Who says you can’t tell this story to a six-year-old?
Before I post the photos from BEA and BookCon in New York, I have to show you what I got in my inbox. It’s a project based on Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass. My librarian friend, Shelley Armstrong, sent me the work of Jordan, Kasey, Myles, and Nick from Dr. Lee Bloxom’s 9th grade English class at the Thomas Dale High School West Campus in Richmond, VA. What better way to teach the impact of audience on writing, than to have a group of kids adapt a story for another age group? Here’s my bad-ass YA novel as a picture book. TDHS Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Butt. (Thanks for sending this Shelley!)
Okay, the photos I managed to get my hands on.
Next time you’re in the city, I recommend staying at the Library Hotel, at 41 and Madison Ave., just up the block from NYPL’s famous stone lions. The entire decor in the hotel is based on the Dewey decimal system, complete with an old card catalog at the reception desk. Each floor houses different categories. You can stay in the paranormal section, romance languages, botany. Even the street outside is decorated with brass plaques featuring quotes by famous literary figures. So strange and fun!
I was shelved in the Slavic Languages section.
I don’t think New Yorkers appreciated me stopping to read all the brass plaques…
I fell in love with a little gem of a school in the East Village called the Cornelia Connelly Center. Sweet, smart students – with great questions. Looking for a place to make a meaningful donation? This is it. Thank you CCC!
The fabulous students at Cornelia Connelley Center
Thanks go to Candlewick for offering F&Gs of my new picture book and free copies of the paperback of YAQUI. I’m also psyched to read titles by my C’wick siblings. (So far, I peeked at the graphic memoir Honor Girl by Maggie Thasher. Amazing.) Look for them this fall.
After the signing of the F&Gs for MANGO.
New work by Todd Strasser, Laura Amy Schlitz, Maggie Thrasher, M.T. Anderson, and Pat Schmatz
And finally, here is a shot of the Book Con panel on diversity. What can I say? This is what happens when you leave tired authors unattended backstage.
Aisha Saeed, me, IW Gregorio, Soman Chainani, Libba Bray, and Jaqueline Woodson. Why not pose with a forklift? (Backstage at BookCon)
Love the photos. I’m looking forward to attending Las Comadres Writers Conference in NYC in October. The hotel you listed is gorgeous, just a little too pricey though. I’m looking forward to visiting the famous NYC library too.
I’ll see you at Las Comadres. I won’t be at The Library either this time, unfortunately!
Love it! Especially the behind-the-scenes shot of the diversity panel!
What a treasure from the 9th grade students. I enjoyed reading their retelling of your novel as a picture book! They put a lot of work into the project. Thanks for sharing!