Boskone and the Croton Library Book Club

Upcoming Event: Boskone

This weekend (2/15 - 2/17), I'll be a program participant at Boskone, a Boston-area convention that I adore. (Click here to read my trip report from last year's Boskone. You'll need to scroll down the page to get to part one.) I'm really excited about my schedule for this year: four panels with authors that I worship, plus my own reading and kaffeeklatsch! (A "kaffeeklatsch" is a meet-the-author discussion group.)

Saturday:

10am Panel - Sarah Beth Durst, Gregory Frost, Farah Mendlesohn, Amy Thomson, Jane Yolen - "The Pill in the Sugar: Morals and Young People's Literature"

3pm Panel - Ctein, Sarah Beth Durst, David Weber - "From Tribbles to Treecats"

5pm Panel - Sarah Beth Durst, Tamora Pierce, Mary Ellen Wessels, Jane Yolen - "My Teacher Is a Unicorn Hatcher: The Work of Bruce Coville"

Sunday:

10am Panel - Bruce Coville, Sarah Beth Durst, Stephen C. Fisher, Tamora Pierce, Jane Yolen - "The YA Novel"

11am Kaffeeklatsch - Sarah Beth Durst

12:30pm Reading - Sarah Beth Durst

If you're going to be at Boskone, I hope you'll consider dropping by my reading and/or kaffeeklatsch so I don't feel all lonely and unloved. And if you come to my panels, please excuse my tendency to gibber, gush, and forget my own name while trying to sound intelligent in front of people I admire. (Repeat to self: I will NOT cluck like a chicken. I will NOT cluck... Again, for the record, I'd like to state that spontaneous-clucking has never actually happened to me, but it would be oh-so-embarrassing if it did!)


Trip Report: Croton Library Book Club

Today I visited the 5th & 6th grade book club "Half & Half" (so named because half of them like apple juice and half prefer milk -- yes, I asked) at Croton Free Library in Croton-on-the-Hudson, NY. Shockingly, I didn't get lost driving there. I say "shockingly" because I've been known to get lost on the walk from my kitchen to my bathroom. (Is it my fault that some of my books have alluring voices and sing out, "Read me, Sarah, read me!" as I'm walking by?) So any time I leave the house, it's a severe test of my navigation skills. (Seriously, I'm convinced that if I had a GPS system, it would give up on me. "Oh, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah, I told you to turn right. Why didn't you listen? Now you are hopelessly lost. I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to figure this one out on your own. Use the stars for navigation, and remember that moss grows on the north side of trees.") But I made it, and I'm so glad I did. I had a lovely time!

I have a great photo of the awesome Half & Half girls and their super-awesome librarian Maggie, but I didn't ask permission to post it so I'm going to show you some other photos as proof of their awesomeness.

Exhibit #1: A display of picture books that Maggie set up, featuring some of the characters who star in INTO THE WILD:


Exhibit #2: The Question Jar. The Question Jar is filled (okay, not filled -- look at the size of that jar!) with questions about this month's book. Each person pulls out a question and answers it. We got into some lovely conversations about heart's desires and free will. At the end of the meeting, they let me do the honors of gluing a picture of my cover art onto the Question Jar.


Exhibit #3: Cupcakes!!! Maggie baked cupcakes in honor of my visit. And not just any cupcakes: INTO THE WILD cupcakes. My book inspired dessert! I think this is so cool! And, incidentally, so yummy.


In summary: Croton Book Club = Awesome. Huge thanks to Maggie Davies and all the book club members for a wonderful afternoon!