Getting ‘Reckless’—and Fabulous!
When you have a new series launching with a 500,000-copy first printing, you don’t go halfway. And Cornelia Funke certainly isn’t, as evidenced by the specially designed dress she wore to kick off her Get Reckless tour for her new novel, Reckless, a dark take on the stories of the Brothers Grimm. (The dress was designed by Oscar-winning costume designer, Jenny Beavan.) Five hundred fans were came out to the launch event at the Schimmel Center for the Arts in New York City—with more watching the event around the world via live-stream on the Web site for the series. Funke is traveling to Chicago, Los Angeles, and Seattle this week for additional events, before heading abroad for events in Germany, England, Russia, and Spain. Photo: Ryan den Rooijen / www.corneliafunkefans.com
Zombies Spotted in Austin
This past Sunday, BookPeople in Austin hosted a launch event for Brains for Lunch: A Zombie Novel in Haiku?! (Roaring Brook/Porter, Aug.) by K.A. Holt, illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist Gahan Wilson (in a starred review, PW said “the haiku form... is an ideal vehicle for the kind of halted observations one expects from the undead”). A face painter at the event made attendees look like zombies—or their victims (check out the neck wound on Holt, as she reads from the novel)—and suitably gruesome snacks, including finger cookies and brain punch, were on hand.
‘Thalia’ Camp Wraps Up Its Second Year
The second annual Thalia Book Club Camp, held in New York City at Symphony Space, had a veritable parade of authors visiting to discuss books and writing with urban “campers.” A teen session featured authors Libba Bray, Kekla Magoon, and Scott O’Connor, as well as Random House editor Krista Marino; the middle-grade session featured Norton Juster (seen here, with kids showing off their copies of The Phantom Tollbooth), Linda Sue Park, Rita Williams-Garcia, Matt Phelan, and Dan Poblocki. The camp consists of three one-week sessions, each of which is open to 20 children.
‘Ghost Hunters’ on the Road
Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, stars of the reality TV show Ghost Hunters, were recently in New York City promoting their first children’s book, Ghost Hunt: Chilling Tales of the Unknown (Little, Brown, Sept.). After several radio interviews, the authors did an event at Bookends in Ridgewood, N.J. The line for the signing wrapped around the block twice; here, the authors are seen with the very last family in line. The sixth season of Ghost Hunters is currently airing; the show draws up to three million viewers each week.
Gonzalez Hits the Decatur Book Festival
Author Christina Gonzalez was one of many authors who appeared at the recent Decatur Book Festival in Georgia, which was held over Labor Day weekend. Gonzalez spoke on a panel entitled “Finding Yourself in a Land Where You’re Lost” with fellow debut novelist Noni Carter (Good Fortune); Gonzalez’s first book, The Red Umbrella (Knopf, May), which PW called “a moving portrait of resilience and reinvention,” follows 14-year-old Lucia as she and her family flee political instability in Cuba. Here, Gonzalez visits with attendees at the festival.
