Hootie on Location Part I: Anderson Books YA Lit Conf

I've been away because I've been SWAMPED!
But in a good way.
First things first, I had the great pleasure of attending the Anderson Books YA Lit Conference in Naperville, IL.

I've seen so many other bloggers talking about it, and I wanted to be sure and shout it out as well.  What an outstanding group of authors and book lovers.  There were tons of things happening in the breakout sessions, but the two parts of this 1 day conference that have made lasting impressions on me were the "What's New in YA lit" session, the inspiring words of author Mike Lupica, and seeing authors Coe Booth and Jacqueline Woodson in person.




Though the YA lit booktalk session was standing room only, I was so glad I didn't decide to change sessions at the last minute.  These amazing women book-talked at least 20 books or so!  {phew}  For those unfamiliar with the term, a book-talk is when someone gives you a verbal preview of a book.  The trick is to tell just enough to get you interested, without telling the entire story.  Kind of like a trailer, but in person.

Now, I'll admit something to you.  I'm not the world's greatest book-talker.  I've shared some great stories with people, and I've written some pretty convincing reviews (in my opinion), but I've never been good at telling "just enough".  I was so inspired by these talks though!  Inspired enough to purchase four books and I NEVER purchase books.

White Crow by Marcus Sedgewick, Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer, Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom by Susin Nielsen, and then a really cute book I saw on the shelf while scavenging for these books, called A La Carte by Tanita Davis.

I haven't had a chance to read ANY of them. :(
But as soon as I do, I'll post some reviews here, and maybe even give a couple of them away.

Then came time to listen to Mike Lupica!  He had just amazing words about libraries, bookstores, and the love of books in general.  I'd written down this elaborate list of the great things he said...but in the time it has taken me to get back here and post, I missplaced my notes :(.  However, thanks to my Twitter feed, I was able to recover my favorite thing he said:

I write books about the things that are important to me; sports, friendship, and loyalty. - Mike Lupica

I'm sure anyone who has read any of his work, would agree with him there. He also gave some seriously inspiring backstory into how he became a children's writer, and how writing about those three basic things somehow made him a staple in the reluctant reader arsenal of teachers and librarians.

 Check out the snazzy Theodore Boone "bus"!


And of course, I had to take away a tote.  No librarian worth their salt can attend any event and leave without a tote bag.  Any librarian who believes they will make it out without one is lying to themselves anyway.