Calling all Kansas State Fair attendees! The big event is about to launch and we will be there looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Please stop by our booth and say Hi! We have some exciting new titles for you to browse and a fun event to tell you about. We also will be hosting a number of wonderful Kansas authors for you to meet and chat with and even to have sign books for you. What a deal!
First, though, we want to invite everyone - the whole state of Kansas, if possible - to a Notable Book Event hosted by the State Library's Center For the Book to honor the 2008 Notable Book authors. It is at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 2 in the 2nd floor Rotunda of the State Capital building in Topeka. We know this is a tough time for some people to attend an event, but if you are free, the authors will be there for you to meet and, perhaps, sign their books. This is a really interesting and talented group of people that we would love for you to have an opportunity to know. We're sure you will be as impressed as we are with the variety of talent that will be in that room, as well as the immense "nice-ness" of the people! The Midwest, especially the Kansas part of the Midwest, does produce some of the best in both categories.
So, please look over this list of Notable Books for 2008 and see if there are a dozen or so you would like to read:
American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the
New China - Matthew Polly
The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians - Brad Sneed, illustrator
Can I Keep My Jersey? 11 Teams, 5 Countries, and 4 Years in My Life as a Basketball Vagabond - Paul Shirley
The Curse of Catunkhamun - Tim Raglin
The Farther Shore - Matthew Eck
From Emporia: The Story of William Allen White - Beverley O. Buller
Hellfire Canyon - Max McCoy
Hunger for the Wild: America’s Obsession with the Untamed West - Michael L. Johnson
The Kitchen Sink: New and Selected Poems, 1972-2007 - Albert Goldbarth
A Matter of Justice: Eisenhower and the Beginning of the Civil Rights Revolution - David A. Nichols
The Middle of Somewhere - J. B. Cheaney
The Rest of Her Life - Laura Moriarty
Sea Monsters: Prehistoric Creatures of the Deep - Michael J. Everhart
Storm Chaser: A Photographer’s Journey - Jim Reed
Writing in an Age of Silence - Sara Paretsky
Wow! Several of these we've reviewed recently, many more we haven't had a chance to. To look back at what we've written, go to the bookkansas.com web site, click on Email Newsletter in the yellow box, and choose the appropriate month's link. AMERICAN SHAOLIN was discussed in the April newsletter. THE BOY WHO WAS RAISED BY LIBRARIANS was featured in the December newsletter. Jim Reed's STORM CHASER was one of the coffee table books introduced in January and Sara Paretsky's WRITING IN AN AGE OF SILENCE was one of her two new books we also reviewed in that issue. THE REST OF HER LIFE by Laura Moriarty was in the Reviews by Suz section of the March newsletter. We are also proud supporters of the two illustrators represented in this listing. The granddaughters love their work, but we've said that before - in April. All in all, this is a very eclectic and stimulating representation of the fine quality of Kansas authors and their books.
A little quiz: Which author has had two books on the Notable Books list since the awards were begun in 2006? Bring us the answer at our State Fair booth and if you are the first person to do so, you will win a bookmark!
Now, on to the Kansas State Fair! We will be in our usual spot in the Sunflower South building right in front of the door opening off the portico between the two Sunflower buildings. We'll have LOTS of books for you to check out and we have commitments from the following authors to do signings:
Jerry Engler will be back. He has a new book, and it may be off the press by Fair time. We will have his first two and can arrange to send the third to you with free shipping. Jerry is an excellent story-teller and we're sure this book will be as entertaining as the first two.
Don Olson is a new author for us. He has written SAGA OF THE FORT LEAVENWORTH CASTLE, the story of the building and the inhabitants who built it, served time in it and even some who escaped from it. It also debunks some stories about the prison and documents its destruction. Olson, an historian, brings an interesting slice of Kansas life to light.
Jim Potter, who has written COP IN THE CLASSROOM will be signing his book sometime during the first weekend of the Fair. To quote his web site, "Educators, police officers, parents, and advocates of children will find this book informative, entertaining and stimulating." It is filled with stories, some funny, some heart-warming and some some truly sad. Anyone concerned with children and schools, will find this well-written account informative and interesting.
We don't have the scheduled times nailed down yet and we are hopeful that a few more authors will be available to spend some time in the booth talking to you. But I'm sure that whenever you are in Hutchinson celebrating Kansas agriculture and culture, you will be able to pick up a good book to take home and possibly enjoy a conversation with the author as well!
We wonder if these authors would agree with the following quote from John Updike: "I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head." In this crazy, hectic life, that sounds awfully good to us. Whether that is their goal or they had some other end in mind, YOU decide if they've freed your minds to explore new ideas or new joys.
Good reading and good cruising! And come see us at the Fair!
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