Summer Beach Bag of Books Promotion

I am writing this newsletter from Philadelphia where I am attending the American Library Association's Midwinter Meeting. It's a nice way to jumpstart the year. I loved going to the library when I was growing up, so it's always great fun for me to have a chance to meet with librarians and hear about the books and authors they are excited about.

Monday morning I am looking forward to moderating a panel about book clubs with panelists Shireen Dodson (THE MOTHER-DAUGHTER BOOK CLUB), Elizabeth Noble (THINGS I WANT MY DAUGHTERS TO KNOW, coming in April) Victoria Lustbader (STONE CREEK, coming in May) and Jennifer Hart, who writes the very clever blog, Book Club Girl. If you are a librarian reading this and you will be at ALA, I would love to meet you. Shoot me a note as I will be reading email while I am traveling thanks to my BlackBerry. Immediately after our panel is the annual press conference where the winners of the prestigious awards like the Newbery and the Caldecott are announced. I always have wanted to attend this as people say it's a lot of fun. Voting is done with strict secrecy (I guess this is like not talking in the library!), but rumors will abound all weekend until the final announcements are made. We'll have the winners for you next week!

This afternoon I will see a presentation with both Geraldine Brooks, the author of PEOPLE OF THE BOOK, which we are reviewing this week (we also are running an interview with Brooks), and Mary Doria Russell, whose new book DREAMERS OF THE DAY will be out on March 11th.

For all of you who have been following my adventures with my older son applying to college, I am VERY happy to share that he was accepted for early decision by Fordham University, his first choice, right before we left for Christmas. He is wildly excited, and this made for a very relaxed, upbeat holiday for all of us. Fordham is my alma mater, as well as that of two of our Bookreporter.com staffers, so this was especially nice. When we got the news, I hustled over to the bookstore and brought him home a baseball cap, a shirt and a sticker for his car, which he just loved. I joked that it was the first of MANY purchases in that bookstore. It was a nice way to celebrate! As the campus is not far from our office, he is plotting how to get his laundry in my car every Thursday night to be returned clean the following Monday. I am plotting how he will intern for us and recruit his friends. It's nice when we BOTH have motives.

This week we have an interview with Eric Weiner, whose book, THE GEOGRAPHY OF BLISS: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World, is about his travels around the world in search of answers to the questions: What are the essential ingredients for the good life? Why are some places happier than others? How are we shaped by our surroundings? Why can't airlines serve a decent meal? It's a book that is both sharp and witty, and it's reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott this week. You can read more about Eric and see some terrific photos he shot during his travels at EricWeinerBooks.com.

We are launching three new features this week. Our new featured Suspense/Thriller author is Lawrence Goldstone, author of THE ANATOMY OF DECEPTION. This is a gripping story set in 19th century Philadelphia, in which a doctor must track down a serial killer. I am enjoying the period details as much as the story. Goldstone writes so vividly that I felt myself to be there. I always say that I never enjoyed studying history, but place characters in it and I am completely rapt. We have 20 copies to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, January 25th.

We also have two new featured One to Watch authors this week. Our first is Alan Drew, whose debut novel, GARDENS OF WATER, tells the powerful story of a Kurdish family and the tensions it must face between tradition, culture and faith. I read this novel last fall and immediately began pressing advance reading copies of it into people's hands. I had the pleasure of meeting Alan at a luncheon where he shared more background on what prompted him to write this book. I look forward to sharing this book with you in the weeks to come. We have 10 copies to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, January 18th.

Our second new featured One to Watch author is Julie Buxbaum, whose debut novel, THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE, tells the story of a heroine who will be instantly recognizable to anyone who has loved and lost and loved again. I read this book when I was on vacation over the holidays and loved it. Buxbaum writes a story and I see the movie. And the page where she defines the opposite of love got folded down. (I can see the mail flying in about my folding the page now!) We have 10 copies to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, January 18th.

Last weekend we saw a record number of you answer the poll over the weekend and a number of newsletter signups, which makes us think there was some press about us somewhere that we did not note. To all of our new readers, welcome!

One note...thank you to all the readers who wrote us notes wishing us a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I had a wicked head cold right around Christmas, so I did more reading than responding, but know that all your messages were very appreciated. While I got a lot of mail about my question about when it's acceptable to stop saying "Happy New Year," I got a note from a reader named Larry that is giving me my future guideline. Start saying "Happy New Year" any time in December; stop saying "Happy New Year" at midnight on January 5th. However, I will make one caveat here. If someone writes or wishes me "Happy New Year" in a note after January 5th, I WILL respond with the same greeting. Well, it's nice to have that solved. One thing to check off my 2008 list. Larry also told me he appreciates my sense of humor, which made me smile, a wry smile.

While in Philly I am determined to see the Liberty Bell and at least one other historical stop. A few years ago I decided that I was tired of going to cities and only seeing convention centers, so I was going to "make time" to see something whenever I traveled. Thus I will entertain other suggestions of "must do" things in Philly if you have any to shoot my way over the weekend. Here's to great reading. I hope we help you find a book you love this week. Aren't winter weekends great for reading?

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

International bestselling author Geraldine Brooks won the Pulitzer Prize in 2006 for her novel MARCH, which retells Louisa May Alcott's LITTLE WOMEN from the perspective of the family patriarch, who is off fighting in the American Civil War. Her latest work of fiction, PEOPLE OF THE BOOK, spans 500 years and revolves around a different sort of text --- an extremely rare illuminated Jewish manuscript that has managed to survive near-destruction time and time again during some of the most tumultuous periods in world history. In this interview, Brooks describes what fascinated and inspired her about the real-life tome --- the Sarajevo Haggadah --- and discusses the amount of research she performed to accurately portray both the historical periods and the scientific process of book restoration. She also explains how she shaped the voice of the book's narrator, speculates on its reception in Bosnia and reveals how her "Pulitzer Surprise" has affected her work ethic.

PEOPLE OF THE BOOK by Geraldine Brooks (Historical Fiction)
In her two previous novels, Pulitzer Prize winner Geraldine Brooks has demonstrated a remarkable ability to inhabit fully the world of a single historical period. This rich and emotionally powerful novel shows that she is equally adept at painting on a larger canvas to tell the riveting story of the survival of a medieval manuscript over five centuries of European history. Reviewed by Harvey Freedenberg.

-Click here to read a review of PEOPLE OF THE BOOK.
-Click here to read an excerpt from PEOPLE OF THE BOOK.

In LITERACY AND LONGING IN L.A., authors Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack captivated readers with a brilliantly imagined first novel. In their new book, A VERSION OF THE TRUTH (which is now available in stores), Kaufman and Mack introduce a character you’ll never forget: Cassie Shaw, an irrepressible young woman who reinvents herself in a funny, wise and utterly original story about friendship, love, wildlife and other forces of nature.

-Click here to read an excerpt from A VERSION OF THE TRUTH.
-Click here to read Jennifer Kaufman's bio.
-Click here to read Karen Mack's bio.
-Visit the book's official website, www.AVersionOfTheTruth.com.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.

More about A VERSION OF THE TRUTH:
In the wilds of Topanga Canyon, Cassie Shaw has always felt right at home in the midst of nature, but everywhere else, life seems to be a little harder. At the age of 30, newly single and without a college degree, Cassie is in serious need of a paycheck. So in a desperate move, she lies on her resume when applying for an office job at an elite university. When she finds herself employed by two eccentric professors, Cassie begins to reinvent herself --- and soon encounters some very unexpected consequences.

A young Amish woman alone in a foreign world --- will Hannah find the freedom and hope she longs for? Read WHEN THE MORNING COMES by bestselling author Cindy Woodsmall.

“Cindy Woodsmall writes real --- real people, real conflicts, real emotions. When you open her book, you enter her world and live the story with the characters. WHEN THE MORNING COMES is a journey of discovering faith, of overcoming trauma, of learning to depend on God’s sustaining strength. I eagerly await installment three of the Sisters of the Quilt Series!”
  
    --- Kim Vogel Sawyer, author of WHERE WILLOWS GROW and WAITING FOR SUMMER'S RETURN

-Click here to read the discussion guide for WHEN THE MORNING COMES.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HERE by Cecelia Ahern (Fiction)
Sandy Shortt has spent her life trying to find the lost objects and people of Ireland, until the day she also goes missing. She somehow has wandered into an impossible place and now is yearning to be found. WARNING: prepare to stay up all night reading this downright odd yet completely irresistible story. Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon.
 
THE CHAMELEON’S SHADOW by Minette Walters (Psychological Thriller)
A broken Iraq War vet, murders of old men who may be gay, a wannabe actress who thinks she’s Uma Thurman, street people, and a very large lesbian weightlifter who is also a doctor. British author Minette Walters delivers an astounding psychological thriller with THE CHAMELEON’S SHADOW. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.
 
THE 6 SACRED STONES by Matthew Reilly (Thriller)
Supersoldier Jack West Jr. and his loyal team of adventurers from 7 DEADLY WONDERS are back, and now they face an all-but-impossible challenge. A mysterious ceremony in an unknown location has unraveled their work and triggered a catastrophic countdown that will climax in no less than the end of all life on Earth. But there is one last hope. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

TOUCHSTONE by Laurie R. King (Thriller)
New York Times bestselling author Laurie R. King takes readers to a remote cottage in Cornwall, where a gripping tale of intrigue, terrorism and explosive passions begins with a visit to a recluse upon whom the fate of an entire nation may rest. Reviewed by Roz Shea.

SALT RIVER by James Sallis (Thriller)
In this follow-up novel to CYPRESS GROVE and CRIPPLE CREEK --- mysteries that feature Deputy Sheriff John Turner --- James Sallis paints with words a stark and poignant picture of death and dying in America’s rural South. Reviewed by Donna Volkenannt.
 
THE ANATOMIST: A True Story of Gray's Anatomy by Bill Hayes (Biography/History)
Science writer Bill Hayes explores the creation of GRAY’S ANATOMY --- the famous and influential anatomy book by Henry Gray --- and the life of Gray's illustrator, Henry Carter. THE ANATOMIST is a unique blend of history, biography and memoir with a number of cadavers as well. Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman.

RISE OF THE BLOOD ROYAL: Volume III of The Destinies of Blood and Stone by Robert Newcomb (Fantasy)
Robert Newcomb brings his epic trilogy, The Destinies of Blood and Stone, to a triumphant close. Old questions will receive unexpected answers. Ancient prophecies will come to pass. New wonders and horrors will be revealed. And the lives of Prince Tristan and his sister, Shailiha --- the Chosen Ones who alone can unite the sundered powers of the beneficent Vigors and the evil Vagaries --- will change forever. Reviewed by Stephen Hubbard.
 
THE LAST JEW STANDING by Michael Simon (Thriller)
Lieutenant Dan Reles has a new house, a wife and a son, and a great career as head of Austin Homicide. But when Dan’s deadbeat father Ben Reles --- a Mafia legbreaker who has spent the last 20 years on the run --- shows up on Dan’s doorstep with an escaped prostitute in tow, trouble is sure to follow. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.