Book Swag (partial list; advance copies)

[rachelmanija]

Comment if you know of the author, heard of the book, hate the author, etc.

Audrey Couloumbis, The Misadventures if Maude March. YA Western.

Gail Carson Levine, Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg. Illustrated fairy tale by the author of Ella Enchanted.

J. R. Moehringer, The Tender Bar. A bar memoir.

Rick Moody, The Diviners. A novel about a film shoot. If it has lots of production stuff, I will probably like it; if it's a lame satire on eeeeeeevil shallow liposucked LA, I will not.

Starling Lawrence, The Lightning Keeper. Historical novel about "the dawn of the electric age in America."

Stephanie Meyer, Twilight. YA vampire love story, already optioned for film. From the first few pages, a teenage girl moves to a perpetually overcast small town and immediately notices five preternaturally beautiful pale teens, three boys and two girls. I immediately knew which one would be her boyfriend because one has blonde hair, one has dark hair, and one has bronze hair. People with metallic or gemlike colors of eyes or hair are always the romantic lead, unless it's late Laurell K. Hamilton, in which case they're just one of the entire cast of characters.

Jim Lynch, The Highest Tide. A first novel involving the ocean.

Sharon Creech, Replay. YA novel by Newbery winning author whom, oddly, I've never read.

Kitty Fitzgerald, Pigtopia. Hugely hyped novel about a deformed guy with pet pigs who befriends a teenage girl and gives her a piglet; I bet tragedy ensues due to society's inability to see beyond his looks and to understand their special and innocent friendship. (I am a bad, cynical person.)

Comments

[yhlee.livejournal.com]

Gail Carson Levine. By way of, you guessed it, Ella Enchanted.

People with metallic or gemlike colors of eyes or hair are always the romantic lead, unless it's late Laurell K. Hamilton, in which case they're just one of the entire cast of characters.
*dies* This is priceless.

Yoon, of the relentlessly black hair *grin*

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

You mean ebony, right?

[telophase.livejournal.com]

That's not metallic or gemlike, since it's a wood. [/nitpick] However jet is a semiprecious stone...

[faithhopetricks.livejournal.com]

People with metallic or gemlike colors of eyes or hair are always the romantic lead, unless it's late Laurell K. Hamilton, in which case they're just one of the entire cast of characters.

((cackles))

I bet tragedy ensues due to society's inability to see beyond his looks and to understand their special and innocent friendship. (I am a bad, cynical person.)

But you are v entertaining.

[larryhammer]

I've found Levine, outside of Ella Enchanted, to be something of a mixed bag. (Much like Patrice Kindl outside of Owl in Love.) And the Creech I tried was too unrelievedly earnest for me to enjoy.

Say more about the Couloumbis? The snip you pricks up my ears.

---L.

[larryhammer]

Oh, and:

Pigtopia. Hugely hyped novel about a deformed guy with pet pigs who befriends a teenage girl and gives her a piglet; I bet tragedy ensues due to society's inability to see beyond his looks and to understand their special and innocent friendship.

Sounds like the set-up for a Wodehousean romp to me. But I am an odd, whimsical person.

---L.

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

Not if you read the back cover text, it wouldn't.

[larryhammer]

I have no back cover, alas, so my imagination remains unfettered by mere facts. I think it's about pig nobbling.

---L.

[mistressrenet.livejournal.com]

I think you should write this book.

[larryhammer]

First I have to get the Wodehousean romp about bug jewelry and high school sexuality out of the way.

---L.

[mistressrenet.livejournal.com]

Feel free to link me to that, when you get it done. Or give me the name of the publisher, whichever. XD

[larryhammer]

mumblefinishwritingitfirst

[mistressrenet.livejournal.com]

yeahIhavealotofthosetoo.

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

Sorry, they've mostly been packed now. She's apparently a Newbery author, though.

[blackholly.livejournal.com]

I got the Levine, the Meyer and the Fitzgerald. :D

[literaticat.livejournal.com]

My opinions, they are mean-spirited. It has been a long day.

Your description of the pig book makes it sounds like Squealing Hunchback of Terebithia.

[mistressrenet.livejournal.com]

::DIES::

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I have really liked Levine's illustrated short fairy tale things. I did a biographical article on her for an encyclopedia of such things, so I read several. Her other books, as lnhammer indicates, were more of a mixed bag for me, but I've really been charmed by the fairy tale shorts.

[klwilliams.livejournal.com]

I loved Ella Enchanted, and liked the other books by Levine. I'm also pretty sure I've read something by Sharon Creech and liked it, but not loved it. And I bet you're right about Pigtopia.

[e-lockhart.livejournal.com]

Do you love the cover of the Rick Moody? I do.
For those of you who haven't seen it, it's like an illustration from a Thor comic book, or from the TV show of Hercules. Very un-Rick-Moody.

I was just at BEA too (and found your journal via literaticat). I passed on the fairy thing because the pictures were so insipid and it seemed to perpetuate that annoying "the best thing about girls is how cute they are" thing you see so much in Disney.
Pigtopia seemed too precious.
Happy reading!