10-Apr-2008
Hi, welcome to the first issue of the "Barker Street Irregular." Here's where you can get all the latest news about what's happening with A Difficult Boy. You'll find the latest on my booksignings, workshops, programs, guest blogging, interviews, and more. But it's not just about me! I'd also like to introduce you to some fabulous new books and writers, some of whom will be double-dating with me at events (and in some cases, triple- or quadruple-dating--good thing I have an understanding husband!)
By now, A Difficult Boy should be available at your favorite local bookstore. If it's not, they'll be happy to order it for you. You can also order it through your favorite online bookseller.
Recent Events
I owe a huge THANK YOU! to Dennis Picard, Director of Storrowton Village, who wrangled me an invitation to join him on Vincent Dowling's
"Shooting from the Hip" radio show on Valley Free Radio, 103.3 FM, Northampton, Mass, this past Monday (April 7). An actor and director and writer (among other things--his c.v. is about a mile long!), Vincent Dowling is the former Artistic Director of The Abbey Theatre, Ireland's National Theatre. If that wasn't impressive enough to have me quaking in my boots, I don't know what is! Fortunately, Vincent turned out to be perfectly charming. He began the interview by reading the opening paragraphs of A Difficult Boy, and just about had me melting. If my agent ever wrangles me a contract to get my book on CD, Vincent's is definitely the voice I want. If you want to hear the interview, you can catch a re-broadcast on Monday, April 14. Details are listed in "Upcoming Events" below.
Upcoming Events
14 Apr 2008, 1:00 pm: Re-broadcast of radio interview with Dennis Picard, Director of Storrowton Village
"Shooting from the Hip"
Host: Vincent Dowling
Station: Valley Free Radio, 103.3 FM, Northampton, Mass
mp3 stream available on station web page
14-19 Apr 2008: Virtual book launch party at the Class of 2k8 web site - www.classof2k8.com
17 Apr 2008, 7:00 pm: "Meet the Authors" event with Rusty Clark, expert on historic gravestone carvings and author of the Stories Carved in Stone series, and A.M. Butcher, author of Lark and the Magic Pencil.
Hosted by: East Longmeadow Historical Commission
East Longmeadow Senior Center
328 North Main Street
East Longmeadow, MA
19 Apr 2008, 3:30 pm: I'll be with Judith Jaeger, author of The Secret Thief for a book signing and discussion
Acoustic Java
932A Main Street
Worcester, MA
20-26 Apr 2008: A Difficult Boy will be featured in the Author Spotlight on Authors of MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/myspace_authors
24 Apr 2008, 2:00 pm: Join Michelle D. Kwasney (author of Baby Blue and Itch), Class of 2k8 author Marissa Doyle,(Bewitching Season) and me for a book signing and discussion
Forbes Library
20 West Street
Northampton, MA
Event bookseller: Broadside Books - check out their great store at 247 Main Street, Northampton, MA, or visit them online at www.broadsidebooks.com!
24 Apr 2008, 5:00 pm: Join Class of 2k8 author Marissa Doyle,(Bewitching Season) and me for a book signing and discussion
Amherst Books
8 Main Street
Amherst, MA
413-256-1547
books@amherstbooks.com
www.amherstbooks.com
27 Apr 2008, 3:00 pm: Join Class of 2k8 author Marissa Doyle, (Bewitching Season) and me for a book signing and discussion
The Concord Bookshop
65 Main Street
Concord, MA
www.concordbookshop.com
5 May 2008, 6:00 pm: Book signing and discussion
Hosted by: ICC Seniors Group monthly meeting
Immaculate Conception Church of Indian Orchard
25 Parker Street
Indian Orchard, MA
6 May 2008, 6:30 pm: Book signing and discussion
Merriam-Gilbert Public Library
3 West Main Street
West Brookfield, MA
www.wbrookfieldlibrary.org
17 May 2008, 11:00 am: Book signing and discussion
Woods Memorial Library
19 Pleasant Street
Barre, MA
www.barrelibrary.org/
20 May 2008, time TBA (probably 6/6:30ish)
Book signing and discussion
Ames Free Library
53 Main Street
North Easton, MA 02356
508-238-2000
www.amesfreelibrary.org/
28 May 2008, 7:00 pm: One event - four writers! Join D. Dina Friedman (author of Escaping into the Night and Playing Dad's Song), Judith Jaeger (author of The Secret Thief), Michelle D. Kwasney (author of Baby Blue and Itch), and me for a book signing and discussion
East Longmeadow Public Library
60 Center Square
East Longmeadow, MA
www.eastlongmeadow.org/Library/
4 Jun 2008: School presentation for Beth Boffoli's fifth grade class (Thanks for the invitation, Beth! And thanks to Mia Nolan for setting it up!)
Blueberry Hill School
Longmeadow, MA
www.longmeadow.k12.ma.us/bhs/
Want to set up a signing or other event? You can contact my publisher at kmorandini@holidayhouse.com or you can get in touch with me directly by email.
(If you would like an autographed copy and can't make it to any of these events, you can order a copy from Chandler & Reed Books of Sunderland, MA (http://www.abebooks.com/home/CHNDLRBK/) or the Broadside Bookshop of Northampton, MA (www.broadsidebooks.com). Or you can contact me directly using the email link on my webpage. And, of course, as a brand new newsletter subscriber, you'll be entered in a drawing to win a copy; the winner's name will be drawn May 1.)
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Other books you might want to watch out for:
As you can see, I'm doing several events with other Massachusetts authors whose books I heartily recommend.
Judith Jaeger's The Secret Thief will make you wonder what you would do if you found out that everything you thought you knew about your family was a lie. While helping her grandmother clear out her house, Connie Gray discovers that her family's history isn't quite as she's been lead to believe. A champion long-distance runner and a kleptomaniac (her motto is "Free for me"), Connie also suffers from painful ulcers and wrenching insecurity in spite of her academic and athletic success. As she digs deeper into her family's past, she discovers a sinister edge to her mother's attentiveness.
D. Dina Friedman is the author of two books: Escaping into the Night, a historical novel about a girl who escapes the Holocaust and is taken in by a group of Jewish resistance fighters taking refuge in Poland's forests. This suspenseful novel reveals a facet of World War II history with which many readers might be unfamiliar, and is a tribute to the endurance and courage of the real refugees whose lives were the model for this story. In Dina's contemporary novel, Playing Dad's Song, a boy whose father has died in 9/11 finds some measure of solace in his new-found talent as a musician and composer.
In Michelle Kwasney's first novel, Baby Blue, twelve-year-old Blue struggles to cope with an abusive stepfather and the disappearance of her older sister. Michelle's new novel Itch is about a girl coping with the recent death of her adored grandfather and a new friend who isn't quite as perfect as she seems. I can't wait to read it!
You've probably noticed a lot of references to the "Class of 2k8" in the above listings. Marissa Doyle, author of Bewitching Season, and fellow Class of 2k8 member, will be joining me at several events. Her historical novel combines romance and a touch of magic in a story of twin sisters—both aspiring magicians--who become entangled in a plot to gain control of young Princess Victoria. Racing through Mayfair ballrooms and royal palaces, the sisters overcome bad millinery, shady royal spinsters, and a mysterious Irish wizard.
In case you're wondering whether this Class of 2k8 thing is some weird secret society that Marissa and I belong to (and in case you haven't had a chance to check out the Class of 2k8 section on my web page), the Class is a marketing collaborative of 27 debut authors of young-adult and middle-grade novels. We've joined forces to help each other get our books noticed.
Our latest press release sums it up: "One of the year’s first releases saw its second printing less than two months after its launch, another book was honored as a Booksense Pick, and several class members already have landed contracts for second books. In the print media, 2k8 winter and early spring releases have been reviewed favorably (including some starred reviews) in Kirkus, Booklist, Hornbook, and the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books. The online community has responded with stars and kudos from reviewers including Little Willow, Teens Read Too, ProfessorNana, Ticket to Anywhere, Gela, and One Page is Not Enough. The class itself has been a topic at Publisher’s Weekly, Fuse #8, Mother Reader, SmartWriters.com, Readergirlz, Miss Erin, and Alice Pope’s CWIM blog. Part of 2k8’s focus is reaching the growing online community of booklovers through [our] popular blog (classof2k8.blogspot.com) and web site (www.classof2k8.com.
I feel lucky to be part of such a dynamic group, and luckier still to be introduced to some terrific new reading as each book comes out. I hope you'll enjoy the Class of 2k8's first quarter books as much as I did.
The quarter started out on a high note with The Opposite of Invisible by Liz Gallagher, about a Seattle teenager trying to choose whether to let her lifelong best guy friend become something more than that, or to become romantically involved with cool, popular Simon. If you’re thinking "I know the way this story goes—the jock is a jerk, and the girl figures out that she should have stuck to her best friend all along," well, think again. Simon is a sweet guy, so Alice's dilemma is very real and very difficult. What I loved about the story was that Alice's final decision (which I will not divulge) turns out to be not about who she wants to be WITH but who she wants to BE. The novel is poetically written, making Seattle’s gloomy rainy climate seem inviting--which might not be a plus for those Seattleans/Seattlites/Seattlers? who want to discourage newcomers from moving in!
In I Heart You, You Heart Me by Lisa Schroeder, Ava's dead boyfriend Jackson haunts her days, appearing in visions in the mirror, a breath of chilly air, a song on her CD player. Ava wants and dreads his presence all at the same time. Is she going crazy? Or is Jackson really trying to send her a message that she needs to hear? This is a beautiful novel in verse about love, loss, grief, guilt, and recovery.
A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce is a fascinating re-telling of the Rumplestiltskin fairy tale. Young Charlotte Miller struggles to keep her family's woolen mill running after the death of her father. Charlotte is a practical young woman. She doesn’t believe in curses or magic until a series of weird and inexplicable disasters force her to rely on a mysterious little man who can spin straw into gold. All her instincts tell her to turn him away, but Charlotte feels responsible for the townspeople who depend on the mill for their livelihood. It's not just her own income at stake; Charlotte won't relegate her neighbors and friends to poverty. Meanwhile, she has to contend with an uncle who seems bound and determined to bankrupt her. Everything comes to a head when Charlotte realizes that to save her mill, her friends, her family, and her infant son, she must figure out how to right an ancient wrong. When the story's villain’s secrets are finally revealed, their heartbreaking stories make them as sympathetic as the main characters.
Definitely keep your box of kleenex handy when reading these three books! They kept me up at night wanting to know how they'd end, and the stories stayed with me long after I'd finished reading.
The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman brings a lighter change of pace to 2k8's first quarter. Young Gil Goodson hopes to redeem his family's good name after his dad was falsely accused of embezzling from the Golly Toy Company. If Gil wins the Gollywhopper Games, he'll show the world that Goodsons aren't cheaters, and will win enough money to help his family make a new start far away from the cloud of scandal hanging over them. Gil's an engaging young hero with a quick wit, a friendly personality, and a tenacious determination to make good. Readers can solve the Gollywhopper Game puzzles along with Gil--they're challenging enough to be fun, but not so difficult that you feel like putting your eye out with your pencil. Great for puzzle-lovers, punsters, and fans of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory--and for you adult readers, the writing and characterization are MILES ahead of that recent best-selling puzzle book The DaVinci Code!
Finally, in other book news, look for Massachusetts author Suzanne Strempek Shea's new book Sundays in America: A Yearlong Road Trip in Search of Christian Faith, which was released just last month. Suzanne chronicles a year spent visiting just about every kind of Sunday service you can imagine, from mainstream Protestant services to spiritualist meetings and Shaker services, trying to explore the many facets of Christian worship in this country. I just picked up my copy a few weeks ago and am looking forward to reading it, especially after hearing Suzanne talk about it at Broadside Books in Northampton, MA and at the Hampden (MA) Public Library. I love Suzanne's relaxed conversational writing style, which makes you feel as if you're chatting with a good friend (who's much smarter and wittier than you are!). She met with my reading group a couple of years ago to discuss her memoir Shelf Life, and she'll be joining us again this summer to talk about her new book. It should be fun!
Things I'm looking forward to:
I'll be attending the New England Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators spring conference in Nashua, New Hampshire this coming weekend (April 11-13). I'm excited that I'll finally get the opportunity to meet some of my 2k8 classmates face-to-face! All of my contact with them so far has been online, so I'm looking forward to having the real flesh-and-blood writers to hobnob with. The conference looks pretty exciting, with lots of sessions on becoming a better writer and marketing your books. I'm also going to have an excerpt from my work-in-progress critiqued. It's a sequel to A Difficult Boy involving the characters of Daniel and Jonathan Stocking, the peddler. I'm a little bit nervous, but also eager to see what the critiquer has to say.
One of the aspects of the new book (which, until I come up with something better, currently has the rather unfortunate working title of Mending Horses) involves Daniel attempting to re-train six "dancing ponies" which are part of a circus that he encounters. The ponies have been abused, and Daniel must find a way to gentle and rehabilitate them. Coincidentally, one of the librarians I met as I was setting up event dates spends part of her time re-training abused horses, and she's agreed to let me watch her at work so I can learn how she reads their body language and what she does to help them overcome their past trauma. I can't wait!
Comments, Questions, Complaints?
As a newly published writer, I'm still learning how to reach my readers better. So I'd love your help! If you have any suggestions about topics you'd like me to discuss in this newsletter and on my website or ways they could be improved, feel free to spill 'em! I'm all ears (or in this case, I guess, all eyes?).
Thanks for your support! I hope you enjoy the book!
