Book Club Girl - Book Group Recommendations, Reading Group Guides, Audio Book Club Podcasts

Book Time with Bess! Join the Bess Crawford Read Along!

If you, like me, are feeling a Downton Abbey let-down after the airing of the last episode in the second season, I might just have the cure that ails you (it might even cure the Spanish flu).

Further immerse yourself in WWI-era England with the Bess Crawford mysteries by Charles Todd by joining our “Book Time with Bess” Read Along!

The “Book Time with Bess Read Along” kicks off now and runs through the publication of the newest book in the series, An Unmarked Grave in June 2012.

About Bess Crawford, and A Duty to the Dead, the first book in the series:
So who is Bess Crawford? The creation of the mother and son writing team of Charles Todd – the team that brought us the acclaimed and bestselling Ian Rutledge series – Bess Crawford is a singular woman living in a time of great change in England. Independent-minded Bess Crawford’s upbringing was far different from that of the usual upper-middle-class British gentlewoman. Growing up in India, she learned the importance of responsibility, honor, and duty from her officer father. At the outbreak of World War I, she followed in his footsteps and volunteered for the nursing corps, serving from the battlefields of France to the doomed hospital ship Britannic.

On one voyage, Bess grows fond of the young, gravely wounded Lieutenant Arthur Graham. Something rests heavily on his conscience, and to give him a little peace as he dies, she promises to deliver a message to his brother. It is some months before she can carry out this duty, and when she’s next in England, she herself is recovering from a wound. When Bess arrives at the Graham house in Kent, Jonathan Graham listens to his brother’s last wishes with surprising indifference. Neither his mother nor his brother Timothy seems to think it has any significance. Unsettled by this, Bess is about to take her leave when sudden tragedy envelops her. She quickly discovers that fulfilling this duty to the dead has thrust her into a maelstrom of intrigue and murder that will endanger her own life and test her courage as not even war has.

As an added bonus to get you started, the e-book of A Duty to the Dead is just $1.99 for a limited time, so order up today and get reading!

The read-along officially kicks off today (but don’t worry, our first discussion won’t take place until March 26th) and it runs through the publication of the paperback of the most recent Bess Crawford novel, A Bitter Truth (on sale 5/1), as well as the new Bess Crawford hardcover, An Unmarked Grave (on sale 6/5). We'll end the read-along in June with a Book Club Girl on Air Show with the Charles Todd writing team to discuss all the books in the series.

Here's the schedule of when I'll post questions about each book for us to discuss:

March 26th - A Duty to the Dead discussion
April 30^th - An Impartial Witness discussion
May 1st – A Bitter Truth paperback goes on sale
May 29^th – A Bitter Truth discussion (May 28^th is Memorial Day)
June 5^th - An Unmarked Grave – the new hardcover goes on sale
June 25^th – An Unmarked Grave discussion
June 28^th – Book Club Girl on Air Show with Charles Todd to Discuss the Entire Series

Look for updates along the way here, on Twitter (#besscrawford), and on the Book Club Girl and Charles Todd Facebook pages.

The first 10 people to sign up will receive a free copy of the paperback of A Duty to the Dead (if you're taking advantage of the $1.99 ebook instead, let me know that and we can send you An Impartial Witness).

Write a post saying you're signing up and link back here, grab the tile ad above and then link to your post using the Mr. Linky below. (If you don't have a blog, announce it on your Facebook and link to your status update). Then tweet about your reading using the hashtag #besscrawford.
(email me if you are having trouble with the tile ad at bookclubgirl AT gmail DOT com).

Happy Reading!

Book Club Girl on Air Welcomes Matthew Norman to Discuss Domestic Violets!

I'm so pleased to announce that Matthew Norman will join us on Book Club Girl on Air on Thursday, September 8th at 7pm EST to discuss his debut novel, that has already gotten a lot of buzz among the blogs and on Twitter, Domestic Violets!

Tom Violet always thought that by the time he turned thirty-five, he’d have everything going for him. Fame. Fortune. A beautiful wife. A satisfying career as a successful novelist. A happy dog to greet him at the end of the day.

The reality, though, is far different. He’s got a wife, but their problems are bigger than he can even imagine. And he’s written a novel, but the manuscript he’s slaved over for years is currently hidden in his desk drawer while his father, an actual famous writer, just won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His career, such that it is, involves mind-numbing corporate buzzwords, his pretentious archnemesis Gregory, and a hopeless, completely inappropriate crush on his favorite coworker. Oh . . . and his dog, according to the vet, is suffering from acute anxiety.

Tom’s life is crushing his soul, but he’s decided to do something about it. (Really.) Domestic Violets is the brilliant and beguiling story of a man finally taking control of his own happiness—even if it means making a complete idiot of himself along the way.

“Hysterical and often touching. . . . Domestic Violets is a fast, fun, hilarious read." —Jessica Anya Blau, critically-acclaimed author of The Summer of Naked Swim Parties and Drinking Closer to Home

Visit Matthew Norman's blog and follow him on Twitter and Facebook and check out the reading group guide for Domestic Violets as well. Look for Matthew Norman on tour this fall (and at the Club Read book club getaway weekend!). Set your reminder for the show on September 8th at 7 pm EST here and if you're active on Facebook, RSVP to the show there.

I have 10 copies of Domestic Violets to give out to the first 10 people who respond that they can participate in the show on September 8th. Be sure to leave your email when you enter your comment - it won't appear for others, but then I'll be able to contact you for your address. US and Canadian applicants only please.

Spend the Summer with Agatha Christie - Cool Down with AC in Our Agatha Christie Read-Along!

Today, along with four other fabulous bloggers, we are launching a summer-long Agatha Christie Read-Along - Spend the Summer with Agatha Christie - Cool Down with AC! You can join one, two, three, four or all five for a truly mysterious summer with the Queen of Mystery!

Why all this focus on Agatha Christie now? As of the beginning of this year, HarperCollins is proud to be Agatha Christie’s global publisher and we are  reissuing all of her books in the US in beautiful new trade paperback editions. These wonderful authentic editions are exactly as Christie wrote them using the original UK texts. Now fans can read all of the Christie mysteries including the Hercule Poirot Mysteries, the Miss Marple Mysteries, and the Tommy and Tuppence Mysteries (coming Winter 2012). And you won't want to miss a single one of Christie’s stand-alone novels and short stories.

So who are my cohorts in crime in this Summer of Agatha Christie? None other than Julie from Booking Mama, who will explore the world of Hercule Poirot, Melissa from The Sunday Book Review who will delve into the mysteries of Miss Marple, Jen from Devourer of Books who will focus on Christie's standalone novels and Nicole from Linus's Blanket who will focus on the four new Masterpiece Mystery films that will air on PBS this June and July. I will focus here on her acclaimed short stories.

Here's the schedule for the summer - sign up at the Mr. Linky below and take part on the weeks you can! Each blogger will be offering giveaways for the books they're discussing and there will be grand prizes for read-along participants of Agatha Christie totes, books, DVDs and more!

Short Story!
June 6th: "The Tuesday Night Club" here on Book Club Girl

Marple!
June 13th-June19th: 4:50 From Paddington: A Miss Marple Mystery on The Sunday Book Review

Poirot!
June 20th-June 26th: Three Act Tragedy: A Hercule Poirot Mystery on Booking Mama

Movie!
June 20th-June 26th: Three Act Tragedy airs on PBS June 19th on Linus's Blanket

Standalone!
June 27th: Endless Night on Devourer of Books

Movie!
June 27th-July 3rd: The Clocks airs on PBS June 26th on Linus’s Blanket

Short Story!
July 5th: "Three Blind Mice" on Book Club Girl

Movie!
July 4th-July 10th: Hallowe'en Party airs on PBS July 3rd on Linus's Blanket

Marple!
July 11th-July 17th: Miss Marple on The Sunday Book Review

Movie!
July 11th-July 17th:  The Pale Horse airs on PBS July 10th on Linus's Blanket

Poirot!
July 18th-July 24th: Murder on the Orient Express: A Hercule Poirot Mystery on Booking Mama

Standalone!
July 25th: And Then There Were None on Devourer of Books

Short Story!
August 1st: "Witness for the Prosecution" on Book Club Girl  

Marple!
August 8th-August 14th:  Miss Marple on The Sunday Book Review

Poirot!
August 15th-August 21st: The A.B.C. Murders: A Hercule Poirot Mystery on Booking Mama

Standalone!
August 22nd: Ordeal by Innocence on Devourer of Books

Wrap Up!
August 29th-September 4th: Book Club Girl on Air Show to be announced!

To join the overall read-along on all 5 of our blogs sign up at the Mr. Linky here:

For more details on each of the individual readalongs, visit the co-host blogs below. I'll post the sign up for the Short Story portion on Book Club Girl on Wednesday, June 1st!

Booking Mama - Hercule Poirot Mysteries
Devourer of Books -Standalone Mysteries
Linus's Blanket - Masterpiece Mystery Movies on PBS
The Sunday Book Review - Miss Marple Mysteries

Book Bloggers Attending BEA - Win a Walking Tour of Greenwich Village and Lunch with Adriana Trigiani!

Fans of Adriana Trigiani's books know that New York City and Greenwich Village are a big part of the world of her novels. The setting, plus the fashion and the food make her books so much fun to read and inhabit as a reader.

For book bloggers attending BEA, Harper is offering a very special opportunity to celebrate the fun, food and fashion of Adriana Trigiani and win a walking tour of Adriana Trigiani's Greenwich Village, plus lunch with Adriana at the Standard Grill restaurant!

To enter to win, bloggers need to post the badge on the right in their sidebar and do one of two things:

1. Make a recipe given to you by your grandparents, take a picture of the recipe you made, post about it on your blog, and then post the link on Adriana’s Facebook page.
2. Find the most amazing, gorgeous, and expensive shoes you can find, write a post about the shoes, and then post the link to Adriana’s Facebook page.

You can do both options for multiple entries.

We’d love for you to mention your entries on Twitter using #iheartadriana.

You can feature any or all of her newest books in your post:

• Brava, Valentine which just came out in paperback in November 2010
• Don’t Sing at the Table which just came out in hardcover in November 2010
• Viola in the Spotlight is Adriana’s newest YA book and just came out in hardcover April 5, 2011

The contest runs from Wednesday, April 6, 2011 until Friday, May 6, 2011. At the end of this contest, HarperCollins will randomly choose 5 participants to do the walking tour and have lunch with Adriana Trigiani on Thursday, May 26th. Winners will be announced on the TLC Book Tours site, as well as here. Complete rules can also be found at the link on the TLC site.

Enter often and we hope to hit the cobblestones with you in May!

Brunonia Barry's The Map of True Places Now on Sale in Paperback - We Welcome Her to Book Club Girl on Air - and Offer Chocolates to Book Clubs!

Brunonia Barry's compelling and acclaimed second novel, which followed her bestselling debut, The Lace Reader, is now on sale tomorrow, 3/22, in paperback, making The Map of True Places an ideal spring book club choice! To celebrate we are:

1) Welcoming Brunonia to Book Club Girl on Air on Wednesday, April 20th at 7 pm ET and
2) Offering Salem's own Sweet Sloops candy to the first 25 groups who tell us that they'll read The Map of True Places this spring or summer!

A respected Boston psychotherapist, Zee Finch has come a long way from a motherless childhood spent stealing boats. But the actions of a patient throw Zee into emotional chaos and take her back to places she though she'd left behind.

What starts as a brief visit home to Salem begins a larger journey. Suddenly having to care for her ailing father after his longtime companion moves out, Zee must come to terms with a strained and awkward relationship that has always been marked by half-truths and haunted by the untimely death of her mother. Overwhelmed by her new role, Zee must destroy the existing map of her life and chart a new course—one that will guide her not only into her future but into her past as well.

“Masterfully woven…The Map of True Places is a gripping quest for truth that kept me reading at the edge of my seat to the very last page."—Lisa Genova, author of Still Alice

Set your reminder for the Book Club Girl on Air show with Brunonia Barry on April 20th. I have 10 copies of the paperback to give away to the first 10 people who comment below that they'd like to participate in the show on April 20th.

Those who have read either of Brunonia's two novels know that the setting of Salem, Massachusetts plays an integral role in the stories. Thanks to Dawn at the wonderful blog, She is Too Fond of Books, we discovered Salem's own Harbor Sweets handmade chocolates and their signature Sweet Sloops candies made in honor of the town's sailing culture. They're the perfect accompaniment to a book club discussion!

To enter to win a 36-count box of Sweet Sloops for your book club, enter an additional comment below with the date your club plans to meet to discuss The Map of True Places so we can send your candies in time! (Clubs must meet between March and the end of August 2011).

Check out the reading group guide for Map of True Places, and Brunonia's website. Look for her this spring on tour near you and follow and friend her on Twitter and Facebook.

Chocolate Giveaway: No purchase necessary. US and Canada only. Sweepstakes will run until 25 clubs sign up and qualify, or until August 31, 2011, whichever comes first. Prize value is approximately $36.00. Total prize value is approximately $900. The chances of winning depend on the number of entries. Click here for complete rules.

There's Still Time to Sign up for the Maisie Dobbs Read-Along!

There's still time to sign up for the read-along of all the books in Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series which officially kicks off on January 1st! And you really have until Jan 14th which is the day I'll post questions for the first book in the series, Maisie Dobbs. I'm spending my vacation reading the second book, Birds of a Feather (if I don't stay ahead of the game, I fear what might happen to this schedule I've set for us all ;)) It's been nice to see names being added to the Mr. Linky throughout the holidays! Be sure to follow along here and on the Jacqueline Winspear Facebook page.

And the Winner Is.....

The winner of the Survival of the Hippest Twitter nameplate necklace is.....Sara from Novel Novice! Congratulations to Sara and thank you for everyone who entered and tweeted the contest. And thank you again to all the organizers and volunteers behind Book Blogger Appreciation Week - a week that brings all bloggers together and introduces so many bloggers to each other!

Best Publishing/Industry Blog!

I am beyond honored that Book Club Girl has won the Best Publishing/Industry Blog from Book Blogger Appreciation Week! Thank you so much to everyone who voted and to my fellow nominees who are all amazing bloggers (especially Erica of The Olive Reader--sorry, I can't help the nepotism and she IS amazing!).

Please check out all the nominees and thanks to the wonderful volunteers behind Book Blogger Appreciation Week - you guys are

The World of Peachtree Publishers
The Olive Reader
Tribute Books Blog

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Interview Swap - Meet Jessica of Brief Book Reviews!

One of the most fun parts of Book Blogger Appreciation Week is trading interviews with a fellow book blogger. This year I was asked great questions by Jessica at the young adult book blog Brief Book Reviews and got equally great answers from her as well. Let me introduce her and be sure to check out Brief Book Reviews yourself! 

BCG: What inspired you to start blogging?
BBR: At the beginning of the summer I started reading book blogs because I was interested in the buzz surrounding Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. I though maybe, since I read so much, people might also be interested in my opinions too. I have previous experience writing a craft/cooking blog which was hard to keep up with since I had to complete a project to write a post. I find Brief Book Reviews much easier and more natural for me to write.

Your blog focuses on young adult literature. Have you always been a fan of YA?
Oddly enough, I skipped the whole YA literature thing when I was the right age. I went from Sweet Valley Twins straight to Michael Crichton. A few years ago my cousin started recommending YA titles to me, and I was hooked.

Who is your favorite YA author?
That is a really hard question. I would have to say it is a tie between Meg Cabot and Holly Black. They write very different styles, so it is almost apples and oranges.

What is your favorite YA series?
Another really hard question. I’m totally Harry Potter obsessed, but I consider that more Middle Reader than YA. I think the Tithe series by Holly Black is amazing, especially the second book, Valiant. I love how she writes the female characters.

Have you always been a big reader?
No. In my pre-teens I had a shelf full of the typical Baby Sitters Club and Sweet Valley Twins books that I read occasionally, but usually when I was forced to by school or my parents. I blame my love of reading on Michael Crichton. I have always had a thing for Dinosaurs and I bought Jurassic Park when I was in 7th grade out of curiosity. I haven’t stopped reading since.

You describe yourself as a relatively new blogger. What did you think once you learned the depth and breadth of the book blogging community?
It is really overwhelming actually. I discover a great new blog almost daily. My blog reading list is so long! I started feeling discouraged since so many people are writing reviews for the same books I am reading, but I like being a part of the community and learning about great new books.

What made you decide to write brief book reviews?
I’m a lazy internet reader. I’m not sure why since I love reading so much. The only explanation I can think of is the eye-strain of reading on the screen. I usually give up after the first paragraph, or skip to the end to find a rating or grade for the book. I really don’t like it when reviews contain spoilers. I think my definition of a spoiler is more strict than most. I read Twilight early on and didn’t know that *SPOILER ALERT* Edward was a Vampire. It was nice not knowing. So the best way to keep lazy internet readers like me engaged, and keep the reviews as spoiler-free as I can, is to really limit the length of my review, which is definitely hard sometimes.

If you could meet one of your favorite authors, which one would you choose?
I think I would choose Neil Gaiman. He writes incredible fantasy fiction for all different ages. When I read his stories I am always amazed at his abilities. How does he come up with this stuff! I would like to pick his brain.

When not reading or blogging, what do you do for fun?
I’m a homebody. I like spending my free time on the couch with my boyfriend and our dueling cats. When I’m not reading I like to watch TV and make art. For the past few years I have been honing my skills at bookbinding, and I also enjoy drawing and painting. I’m a long-time Star Wars geek girl and have recently become obsessed with Doctor Who. I take art classes for fun at my local community college and am excited to start Photography this semester.

Thanks so much! Jessica

And thank you Jessica!

Get Your Bling On for Book Blogger Appreciation Week!

In celebration of Book Blogger Appreciation Week which starts today, I'm giving away one twitter handle necklace from The Survival of the Hippest! I love this new twist on the nameplate necklace. You can see how lovely they look here on our very own @ericabrooke (aka @harperperennial). I have been dropping hints with my DH for nearly a year that one would make a lovely gift for me as well....

Until that happens, I want to give one silver twitter nameplate necklace away to one of my fellow book bloggers! How to enter? First, you need to be a book blogger. Second, post a comment about why you love twitter. Get a second entry for tweeting about the contest (pls enter that link as a separate comment).

I will pick one random winner from all comments received by midnight ET, Thursday September 16th and will announce the winner on Friday, the final day of BBAW. (US and Canada only please).

Booking Mama's Book Group Serves Up King Cake for their Calla Lily Discussion!

Some of you may recall that to celebrate the publication of Rebecca Wells' Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder, we gave away authentic New Orleans' King Cakes to the first 25 book groups to let us know that read were reading the book. These photos just came in from Julie of Booking Mama of her group wearing their beads (but where are you Julie?!) and of their King Cake in all its glory. I can't wait to read her review of the book and their discussion this week! Rebecca was on the radio recently talking about Calla Lily as well - listen in!

 

Yes, I Missed the Hunger Games Bandwagon, But I'm Jumping on Now - Who's With Me?

Yes, I totally missed the Hunger Games, Catching Fire bandwagon, but with the upcoming release of the final book in the trilogy, Mockingjay on August 24th, I figure there's still time for me to read the first two and be ready to read Mockingjay at on sale. Plus I love a good midnight bookstore party - can't pass those up.I posted the question on Twitter today and it seems that there are some others like me who also want to catch up in time. So, if you'd like to read along all together, please let me know! This is my first time using Mr. Linky, so I will now attempt to install it below. Add your name to the link and if you blog about the books while you're reading, I think what I'm supposed to do is to ask you to post a comment here that links to your post.

You can also become a fan of the official Hunger Games page on Facebook which I'm sure will further whip us into a frenzy as we read (there's actually a lot of really cool stuff on that page, check it out). I am planning to start reading the week of August 9th, but if others want to start sooner, please do. And maybe I will too now that I've posted this.

5 Things I Learned at LauraPalooza 2010 - Guest Post from Erin Blakemore, author of The Heroine's Bookshelf

When I learned that Erin Blakemore, fellow blogger, twitter friend and author of the forthcoming book, The Heroine's Bookshelf: Life Lessons, from Jane Austen to Laura Ingalls Wilder was attending this year's first-ever LauraPalooza, a celebration of all things Laura Ingalls Wilder, I begged her to write me a guest post. One bribe of a Betsy-Tacy tote bag later and she said yes! Read on for the 5 things she learned at Laurapalooza (which I think has to be the best name for a literary conference yet.)

A double-take-inducing name.  A droolworthy topic.  A weekend where academics and fans alike could commune over some of the most iconic subject matter in children’s literature.  LauraPalooza 2010, which was organized by the Laura Ingalls Wilder Legacy and Research Association and hosted by Minnesota State University, Mankato from July 13-17 turned out to be all of these things and much more.  Here are five things I learned along the way:

1. Laura fans are not messing around.  Fellow Laurati (Laurata?) and panelist Wendy McClure recently posited that Betsy-Tacy fans are hardcore, and I agree.  But LAURA FANS ARE NOT MESSING AROUND.  These are people who will happily crisscross the country and circumnavigate the globe for a glimpse of soil tread by members of the Ingalls and Wilder clans.  They talk semiotics, gender construction, local history, cultural criticism.  And yes, they sew a mean quilt square. 

2. Laura was a many-faceted woman.  I already knew this from my own reading and research, but the idea was reinforced during talks that covered things as various as Laura’s philosophy, her potential use of music to access vivid memories, the starvation that may have driven her delectable food descriptions, and her suspected obsession with hats.  

 
Sign at the entrance to LauraPalooza 2010:  Legacies, where I arrived bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and sporting a Betsy-Tacy bag courtesy of BookClubGirl! 

3. There’s room for every flavor of Laura fan.  Fans of the TV show swooned over Dean Butler, TV’s Almanzo Wilder.  Crafters were able to discuss needlecraft heritage.  Physicists and meteorologists found their voices in two AMAZING discussions of The Long Winter (seriously – check out Sarah S. Uthoff’s YouTube videos of the event…never in my life did I think I’d want to stand up and cheer for a science lecture).  People like me got to discuss their favorite book mispronunciations (turns out “Almanzo” was one – put the emphasis on the MAN and you’ve got it right).  The most heartwarming thing?  All were welcome, all belonged. 

 
Me and my mom get a book signed by Laura biographer, South Dakotan and rabid Cardinals fan John Miller

4. It's all about context. To me, the most valuable thing about LauraPalooza and my subsequent travels to De Smet and Walnut Grove was the context.  Armed with new information and new perspectives, my childhood (and adult) comfort reading is even more meaningful.  The conference helped refresh the sense of discovery and fun I had while researching and writing The Heroine’s Bookshelf while reminding me that there’s always more to learn. 

Why is this image freakout-worthy, you ask?  Because it’s an image of the five cottonwoods on the Ingalls homestead, complete with prairie grass (video) the Ingalls themselves tread!

5. You don’t need a crack in the floor to win a spelling bee.  That’s what I learned in my DECISIVE SPELLING BEE VICTORY in the first-ever LauraPalooza Spelling Bee!  Okay, so the rules weren’t quite as strict as I’d have liked, and I almost flubbed “dialogue,” and I have a feeling one of my competitors was robbed by a homonym, but neither these facts nor the lack of a crack in the floor to put my toes on can dull the thrill of spelling down a long line of contenders.  I look forward to defending my title at LauraPalooza 2012!

 
Erin spells! 

 

Erin Blakemore (left, in pre-LauraPalooza days) learned to hate Nellie Oleson and love the prairie in suburban San Diego, California. These days, her inner heroine loves roller derby, running her own business, and hiking in her adopted hometown of Boulder, Colorado.  Her debut book, The Heroine’s Bookshelf, will be published by Harper Collins this October. Follow Erin on Twitter, and learn more about The Heroine's Bookshelf.  

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Post!

OK, I'm getting this post up just under the wire (thank goodness I was trolling around over at She is Too Fond of Books and then shouted across the hall to The Olive Reader who told me that the deadline for registering for Book Blogger Appreciation Week is TODAY!).

For those of you who don't know, Book Blogger Appreciation Week was started by Amy Riley of My Friend Amy in an effort to recognize the hard work and contribution of book bloggers to the promotion and preservation of a literate culture actively engaged in discussing books, authors, and a lifestyle of reading.

The first Book Blogger Appreciation Week was observed in the fall of 2008 and occurs every September. The week spotlights and celebrates the work of active book bloggers through guest posts, awards, giveaways, and community activities. Book Bloggers are encouraged to register their participation for inclusion in a database of book bloggers. And it's just a lot of fun as we spend the week celebrating each other!

So, to complete my official registration, I offer up my posts in the following categories. If you're a judge, thanks for taking a look. If you're not, no need to click on through. If you're a book blogger, you can register to participate, vote, and nominate yourself until midnight ET tonight!

Back to regularly scheduled programming shortly.

Best Industry/Publishing Blog
Book Club Girl is Getting Her Game On - Again
Betsy-Tacy Convert Week - part one
Betsy-Tacy Convert Week - part two
Book Club Girl's Best Books for Boys
Book Blogger Contest to Win Tea with Adriana Trigiani

Best Written
Tim O'Brien on the 20th Anniversary of The Things They Carried
Book Club Girl is Getting Her Game On - Again
Book Report! Deenie by Judy Blume, for Shelf Discovery Challenge
Betsy-Tacy Convention Day One
Betsy-Tacy Convention Day Two

Best Interviewer
Book Club Girl on Air Show with Michael Perry, author of Coop
Book Club Girl on Air Show with Rebecca Wells, author of The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder
Book Club Girl on Air Show with Brunonia Barry, author of The Lace Reader
Book Club Girl on Air Show with Todd Johnson, author of The Sweet By & By
Book Club Girl on Air Show with Adriana Trigiani, author of Brava, Valentine

Book Bloggers and Why They Matter - in the Los Angeles Times

There's a great article in the LA Times online today (which will be in the print edition on Sunday) by Carolyn Kellogg, on the growing importance of book bloggers, in which My Friend Amy, Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin'?, Book Lady's Blog and I all make an appearance!

Mary Kay Andrews' The Fixer Upper is Out in Paperback and She's Got Goodies to Give Away to a Book Club!

Mary Kay Andrews' new novel, The Fixer Upper, is just out in paperback and to celebrate its publication--in addition to hitting the road on her book tour--she's got a basket full of goodies to give away to a winning book club!

This plastic beach tub is brimming over with autographed copies of The Fixer Upper, custom-embroidered Breeze Inn beach towels, a couple MKA fans, beachy cocktail napkins, cocktail mixes, and Fixer Upper cups to mix your adult beverages in. The winner's next book club gathering could be the most fun yet!

All you have to do to win is send her an email about the most fun you've ever had with your book club! Did you take a trip together? Have a great dinner party? A fascinating discussion that took you to some unexpected places? Or did one of your gatherings just become “one of those nights” that you'll never forget for one reason or another? Share your tales with Mary Kay--she'll pick one lucky winner to win a fabulous summer-themed basket of goodies to share with their book group and she'll publish some of her favorite entries on her blog.
 
E-mail your entry to meg AT marykayandrews DOT com with “BOOK CLUB BEACH BASKET” in the subject line. Mary Kay has also made up some extras of this basket that she'll be raffling off along her tour stops this summer, so check out her schedule to see if she'll be in a town near you!

In The Fixer Upper, Andrews tells the story of Dempsey Jo Killebrew. After her boss is caught in a political scandal, the fledgling Washington lobbyist is left broke, unemployed, and homeless. Out of options, she reluctantly accepts her father's offer to help turn Birdsong—the fading Victorian mansion he recently inherited in Guthrie, Georgia—into a real estate cash cow. But Birdsong turns out to be a moldering Pepto-bismol-pink dump with duct-taped windows, a driveway full of junk, and a grumpy distant relation who's claiming squatter's rights. Stuck in a tiny town where everyone seems to know her business, Dempsey grits her teeth and rolls up her sleeves, and begins her journey back to the last place she ever expected: home.

Browse inside The Fixer Upper and check out the reading group guide. Look for Mary Kay on tour in a bookstore near you and look for The Fixer Upper on tour on a blog near everyone. Friend and follow her on Facebook and Twitter and check out her blog for regular updates and posts!

Book Club Girl's BEA Day 1! Hot Book Club Books, Tea with Adriana Trigiani and a Celebration of Book Bloggers!

I'm a bit delinquent in my BEA posts, but that midweek BEA completely threw me. While I do love having my weekend back, losing essentially a week in the office, followed by a long weekend meant that I returned to work on Tuesday not remembering much pre-BEA or for that matter, that much from BEA week itself. But of course, I exaggerate, I remember quite a bit, because this was one of the busiest and most productive BEAs I've had in a long while. Why, you ask? Well, mainly because of book bloggers. Between events and meetings, I had more fantastic conversations with book bloggers, a group I continue to call the most optimistic and important in the publishing industry today.

Wednesday dawned bright and sunny and after a lovely walk from Penn Station to the Javits Center, I met our wonderful videographers for our To Kill a Mockingbird 50th anniversary celebration (more on that later), stashed my stuff in the booth and headed to the Hot Book Club Titles Fall 2010 Panel moderated by the amazing Carol Fitzgerald of Reading Group Guides.com and the Book Reporter Network. My fellow panelists were Michael Croy of Simon & Schuster, Patrick Nolan of Penguin, Talia Sherer of Macmillan, Karen Torres of Hachette and Jane von Mehren of Random House. We each presented 5 great book group books coming this fall. Check out the complete list of books here.

I followed the panel with a meeting with the charming Barbara and Charlie Mead of ReadingGroupChoices.com, I always love spending time with them. Next I headed to the Charlesbridge booth to meet, for only the second time, but it seems like we've spent so much time together (thank you Twitter), the dynamic Mitali Perkins, who just that morning had wowed the crowd at the Children's Author Breakfast (let's put it this way, I heard more about her speech than I heard about the Duchess of York's, that's how great she is). Mitali was signing galleys of her upcoming novel Bamboo People and the Charlesbridge folks graciously allowed me to insert flyers for the reissue of Emily of Deep Valley which will feature a new foreword by Mitali, into the books. It was so fun spending time with her and her fans. Though it was far too brief an encounter - thank goodness ALA is just around the corner.

Next up was a quick return to our booth where I was meeting the 5 book bloggers who won tea with Adriana Trigiani. It was so nice to see Dawn from She is Too Fond of Books, Julie from Booking Mama, Kathy from Bermuda Onion and Lenore from Presenting Lenore again and to meet Sheila from Book Journey. We also invited Trish from Hey Lady, Whatcha Readin as she helped pull the entire contest together. We headed out into the now blazing heat to meet up with Adriana and dive into horrendous midtown traffic (that is, once we got a car, slight glitch there). We finally arrived at the upper east side location of Alice's Tea Cup, a simply delightful tea shop where we were served a traditional high tea in our own room, painted a deep teal and decorated beautifully. There were personalized signed books for all the bloggers and absolutely delicious food. I have a particular weakness for clotted cream, which I spread liberally on my scones. Thanks to Dawn for this great picture of the entire group - though missing from the photo (and behind the camera) was Stephanie, aka @book_chatter on Twitter.

 
  
That would have been quite a day had it ended there, but there was more! After a quick stop into the office to refresh and redress, we headed to the famed Algonquin Hotel for the Celebration of Book Bloggers: The New Literary Roundtable that we gave with Susan Henderson of Lit Park and the upcoming novel Up From the Blue. It was an amazing night  - so much fun to meet so many people I've known just from their blogs or twitter handles. I left fairly exhausted just past 9, running to Penn Station with Amy, after saying a quick goodbye to the Algonquin's lobby cat Matilda.

Oh, What a Wonderful Morning - BEA Week Begins!

To paraphrase Oklahoma, what a wonderful morning today at work when we were visited by not one, not two, not three, but EIGHT book bloggers who are in town for BEA and the Book Blogger Convention on Friday! It was so nice to sit down with Trish from Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin'?, Natasha from Maw Books, Nicole from Linus's Blanket, Lenore from Presenting Lenore, Michelle from Galley Smith, Alea from Pop Culture Junkie, Amy from My Friend Amy, and Gail from Ticket to Anywhere. We chatted about how it all works between publishers, bloggers and authors and how it can work better. The gals then popped into our video studio to shoot a quick video hello (to come!) and we followed that up with lunch and chatting about some of our favorite books coming out in the next few months. I wish I could have stayed talking all day, but I had to do some work for the rest of BEA week. And of course, I felt better knowing that this was just the beginning of a week of blogger fun at BEA!

Todd Johnson's Book Club Girl on Air Show is This Monday, April 26th!

Just a reminder that on Monday, April 26th, Todd Johnson will join us to discuss his novel The Sweet By & By. Todd's just wrapped up a book tour and his book has been on a blog tour as well. Now you can ask questions of him directly! Set your reminder for the show on Monday at 7 pm ET here and be sure to register on the site beforehand so you can participate in the chat. Check out the reading group guide before the show. Can't wait to talk to you all Monday night!

The Inspiration Behind Vanitha Sankaran's Watermark - Guest Post

In Vanitha Sankaran's novel Watermark, the daughter of a papermaker in a small French village in the year 1320—mute from birth and forced to shun normal society—finds solace and escape in the wonder of the written word. This acclaimed historical novel also includes fascinating information about the making of paper - and thus, the beginning of the spead of language and literature. Today Sankaran shares with us her interest in paper making and how and why it found its way into her novel.

When I decided to write my first novel, I knew right away it would be about papermaking. Paper has always fascinated me, the way it is used not just to record someone's imagination, but also to share philosophies, visions, and yes, the good story. And, like most writers, I have a deep love for books. So what better place to start my career as a novelist than to explore the mystery of the written word and the power words have to capture people's hearts?

Paper has been around in one form or another since abut 105 AD; however, my interest in the use of paper coalesces around the time when storytelling transitioned from an oral to written form, in the Middle Ages. Why? Well, first of all, because I am a storyteller and second because the use of writing to tell tales also changed the way the tale was told. Imagine if you no longer have to use repetition and mnemonics to help a story stick in your audience's minds. Imagine, instead, that you can play with language, search for the right word instead of the memorable one. Paper, a relatively cheap writing material compared to the alternatives at the time, had a profound impact on how stories were passed on and preserved through time.

For me, paper also has a certain mysterious quality to it. What words does a person choose to record on a clean sheet of paper? What does she leave out?  What is she really trying to say?  I've explored this mystery in my debut novel, Watermark, through my protagonist, Auda, a mute girl who uses writing and poetry not just to discover her voice, but to make sense of the tumultuous clash of ideas and religions that marked the Middle Ages.Through her eyes, and her voice, Watermark tells the story of one young girl who battles her own challenges, and those of society around her, to express herself and find a love that sustains her in good times and in bad.

Browse inside Watermark, check out the reading group guide, visit Vanitha Sankaran's website and watch the dramatic book trailer below. To find out what other book bloggers are saying, check out the blog tour the book is currently on.