This week, award winners celebrate; an alligator makes a big splash; a middle grade fantasy writer has a momentous week; rescue dogs visit a book release party; authors are California dreaming; and a ski shop doubles as space for a book launch.

Raise Your Glasses!

On February 10, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers held a toast in honor of Sophie Blackall, who won the 2016 Caldecott Medal for Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear, and Jerry Pinkney, winner of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award and the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement. Andrea Spooner, v-p and editorial director and Pinkney’s longtime editor, made a toast to Pinkney, and Susan Rich, editor at large, led the staff in toasting Blackall.

Oh, Snappsy!

Julie Falatko and Tim Miller celebrated the release of their debut picture book Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Book) (Viking) on February 6 at Books of Wonder in Manhattan. The event drew a large crowd, with standing room only, and the author and illustrator signed books for three hours.

Windfall

HarperCollins author Jennifer Lynn Alvarez celebrated the release of the third book in her Guardian Herd series, Landfall, on February 5. The event was held at indie bookstore Pages on the Green in Alvarez’s hometown of Windsor, Calif. It was a big week for Alvarez, who also revealed the cover for book #4, Windborn, and welcomed the announcement of a new book deal, which will bring the total number of Guardian Herd books to seven.

Puppy Love

Four-legged guests were among those in attendance at a launch for J.J. Howard’s Sit Stay Love (Scholastic), which was held at Lake Mary Prep School in Lake Mary, Fla. Several of the dogs were brought to the occasion care of Pet Rescue by Judy, a local adoption group, in honor of the book’s pet adoption theme. Here, Howard greets two fans and one of the furry attendees.

Down at the Seashore

Authors visiting San Diego for the California School Library Association conference earlier this month took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather for a lunch at the beach. From left: Patricia C. Newman, Kathleen Krull, Alexis O’Neill, Mary Ann Fraser, Cynthia Jenson-Elliot, and Deborah Halverson.

Imagine the Possibilities!

Kim Culbertson addressed a crowd at the launch for The Possibility of Now (Scholastic/Point) on January 28, held at Mountain Recreation Ski Shop in Grass Valley, Calif. The store was an appropriate location for the event, as the book takes place in a ski town.