Book Expo 2005

WHAT an overwhelming, exciting, wonderful experience! Just like the old ABA Conference back in my bookseller days--brought back many memories. We wandered the show...walked down the huge, aisle length booths being handed advance readers' copies from all directions. I tried to discriminate--came home with about 30 books. Everything from chick lit, to a J.M. Coetzee novel, to a journalist's account of the impact of the "American war on Iraqui citizens, to a documented history of life on a plantation in both the "big house" and the "slave cabins' by a University Press, to a bio of Mama Cass--the first ever--and memoirs, lots of memoirs! That is truly my world--the publishing world, the writer's world. Knowing that some of the best (and okay some of the worst) writers were in the building and new work, new art, new books were everywhere--don't know what it is, but that's what stirs my soul. Then we found a great parking space in the Village and just happened to wind up at White Horse Tavern (where Dylan Thomas drank himself to death; somewhat appropriate considering the day we had) for a few beers, and had dinner at a wonderful little French restaurant across the street--Philip Marie's. They have the most amazing Fruit and Nut Salad....then we got back in the car and came home.

So here I sit, surrounded by books and publisher's fall catalogs...magic.