Brooding About the Brontes

Today kicks off the Brooding About the Brontës event hosted by Girl With Her Head In A Book!  This week on Susie's blog you can find the schedule, book reviews as well as guest posts from some of the participants.  The event has daily topics for bloggers to talk about, but for me, I decided to answer all of the questions in one post, as I have a few other posts planned for this week.  To begin:

Why do you love the Brontës?

The first Brontë book I ever read was Wuthering Heights, which was a strange novel.  One that I didn't really empathize with, but one that I found very fascinating and difficult to put down.  I can't say I really liked Wuthering Heights though, but I decided to give that other Brontë book a chance.  And so I read Jane Eyre, and I was lost forever.  Of course, now I've read all the novels by the sisters, and find them special for different reasons and I think it's because they are varied, and emotional and intense (except Agnes Grey haha) that I love the Brontës' work so much.  The atmosphere, drama and the characters appeal to me.

Pick your favourite Brontë novel

Jane Eyre.  I guess check out my review of Jane Eyre with Gifs if you are interested in more thoughts!

Do you have a ‘favourite sister’?

Charlotte Brontë!  Most because of Jane Eyre.  It's just hard for me to find the other sisters more dear because the mind that would create such a story as Jane Eyre, must be someone I can identify strongly with.  Charlotte seemed the most fun too - snarky, sharp, witty.  I feel like I could have really talked to her.

Pick your favourite Brontë-related book (fiction or non-fiction)

This is hard for me to choose, but I guess I'll go with my favorite retelling of Jane Eyre called "Jane_E: Friendless Orphan" by Erin McCole-Cupp.  It's a futuristic retelling, and it's not very well known, but I think it did a fantastic job of bringing the same amount of emotion to the characters.  It's a more straightforward retelling too, compared to others I have read.  Which I don't necessarily prefer, but it worked well for me in this case.

Are the Brontës being forgotten?

I don't think so - at least not Charlotte and Emily.  Anne has always been overshadowed by her sisters which is unfortunate, but she is often remembered in connection with her sisters.  With it being the 200th anniversary of Charlotte's birth this year, there are even more events and attention being paid to the Brontës lives now which is wonderful.  I'm looking forward to a BBC drama coming out later this year called "To Walk Invisible" all about the Brontë sisters.

Which Brontë fictional heroine (or indeed leading man) do you most closely identify with?

Jane, Jane, Jane.  I love her for her intelligence, her passion, her resiliency, and her morality.  I don't know if I am very like her, but I feel like I often aspire to be her.  I should get a bracelet that says WWJED (What would Jane Eyre do? :D)

Brooding About the Brontes Announcement

New event alert!  :) In April I'm participating in this fab Bronte centered blog event hosted by Girl With Her Head In A Book (check the link for more information and to sign up!)


I will be sharing a guest post on Susie's blog, as well as having some Bronte themed - okay, who am I kidding - mostly Jane Eyre themed posts on my blog during that week.  I haven't yet solidified everything I'll be posting but I will be writing a post about my favorite Jane Eyre adaptation, and featuring an interview with an author who's work is inspired by the Brontes!   I'm very much looking forward to sharing these posts with everyone!

If you are a Bronte fan, it would be lovely if you would join in on the fun!  Discussion posts, book reviews, and anything related is welcome!

Weekend Shenanigans: A Recap

Normally I like to recap things separately (it gives me more posts to schedule and build my buffer!) but individually I probably couldn't talk at length about some of the things I did last weekend, so I'm throwing them all into one post.

---  William Shatner  ---

I'll start with the William Shatner book signing I went to on Thursday which was for his new book on his friendship with Leonard Nimoy.  I had a friend visiting me from Northern California, and since we are both Trek fans, it was perfect timing as well.

Unfortunately the whole event was run with extremely strict rules.  There were no pictures to be taken in line past a certain point - like 10 feet away from William Shatner.  Also one book per person (a usual rule for a big celebrity though), and they didn't want us to talk too much to him, because they wanted to keep the line moving.  Also there was no talk before the signing like I was hoping, so it was really just get in and get out.  William Shatner was gracious though - he acknowledged me and said hi, and when I commented on how much I enjoy following his twitter account, he laughed and seemed about to say something, when the awful person behind me kind of jumped in and started talking to him.  So I don't know what he would have said - probably just 'thanks', but my time was up, I had to move along.  It was nice to see William Shatner though - still the original Star Trek series is my favorite, so it's meaningful to me to have met him.  And I look forward to reading his book!

my photo collage posted on instagram

Continue reading →

Book Signing: Patricia Park "Re Jane"

Last week, I was able to go to Patricia Park's book signing for her novel "Re Jane".  (Which I reviewed over here!)  It's a modern Jane Eyre retelling with a Korean American heroine, that takes place in New York and Korea.  It was a wonderful read for me - very intelligent with a main character who grows so much as the story progresses.

It was also much fun to listen to Patricia talk about her novel at the book signing.  She was so friendly and kind - she happened to sit in front of me before the event to talk to someone and said hi to me and remembered me from twitter!  During the talk she read different excerpts that highlighted different and interesting things in the novel - one descriptive of Queens, New York, one about Korean dramas (I loved how fond and yet gently teasing Jane, the character, is in the book about the obsession with them), and the last excerpt was about language.  I thought it was a great way to get an overview of the novel, and Patricia also talked about her experiences with those things.  Since she lived in Queens, grew up watching Korean period dramas, and went to Korea to do research for her book.  (And that is very evident since I felt the part of the book where Jane goes to Korea was so detailed, vivid and culturally enlightening!)

Continue reading →

Stephenie Meyer book signing from 2007

I was remembering my first book signing experience recently and went back and found my old livejournal blog post about seeing Stephenie Meyer when she was on tour for Eclipse.  It was a great memory for me, especially since I'm such a fan of Twilight, that I wanted to talk about it on my blog now.  And luckily I made an audio of the Q&A for that signing so I can relive that again.  It's so strange to think that this was before things got really crazy with Twilight mania.  The movie hadn't come out yet, but there was still an enthusiasm for Stephenie that I haven't really seen for any single YA author book signing I've been to yet.  I got to the event and was pretty surprised to see how many people came and how many were showing their Team Edward or Team Jacob support.  (I was wearing a Team Edward shirt btw!)  I'm not sure how many were there, but I was pretty taken aback at seeing so many fans of this series.  But definitely things were escalated when Breaking Dawn came out the next year and Stephenie had to have her signing at Royce Hall at UCLA which is a 1,800 seat theatre!

The Q&A went by very quickly - Stephenie didn't give a speech, but began taking questions immediately.  What I was struck with, listening to this audio again after so many years, was how specific the questions asked were.  There were so many aspects of these books that everyone had throughly thought about and sometimes it felt like people were asking about real people.  And that was probably aided by the answers Stephenie gave which were so specific as well.  It was interesting to hear her talk about these characters in that way.  For instance there was a question on what was Jacob's relationship with Bella now that she had chosen Edward.  Which led to Stephenie remarking that she heard some boos when Jacob's name was mentioned and she felt for him because Edward can take care of himself, but Jacob is still a kid.

One fun and oddly specific question was 'are vampires ticklish' which Stephenie said she had never been asked before.  Her answer was she didn't know but she was sure Emmett would try.

At the very beginning of the Q&A Stephenie thanks the audience for making her feel like a rock star, and it's funny to hear people cheer so much in the audio - she does seem like a rock star.  So now here's a clip!  The audio recorder I used to make this 7 years ago was not as good as my iPhone so the sound is tinny unfortunately.  I thought this particular clip was interesting because the first question asked is about the status of the movie.  There's also questions about what does The Host being an 'adult' book mean, on the distinct personalities of her characters, who should play Edward and who she likes more Edward or Jacob. (Such a diplomatic answer on that last one)

The signing itself I really don't remember much.  I think it took awhile to get to Stephenie, but I think the line went much longer behind me.  Stephenie was only personalizing one book, and I feel like there was a three book limit too for her autograph.  I think the only thing I managed to say to her besides thanks is to ask if her hand hurts from all the signing.  Really original.  (I still don't know how authors can sign for so long!)

Book Signing: Cary Elwes and The Princess Bride

On Monday, I made the trek through traffic laden LA to reach Book Soup, which is an iconic bookstore in West Hollywood, that I've sadly never been to before.  The fact that I've finally been was a great occasion for me, but even better that I went because Cary Elwes was signing copies of his new book "As You Wish" which I reviewed on Wednesday.  And really loved.  It made me see The Princess Bride in a new light and appreciate it more.  It's astonishing to find out that it didn't really do well when it was first released!

The bookstore was packed (it was also a bit small, so that didn't help) but I got a standing spot in the back and I could pretty much see Cary for most of the Q&A.  The moderator asked him many specific questions on the stories that Cary writes about in his book, which I was pretty much familiar with since I had read it already.  But it was fun to hear Cary do his version of the voices of William Goldman, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal and Andre the Giant when he referred to them.  And it was also so heartwarming to see and hear him talk about the movie because of how much he loved being a part of it.

After the moderator asked his questions, he opened the floor to the audience and there were some great questions - one that I always like to know is if he had kept any props from the filming - and Cary said he was given his sword, but he made a present of it to the director Rob Reiner because he felt that was the right thing to do.  I should think he would keep it though after all the work he put into the sword fight!  I uploaded an audio clip of a couple other questions below - someone asked him how many times he's seen The Princess Bride (surprisingly not that many times!) and then they followed up with if his daughter had seen the film.  Which led to a really inevitable comment on Frozen.

The bookstore only allowed photos from the signing line, so I only snapped the one above as Cary was signing my book.  I wish I had snapped another when he was looking up, because he made a point to look at everyone, shake their hand, and address them personally.  And of course all I could think of was how good looking he is! :D  Because, wow. /shallow  But I'm really so grateful when celebrities/authors try to give a moment to their fans like that, by making eye contact.  I appreciate that they are trying to engage everyone for a short time at least.  And how cool that he signed every book with 'As you wish'!!  That means 'I love you' right?? :D

Since reading the book I've watched The Princess Bride three times now - just to see some of the things Cary mentions about certain scenes and also because I'm finding I'm even more in love with this movie.  There's so much to it, and so much happens but it all feels cohesive and paces just right. And the humor of it is perfection.  Cary was asked at the Q&A what his favorite line in the film was and he said "Anybody want a peanut" which always gets him for some reason.  And I identified with that, because when I did my first re-watch of the movie recently, that line got me too.  It's so understated and unexpected!

Like I said in my review of the book, if you are a fan of the film you will enjoy this book, and I'm so happy that Cary decided to write it!

Review: The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm + LeVar Burton signing

The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm
by LeVar Burton and Susan Schaefer Bernardo
Children's Literature
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

When little Mica Mouse is scared by thunder booming outside her cozy home, Papa Mouse reaches for just the right story to comfort her. Hugging her close, he begins to read The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm. In this poetic book-within-a-book, a happy little rhinoceros is overwhelmed by a storm that sweeps away everything he loves. Swallowing the storm just makes him feel worse, so Rhino sets off on a whimsical journey toward healing. Along the way, he meets many friends, including a kind spider, a brave kangaroo, a wise tortoise, and an uplifting whale. With their help, Rhino lets go of the storm inside and learns to see the light in a world turned gray. Mica Mouse is soothed by the story and Papa’s gentle reminder that even though bad things sometimes happen, the world is full of people who care.

Review:

This was a lovely and charming read with a heartwarming and uplifting message.  Since it's a story within a story, the Rhino's tale serves as a kind of fable for kids to reach out to loved ones in times of trouble.  I think the message is a timely one, and it made me feel a little emotional in the hope that it's a message that more people are able to take to heart.  The illustrations are bright and enhance the poetic story beautifully.  This is really a lovely read for children - and even better, it's a great book for parents and teachers to read to children.

I don't read a lot of children books now, but this is a nice book for me to look over every now and again for it's message and charm.

The Book Signing

The book signing was a lot of fun!  There was a good amount of Star Trek talk among the people waiting for the event to begin, so already I was entertained.  Someone who worked on the set of the TV show and some of the films was talking about their experiences!  And I got to talk to the lady next to me about Doctor Who, and she had some very interesting viewpoints on science fiction as a genre which was very thought-provoking for me.  But anyways.

For the event, LeVar Burton gave a little speech about Reading Rainbow and why he wanted to write a book - he wanted to write something that Mr. Rogers (from Mr. Rogers Neighborhood) would have written.  And then LeVar read the whole book to us and the kids who were seated on the floor in front of him - and that whole experience was a delight.  He did voices and gave a great performance of the book.  After, there was a Q&A and I was intrigued by a couple of answers he gave - one that his favorite book as a child was Captain Courageous by Rudyard Kipling, which was so absorbing to him that he felt depressed when the book was over, and that to this day, when he's reading a great book, he slows down to make it last a little longer.  Which is something I have a very hard time doing, because even if a book is so good I don't want it to end, I do want to know how it ends and get that closure!

The other answer was to the last question of the night which was - why a Rhino out of all animals?  And it's because Rhinos are strong and if even they are brought down by pain and grief, and yet can move past it, then anyone can.  And as the editor points out, there are a lot of stories about elephants.

The signing part went by in a blur of course.  He signed for most of the kids first, which was adorbs, and then when it was my turn I told him how much I enjoyed the reading he gave, and his performance which made me enjoy the book even more.  And I also asked him if he has any favorite books that are not children's books, and he said he usually says the book he's reading right now, which is Game of Thrones.  But one of his favorite authors is Octavia Butler.

And then that was pretty much it!  I was so happy I went (and managed to not ask him about Star Trek, haha).  I do wish I had asked for a posed photo - his people were saying there wasn't time, but I think a few people asked anyways and got it!  But it was a very enjoyable evening, and well worth the traffic-heavy drive through downtown Los Angeles!

Heir of Fire Book Signing

On Saturday I went to the Barnes & Noble in Glendale to attend the book signing for Sarah J. Maas's Heir of Fire (my review here!).  Two other authors were there, who I was unfortunately not very familiar with - Robin Benway (author of the Also Known As series) and Nina Berry (author of the Otherkin series).  Obviously I was there for Sarah, but I would like to check out those author's books sometime - has anyone here read them?

I wasn't able to get there as early as I would have liked, and the seats in front of the stage area were already filled in, so my friends and I lined up in the back.  And I wish I had taken more pictures!  It was just so far in the back, that I wouldn't have gotten very good ones, and then of course as we were in line and getting close to seeing Sarah, I couldn't think properly!   

The talk before the signing was fun - I thought the moderator asked some interesting questions and to me Sarah was so funny - all her answers to the questions made me laugh I think!  She also had a touching comment near the end about not letting anyone stop you from writing if that's what you really want to do, and when she was able to call her Mom and tell her that she was a NYT bestselling author, her Mom told her she regretted ever telling her to be realistic about her dreams.  Sarah teared up, I teared up, I think everyone teared up, it was good times.

That came up because someone asked the authors what advice they had for potential writers and Sarah had four bits of advice -

1. Finish what you start

2. Get a critiquing partner

3. Don't listen to the haters (amazing that she had teachers who said that fantasy books are not real books!)

4. There's no expiration on your talent, you don't have to get published right now - live your life.

I have this audio clip too from the talk - where the question was why the authors wrote YA, and Sarah first talks about how she's a 12 year old girl inside, why Outlander is her obsession, and she sort of writes YA by default since she started her series when she was 16.  The Outlander part was just precious.  I totally understand the need to find my favorite fictional character. :)  (Sorry the audio is so low - I should have stood near a speaker!)

Unfortunately since this was the last stop of Sarah's HOF tour, she had a flight to catch after and couldn't take as much time as she usually does at her signings (but I think she took much more time than she should have - according to the people who were handling the signing.)  I love how she engages with everyone, and is just so freaking nice!  I always try to think of something to say, but it was hard - I so wish I said more, I didn't even tell her how much I loved Heir of Fire!  Cause I so did! Ugh, but whatever, Sarah is so good at making everyone at ease.  Literally going to her signings are the best author interactions I've ever had.

Shout out to Stacie at Wonderland of Reading and Kayla at The Thousand Lives who I got talk to for a bit at the signing!  I'm sure there will be recaps of the signing on their blogs soon (on Thursday for Kayla!)

Ruin and Rising Launch Party

Gigantic first page of the book in the entry way

The Launch Party for the last book in Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone series - Ruin and Rising - was on Monday at the Last Bookstore in Los Angeles.  It's kind of an amazing bookstore by the way.  I live in the area and I've never even heard of it until recently!  This place messed me up though, because I got there so early, with every intention of being one of the first in line to get good seats, and I ended up roaming the store and buying all kinds of books (ones I've not seen in any other bookstore!).  And so I did not get a seat.  C'est la vie.

The event was pretty packed.  Leigh's army turned out in force and we were rewarded with a tote bag, a photobooth, nails station, and free food and drinks!  I had caviar for the very first time, and some freaking delicious bacon caramel brownies.  My friend and I were always keeping an eye out for the waiter bearing the brownie tray!

Drinks!  The red one was called Ruin, and the yellow was Rising

There was a brief talk where Leigh read some from her old diary which was completely endearing and hilarious, and then she started talking about the movie Labyrinth with David Bowie while showing some screenshots and a clip of the scene at the ball from the film.  She talked about how the movie bombed when it was released, but became a cult favorite and it's probably due to how it went from a children's film to one with a seduction and darker themes.  Which lead to her talking about why we read YA.  I'm paraphrasing, but the reason why Labyrinth appeals is why YA appeals.  That in a children's book there is an idealized hero's journey and in adult books, people who make mistakes live in the suburbs with regrets.  But in YA, the characters can make mistakes and still have their hero's journey.  I can not do justice to Leigh's wonderful speech, but I found it very moving and so eloquently put.  If only those silly article writers (who shall not be named) could understand how important YA can be in what it shows of the kind of life that adults want to lead.  Not just children.  I wish I had expressed my admiration for how Leigh explained the importance of YA to her when she was signing my book, but after a long wait in line, I completely forgot to mention it!!  But I thought her speech was so perfect.  And I realize that I really need to watch Labyrinth!  Although it does sound like a very trippy movie.

Like I mentioned, the line was quite long, because Leigh awesomely took her time to talk to everyone, so after we had our book signed, my friend and I had to leave.  It was too bad because I would have loved to stay a bit longer and wander around the bookstore more.  Or maybe sit for a bit and start reading Ruin and Rising like I saw some smart people doing at the event.  But I've already started reading the book now, so must get off blogger to read more!

By the way, I've just set up a 500px account to upload bookish pictures!  You can visit it here: 500px  There's only a few more photos from the event on there, and they are mostly random things! Turns out I didn't like 500px that much!

Book Signing: Tim Conway's "What's So Funny"

Back in the good old days when I was young and my Mom dictated my taste in everything television, I would watch reruns of the Carol Burnett Show.  I would hope that some people who are reading this remember that show.  It was a sketch comedy/variety hour in the 70s and was so funny!  I loved it!  And Tim Conway was always the best part of the show - he could always make the cast crack up, no matter how hard they tried not to, and Tim's self-effacing and unrelenting comedic genius made him one of my very favorite people.  I do make it a habit of getting talent-crushes and to me Tim Conway is just such a brilliant performer.

So it was absolutely necessary for me to go to his book signing in Pasadena last Friday and although I've gotten better going up to authors since starting this blog and attending more author events, I did have to clutch both of my hands together so I wouldn't see it shaking once I was closer to the signing table.  Oh well.  I'm terribly in awe of Tim Conway and I was so happy to get his autograph!

The best part of the signing was the short Q&A beforehand.  While the moderator was introducing Tim, he was already standing up front and feigning boredom at his list of credits and praise of his book.  Once the moderator finally stopped talking, he took questions from the audience and pretty much started off each of his answers with a joke, mocking everything he could - himself, the question, the answer, the person who asked it, while also giving some funny anecdotes.  I don't think I've ever laughed so much at an author event - Tim Conway is so funny and entertaining!  My favorite moment was when someone's phone went off in the front row of the audience and Tim answered the phone.  His first response is to tell the caller that the guy they are trying to reach was just knocked out.  And it just gets funnier from there.  I recorded the moment and wanted to share it on my blog -

One more hilarious moment was when a lady started to say "I had the pleasure of meeting you..." and Tim immediately said "How's the baby?"  I'm still firmly convinced Tim is one of the greatest comedians of all time, and I was so happy to have this chance to meet him!  I don't even want to mention the actual signing cause I think I mumbled something fangirly and it's just so embarrassing.  But he's so awesome.  The event was far too short, and like my Mom said (who came with me) we could have listened to him talk for hours!  I look forward to reading his book, and I'll post my review of it here sometime soon!

Buy his book on Amazon

Of course I can't pass up on sharing something of his work (for anyone who hasn't seen him in anything - which is unacceptable.  Maybe you've seen him in the Disney films with Don Knotts though, so good job!).  This is one of my very favorite sketches from The Carol Burnett Show - No Frills Airline  - where you pay less for your seat, but it is definitely not worth it.

Event Recap: Vegas Valley Book Festival + Giveaway

You may have noticed that while posts have been going live, I haven't been keeping up with responding to blog comments (thank you so much for those!) and that's because I just had a long weekend of fun and books in Las Vegas!  And it's important to know that I hung out with Paola from A Novel Idea because she makes everything fun all the time!  (With her awesomeness and for making me finally watch Pacific Rim, Mulan and both recent Star Trek movies!  Guh! They were all so good!)  I also got to see Stacie from The Shy Book Nerd who had an amazing suitcase of books to be signed!

The Vegas Valley Book Festival was non-stop flailing fun because from the very beginning the authors were so cool!  I was able to go to 3 panels on varying topics - Serial Killers to remixing the Classics to Resurrecting the Future (although on that last one the Moderator didn't really touch on the topic).  I took notes studiously but there were so many wonderful answers by these authors that it's hard to really capture in this post all the insight and humor they had to relate.  I noted several answers in my notebook on different questions, but I'm going to pick one panel and one question and talk about all the answers.  I'm going to paraphrase all the answers though, so I hope I'm getting the gist of it right!

One thing I'm always interested in is adapting or reimagining the Classics in new ways (it's part of my Jane Eyre obsession) so when the moderator on the Classical Remix panel asked if the original story limited the authors in any way I was really interested in the author's answers.

A.G. Howard (author of Splintered) said that with the Lewis Carroll books, not everyone is familiar with what goes on in Through the Looking Glass so she needs to make sure that people know what was in the original.  It helped her that her character uses the book as a guide through Wonderland.

Vivi Barnes (author of Olivia Twisted) wanted to improve on the characters (some characters in Oliver Twist really didn't get a good ending) which made the characters her own but she also needed to stay true to the original.

Gena Showalter (author of Alice in Zombieland) was much more straightforward - she took what she wanted from the original and discarded the rest.

Mary Lindsey (author of Ashes on the Waves) was constrained by her original story - Edgar Allan Poe's poem Annabel Lee - so she used 36 different works of Poe's and mixed in biographical information and Celtic lore. (I have to say- LOVE Annabel Lee soo much!  I can't wait to read this book!)

Claire LaZebnik (author of The Trouble With Flirting) wanted to make sure the book stood up on it's own, independent of the original (Austen's Mansfield Park)

Eileen Cook (author of Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood) said she took inspiration from the theme of her original book (The Count of Monte Cristo) and went off in her own direction.

Stacey Jay (author of Of Beast and Beauty) didn't feel constrained at all - she was only inspired by the original.  (And since this is the only book on this panel that I have read so far, I wanted to say it was very interesting how she took so many elements of the original fairy tale and twisted them around to something so new and unpredictable)

All the authors and Event organizers

After all the panels, the authors started signing in two waves, so Paola and I lined up and got to talk to all the authors we so admired. (I did bother Alexandra Bracken to sign my copy of The Darkest Minds a little earlier, and she was extremely sweet as was her Mom who seemed so happy to see her daughter being fangirled, haha.  EVERY author we talked to was welcoming and excited to see US which is just so weird but I'm very grateful because it makes it extra easy to love them and their books even more!  I'm also so happy that I went to this event because I was introduced to many authors' works I haven't had a chance to check out yet, and I can't wait to read them someday.

Paola brought her super-nice camera to the festival so if you stop by her blog sometime soon, she's sure to have a fantastic post about the event with way better pictures!  And Stacie is sure to have an awesome recap and giveaways on her blog as well!

Now I got some signed bookmarks at the festival and I've been thinking about how to give away some on my blog.  I would like to send them out individually to people who are really interested in these books/authors, so I'm going to do a RANDOM TWITTER GIVEAWAY all this week!  Starting today I'll tweet the bookmark up for grabs and the first follower to respond will get it.  I'll also randomly pick a winner from this post's comments if you include which bookmark you would like to get.  Here's what I'll be giving out this week:

Two signed Ashes on the Waves bookmarks by Mary Lindsey

One signed Every Other Day bookmark and Raised by Wolves Series temporary tattoo by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

One Of Beast and Beauty postcard by Stacey Jay

One Pivot Point and The Distance Between Us bookmark by Kasie West

And keep an eye out for something Catching Fire related as well (unsigned though!)

Follow @bookishwhimsy

Please click on the button if you aren't a follower already!  I will use the hashtag #VegasBookmark so you can keep track of the giveaways.  If I send a message that you've won, please DM or email (at bookishwhimsy(at)gmail.com) to send me your address and I will mail out the prize ASAP.  These will all be open internationally (except the Catching Fire giveaway).  I'm not responsible if these are unfortunately lost in the mail.  Thanks for reading!  And thanks to the Vegas Valley Book Festival for putting together such an amazing event!   I'm looking forward to going again next year!  And if I can just put it out there right now, if Melina Marchetta could be invited to attend that would be THE BEST.  

Author Event: Gretchen McNeil and Michelle Gagnon

Yesterday I attended the author event with Gretchen McNeil and Michelle Gagnon at the Barnes and Noble at The Grove in LA.  I've devoured the suspenseful novels that Gretchen has written so far, so I was really looking forward to getting my hands on 3:59 and of course hearing her talk about it.  I at first didn't realize there were going to be two authors at this event, until Stacie at Shy Book Nerd told me, so I checked out Michelle's books as well (and they look really good!)

I got to the event pretty early as I was unsure about how it was going to be run, so I had time to rummage the store and I found an autographed copy of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.  Score!  Later I asked an event coordinator if Rainbow had had a book signing there and she said no, she just dropped by for another event.

The Authors (the blonde lady with her back
turned is Leigh Bardugo!

One mocha frappuchino and tweeting fest later, I was seated and ready for the event to begin.  Each author talked a little about their book and also read an excerpt - I thought it was funny that they both edit themselves when they read their books - they can't help thinking what they could improve!  I forgot my blogging notebook, so I just took notes on my iPhone which gave my notes more of a bullet point style.  So here they are:

Books they read as children that they go back to and are inspired by as adults:
Michelle: The Hobbit, Madeleine L'Engle, and Nancy Drew
Gretchen: The House with a Clock in It by John Bellairs and Anne of Green Gables.  (Never heard of The House With A Clock In It - I must read it!)

Actors they imagine playing any of their characters:
Gretchen: Elle Fanning for Minnie from Ten
Michelle: the lead actress from the Australian film Tomorrow When The War Began (oops forgot to note down the name of Michelle's character. This movie sounds really good!!)

Gretchen was inspired to write after reading Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain and when she told him at a book signing that he inspired her and it was likely she was going to get a deal at a publishing house soon he shook her hand and thanked her for telling him 'the best thing he had heard all evening'.

How is YA different from Adult:
Michelle: The characters in YA don't have the same resources as characters in Adult (for instance the the adult characters in her books can rely on resources available to the FBI) so you have to find a way to work around it.
Gretchen: In YA everything that happens when you're 16 feels like The Most Important Thing Ever and you have to feel that when you write it and that can be a little bit embarrassing. (LOL)

Almost the very last question Gretchen put to Michelle was what her next project was and she said it was a modern update on Jane Eyre.  WHAT!!! My ears perked up and I might have stopped breathing for a few seconds, cause that's TOTALLY up my alley!! I was like, CAN I HAVE IT NOW PLEASE?!  But then the signing started so we all lined up.

I talked to Gretchen first, about how much I love her books and how I can't wait to read 3:59.  Even though the ending might have less than a complete feel to it (help!)  I also asked why the time 3:59 and Gretchen said it was going to be 3:57 at first (just random) but the powers that be said it was the name of a gun (I didn't know that) so she changed it.  And when 3:59 clicks over to 4:00 it is rather dramatic, so it works.  And I have to give props to the guy who was nice enough to take the first two photos - he did the first one than said to do a silly picture, and I absolutely love the bunny ears pic!  Gretchen is so cool!

Then I talked to Michelle Gagnon, and though I wasn't familiar with her work (but again, so looking forward to reading her YA thriller series!) I squeed over Jane Eyre and asked her a bit more about the book (I think it might be called "Eyrie")  She said the "Jane" would be from Hawaii, and moves to San Francisco to stay with her rich troubled relatives, and I was also thrilled that she said *maybe* the lunatic in the attic might not have to be alive... maybe she's a ghost!  Did I mention I was looking forward to this book?  Yeah.  I am.  Michelle seems really cool too!

I had lots of fun at this event - it was pretty intimate and informal with Michelle and Gretchen chatting to each other and the audience like we were all friends.  I was so happy I went!

Check out 3:59 by Gretchen McNeil

Don't Look Now by Michelle Gagnon (PERSEFoNE #2)

Crown of Midnight Launch Party

On Tuesday I went to the launch party for the amazing sequel to Throne of Glass - Crown of Midnight - and had such a fantastic time!  I met up with Paola from A Novel Idea and also Stacie from Fairy Book Mommies and it was so fun to talk books with them while waiting for the event to start.  And I may have gotten some chocolate cake (okay I did, but only a little bit.  Really!)  Sarah J. Maas came and gave her very informal and personable talk about how she came to write the Throne of Glass series (very inspiring actually - since she's been writing it since high school!), Paola and I squee-ed that she's such a Disney fan, and I found it so touching and cool that she has a first edition of Throne of Glass that she has people at her book signing stops sign for her.  Such a lovely idea.  Oh and I discovered that day that the series is going to be more than 3 books, to which I was both elated and dismayed.  Elated because YAY MOAR! And dismayed because that's just more emotional distress to go through.  I just want need a happy ending for everyone!

Sarah also talked about her new, upcoming NA series - A Court of Thorns and Roses which has a blend of the fairy tales "Beauty and the Beast", "East of the Sun, West of the Moon" and "Tam Lin" which sounds A Mazing!  And she promises a little bit of sexy times and a very hot "Beast". :D  It comes out in 2015 though which makes me sad; it's so depressing to hear about these awesome books and then have to wait for them.

Sarah's trying out a new slogan in the first pic - works?

There was also a Q&A of course, and when there was a question about what books Sarah has been reading lately she mentioned Melina Marchetta!  What, she writes amazing stories and has fantastic taste? Well, that's it, Sarah's now one of my favorite people EVER.  An audible reaction came from Paola and I (actually we high-fived), and Paola told her we even had our copies of Finnikin of the Rock with us! (for reasons)  And Sarah told us her story of meeting Melina at Comic Con and not being able to control her feels while meeting her and it happened more than once (and totally sounds like something that will happen to me!).  So fun to fangirl over Melina with Sarah, and Sarah said Paola and I were her spirit animals and then I woke up, and then I died.  But seriously because she's such a fan and such a wonderful author I wanted her to sign my copy of Finnikin of the Rock, and she wrote a little note to Melina.  So yay, I have something to talk to Melina about if I ever get to meet her and not just babble senselessly!  And I hope I didn't do too much of that while talking to Sarah.  But she's so cool, she understands fangirl attacks!  I mean, Sarah hasn't started reading Quintana of Charyn yet because she's not sure if she's ready for it! Just like us!! (By the way if you are looking to read,  re-read or just post about Finnikin of the Rock, Paola and I are planning a Finnikin event for October!)

Paola and I waited until we were the last ones at the book signing - maybe to monopolize her, I'm not saying yes, I'm not saying no - but personally I was glad that there weren't as many people to hear us squee!  We talked to Sarah about Crown of Midnight things (I couldn't get spoilery though - I had trouble repressing all the things I wanted to say about the emotional overload of this book!), Finnikin feels, how the chocolate cake was yummy at the launch party, and how Paola is a warrior for driving for three hours just to see her! (EDIT: 3 hours and 48 min!)  There was probably more things, and please visit Paola's blog for her recap of the awesomeness of this event, cause I don't even know what I was doing half the time!  Seriously this was the most fun I've ever had at a book signing - partly because of meeting the awesome Paola (who totally complements my fangirly side!), and also because Sarah was so cool, funny and lovely to talk to!  And now she totally looks like Celaena Sardothien in my head!  I wonder if she has secret assassin skills....

Good times!

Um, so if you haven't read this series, I shouldn't have to tell you that I highly recommend it, right?  Check out my reviews of - Throne of Glass & Crown of Midnight

Thank you Paola for "forcing" me to read it! :D

And Stacie is giving away a signed copy of Crown of Midnight! Check out the giveaway and event recap here!

Neil Gaiman: Live Talk and Book Signing

This event was scheduled on the day I came back from my vacation in England (refer to yesterday's post), so it's lucky that my trip ended in time, as after this I probably would never get the chance to see Neil Gaiman!  On the other hand, boy was I tired!

The "Live Talk" session began a bit late, but was totally worth the wait.  Neil talked about how he came to write his new book The Ocean at the End of the Lane which started as a short story for his wife who was away recording an album.  And it kept getting longer and longer until he had written a novella he hadn't meant to.  Since his wife, Amanda, doesn't care for fantasy (the audience had an audible reaction to that!) he wanted to write a story about feelings and emotions which was foreign to him because he's "British and male." LOL  But the book has a lot of Neil in it - not that it's autobiographical but he drew on his past a lot for the characters.  And the photo on the back cover is of Neil as a child standing on a drainpipe!

Neil read an excerpt from the book as well, which is always lovely because he has such a nice reading voice!  He also read an excerpt from the book that is coming out later this year - Fortunately, the Milk which sounded like such a fun, tall tale type story with that dry British humor.

There were a couple questions emailed from Stephen King that Neil answered, and his answer to one question where he talked about how his dreams changed after he wrote Sandman was so interesting.  He said that before he would have frightening, vivid nightmares that would scare him, but when he became an author, those nightmares would inspire him and he would write them down to use later.  And then those sorts of dreams just started going away.

And of course there was a Doctor Who question!  Neil mentioned that he had never seen so many unlicensed Doctor Who shirts as he had on this tour. :)  The question was about when he thought of writing a story about the TARDIS incarnate, and he said that it started off as wanting to write a story about the TARDIS - usually the safest place in a Doctor Who story as the most dangerous place, with a malevolent being inside it.  And Neil hadn't thought the focus was on Idris so much, but Steven Moffat latched onto "TARDIS girl."

After the talk, the book signing began - one row at a time up to the stage, and I think because Neil agreed to sign as many copies of The Ocean at the End of the Lane as people wanted, and an additional item, and because he takes his time to talk to people and draw little pictures in the books sometimes, it took quite a long time for my row to go up to the stage.  Like three hours.  And I was so tired, did I mention?  But if I was tired, I can't imagine how he did it, signing for everyone there, and there must have been at least a third of the audience still to get through after me! And when I finally got up, the adrenaline took over, and I was so awed to see him up close, I admire his writing so much!  And he gave me strawberries!  Well they were from the green room and intended for everyone in line, but I received the bowl of them from his hands!

This is the little Vine video I took when I got closer to the front of the line:

Siege and Storm launch party!

Last night (or really this night as I am typing) was the launch party for Siege and Storm (Grisha #2) by Leigh Bardugo!  Out now folks, OUT NOW!  I had a blast at the party with fellow book enthusiasts and Ms. Leigh A. Bardugo (the A stands for awesome.  That may or may not be her real middle name.)  I've only been to a launch party for Legend by Marie Lu, and that was at a bookstore, so I was not sure what to expect from a launch party at the Hemingway Bar and Lounge, but it was an ingenious idea!  Especially because the bar is so gorgeous!  Literally wall to wall with books!  And lots of comfy chairs.

The entrance of the bar had a great photo set-up where we could take a picture in front of a backdrop similar to the book -and with props!  Then inside the bar proper, there were drinks to be had, books to be bought, and seats around the main little stage area.  My friend and I went to get drinks first (as you will) and they had lovely raspberry champagne on the house with cute little Siege and Storm flags.

David Peterson, the man who invented the language for the Game of Thrones TV series introduced Leigh and mentioned she had words named after her in the language.  Which I didn't know and apparently Leigh didn't either because she seemed really surprised and touched.  Of course the highlight was Leigh's speech which started with her reading from a diary she kept when she was a teenager.  She read an entry where she had written down the superpowers she wanted to have.  Flying, Invisibility, Mind Reading (with the ability to switch on and off of course, no one wants that all the time), Immortality ("with an escape clause") and the last: "The ability to write a book and get it published."

Leigh's speech after that was very inspiring.  How so many things seem attainable when you are young, but your optimism shrinks as you get older.  But with readers we can still feel that hope and experience those dreams that we so believed in when we were young.  I've never thought of it that way, but it is so true.  With all the terrible things that happens in the world today, books aren't just an escape but a way to connect with a part of ourselves that loved to imagine.  Which came so easily to us when we were young.  I couldn't be happier to be a book lover at that moment.  (Although holding "Siege and Storm" felt like a close second!)

Afterwards Leigh read a bit from Siege and Storm and there was also a short Q&A, in which Margaret Stohl asked if we would like to hear Leigh Bardugo sing (Answer: Yes) and Leigh sang the theme song to Charles in Charge.  Awesomely.  And then a giveaway of books and swag.  One prize was at least forty books, and they all went to one person!  So lucky!  There were some awesome books there!  And some of the authors were at the party and could have signed them!  Although I think I might have been hard pressed to choose between those books and another prize - that included Hebel designed Grisha jewelry!

The book signing was at the end, and there were lots of mingling (I suppose, I'm not very good at mingling) so my friend and I went and took a picture at the photo booth as our commemoration of the event.  With swords and cool hats!

It was a wonderful event, so full of enthusiasm for books, and for the Grisha series and for Leigh, and I was so glad to have been a part of it.  I hope for Ruin and Rising there will be a similar event!  And now that I know Hemingway Bar exists, I really must go and visit it again!

I posted more pictures and Vine videos on my twitter account: bookishwhimsy.  I'm a bit taken with Vine - the app where you create and share 6 second videos and I put three of them up.  Here's one of Leigh reading as the Darkling (with Margaret Stohl acting as her Sun Summoner).  Since it's 6 seconds, it's just one line really:

Teen Book Fest + a Giveaway of "Legend", "Shadow and Bone" and more!

On Saturday, I went to the Teen Book Fest in Ontario, California where awesomeness assembled in the form of fab authors; some of whom I was not familiar with, and some I was very eager to see.  There were panels with themes that certain authors talked on, and while the themes were interesting, the event was rather low-key and intimate, and the panels really felt like eavesdropping on a conversation between authors.  Which was fantastic!  And since I had not read all the books by the authors at the event, it was great to hear them talk about the creation of their characters and plot, and I became excited about getting the chance to explore their books later.

There were many topics that were touched on, and I found the different processes of the authors so interesting.  When it comes to writing characters the authors ranged from needing to have something in common with them to not wanting to feel too much kinship with them.  There was also a great discussion of writing 1st person vs. 3rd person, which as a reader I don't really even think about when I read a book.  I just accept that that's the way the story is told, but the author really has to think about which approach works best for their story.  Towards the end of one panel, someone asked about marketing and Gretchen McNeil talked about how she self-promoted her book ("Ten") with the Ten Army and how effective it was to involve the readers.  Her new book "3:59" (which comes out later this year but I want it now!) has a similar promotional effort behind it that I think is a great idea!  It involves sending free T-shirts to people who are willing to wear it at book events and then gives incentives to people who see people wearing the shirt and tweeting about it or sharing it through social media.  Most of the authors have a presence on social media, and I find it rather exhilarating to be able to connect to authors this way, after being awed or touched by their work.

Marie Lu, Leigh Bardugo, Morgan Matson, Jennifer Bosworth

 Leigh Bardugo talked about how writing to James Howe (author of the Bunnicula series) and receiving a personal reply back gave her the sense that she knew him and they were friends,  and that translates in my mind pretty closely to the way readers feel when they tweet their favorite author.  And although I can't bring myself to think I am friends with these authors, I do an inner dance of joy when I get a tweet from them.  Somehow it makes me feel a little more personally invested in their books when I can exchange a few words with them about what I liked about it and a little more personally connected with this thing I love called reading.

And I have to share what was a really funny moment at one panel - when Marie Lu talked about her teenager years, and the first story she wrote was a fanfiction about Sonic the Hedgehog in which he gets into an accident and becomes paralyzed.  So wrong, yet so funny.  I want to read it!

I was able to get a few books signed, and I wanted to give them away to blog readers and hopefully you have or will enjoy these reads!  I've decided to have two prize packs:

 (NOTE: "Legend" and "Shadow and Bone" are paperbacks, "Harbinger" and "Possess" are hardcovers.)

What you need to know:

1. OPEN TO U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY.  Sorry international visitors. :(
2. There are two prizes - 
1. Prize A: is (1) autographed copy of "Legend" by Marie Lu and (1) autographed copy of "Harbinger" by Sara Wilson Etienne. 
2. Prize B: is (1) autographed copy of "Possess" by Gretchen McNeil and (1) autographed copy of "Shadow and Bone" by Leigh Bardugo.  
3. I will pick TWO winners - the first name will get first choice - whether they would like Prize A or B, and the second winner will be notified of which books they are getting.  If my notification email is not responded to within 72 hours, a new winner will be chosen.  If the first name winner is the one who does not reply, the second name will get first choice.
4. This giveaway is open for a week - from today to next Monday, May 20th Midnight.  
5. All prizes will be sent ASAP with tracking numbers through USPS, but I am not responsible for lost or misplaced parcels.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

I am disappointed I was not able to attend all the panels at this event and I missed out on hearing from more amazing authors, but I would like to list here the names of all the author attendees and a link to their book(s) on Goodreads.

Stephen Chbosky "The Perks of Being a Wallflower"
Carrie Arcos "Out of Reach"
Leigh Bardugo "Shadow and Bone"
Jennifer Bosworth "Struck"
Jessica Brody "Unremembered"
Sara Wilson Etienne "Harbinger"
Suzanne Lazear "Innocent Darkness"
Marie Lu "Legend" & "Prodigy"
Morgan Matson "Amy and Roger's Epic Detour"
Gretchen McNeil "Possess" & "Ten"
Gregg Olsen "Envy"
Andrew Smith "Winger"
Ann Stampler "Where It Began"
Lex Thomas "Quarantine: The Loners"