10 Reasons to Buy 32 Candles by Ernessa T. Carter

10. Ernessa T Carter's WWOC interview.
9.You love the movie Sixteen Candles.
8.You love the book Color Purple
7. Your friends loved it so, they can't stop and won't stop talking about it
6. It's ridicuoulsy good
5. The excerpt
4. A perfect summer time read
3. You will laugh out loud a lot
2. Davie Jones will be a hit with book clubs
1. The paperback was released today

If you've already read 32 Candles tell your friends the paperback is out. Buy a copy as a gift or for your library. If you haven't read 32 Candles yet, stop trippin and go buy it this week.

I want to see 32 Candles where it belongs, on the NYT bestseller list. I want it to be on there for a long time, so I have a reason to hate on Ernessa T. Carter

New Crayons

There's a great discussion going on in the comments on last Thursday's post on libraries. Please stop by and add your thoughts. With that said, were you able to score some new crayons this week from your local library, bookstore, yard sale, or wherever? Here's what our list.

Doret--

Wingshooters by Nina Revoyr

Michelle LeBeau, the child of a white American father and a Japanese mother, lives with her grandparents in Deerhorn, Wisconsin—a small town that had been entirely white before her arrival. Rejected and bullied, Michelle spends her time reading, avoiding fights, and roaming the countryside with her English Springer Spaniel, Brett. She idolizes her grandfather, Charlie LeBeau, an expert hunter and former minor league baseball player who is one of the town’s most respected men. Charlie strongly disapproved of his son’s marriage to Michelle’s mother but dotes on his only grandchild, whom he calls Mikey. 

This fragile peace is threatened when the expansion of the local clinic leads to the arrival of the Garretts, a young black couple from Chicago. Betty Garrett is hired as a nurse, and her husband, Joe, works as a substitute teacher at the elementary school. The Garretts’ presence deeply upsets most of the residents of Deerfield—especially when Mr. Garrett makes a controversial accusation against one of the town leaders, who is also Charlie LeBeau’s best friend. 

In the tradition of To Kill a Mockingbird, A River Runs Through It, andSnow Falling on Cedars, Nina Revoyr’s new novel examines the effects of change on a small, isolated town, the strengths and limits of community, and the sometimes conflicting loyalties of family and justice. Set in the expansive countryside of Central Wisconsin, against the backdrop of Vietnam and the post-Civil Rights era, Wingshooters explores both connection and loss as well as the complex but enduring bonds of family.

Minding Ben by Victoria Brown

At sixteen, Grace Caton boards her first airplane, leaving behind the tropical papaya and guava trees of her small village in Trinidad for another island, this one with tall buildings, graceful parks, and all the books she can read. At least that's what Grace imagines. But from the moment she touches down, nothing goes as planned. The aunt who had promised to watch over her disappears, and Grace finds herself on her own.Grace stumbles into the colorful world of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, having been taken in hand, sort of, by a fellow islander, Sylvia. Here, she's surrounded by other immigrants also finding their way in America. From her Orthodox Jewish landlord, Jacob, to her wannabe Jamaican friend, Kathy, who feels that every outfit can be improved with a Bedazzler and a low-cut top, there's much to learn about her new city.
Most challenging of all is figuring out her new employers, the Bruckners, an upper-middle-class family in Manhattan. The job is strange--Grace's duties range from taking daily nude photos of her pregnant boss (a shock to her, since she's never even seen her own mother naked) to dressing in a traditional maid's costume to serve Passover seder. But Grace loves four-year-old Ben, and she's intrigued by the alternately friendly and scheming nannies who spend their days in Union Square Park, and by their constant gossip about who's hired, who's fired, and who, scandalously, married her boss.
As the seasons change, Grace discovers that the Bruckners have surprising secrets of their own, and her life becomes increasingly complicated and confusing. But opportunities appear in the most unexpected places, and Grace realizes that she's living in a city--and a world--where anything is possible.

Just Wanna Testify by Pearl Cleage


Atlanta's West End district has always been a haven and home to a coterie of unique characters -- artists and thinkers, dreamers and doers. Folks here know one another's names, keep their doors unlocked, and look out for their neighbors. Anyone planning to sell drugs, vandalize, or rob a little old lady should think twice before hitting this part of town. And Blue Hamilton, West End's unofficial mayor and longtime protector, will see to it that you do. Blue wears many hats here, including adored husband to Regina, dear nephew to Abbey, and doting father to Sweetie and another little one on the way.
Blue is also the man you pay your respects to if you're looking to set up shop in this urban enclave -- just ask Serena Mayflower, whom Blue sees striding down Ralph David Abernathy Boulevard wearing skin-tight black leather pants, thigh-high boots, and bright red lipstick. This tall, slender, ethereally beautiful woman and her four equally striking sisters make up the Too Fine Five, a quintet of international supermodels who have arrived in town for an Essence magazine photo shoot.
But Blue's gut tells him that there's more to these Mayflower mademoiselles than their affection for full moons and Bloody Marys. With the help of his beloved Regina and their close friends and relations in West End, Blue vows to uncover the women's secret intentions -- and prove once and for all that there is no greater force on earth than the power of love.

Can I check out a book please?

That's what I expect to see after committing search after search on my local library's website. Why? Because the vast majority of the time I'm searching in vain. I just don't get it. Well, I do get that funding is a major issue. However, I don't get what drives the selection that is there. Is it the same as what mysteriously drives the book selling market? I say "mysterious" because it's beyond me why nothing I and many others prefer to read is hardly ever available in a bookstore in this city.

The library has a request form that I've employed at least two dozen times to have only one request pending fulfillment. Even that one took months for a response. I've inquired a few times with various librarians at the largest branch about how books are chosen for the inventory and how quickly are new releases added. That was pretty much a bust. I got some vague, dismissive response. Honestly, I don't think she knew the answer. I know some might think it harsh I'm bitchin' about public libraries but it's because they are important to creating a vibrant image for a city and because I'm a bookhead...HELLO!

I commented earlier on a post by another book blogger that I'm given almost no choice but to purchase most of the books I read as I cannot get them from a library here. I've been asked about an interlibrary loan system. Huh? I've always only thought such a thing existed in academic libraries. This prompted me to prowl around some other cities' library systems and I was rudely awakened.

So, I called the branch closest to my home which happens to be the largest and spoke to a really kind woman who responded as best she could to my questions. Basically, as I mentioned before, it comes down to money. I did let her know that I wasn't just some griper who doesn't contribute to the pot. I've patronized every book sale for the last two or three years and the used bookstore which helps fund the library. As a matter of fact, I purchased four books from their used bookstore in the last week. She did tell me that we do have an ILL system. I asked if it's on the website anywhere and she was certain that it's not. So am I. And she seemed to get my frustration with that. However, that hasn't stopped it from amassing a high volume of requests. Now I know.

I feel like my patronage at the library's book sales is for naught. It seems to be funding the attainment of everything I don't enjoy reading. Should I just spend my money only on what I want to read and not care if the library flounders? And I'm not suggesting that my support will bring the library's demise but I know that every little bit helps.

Is the problem merely the allocation of tax dollars to or public libraries shamefully low?

How are things at your local library? Does it sufficiently feed your reading habits?

And, lastly, what trends do you see in the inventory in your libraries when it comes to literature by authors of color?

An Auction For L.A. Banks

This morning I stopped by Edi's blog which lead me to White Readers Meet Black Authors where author Carleen Brice gives information about an auction to support author L.A. Banks.

Noted author L.A. Banks is in the hospital very sick. Her medical bills are quite high so beginning tomorrow Tuesday, June 21st authors and people in the book biz are auctioning items and services to raise money to help cover her expenses. If you're a writer, this is a great opportunity to have a published author or an industry professional help you with your work! There's also lots of cool stuff for readers--books, books and more books! Banks wrote a variety of genres, so there is quite a diversity of books available.

There are a lot of great items up for bid for a very good cause. Please spread the word.

The auction will run from June 21 9pm - July 1, 9pm

New Crayons

This week we have a broad array of new crayons from ballerinas to lesbian vampires. You're sure to expand that summer reading list. Enjoy!

Doret--

Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole

Here's what it means to be a tortillera.It means you're a girl who loves girls.
Which means you get kicked out of Catholic school faster than Mother Superior Sicko can say "immoral."
Which means your wacko Mami finds out.
Which means you're kicked to the curb with nowhere to go, and the love of your life is shipped off to Puerto Rico to marry a guy.
But this is Miami, and if you have a bighearted best friend and a loyal puppy at your side, and if your broken heart is still full of love, you just might land on your feet.
In a first novel as crazy, joyful, hilarious, and painful as your first love, Mayra Lazara Dole goes beyond the many meanings of tortillera to paint a vivid picture of a girl who gets kicked out of home only to find a new kind of family.

Another Way to Dance by Martha Southgate

is the story of 14-year-old Vicki Harris, an aspiring ballerina who has just been accepted into the summer program at New York City’s prestigious School of American Ballet. It will be hard work and highly competitive, but Vicki feels ready. She is totally committed to dancing. But Vicki isn’t prepared to be one of only two African-American students in the program. Nor is she expecting the racism she finds within the school. And Michael, a new friend from Harlem, takes Vicki completely by surprise. He shakes up her dream world and shows her that real life is bigger than a stage.

Terri--

The Pirate's Daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson

In 1946, Hollywood’s most famous swashbuckler, Errol Flynn, arrived in Jamaica in a storm-ravaged boat. After a long and celebrated career on the silver screen, Flynn spent the last years of his life on a small island off the Jamaican coast, where he fell in love with the people, the paradisiacal setting, and the privacy, and brought a touch of Tinseltown glamour to the West Indian community.

Based on those years, The Pirate’s Daughter imagines an affair between the aging matinee star and Ida, a beautiful local girl. Flynn’s affections are unpredictable but that doesn’t stop Ida from dreaming of a life with him, especially after the birth of their daughter, May.

Margaret Cezair-Thompson weaves stories of mothers and daughters, fathers and lovers, country and kin, into this compelling, dual-generational coming-of-age tale of two women struggling to find their way in a nation wrestling with its own independence.

Grace by Elizabeth Nunez

Justin Peters is a Harvard-educated professor of British and classic literature who reads Shakespeare to his four-year-old daughter, Giselle. A native of Trinidad and the product of a strict, English-style education, Justin and his focus on the works of “Dead White Men” receive little professional respect at the public Brooklyn college where he teaches. But whatever troubles he might have at work are eclipsed when he realizes his wife, Sally, has begun to pull away from him, both physically and emotionally.
Harlem-born Sally Peters, a mother on the verge of turning forty, is a primary school teacher who believes that joy is a learned skill, and that it takes strength to be happy. After a life of tragic losses, Sally thought she had finally found that strength when she met Justin.

But now, Sally wants something more. And Justin is angered by her uncertainty about their life and frightened by the thought that perhaps Sally never stopped loving the ex-boyfriend for whom she wrote fierce poems. Is he, Justin wonders, responsible for helping Sally find meaning in her lifea life that seems to him most fortunate? If Sally and Justins union is to survive, both must face the crippling echoes of their own pasts before those memories forever cloud and alter their future.

Set in a snow-covered Brooklyn, Grace is a thoughtful and lovely meditation on trust, redemption, and family. Elizabeth Nunezs delicate prose brings the struggles, aches, and tender moments of this contemporary urban love story into vivid focus.

The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez

is a very American odyssey. Escaping from slavery in the 1850s Gilda's longing for kinship and community grows over two hundred years. Her induction into a family of benevolent vampires takes her on an adventurous and dangerous journey full of loud laughter and subtle terror.

All Different Kinds of Free by Jessica McCann

was inspired by a true story. It is about Margaret Morgan, who was kidnapped in 1837, along with her free children, and sold into slavery. Although she fought hard to regain her freedom, Margaret endured tremendous loss and hardship. Her ordeal led to one of the most important yet least-known Supreme Court cases of the era, Prigg v. Pennsylvania.

Text books will have you believe the story of Prigg v. Pennsylvania is important because it ended in controversy and fanned the early embers of the Civil War. This book will have you believe the story is important because it began with Margaret.  

In Honor of Caribbean Heritiage Month

Educator and author Ashley Hope Perez put together this great guest post for Color Online earlier in the year. I decided to rerun for Caribbean Heritage Month.

Reading Women Writers of the Caribbean

There’s more to Caribbean literature than the (wonderful) well-known works like A Simple Habana Melody and In the Time of the Butterflies.

Come with me to discover the texts I teach as part of my college class on women writers of the Caribbean. These titles are not to be missed! I’ll discuss them, not in order of publication, but in the order in which I teach them.

“A Small Place” by Jamaica Kincaid (Antigua). This piece is the first text I introduce students to. I start here because Kincaid issues a forceful critique against tourism, and I want to challenge my students to find ways of reading that go beyond literary tourism. This is our starting place for discussions of the connections between reading and ethics. The text often makes readers feel guilty, angry, and uncomfortable. We talk about why.

Prospero’s Daughter by Elizabeth Nunez (Trinidad). This is a fascinating adaptation and retelling of Shakespeare’s The Tempest. This is the first novel I teach in the course because Nunez’s critique of colonialism, valorization of the local and (re)appropriation of a master plot by a white writer are features that are pretty plain to students. This is what I call an “apprenticeship” novel that helps sensitize students to themes that they’ll encounter (more subtly) in subsequent novels.

I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem by Maryse Condé (Guadeloupe). Here, Condé puts Tituba, a marginal historical figure from the Salem witch trials, on center stage, tracing her travels from the Caribbean to New England and back again. In addition to her reclamation of and play with the Salem history, Condé incorporates a cameo appearance by Hester Prynne of Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, changing Hester’s fate in the retelling. Check out this blog for a subtle reading of I, Tituba

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys (Dominica). This classic of Caribbean literature offers yet another instance of rewriting canonical texts, for it imagines the pre-history of the Bertha character (the madwoman in the attic) from Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. (Don’t worry; you don’t have to know Jane Eyre to enjoy Wide Sargasso Sea. The first time I read it, I hadn’t yet read the Brontë classic.) It also provides readers with an opportunity to reflect on madness as a product of heredity—or of manipulated circumstances. The power of men over women’s lives comes to the fore here.

No Telephone to Heaven by Michelle Cliff (Jamaica). One of my favorite books of all time, this novel explores identity and fragmentation at a number of levels from the national to the personal. Cliff’s masterful storytelling and stylistic finesse make this novel stand out, not merely in Caribbean literature, but in postmodern fiction in general. This is also a novel that the matizes gender identity and political violence.

The Youngest Doll by Rosario Ferré (Puerto Rico). This collection of short stories challenges readers with sudden (unmarked) shifts of perspective, cutting irony, and surreal elements that break through into otherwise realistic narratives. At her best, Ferré provokes fascination and compulsive re-reading with these feminist parables and experiments.



(Note: these stories are ostensibly translations of the texts collected in Papeles de Pandora, but having read the Spanish first, in teaching I discovered that many of the stories in The Youngest Doll have been substantially modified, their experimental edge toned down. This is apparently an authorial decision since Ferré co-translated most of the stories.)

The Pagoda by Patricia Powell (Jamaica). It’s hard to discuss this novel’s plot without giving things away since it is built around the concealment and revelation of a number of family secrets. In this novel, Powell places Asian experience in Jamaica at the center of her story. I love how Powell shows the damage people can do to one another and the possibility of healing.

The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat (Haiti). I save this novel for last in teaching because I want my students to be maximally prepared to savor every aspect of it. Set in the Dominican Republic, Danticat’s novel dramatizes the massacre of Haitian workers in the D.R. during Trujillo’s dictatorship. Prepare yourself to gasp over Danticat’s exquisite prose.



Thanks for having me as a guest. Happy reading, everybody!

Ashley Hope Pérez is a passionate teacher and student of literature. She is also the author of two YA novels. What Can't Wait was just released by Carolrhoda LAB on March 1; look for The Knife and the Butterfly in 2012. She blogs about books, ideas, and writing. You can check her out online at Ashley Perez and find out the secret behind her tattoo, why she dropped out of high school at 16, and how she finds time to write while chasing her 11-month-old, Liam Miguel, who has an obsession with cat food and cabinets.

I loved Perez's YA novel What Can't Wait. It's one of my favorite debuts of 2011. My review An excerpt

New Crayons

First I want to point out that there are a few read alongs and discussions of some POC lit. coming up in the blogosphere.

*Twitter discussion of Toni Morrison's Sula hosted by Evelyn N. Alfred begins Monday, June 27.

*Read along of Alex Haley's Roots hosted by Book Snob and Book Snob Wannabe begins Monday, June 13.

*I'm hosting a live discussion of Victor Lavalle's Big Machine at BrownGirl BookSpeak on Wednesday, June 15.

*A discussion The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson begins Wednesday, June 15.

Got any discussions or read alongs of POC books coming up? Let us know in the comments.

On to the New Crayons...

Terri--
Tropical Fish: Tales From Entebbe by Doreen Baingana

In her fiction debut, Doreen Baingana follows a Ugandan girl as she navigates the uncertain terrain of adolescence. Set mostly in pastoral Entebbe with stops in the cities Kampala and Los Angeles, Tropical Fish depicts the reality of life for Christine Mugisha and her family after Idi Amins dictatorship.

Three of the eight chapters are told from the point of view of Christines two older sisters, Patti, a born-again Christian who finds herself starving at her boarding school, and Rosa, a free spirit who tries to “magically” seduce one of her teachers. But the star of Tropical Fish is Christine, whom we accompany from her first wobbly steps in high heels, to her encounters with the first-world conveniences and alienation of America, to her return home to Uganda.

As the Mugishas cope with Ugandas collapsing infrastructure, they also contend with the universal themes of family cohesion, sex and relationships, disease, betrayal, and spirituality. Anyone dipping into Baingana's incandescent, widely acclaimed novel will enjoy their immersion in the world of this talented newcomer.

Wounded Words by Evelyne Accad

Poetical and powerful, this book is a vivid autobiographical exploration of women's issues in the political turmoil of contemporary Tunisia. Hayate's feminist ideals are put to the test during her stay in Tunisia. Her friends face the choice of leaving the Arab world to live where women can find more freedom, or stay to work for a better society. The dilemma becomes much more than theory when a crisis befalls Hayate. She is forced to consider how women can rid themselves of old ways of relating to each other and to men. Through Hayate's thought-provoking story, Evelyn Accad captures the debate about feminism, asks how women can live day-to-day by its values, and addresses the question of feminism in the Arab world. 


Doret-- 


Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson


From World War I to the 1970s, some six million black Americans fled the American South for an uncertain existence in the urban North and West. They left all they knew and took a leap of faith that they might find freedom under the Warmth of Other Suns.

Their leaving became known as the Great Migration. It brought us James Baldwin, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Richard Wright and the forebears of Michelle Obama, Toni Morrison and of most African-Americans in the North and West. It set in motion the civil rights movement and created our cities and art forms.

This is the story of three who made the journey, of the forces that compelled them to leave and of the many others—famous and not so famous—who went as far as they could to realize the American Dream.

Nathalie--

Sisters of the Sari by Brenda L. Baker

While vacationing in India, Kiria Langdon, the opinionated and driven CEO of a major company, meets Santoshi, a former slave who now works as a cleaning lady and lives in a shelter for homeless women in Chennai. Appalled by the conditions in the shelter, Kiria becomes obsessed with the idea of building decent housing for poor working women in India. Santoshi reluctantly agrees to help, even though she thinks Kiria's ideas are too crazy to succeed.

Embarking on a rich journey of personal discovery, both women will learn invaluable lessons about themselves as they forge a powerful bond of sisterhood across the barriers of language and culture-a bond that makes anything possible.

Color Me Brown (Catching Up)

I'm s-l-o-w-l-y going through my Google Reader so there may be some old links but I'm trying to keep it current. Leave your own links to posts discussing books, conducting author or blogger interviews or just having general discussions about bookish topics (particularly having to do with race).

Katie from Book Love reviews Trash by Andy Mulligan

The poverty that these boys exist in is almost unthinkable. Homes are nothing more than crates piled one atop the other. From the time that they are old enough to wield their own "hook," small children are taken out of school and sent to scavenge through the trash. The government is greedy and corrupt, and it isn't at all unusual for members of the police to lock up (most likely) innocent children for years without hope of a trial. When Raphael finds the leather bag, it's no wonder that he chooses to keep his find a secret from the police.

But Raphael certainly wasn't in this story alone. Trash is told from many different points of view. In fact, pretty much everyone who was remotely involved in his story has their own chapter

Sarwat Chadda unveils the Italian cover of Devil's Kiss (PHENOMENAL book and cover to match) and shares an interview he did with his translator. The questions asked really delved into the depths of this wonderful series)

What is Hell? Hell is the cry of a starving infant. Hell is the begging for mercy then denied. Hell is the betrayals between man and wife. The lies between father and child. Hell is where the heart is.” OMG! That certainly leaves not much room for Heaven! What can we do?


Remember who you’re quoting, it was the Devil and he’ll have a fairly negative view of humanity, so I wouldn’t trust his opinion on anything.
But Devil’s Kiss is a grim, dark story. It’s not your usual paranormal romance where the girl gets the boy and they all live happily ever after. I wanted the horror and brutality of the world Billi lives in to be authentic and sincere, she’s playing for the highest stakes imaginable.
Billi and the Templars are about the struggle. They know they’ll never win, the best they can do is keep the darkness at bay for a little longer. That takes a particular type of bravery, knowing it will never end but carrying on regardless.


It’s too easy to let morality and common humanity fall by the wayside as you pursue your ambitions. The Templars are heroic because they fight to defend humanity when at times they may feel humanity is no better than the creatures they face. That’s especially true in Dark Goddess when Billi realises the enemy is just as dedicated as her, and they may be right, not her.


Khy from Frenetic Reader reviews Fury of the Phoenix by Cindy Pon

Fury of the Phoenix is different than Silver Phoenix not only because Fury seems to contain less food, but also because it is not as action-oriented. There are far fewer monsters and battles in this sequel than in book one, and even though I did wish for more action, I liked the direction this book went in. Though the switches between the story of Ai Ling and Chen Yong and the story of Zhong Ye and Silver Phoenix sometimes seemed abrupt, I loved that both were included. The inclusion of Zhong Ye's rise to power was always a delight to read about, because in the last book he did not seem like he had much of a personality, just that he was all evil. However, in this book, it was proven that there is more to him than just evil, and that his reason for being so bad is valid.

Liz B reviews Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon

So, while this book is about Ai Ling, it is clear that there is going to be a bigger story… especially when she meets someone who is about 19 and is part foreigner.

Ai Ling is an interesting main character. She’s a bit out of step with her society; a girl her age should be married, but she isn’t. She is also a reader and has read books her parents didn’t want her to read. This turns out to be a good thing, because reading about different demons helps her out when she actually encounters them! I misunderstood the jacket description, so at first thought that Ai Ling was going to be a fighter. The fighting is done mainly by Chen Yong and Li Rong. Ai Ling has other talents she brings to the quest. Perhaps one of my favorite parts about the way that Ai Ling’s journey is handled is that when Ai Ling runs away to find her father, she doesn’t dress herself up as a boy. She doesn’t have to hide who she is or pretend to have her adventures.

The Rejectionist interviews Marina Budhos, a writer of multiple genres (Ask Me No Questions, Tell Us We're Home, co-authored Sugar Changed the World along with a few others)

Do you think of your work as political? Do you approach writing YA differently from writing for adults?

I'm not sure I think of it as political, but I think that the larger world, the political forces that shape us, and shape young people, are vital to me. It's simply how I see things. I don't start out with an 'issue' but simply I go where my gut, my interests send me. Some of the instincts I once used as a journalist, I think, are now making their way into young adult.

I do have to approach the writing a little differently. In my early drafts of Tell Us We're Home I still had the vestiges of some adult writing that did not quite work--too much authorial, from above material, for instance. I had to find a very concrete way to get at these things, about class, about immigrants, how the kids would feel it--not their parents. So that took some digging, some refocusing. In general, I do feel that writing for ya requires one to be a bit more direct, more driven by voice. On the other hand, I'm not a big fan of ya that is too 'raw'. I am interested in the craft, just as much as I would be in adult.

BookSignings; Ereaders, Mass Market Filled Duffel Bag and More

I am very excited to be going to Tayari Jones booksigning for Silver Sparrow tomorrow night. I will be leaving my ereader at home. For some reason it doesn't seem right to bring an ereader to a signing. Even if someone is buying the book to be signed and reading something else. Plus part of the fun is taking a peak at what other fans are reading and talking books.

Sheela Chari wrote a wonderful middle grade debut called Vanished that comes out in August. The book has a great cover but since I read the egalley, I couldn't show it off. And I really wanted to because the book was just so much fun. I hate not being able to show a books cover. If there's ever a time to show off covers its at a booksigning, so I will be leaving my ereader at home.

As a former bookseller one my big pet peeves is buying a book to be signed somewhere else, and not supporting the store that's hosting the event. That's just tacky. A lot of work goes into putting events together. Also it wasn't the other bookstore, amazon or walmart that made it possible for you to meet an author you like

I've never understood why some fans bring a duffel bag of mass markets to be signed.
The good authors love that you love their work and truly appreciate that you've been a fan for so long. The good authors are also too kind to say anything about the mass market filled duffel bags. So I am going to say it for them. A duffel bag is serious over kill. Please consider the authors wrist and the other fans.

If you ask an author more then two questions about getting published you need to support them and buy their book. If you can't afford the book don't ask more then two questions. The author is not there to field questions about getting published, they are their to sell their book.

One great booksigning accessory is a totebag. I will probably be using my Algonquin tote since they published Silver Sparrow.

Jones was kind enough to do the Women Writers of Color interview with Color Online. I can't wait to meet the author.

New Crayons

It's time again for us to share some new reads we got this week. Don't forget you can post your New Crayons meme or share with us in the comments any new reads that were bought, borrowed, or gifted. 

Doret--

Theodosia and the Last Pharaoh by R.L. LeFevers

In this fourth book in the series, Theodosia sets off to Egypt to return the Emerald Tablet—embedded with the knowledge of some of the ancient world’s most guarded secrets. Accompanied by her cat, Isis (smuggled along in a basket), Theo plans to return the artifact, then explore the mysteries surrounding her own birth and oh, yes— help her mother dig up treasures on her archeological expedition.

Toads and Diamonds by Heather Tomlinson

Diribani has come to the village well to get water for her family's scant meal of curry and rice. She never expected to meet a goddess there. Yet she is granted a remarkable gift: Flowers and precious jewels drop from her lips whenever she speaks.

It seems only right to Tana that the goddess judged her kind, lovely stepsister worthy of such riches. And when she encounters the goddess, she is not surprised to find herself speaking snakes and toads as a reward.

Blessings and curses are never so clear as they might seem, however. Diribani’s newfound wealth brings her a prince—and an attempt on her life. Tana is chased out of the village because the province's governor fears snakes, yet thousands are dying of a plague spread by rats. As the sisters' fates hang in the balance, each struggles to understand her gift. Will it bring her wisdom, good fortune, love . . . or death?

My Life, The Theater, and Other Tragedies by Allen Zadoff

High school sophomore Adam Zeigler, who lost his father to a sudden accident two years ago, thinks the best way to live life is behind the spotlight. As a member of the theater crew, he believes he's achieved it all when he wins the coveted job of spotlight operator. But that was before a young actress, Summer, appeared in his view. Instantly smitten, Adam is determined to win her over. But to do so, he'll have to defy his best friend and break the golden rule of his school: techies and actors don't mix.

Set against the backdrop of a high school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, Zadoff's latest is a bromance, a love story, and theater story in one. The politics of love and high school collide as Adam struggles to find the courage to step out of the shadows and into the light.

Nathalie--

Sisters of the Sari by Brenda L. Baker

While vacationing in India, Kiria Langdon, the opinionated and driven CEO of a major company, meets Santoshi, a former slave who now works as a cleaning lady and lives in a shelter for homeless women in Chennai. Appalled by the conditions in the shelter, Kiria becomes obsessed with the idea of building decent housing for poor working women in India. Santoshi reluctantly agrees to help, even though she thinks Kiria's ideas are too crazy to succeed.

Embarking on a rich journey of personal discovery, both women will learn invaluable lessons about themselves as they forge a powerful bond of sisterhood across the barriers of language and culture-a bond that makes anything possible.

White Water by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein

It’s a scorching hot day, and going into town with Grandma is one of Michael’s favorite things. When the bus pulls up, they climb in and pay their fare, get out, walk to the back door, and climb in again. By the time they arrive in town, Michael’s throat is as dry as a bone, so he runs to the water fountain. But after a few sips, the warm, rusty water tastes bad. Why is the kid at the "Whites Only" fountain still drinking? Is his water clear and refreshingly cool? No matter how much trouble Michael might get into, he’s determined to find out for himself. Based on a transformative experience co-author Michael Bandy had as a boy, this compelling story sheds light on the reality of segregation through a child’s eyes, while showing the powerful awareness that comes from daring to question the way things are.

Vasilly--

EAT: The Effortless Weightloss solution by Ian K. Smith

Diets are made to go “on” and “off of”, and if you’re like most people—who want to be fit, lean, alert and healthy—you don’t want to diet.  You want to eat naturally and normally, in a way that helps you have the body and lifestyle you deserve to enjoy.  In EAT, Dr. Ian Smith has created a blueprint for you.  It’s a flexible and intelligent plan you can follow every day, in every situation—eating out, working late, traveling, cooking for the holidays—and that will urge your body to perform at its peak. You’ll drop any excess pounds you need to lose.   You won’t worry about what you “can” and “can’t” eat, but will listen to yourself and eat smart.