the books we talked about were Delirium by Lauren Oliver, Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach, OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy, and Blood Red Road by Moira Young, just to name a few.  All of us were making lists of books to read.  It was seriously so much fun. 

Lindsay and I made sure to head down to the beach to take some pictures and dip our feet in the lake, which was freezing cold.  At some point in my life when I hit the lotto, I think I’ll buy a place on Lake Michigan.  That could happen, right? ;)

Lindsay and I bought hard copies of Wake, Fade and Gone along with copies of Cryer’s Cross, which I already had.  We were able to take some pictures as well, and then sit and chat with her.  It was fun to talk to her about writing and what we do with our students.  She’s taking part in a writing contest with Simon & Schuster for teen writers.  When I saw the link to this, I sent it to some of my students who are aspiring authors.  I told her about the stories I’ve read written by Felecia, Tristan, Mali and Lori because I think all of them have the potential to write a book in the future.

Overall it was the best way to spend a Saturday.  I can’t wait to tell my students about this in the fall!  Thank you Lisa for inviting me and Lindsay!  We had an amazing time and are very grateful for the invite :)

Bad Taste in Boys Release Day!

12 Jul

Happy Book Birthday to Carrie Harris!!  Today is the release of her debut novel Bad Taste in Boys.  I haven’ t read this one yet, but I’ve only heard good things about this funny zombie book :)   I see a trip to the book store in my future…

Summary (From Goodreads): Someone’s been a very bad zombie.

Kate Grable is horrified to find out that the football coach has given the team steroids. Worse yet, the steroids are having an unexpected effect, turning hot gridiron hunks into mindless flesh-eating zombies. No one is safe–not her cute crush Aaron, not her dorky brother, Jonah . . . not even Kate!

She’s got to find an antidote–before her entire high school ends up eating each other. So Kate, her best girlfriend, Rocky, and Aaron stage a frantic battle to save their town. . . and stay hormonally human. 

Carrie Harris is a Michigan author (yay!) and she’s hosting an auction for a great cause.  Lots of books and book-related things are up for auction.  Also, Carrie Harris is having a launch party on July 23rd at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor, Michigan which starts at 2pm (I hope to be there!).

Related to today’s release, there’s lots of fun being had at Cari’s Book Blog where you can link up and join the release day fun (Thanks for hosting this, Cari!).  You can make yourself look like a zombie, take a picture with sprinkles or sugar on your lips, etc.  I opted for sugar lips (don’t judge)!

Sugar acts as a great lip exfoliator!

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

20 Jun

Josephine Angelini Starcrossed

487 pp.  HarperTeen (HarperCollins Publishers)  2011  ISBN: 978-0-06-201199-2

Interest: 2011 Debut Author

Source: Purchased at author signing

Summary (From the publisher):

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it’s getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she’s haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and  when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they’re destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on  repeating throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

I went to the Dark Days of Supernatural author event at Schuler Books & Music knowing that I wanted to buy a copy of Starcrossed and get it signed.  The summary piqued my interest and the cover had me in a daze.  The picture simply doesn’t do it justice; you MUST see it in person!  The cover is like Aphrodite’s cestus, it has me completely entranced and in love.  Anyway, once I heard Josephine start speaking about how her ideas came together to write this book, I knew I was going to like it.  She told us she was thinking about what would the Illiad be like in modern day?  What if you tied in a little Romeo and Juliet?  I was with my friend who also teaches English and our wheels started turning.  Starcrossed could work as a wonderful ladder helping teens connect with those classics.

Helen’s story starts off with mystery.  She’s living with her single dad because her mom up and left.  All of the pictures are gone, but Helen does have a necklace with a heart charm that her mother gave her.  The bigger mystery at the beginning of the story is when Helen starts talking about how odd she is because she’s constantly growing taller and has more strength than normal.  The tension increases when the Delos family moves to town and Helen can’t explain why she hates Lucas so much that she wants to kill him.  Plus, there’s the whole walking through a desert in her dreams until her feet bleed while three ladies wail and cry tears of blood.  Yep, I was hooked.

I’m not an expert on mythology by any means, so I can’t say how accurate the mythology included in Starcrossed is.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s pretty accurate considering Josephine’s author bio says she studied the classics and at the signing she spoke about the research she did.  It made me want to learn more about Greek mythology.  Including this history, however, didn’t make for a fast read.  I often found myself slowing my pace down and re-reading sections to make sure I understood what the characters were explaining.  The pace in which she includes it was great because I never felt like I was reading a book on Greek mythology.  Everything fit and felt like it was the right place to include some history.

There are many characters in Starcrossed to keep track of, but so worth it.  I enjoyed Helen as a character.  She isn’t very self-confident at first because she doesn’t understand what’s happening to her.  As the story continues and Helen learns more about herself, her self-confidence grows.  She’s very determined and compassionate, which I loved.  The story between Helen and Lucas had me hooked the moment they meet–it wasn’t quite the introduction I expected!  And it blossoms from there.  I’m guessing there’s going to be a sequel, and I can’t wait to see what happens between them considering the secrets and truths at the end of the book.  The supporting characters are excellent.  I especially love Ariadne and Hector.  Ari is a healer and someone Helen can confide in.  Hector is stubborn and aggressive.  Both of these characters’ traits really help drive the story forward.

My only nit-picky complaint is the length of the chapters.  Some were 30+ pages long.  I don’t know why chapter length is an issue with me, but it is.  I’m sure some readers could care less how long the chapters are, but for me and most of my students it’s an issue.  If there’s a second book, hopefully the chapters will be a little shorter.  Other than that minor detail, I really enjoyed Starcrossed.  I’m looking forward to more books by Josephine Angelini!

In My Mailbox (17) and Dark Days Author Event

12 Jun

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme sponsored by The Story Siren.  It’s a way for bloggers to share what books they’ve received for review, borrowed from the library, or bought from the store.

Received From a Friend (Borrowed):

Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer- Holy cow I’m excited about this one!  Jillian at Heise Reads & Recommends is letting me borrow her ARC since I’m sending her my ARC of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin.

Bought at the Dark Days of Supernatural Event:

Yesterday Schuler Books & Music in Lansing (you can order signed copies through their website!) hosted the Dark Days author event.  Ellen Schreiber, Aprilynne Pike, Josephine Angelini and Veronica Roth were there promoting, signing, and autographing books.  All of them were funny and offered helpful advice about writing and getting published.  Just after listening to Josephine talk about her book and how she gets her ideas made me want to read Starcrossed that much more!  They also had some bookmarks and tattoos.  I hope this indie book seller brings more YA authors to their stores.

After getting Divergent and Starcrossed signed, I took a walk through their YA section.  I really wish I lived closer to their stores because their YA section is awesome!  I bought myself a copy of Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton.  I’ll be making another trip once school gets out :)

**My pictures of the authors aren’t very good because I wasn’t sitting close enough :( So I’m skipping those in this post. **

 

 

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