Photo credit Sonya Sones (who, coincidentally, did my author photo as well)
As I mentioned in my 2016 Day of Dialog round-up, Richard Peck was the kickoff speaker this year, just before Book Expo. I was moderating the middle grade fiction panel that morning, so I got to hang out with Richard in the green room a little before the event. Now I’ve met him in the past, but very briefly indeed (I think I moderated a table for him at a different Book Expo event years ago). A little more recently I posted on this blog about the fact that actress Lena Dunham has a Fair Weather tattoo. I was assured by Richard’s editor later that she sent Lena a signed copy of Fair Weather after reading my post.
In any case, long story short, Richard by all rights shouldn’t have remembered me. The man meets hundreds of librarians monthly, and yet if he’d forgotten my face he faked it with aplomb. “You reviewed my pocket square!” he declared, and indeed that does sound like me. Story checks out.
When you listen to Richard speak, it’s not talking. It’s not speechifying. It’s pure oratory, in crisp, clean perfection. It makes you long for a time when students were taught public speaking as an artform. And now, you lucky ducks, you have a chance to hear him firsthand. You see, Richard has a new book out. The details, should you be interested, are:
THE BEST MAN by Richard Peck (on sale September 20th; Ages 9-12; $16.99)
When Archer is in sixth grade, his beloved uncle Paul marries another man–Archer’s favorite student teacher. But that’s getting ahead of the story, and a wonderful story it is. In Archer’s sweetly naïve but observant voice, his life through elementary school is recounted: the outspoken, ever-loyal friends he makes, the teachers who blunder or inspire, and the family members who serve as his role models. From one exhilarating, unexpected episode to another, Archer’s story rolls along as he puzzles over the people in his life and the kind of person he wants to become . . . and manages to help his uncle become his best self as well.
And since Richard’s on tour for this book, you can see him yourself. I don’t often post tour dates here, but I do make the occasional exception. And Richard is worth seeing.
The dates:
Monday, September 19th – DENVER, CO
6 PM
2526 E Colfax Ave
Denver, CO 80206
Thursday, September 29th – BELLINGHAM, WA
4 PM
1200 11th St
Bellingham, WA 98225
Friday, September 30th – SEATTLE, WA
Time to Be Announced
2214 NW Market St, Seattle
WA 98107
Sunday, October 2nd – DANVILLE, CA
11 AM
3 Railroad Ave
Danville, CA 94526
Tuesday, October 4th – PLEASANTON, CA
Time to be Announced
555 Main St
Pleasanton, CA 94566
Wednesday, October 5th – SAN JOSE, CA
3 PM
1378 Lincoln Ave
San Jose, CA 95125
Tuesday, October 18th – NAPERVILLE, IL
7 pm
123 W Jefferson Ave
Naperville, IL 60540
Wednesday, October 19th –NORTHBROOK, IL
Time to be Announced
1151 Church St
Northbrook, IL 60062
Thursday, October 20th – CHICAGO, IL
7 PM
811 Elm St
Winnetka, IL 60093
Friday, November 4th – Raleigh, NC
7 PM
4381-105 Lassiter at North Hills Avenue
Raleigh, NC 27609
Author Bio:
Richard Peck has won almost every children’s fiction award, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award, the Newbery Medal, the Scott O’Dell Award, and the Edgar, and he has twice been nominated for a National Book Award. He was the first children’s author ever to have been awarded a National Humanities Medal. He lives in New York City.
