A Star-Studded Anniversary
Thalia Kids’ Book Club held an event at Symphony Space in Manhattan on October 19, to honor the 25th anniversary of the publication of Lois Lowry’s Newbery Medal-winning Number the Stars (HMH, 1989). Lowry spoke about her novel with Jennifer Brennan, senior producer of Literary Programs at Symphony Space. Also performing at the event was actor Sean Astin (the Lord of the Rings films) who read from Lowry’s work. He and his wife Christine have obtained the rights to adapt Number the Stars for film.
A Younger Fan Base
Adult author Carl Hiaasen recently wrapped up his nine-city tour for his debut YA novel, Skink—No Surrender. The book features one of the author’s most notorious characters, Skink, an ex-governor of Florida, who has appeared in six of Hiaasen’s previous novels for adults. The native Floridian, who is also the author of four middle-grade novels, posed with fans at Octavia Books in New Orleans on October 15.
Would You Be... My Neighbor?
Katherine Roy celebrated the release of her nonfiction picture book, Neighborhood Sharks (Roaring Brook/Macaulay), with a multimedia presentation at Books Inc. in Mountain View, Calif. The book, which marks her debut as both author and illustrator, tells of the great white sharks that migrate to the Farrallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco every October to feed.
Middle-Grade Magic
Bloomsbury middle-grade authors (l. to r.) E.D. Baker (The Fairy Tale Matchmaker), Annie Barrows (Magic in the Mix), and Jessica Day George (Thursdays with the Crown) discussed their new books, which all have magical themes, at an event at the Takoma Park Library in Takoma Park, Md., on October 9. The authors were greeted by an eager crowd of 70 fans. The event was organized by Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C., whichalso provided book sales.
Ready, Set... Read!
Each year, Jumpstart hosts a Read for the Record day, part of a campaign to promote reading and literacy in communities around the country. This year, Jumpstart partnered with Lakeshore Learning Materials retail locations. Gearing up for Read for the Record Day on October 21, Rosemary Wells did a reading and signing at Lakeshore’s location in Newton, Mass., on October 18. Her book, Bunny Cakes, was selected as the official book for the 2014 campaign.
Friended
Author Rachel Vail (center) caught up with Lynn Martin, an old college friend, and her two daughters Penelope (l.) and Alexandra (ages nine and six, respectively) during an event for her new novel, Unfriended (Viking), held on October 19 at Bank Street Bookstore in New York City. Both girls asked questions during Vail’s discussion of her book.
