For those on the lookout for new kids’ books, author autographings, and giveaways, here’s a peek at some of the happenings at the booths of children’s publishers today and tomorrow.
Fans of Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond’s If You... series will want to stop by the HarperCollins booth (2140), where a raffle is being held promoting the series’ latest addition, If You Give a Mouse a Brownie. The drawing will be held tomorrow, at 4:30 p.m., and the winner will receive a collection of picture books and a basket of baking supplies and accessories. In celebration of the new book, the publisher will be serving brownies (while they last) in the booth today, at 3 p.m. Author guests at the booth include Lauren Oliver, autographing galleys of Replica, a YA flip book that follows the stories of two girls connected by dark pasts, today, 1–2 p.m., and Veronica Roth, signing samplers of her new novel, Carve the Mark (Jan. 2017), tomorrow, 12:15–1:15 p.m., at a ticketed autographing.
Compendium is hosting a pair of authors at the APG booth (810) today. Booksellers can stop by to greet Kobi Yamada, who will sign copies of What Do You Do with a Problem?, a follow-up to the author’s What Do You Do with an Idea?, 1:30–3 p.m. Following that, M.H. Clark will autograph copies of You Belong Here, a picture book that reassures children that they are right where they belong, 3:30–4:30 p.m.
At booth 1730, Chooseco is celebrating 10 years in business since authors R.A. Montgomery and Shannon Gilligan founded the company to bring the Choose Your Own Adventure books back into print after Bantam stopped publishing the series. Currently, Chooseco has 10 million books in print in 15 languages and 20 territories. In addition to its reissues of the original series, the publisher also has a backlist of titles available in the Choose Your Own Nightmares and Dragonlark series. At BEA, the company is announcing its move in a new direction this fall with the release of a YA thriller, Weregirl, centering on a teenage girl who transforms into a shape-shifter after an encounter with a trapped wolf.
In the mood for some toe-tapping tunes? Head over to the Quarto booth (2300) today, at 1 p.m., to hear Kenny Loggins perform a children’s version of his classic song, “Footloose,” the basis for his October picture book, Footloose. Loggins will also sign a limited edition BEA poster featuring the cover of his picture book.
Simon & Schuster will welcome Jennifer Weiner to booth 2016–2017 today, 1–2 p.m., when she’ll autograph ARCs of her new middle-grade novel, The Littlest Bigfoot. Also up for grabs at the booth are ARCs of books by two other S&S authors who are attending BEA: The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid, and Ashes by Laurie Halse Anderson. Booksellers can also pick up backpacks promoting The Misadventures of Max Crumbly: Locker Hero by Rachel Renée Russell and tote bags tying in to I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy.
Staffers at the Globe Pequot booth (700–704, NBN Pavilion) have a daylong celebration planned for tomorrow to introduce its new children’s imprint, Muddy Boots. The first 200 visitors to the booth tomorrow will receive a plush bear to honor the hero of the imprint’s fall release, Baby Bear’s Not Hibernating by Lynn Plourde, illus. by Teri Weidner. Librarians can enter a raffle for a chance to win a collection of titles from Globe Pequot that focus on inspiring kids to explore the world around them. Editorial director Rick Rinehart will be on hand to discuss the first books due under the new imprint, including those published in partnership with the National Wildlife Federation and new work from Carmela La Vigna Coyle (Do Princesses Wear Hiking Boots?) and Linda Kranz (Only One You).
Shadow Mountain welcomes author Brandon Mull to its booth (2248) today, 1:45–2:30 p.m., and tomorrow, 11 a.m.–noon, when he will sign partial ARCs of Fablehaven Book of Imagination, an activity book based on this fantasy series. Other giveaways during the autographing are Fablehaven sling bags and sticky-note pads promoting Mull’s sequel series, Dragonwatch. During the show, with the exception of the above times, visitors can grab galleys of Mysteries of Cove: Gears of Revolution by J. Scott Savage; She Stood for Freedom: The Untold Story of a Civil Rights Hero, Joan Trumpauer Mulholland by Loki Mulholland and Charlotta Janssen; and Hoolie and the Hooligans: The Alien That Ate My Socks, the launch title of a new middle-grade series by Brandon Dorman, the illustrator of the Fablehaven and Dragonwatch series.
St. Martin’s Griffin invites booksellers to stop by the Macmillan booth (1958, 1959) to meet David Levithan, who will sign ARCs of You Know Me Well (written with Nina LaCour) today, 2:30–3:30 p.m., at a ticketed signing (100 tickets are available starting at 1 p.m.). Also featured at the booth are The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi, and Moon Chosen by P.C. Cast, for which the publisher is giving out “passports” tomorrow, containing information about the book and a short excerpt.
Front and center at Scholastic’s booth (1704) are new books by authors and illustrators who are attending BEA to participate in various events and book signings in the Autographing Area. These include Groovy Joe #1: Ice Cream and Dinosaurs by Eric Litwin, illus. by Tom Lichtenheld; King Baby by Kate Beaton; Duck on a Tractor by David Shannon; Lego Pop-Up by Matthew Reinhart; Dog Man by Dav Pilkey; The Scourge by Jennifer A. Nielsen; Riding Chance by Christine Kendall; Dumbness Is a Dish Best Served Cold (Dear Dumb Diary: Deluxe) by Jim Benton; The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater; The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron; It’s Not Me, It’s You by Stephanie Strohm; and Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier (for which tote bags are available).
Graphic Arts Books welcomes Tricia Brown, author of Bobbie the Wonder Dog, to the 1043C section of the IPS booth (941) tomorrow, 2–2:30 p.m., when she’ll sign copies of her book, which relays the true story of a dog, lost on a family cross-country trip in 1923, that walked almost 3,000 miles to return to its family. Posters and bookmarks promoting the book will be available. Also up for grabs are galleys of Secondhand Summer by Dan Walker; Sojo by Pam Flowers, illus. by Bill Farnsworth; and Cassie and Jasper: Kidnapped Cattle by Bryn Fleming.
HarlequinTeen is hosting a number of YA authors at the Harlequin booth (2240, 2241) during the show. The publisher has two group signings scheduled: today, 1–2:30 p.m., the following novelists will autograph ARCs: Amy Lukavics (The Women in the Walls), Keira Drake (The Continent), Eleanor Herman (Empire of Dust), and Melissa de la Cruz (Something in Between). Tomorrow, 1–2:30 p.m., the lineup includes Lukavics, Drake, Herman, and Jennifer Armentrout (The Problem with Forever).
Among the books that staffers are talking up at the Lerner booth (2350) are new novels by five authors who are attending BEA and signing in the Autographing Area: Jane O’Reilly (The Secret of Goldenrod), Chris Monroe (Monkey with a Tool Belt and the Maniac Muffins), Robin Yardi (The Midnight War of Mateo Martinez), Elizabeth Atkinson (The Island of Beyond), and Miranda Paul and Luciana Navarro Powell (Whose Hands Are These?: A Community Helper Guessing Book). Posters and recipe cards promoting Monroe’s book are available.
Fans of YA author Laini Taylor will want to stop by the Hachette booth (1716, 1717) tomorrow at noon, when Little, Brown Books for Young Readers welcomes her for a signing of ARCs of her latest novel, Strange the Dreamer. The publisher is also hosting Trenton Lee Stewart (The Secret Keepers) at BEA, and giving out ARCs of books by three other authors attending the show: Grace Lin (When the Sea Turned to Silver), Jewell Parker Rhodes (Towers Falling), and Wade Albert White (The Adventurer’s Guide to Successful Escapes). Also scheduled is a “Patterson Takeover” of the booth tomorrow, at 9 a.m., when galleys will be handed out of Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco, the launch title of the Jimmy Patterson Books imprint; Word of Mouse by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein; and Patterson’s YA edition of Cradle and All.
Little Bee Books (2003) will be hosting an in-booth signing today, at 10 a.m., when Miranda Paul autographs copies of Trainbots, and two guests dressed in full Trainbot gear meet and greet fans. At the show, Little Bee is partnering with licensee Sago to provide a photo booth where BEA attendees can pose with a Sago plush character; iPad app stations; and giveaways. Galleys available at the booth include Tales of Sasha #1: The Big Secret by Alexa Pearl, illus. by Paco Sordo; Ella and Owen #1: The Cave of Aaaaah! Doom! by Kent Jaden, illus. by Iryna Bodnaruk; Eddie the Bully by Henry Cole; Black and White Factory by Eric Telchin, illus. by Diego Funck; and The Nutcracker, adapted by Grace Maccarone, illus. by Célia Chauffrey.
Kar-Ben has a pair of book giveaways at its booth (2351). Each day, the publisher is giving out 25 finished copies of L’Dor Vador: A Keepsake Coloring Book, an adult coloring book featuring Jewish-themed art by Judy Freeman (who’s attending BEA). To promote Can You Tell Me How to Get to (Jewish) Sesame Street?—the fifth book in the Shalom Sesame series, a joint venture with Sesame Workshop—the publisher will be giving out Sesame Street–themed Hanukkah posters. Also featured at the booth are the series’ earlier installments.
Peachtree welcomes Janet Nolan and Thomas Gonzalez, author and illustrator of Seven and a Half Tons of Steel, to booth 1408 to sign copies of their book tomorrow, 11–11:30 p.m. The book explains how a beam from one of the World Trade Center Towers became the bow of the Navy ship USS New York, following 9/11. Giveaways at the booth include tote bags featuring hamster Stanley from William Bee’s picture book series, f&gs and buttons for Never Follow a Dinosaur by Alex Latimer, f&gs of Madeline Finn and the Library Dog by Lisa Papp, and galleys of Charlie Bumpers vs. the Puny Pirates by Bill Harley, illus. by Adam Gustavson.
And at the Green Toys booth (1732), the company is introducing its Green Toys Storybook series, which extends the Green Toys brand (centered on eco-friendly, socially responsible children’s products encouraging open-ended, unplugged play) into print. Written by one of the company’s cofounders, Robert von Geoben, the books establish narratives around popular toys and characters. Due in August are the line’s debut releases: Train Off the Rails with Kody and Dot; Boats Built for Speed with Davey and Pearl; and Mixed-Up Trucks with Baxter, Rosie and Gus.
This article appeared in the May 12, 2016 edition of PW BEA Show Daily.
