NYC and BEA - Day 4

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Day 4 of my trip was actually Day 1 of BEA. The exhibition hall opened at 9:00 a.m. and there was quite a line up waiting to get in. It felt a little overwhelming seeing all these people and since I HATE waiting in line for anything, this was probably the biggest challenge for me.


Finally, the doors opened and we went in.  I started walking around and discovered very quickly that there were more exhibitors than last time I was there.  

Walking the floor at BEA is difficult to explain unless you have actually experienced it. Its a mixture of adrenaline rush, panic, joy and exhaustion.

Once again this year, I never even thought of taking pictures of the inside hall - I think this is because there is just so much going on that even standing still for 30 seconds to take a picture is overwhelming.  On more than one occasion I got pushed and bumped because apparently, I wasn't moving quickly enough for the person behind me.

I also noticed that BEA was easier for me on some level because I was no longer a newbie. I knew how the whole thing worked and even what it would look like. To my amazement I stayed in the exhibition hall way into the afternoon which was a huge surprise to me since the last time, I traditionally left at about noon.  I also waited in a few lines in order to get autographs (see previous comment about waiting in line) but I always made sure that the lines were not too long.  Cindy was quite amazed at this as she, more than anyone else, knows exactly how impatient I can be in this type of situation.

So, since I did not take any pictures of BEA on that day, I will post pictures of the great books I got on day 1. I was very, very selective about the books I picked up as I make sure that I would actually read them and turned down quite a few (the publicists in many booths kind of shove the book at you).  I will have a complete list of all the books I got on my summary post towards the end of the week.  But, in the meantime, here are some pictures of the "few" books I picked up.  

Tote bags galore

One of the things BEA is known for is the huge amount of tote bags they give out - here is a small example of the bags I ended up with (more to come).


After looking through the schedule, I was thrilled to discover that cartoonist Bill Amend, who writes one of my favorite comic strips FOX TROT, was doing a signing.  Because I was at another booth, I missed most of his signing, but he did sign a FOX TROT poster for me that I love and have now put up in my room.

Cartoonist Bill Amend

My signed poster

Books, books and more books.  This is just a small "tower" of books.


After BEA, we headed off to two other publishing events.

The first one was at Sourcebook  which was hosting their event in a very nice room overlooking the city.  Their special guest was figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi who was there to promote her children's book - Big World, Little Pig.  I was thrilled to ask her to sign a copy for my friend and co-worker's little granddaughter.  Finally, I know a little girl who loves books!!!  


Cindy took this picture of Kristi and I (thank you Cindy!)

Kristi and I

This event was wonderful and they had the most original swag - cookies.  Love it.


After the Sourcebook event, we headed to the Scholastic event which was really a lot of fun.  The evening was centered around the launch of the 9th Captain Underpants book and the whole theme evening was built around this.  For some reason, my camera was NOT working so I could not get any pictures (grrrr!) but the event was held at the Scholastic offices on Broadway.  A short video was presented, then we were invited upstairs to the 14th floor for some food and fun (including an impressive pie table ) and these amazing little hamburgers which are called Sliders (I did manage to snap one picture).  These are tiny hamburgers but they are excellent.  Scholastic also has an amazing terrace where you can get a great view of the city.  Fun, fun and fun!  They had a popcorn machine, a cotton candy center, a bar, great snacks, pizza and a tattoo center.  Loved it. 

The price of entry into the Scholastic event?  We had to wear our capes that read "Reading gives you Superpowers"

Cindy and I with our magical cape. For some reason, I had my eyes closed!

Another great day in NYC.


Thank you to Sourcebooks and Scholastic for inviting us to such wonderful events.