How to use this Page

The Book Expo America 2009

I will be attending again the Book Expo America this year. Some of the pavilions I am looking forward to visiting are : The Children's Book Pavilion , The African American Pavilion,Writers Row, Independent Publishers , Graphic Novel, and of course, the Art Pavilion.. There will be close to 2000 exhibitors and there will be lots of special events such as book signings, conferences, and breakfast and luncheons with authors and illustrators.

Below is a cover of one of the books I've illustrated entitled From Our Mother's Hearth, Bukusu Folktales and Proverbs at the Book Expo 2005:

Maria Madonna Davidoff with the book she illustrated at the book Expo 2005
Madonna's photo (middle) taken with the editor & publisher of Africa World Press

SHOW NOTES:

Are you a member of the tribe? Which tribe? What is a tribe, anyway? We explore the notion of "tribe" with several guests:

> Aaron Kula is director of the Klezmer Company Orchestra, the ensemble-in-residence of the library at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, FL. We spoke to him about the KCO's CD Beyond the Tribes. Scroll down for a video that includes music from the CD and commentary from the orchestra.

> Tiffany Shlain is a documentary filmmaker, director of the Moxie Institute, and founder of the Webby Awards. We spoke to her about her short film The Tribe, which "enlists pop icon Barbie to tackle the challenging issue of Jewish identity." Scroll down to watch a trailer for The Tribe, the entire 18-minute film, or a promotional video for Tiffany's next film Connected: A Declaration of Interdependence.

> Rafael Goldchain is a professional photographer. His installation Familial Ground is the basis for his new book, I Am My Family: Photographic Memories and Fictions, a family album in which Rafael plays each role. Photographs from the book were recently exhibited at Galerie Claude Samuel in France, the gallery of a newly-discovered family member! We heard a little about this book during our Book Expo America series, and called Rafael to learn more. Scroll down to see selected images from I Am My Family in the Visual Aids section.

AUDIO:

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:

Or click MP3 File to start your computer's media player.

VISUAL AIDS:

Visit Familial Ground for more images.

SHOW NOTES:

In this episode of The Book of Life, we talk to 2 Jews and get way more than 3 opinions! These two conversations are the last of the material recorded at Book Expo 2008.

> Kathy Bloomfield, owner of the former Jewish book fair company For Words, member of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, and Outreach Program Ambassador for the Union for Reform Judaism's Northeast Council talks about her life as a Jew by choice, and how it affects her reading.

> Laurel Snyder, author of secular books for kids and adults and editor of Half / Life: Jewish Tales from Interfaith Homes, talks about growing up interfaith, raising Jewish children in an interfaith home, and about how questions of Jewish identity affect her writing.

SURVEY:

Do you prefer the regular half-hour shows that includes multiple interviews? Or would you rather have shorter, single-interview episodes? Post a comment, e-mail [email protected], or take the survey in the sidebar here at bookoflifepodcast.com.

NEWS:

The Book of Life has joined the Big Tent Judaism Coalition. This an umbrella group for communal Jewish institutions that strive to be inclusive and welcoming, like Abraham and Sarah in the Bible, whose big tent was open on all four sides to let guests enter. The Book of Life became a Big Tent member to show our commitment to exploring Judaism from new angles and to educating and welcoming a wide variety of listeners. The Big Tent Judaism Coalition is run by the Jewish Outreach Institute. Check out their website at joi.org/bigtent.

AUDIO:

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:

Or click MP3 File to start your computer's media player.

CREDITS:

Our background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band. Additional background music in this episode includes the song "Bad Writer" by Gokee Quateto from the Podsafe Music Network.

Books mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel. (Or if they're too new to be in the library now, they will be once they are published!) Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to [email protected]!

What's new in Jewish books for adults? Follow me around the 2008 Book Expo America conference to listen in on publishers and authors talking about their new and forthcoming titles!

This series includes four episodes: In Part 1 we heard about Jewish pictures books. Part 2 was about Jewish books for older kids and teens. Part 3 featured Jewish literature for adults. This final episode in the series, Part 4, is about books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust.

Part 4 also includes a non-Holocaust-related palate cleanser: an interview with the Jewish Publication Society that was accidentally left out of Part 3 (sorry, JPS!).

SURVEY:

Next time we'll return to our regular format of more in-depth interviews, but I do want to know YOUR preferences. Do you prefer the regular half-hour shows that includes multiple interviews? Or would you rather have shorter, single-interview episodes? Post a comment, e-mail [email protected], or take the survey in the sidebar here at bookoflifepodcast.com.

PART 4: Books about the Holocaust

Second Story Press
The Diary of Laura's Twin by Kathy Kacer

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
T4 by Ann Clare Lezotte

Other Press
The Road to Rescue: The Untold Story of Schindler's List by Mietek Pemper
Isaac's Torah: Concerning the Life of Isaac Jacob Blumenfeld Through Two World Wars, Three Concentration Camps, and Five Motherlands by Angel Wagenstein

Tundra Books
Good-Bye Marianne: A Story of Growing Up in Nazi Germany by Irene Watts, illustrated by Kathryn Shoemaker (graphic novel version)

Holiday House
The Anne Frank Story: How Simon Wiesenthal Proved It True by Susan Goldman Rubin, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth

Academy Chicago Publishers
Album of the Damned: Snapshots from the Third Reich by Paul Garson

Lerner/Carolrhoda
Angel Girl by Laurie Friedman, illustrated by Ofra Amit

Jewish Publication Society
An Introduction to Islam for Jews by Reuven Firestone
From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books by Arie Kaplan

AUDIO:

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:

Or click MP3 File to start your computer's media player.

CREDITS:

Our background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band.

Books mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel. (Or if they're too new to be in the library now, they will be once they are published!) Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to [email protected]! Or even better, if you know of any new Jewish books I missed seeing at Book Expo, please post a comment!

At Book Expo, left to right: Librarian Etta Gold, Blogger Barbara Bietz, Podcaster Heidi Estrin

SHOW NOTES:

What's new in Jewish books for older kids and teens? Follow me around the 2008 Book Expo America conference to listen in on publishers and authors talking about their new and forthcoming titles!

This series includes four episodes: In Part 1 we heard about Jewish pictures books. Part 3 will be about adult books, and Part 4 will be about books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust.

Again, thanks to all the publishers who graciously agreed to be interviewed on the spot! By the way, many of these books have not yet been published, so you may not be able to find the individual titles online. I've provided links to the publishers so you can keep an eye on until the books become available!

Part 2, Jewish Books for Kids & Teens:

Jewish Kidlit Blogger Barbara Bietz

Annick Press
The Apprentice's Masterpiece, A Story of Medieval Spain by Melanie Little

Roaring Brook Press
Penina Levine Is a Potato Pancake by Rebecca O'Connell

Kar-Ben Publishing
The Bat-Chen Diaries by Bat-Chen Shahak
Keeping Israel Safe by Barbara Sofer

Feiwel & Friends
Brooklyn Bridge by Karen Hesse

Jewish Lights
Rabbi Harvey Rides Again by Steve Sheinkin

Maggie Anton, author
Rashi's Daughter: Secret Scholar (Jewish Publication Society)

AUDIO:

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:


Or click MP3 File to start your computer's media player.

CREDITS:

Our background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band.

Books mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel. (Or if they're too new to be in the library now, they will be once they are published!) Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to [email protected]! Or even better, if you know of any new Jewish kids' or teen books I missed seeing at Book Expo, please post a comment!

Enjoy this past due review of BEA... well, at least I got to it before ALA happened.

BEA is always a great show. There are so many different reasons to attend: introduce the new fall books that we're excited about, meet old friends and catch up on what's happening in bookstores and libraries around the country, meet new friends and business partners and hopefully impress the living dickens out of them with our books and gracious manners, visit with friends at other publishers and walk around their booths stealing ideas, have meaningful conversations with authors and illustrators (both on our list and not on our list), and travel to exotic locales like the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Meg and Taylor and I enjoyed L.A. so much, we think it's high time Charlesbridge opened a West Coast office. Here, Meg and I discuss the finer points of sales and marketing at our new beach front office space in Santa Monica.

And Taylor works on the new catalog cover.

The absolute best day of BEA (certainly no offense to the other days) is Thursday. That's the ABC New Voices luncheon. This year's speakers included the inspiring and delightful Cecilia Galante whose new book The Patron Saint of Butterflies is a fascinating story of two best friends, one of whom is devoted to their religious cult upbringing, and the other is not. We had the opportunity to meet Cecilia on Friday night at the ABC Not a Dinner and (Mostly) Silent Auction. Cecilia is a smart and funny new voice not to be "new" for long as she'll be most likely be turning up a lot.

The best part of Thursday, though, is that after the luncheon, we were free to go shopping in Hollywood as the booth was all set up and there were no pressing meetings to attend. Here, we found the footprints of homeboy Matt Damon at Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

This year we were ever so lucky to be accompanied by children's lit great Jane Yolen. Her new book Sea Queens: Women Pirates Around the World is new this July. Jane knew everyone, or, more to the point, everyone knew Jane. We were never wall flowers with Jane on our arm. The best part was when we made her climb the only hill in downtown Los Angeles to go to dinner at an Italian restaurant that shall remain unnamed. The doorman assured us it was walking distance. I suppose if you're really fit and looking for a challenge on an empty stomach. And, even though I did really love L.A., how come the entire city only exists on the inside? We could not find that restaurant for the life of us because it was tucked away inside some insidiously discreet hotel courtyard. And, don't ask for the water.

And, yes, we did work the booth also:

And this lame (but funny) video. I haven't quite figured out my new camera.

Action on the floor, Originally uploaded to Flickr by wkpspier


SHOW NOTES:

What's new in Jewish picture books? Follow me around the 2008 Book Expo America conference to listen in on publishers and authors talking about their new and forthcoming titles! I gathered so much audio that I'll be posting it over four episodes. Part 2 will be books for children and teens, Part 3 will be adult books, and Part 4 will be books (for all ages) relating to the Holocaust.

Part 1, Jewish Picture Books:

Tricycle Press
The Yankee at the Seder by Elka Weber

Marshall Cavendish
Cakes and Miracles by Barbara Diamond Goldin
The Hanukkah Mice by Steven Kroll
The Rabbi and the 29 Witches by Marilyn Hirsh

Tanglewood Press
The Miracle Jar by Audrey Penn

Sleeping Bear Press
A is for Abraham by Richard Michelson

Kar-Ben Publishing
Jodie's Hanukkah Dig by Anna Levine
Harvest of Light by Allison Ofanansky
Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride by Deborah Bodin Cohen
Sammy Spider's First Day at School by Sylvia Rouss
Sarah Laughs, Benjamin and the Silver Goblet, Miriam in the Desert by Jacqueline Jules

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Built By Angels by Mark Podwal

Blue Apple Books
Hanukkah Haiku by Harriet Ziefert

Holiday House
The Mysterious Guests by Eric Kimmel

Yale Strom, author:
The Wedding That Saved a Town by Yale Strom (Kar-Ben)

AUDIO:

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:


Or click MP3 File to start your computer's media player.

CREDITS:

Thanks to Yale Strom for permission to record and podcast his violin performance at Book Expo. Our regular background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band.

Books mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel. (Or if they're too new to be in the library now, they will be once they are published!) Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

Your feedback is appreciated! Please write to [email protected]! Or even better, if you know of any new Jewish picture books I missed seeing at Book Expo, please post a comment!

(Megan Hall, Brunonia Barry and Jocelyn Kelley)

We are just back from our exciting adventures in sunny California! Book Expo America ran this past weekend, from May 28 - June 1, at the Los Angeles Convention center. It was a fun-filled weekend packed with author signings, book releases, seminars and parties. It was great to visit with some of our clients and catch up with friends.

It was an especially exciting time for one of our clients, Brunonia Barry, who was there to celebrate the upcoming release of her debut novel, THE LACE READER (William Morrow, August 2008).  We are so thrilled for her and all of the exciting adventures she has ahead of her.

The scene: Book Expo America in the sprawling Los Angeles Convention Center

ME: Hi, I'm Heidi Estrin from the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee and The Book of Life podcast. Do you have any new Judaic titles I should know about?

FRIENDLY PUBLISHING PERSON: Oh yes, let me show you this exciting book on our fall list...

ME: Do you mind if I record you for my podcast while you tell me about the book?

FRIENDLY PUBLISHING PERSON: Record ME???? NOW??? Wait, maybe I can get my colleague over here to do it....

Much, if not all, of the growth of electronic books will be directly related to the Kindle. This was the topic of much discussion at BEA over the weekend. The New York Times ran a piece about the kindle and its reception at BEA. The main competitor to the Kindle is the SONY Reader, which has been around since 2006.

I don’t have a kindle or a SONY Reader and therefore have yet to experience reading on small screen, but I can say that after a week of traveling with bags heavily weighed down with books, I can definitely see the appeal. However, I would never take an electronic device to the beach (a place where many people find themselves getting good reading time while on vacation). The Kindle, unlike the Sony Reader, can also download daily newspapers and magazines.

The New York Times reported that publishing insiders are also gravitating towards the ease provided by the Kindle. Random House and Penguin have given their entire sales force team electronic readers so that they don’t have to carry around as many galleys and copies of books.

I spent last weekend with friends at the BookExpo LA at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Book Expo offers industry professionals a sneak peek of upcoming book lists from publishers. There are lots of giveaways, including books, posters, tote bags, and more. All weekend long, both established and new authors sign copies of their books. It was a blast - like Woodstock for book lovers! I walked the floor with my author friends Tina Nichols Coury, Alexis O'Neill, and my daughter Jillian, who is a teen book reviewer. We picked up some wonderful books and had the chance to receive signed copies from terrific authors and visit with friends along the way.

A highlight for me was meeting Heidi Estrin and Etta Gold from the Association of Jewish Libraries. They have welcomed me into the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee and made me feel like I am part of the family. Here we are:









Etta, me, Heidi
(photo courtesy of Tina Nichols Coury)

Despite aching feet, my time at BookExpo 2008 was the best!

STATUS: Tired and my feet are a bit sore.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? Nothing on at the moment.

Today was my first day at the BEA so I haven’t had anything to report until now. Last night I went to a Hollywood party but for the life of me I couldn’t think of anything to blog about except that I had met so-n-so and so-n-so and I had a glass of wine.

Rather boring. But today I actually did stuff—like walked the floor, attended some interesting panels (and some not so interesting panels), and chatted with a bunch of editors I knew.

So as promised, here are some pics from the floor via my iPhone. The LA convention center is divided into 2 halls—the south and the west.

The South Hall being the main floor. So here’s a pic of entering the main floor—literally right after exiting the escalator. Obviously the Hachette Goup (otherwise known as Grand Central Publishing and before that known as Warner Books) has some prime real estate.


This second pic was taken at my first panel for the day, which was the Editors Buzz. This panel is hosted by Sara Nelson of Publishers Weekly. PW chooses 6 editors to buzz what they hope will be the next big books for the fall season (or books they feel deserve special attention).

From left: Sara Nelson (at podium), Richard Nash (Soft Skull), Megan Lynch (Riverhead), Jonathan Glusman (Harmony/Crown), Sarah Knight (Henry Holt), Reagan Arthur (Little Brown), and Laurie Chittenden (William Morrow).


Now, if I were a good reporter, I would have written down the titles of all 6 books mentioned at the panel! But I’m not; I’m a lazy BEA attendee who couldn’t type fast enough into my iPhone notes section so if anyone was there and can provide the other titles, please do so in the comments section.

At the end of the panel I only snagged two galleys—THE HERETIC’S DAUGHTER (Which Reagan discussed) and THE LACE READER (which Laurie mentioned). Noticed they were at the far right and therefore went last on the panel, which is also after my chai latte had kicked in. (This panel was excruciatingly early in the day...)

This last photo is from an afternoon session. As you can tell, I was a bit far back in the room but this is Jeff Bezos from Amazon talking. And what a snoozer. I’m as evangelical for the Kindle as any good consumer can be but the first 30 minutes of his “talk” was basically a commercial for the Kindle. Yawn. Things got a lot more interesting when interviewer Chris Anderson (author of THE LONG TAIL) did the spontaneous interview. Mr. Bezos, however, still managed to sidestep the question regarding Amazon and the controversy generated by their recent Booksurge decision (where Amazon would only allow easy access to POD books generated by their Booksurge arm).

Ends up that I was sitting right next to Ellen Archer, Publisher of Hyperion (and of Chris’s book) so we had a fun chat.


Off to bed so I can do it all again tomorrow. If I see some fun shots, I’ll snap and post.

Today I spend the day at the largest book show in the U.S. - Book Expo which is in Los Angeles this year. I have been attending a small pubisher's meeting this week and today I am walking the floor of one of the most awesome trade shows for a bibliophile. Publishers, authors, librarians, and miscellaneous other vendors all in one building to celebrate reading and talk about and sell books.

Many of us have been in large bookstores and libraries and have been overwhelmed by the rich array of stories and information just there for the choosing. But that experience pales in comparison to the feeling you get from being in a convention center, the size of a small town where everywhere you look there are books and book people.

Today I will be with my people. The ones who respect and promote books. The ones that talk passionately about the books they are reading - the books that have helped form them as people - the books that have taught them, comforted them and uplifted them.

It's going to be a great day!

I will be attending Book Expo America 2008 in Los Angeles, CA to record material for The Book of Life podcast and to promote the Sydney Taylor Book Award for Jewish children's literature. If YOU will be at Book Expo too, drop me a line at [email protected]! (If we meet up, I'll even give you a shiny gold Sydney Taylor Book Award lapel pin!)

What have we done to reality?

In a publishing market flooded with memoirs, our relationship with fiction and non-fiction is dissolving. I say open the floodgates and let our narrators be swamped with our news, ideas, and personality quirks.

If you are thinking about writing a memoir, I have three dispatches from the front lines of the Battle for Reality--thoughts to consider as you shape your own story.

1- Writing too close to reality can be dangerous. Literary Saloon reports on a French writer attacked by farmers for the way he portrayed their village in a novel. The Saloon adds this observation to the original article: "Physical attacks are, of course, beyond the pale, but obviously this continues to be an author's dream: the publicity seems to be doing wonders for Jourde's book -- get your own copy at Amazon.fr, where its ranking was 23 last we checked."

2- The bloggers, critics, and readers who demand objective truth from writers writing about real life may be hurting literature. Ed Champion explores two faux memoirs in this essay, asking why contemporary readers insist that memoirs be held to the same standard as journalism--outlining a writing debate that our kids will study in college some day.

3- No matter where you stand on the Battle for Reality, don't sign a movie contract as a fake author. GalleyCat discusses here. And, as a bonus, Danielle Trussoni has some memoir writing tips here. What do you think? How should we write about reality?