BOOK EXPO AMERICA!

In case your wondering, I've been to the sprawling Javits Center here in NYC for all kinds of stuff. The Licensing Show, NYC Comicon, Toyfair... although I've managed to skip the Greater New York Dental Meeting. But this was my first time to BEA... the Book Expo of America! It was GREAT but I DID spend an inordinate amount of time rallying for a name change because BEA doesn't really fit. It SHOULD be called the:

FBFMWSFTE!
That's the 'Free Books For Mr. Warburton Sooper Fun Time Expo'.

Because I made out like a BANDIT!

They're just GIVING the reading material away!

Ya want a book autographed? Get in line and they'll GIVE you one!

Want an ARC (advanced reading copy) of 'Catching Fire' before it hits stores?

Grab one (while supplies last)!

So I wandered the expansive floor of FBFMWSFTE, first with my sooper triple awesome editor from DC comics, Elizabeth Gehrlein (who lords mightily over our KND stories in Cartoon Network Action Pack) and then with Mr. Willems (which is kinda like wandering around Guitar Center with Jimmy Page).

And here's what I got:

First off is a sample chapter of the fabulous Kate DiCamillo's 'The Magician's Elpehant'.


And just so you know, you don't have to hate Kate just because she's an unbelievable writer. You can hate her for her hair, too. Or her laugh. Or any number of things. But it's her writing that makes you hate her the most because she makes you feel so TALENTLESS!

Next up, this year's Newberry award winner that I haven't read yet:


And I got this little excerpt of NERDS by Mr. Michael Buckley, who I met a couple weeks ago at a benefit and really liked alot.



And have I ever mentioned how much I love the way Mr. Peter H. Reynolds draws? Mo introduced me to him and his twin brother Paul, and we traded books. I gave him mine and he gave me:



And what a great inscription:



Then Mo and I both scored a signed copy of David Small's latest:



And isn't it kind of embarrassing that I STILL haven't read any Scott Pilgrim?



But the big ticket, hard to get item was the sample from Mr. Willem's first ever pop-out book Big Frog Can't Fit In! They were all gone by Saturday... but I gots connections:





Dude...

While most people are popping up... Mo's popping OUT.

And that's just the REALLY awesome stuff I got.

But just so you don't think that FBFMWSFTE is only about free books... it's ALSO about networking and such.

So here's a pic of Mo, me, and sooper kid-lit blogger Mother Reader who CLAIMS she actually likes 1000 Times No and is gonna review it this week. Let's hope for another good one!



So yeah... BEA rocks pretty hard and I'll be going back again.

Did I mention there were free books?