This month has been a very literary one for me! I've had several wonderful opportunities to meet and hear a handful of amazing authors and illustrators speak from all different genre! Here's the lineup:
Julie Flett, Richard Van Camp, & Julie Morstad
@ The Vancouver Children Literature Roundtables Annual Illustrators Breakfast
What a fun morning! Illustrators Julie Flett and Julie Morstad talked all about their process and showed us many images from their various works, while writer Richard Van Camp was full of energy and hilarious talking about his various works for both young children and teenagers. I have to say, I was partial to Julie Morstad because I find her illustrations to be so beautiful and charming. I purchased two of her books, When I Was Small, which is a one in a trilogy of picture books, and Milk Teeth, which is a collection of her art. I've included a few of her images; aren't they incredible? If you want to see more of Julie Morstad's work, please visit her website!
Grant Lawrence Book Launch
@ The BC Sports Hall of Fame
Grant Lawrence latest book, The Lonely End of the Rink: Confessions of a Reluctant Goalie, is a the story of Lawrence growing up in Canada and his relationship with the game of hockey. The book launch took place at the perfect venue, the BC Sports Hall of Fame, and included a book reading, an opportunity to take a shot of Lawrence in net, a live performance by one of his team mates musical group, and free beer! I haven't yet read this book, nor Lawrence's previous, award winning book, Adventures in Solitude, but they are both now on my to-read pile!
Fantasy @ 6 with Maggie Stiefvater & Maureen Johnson
Vancouver International Writers Festival on Granville Island
Oh my god, I want to BE these two! Or at the very least, be bff with them. What an amazingly fun evening with two wonderful teen writers. I've been a fan of Maureen Johnson since I read the first two books in her Shades of London Series (The Name of the Star, The Madness Underneath) so when I heard she was coming to Vancouver I knew I had to see her speak. I'm new to Maggie Stiefvater's work but after having read The Raven Boys and am halfway through The Dream Thieves I feel it is safe to call me a fan. This event, moderated by the amazing Shannon Ozirny, was one of the best author events I've ever been to. It was so casual, so hilarious, and so real that it was impossible not to have a great time; laugher was contagious. If you ever get the opportunity to see these two in action I highly recommend it!
Lunch with Maria Semple
Corner Stories with Maria Semple, Wayne Johnson, Saleema Nawaz, & Anthony De Sa
Vancouver Writers Festival on Granville Island
Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple is one of my favourite books this year so when I heard she was coming for the Writers Fest I was so excited! As the event grew closer I got an even bigger surprise, I was going to have the opportunity to have lunch with Maria with one of my fellow booksellers, Caitlin (another uber Bernadette fan)! Maria Semple is one of the funniest, most down to earth authors I have ever met. She generally wants to talk to you about books (not just hers!) and to swap stories. One of her most memorable stories? When she was having dinner in New York and at the next table was Daniel Craig, Mike Nichols, and Oprah! Amazing! She also managed to give me several book recommendations that I'm really excited to read.
The next day Caitlin and I headed to the Writers Fest and saw Maria on panel with several other big name authors all discussing the importance of place in their novels. She was a rock star and, in my opinion, dominated the panel with her honesty and observations. If you've read Bernadette, you know that it takes place in Seattle and is just bang on with regards to the culture there. If you haven't read Bernadette yet, you really really must.
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