Category: Personal Stuff

My New York Trip Day #6: Last Day of Book Expo America 2015

DSCN2030As pretty much everyone who writes on the topic of Book Expo will inform you, the last day of the expo is the craziest.  There are the most people with the most books and they’re all there to get as many books signed as possible.  Line ups are crazy and it’s a little disorganized but things usually work out okay in the end.

I know this because I went to go get a book by Scott Westerfeld signed and ended up in line for almost an hour.  That wasn’t all that bad because who should be behind me but Kellie Sheridan, the co-founder of Patchwork Press and author of Mortality, a book I thoroughly enjoyed.  Talking to her was awesome while waiting for Scott Westerfeld (who was, in the brief time we met, incredibly nice).

The only other book I stood in line for was Fairest by Marissa Meyer.  It was a good thing I showed up early to get in line because apparently they were limiting the line to 100 people or something.  It wasn’t one of the ticketed signings but I think a lot of people really wanted the book so I’m glad I ended up getting it. Marissa Meyer is one of those authors I never expected to stumble across but have absolutely loved her books in the Cinder series.  Reading Fairest will be a nice little treat while waiting for her next full length book.

I wanted to meet up with two people but only actually met up with one, which was fine.  I can’t talk much about who I met and what we discussed because so far it’s just in the works but I think it’s something a lot of book reviewers like me could benefit from in the future.

On this last day I didn’t really stick around long because I’d seen pretty much everything I wanted to see and talked to almost everyone I wanted to talk to.  I had a great time at the Expo and would recommend it to anyone who has wanted to go in the past.  The bloggers conference isn’t really worth your time but the main expo definitely is.

My New York Trip Day #5: Book Expo America 2015

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Since I scouted out the convention centre instead of going to the blogger social after the Bloggers Conference I sort of knew where I was going this morning.  I didn’t have to hurry in to register right away because the exhibit hall wasn’t officially open until 9:00 and I was already registered from the Bloggers Conference.  So I came in around 8:30 and accidentally stumbled onto a galley drop over at Scott Westerfeld’s publisher for his new collaborative work, Zero.  I wasn’t expecting it but I enjoy Westerfeld’s work so I’m actually quite eager to get started on it.

Again I was very selective about only picking books I have the full intention of reviewing but there are just so many books out there.  Even if you’re as selective as I am, you’ll end up with 20+ books.  Part of the reason is because there are so many YA galley drops and signings.  The publishers know their audience for the Expo and they aren’t stupid; they do cater quite a bit to the blogging community.

The only thing I really planned on seeing today was the Tor/Forge panel because John Scalzi was moderating/interrogating for it.  I discovered some amazing new authors like Seth Dickinson and Ilana C. Myer from the panel.  John Scalzi really is a great interviewer because he makes things funny without making them seem contrived or forced.  I was up front so I noticed poor Ilana Myer was shaking she was so nervous at first but Scalzi put her at ease and pretty soon her personality was shining through.  The real star of the panel seemed to be Seth Dickinson, whose book The Traitor Baru Cormorant sounds amazing. He was hilarious and it’s clear that he’s really thought the political aspect of his world through.  When I learned that he and Ilana Myer were signing I actually stood in line for autographs and got books from both of them.  In the process I learned that this was poor Ilana’s first panel!  Sticking her in front of a full audience at Book Expo America of all places was an interesting decision on Tor/Forge’s part but John Scalzi luckily made her right at home.

DSCN2028After the panel everyone crowded around the authors so I went off to explore the expo more.  By the time I came back John Scalzi was finishing up with a group so I awkwardly asked him for a picture, which is above.  He was really cool about it and I was so excited I could barely form a proper sentence.  So thanks for the awesome picture, John Scalzi!  It really made my day to meet one of my favourite authors/bloggers.

So that was my second day at the expo and my fifth day in New York.  So far, things have been amazing and I’m not looking forward to going home.

My New York Trip Day #4: BEA Book Bloggers Convention

 

Okay, let’s talk about what I did all day: the BEA 2015 Book Bloggers Convention!

DSCN20188:00-9:00am: The first thing that happened was the badge pick up with a rather pathetic continental breakfast.  Of course the nice one was reserved for the ABA, not the poor bloggers!  There was nary any fruit to be seen on our table, let alone juice.  So I ended up having to be content with one sad looking muffin since I don’t drink coffee.  I’m not complaining but I just thought it would be a little more impressive than that.  Especially since they made such a fuss about it in all of the emails. Continue reading →

My New York Trip Day #3: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

DSCN1948Today I was awake enough to go and attempt the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  It’s something that I’ve wanted to see since I learned that they had an enormous Egyptian wing.  As you guys obviously know by now, I’m a big fan of ancient Egypt so there was no way I’d miss out on this opportunity!  But once I got in the doors, I was overwhelmed.  The museum is even bigger than I’d thought so I decided to head to the Greco-Roman wing first, thinking I’d hit the Egyptian section later.  Wrong!  I got to the museum at 11:00 and left at 5:00 and that was barely enough time to appreciate everything in that wing from the Romans, Greeks and Etruscans.

DSCN1950One of the things I was constantly and consistently amazed by was the quality of metal work displayed in the early Greek civilization.  I believe these are some Minoan or Cretan gold fragments and they’re even more impressive up close.  The beautiful amount of detail the ancients managed on these tiny little gold pieces is fabulous.  Later on their gold work gets even more intricate but even in their early civilization they created just amazing works of art. Continue reading →

My New York Trip Day #2: Travelling and Sightseeing

DSCN1938[1]Okay, Pearson Airport in Toronto is officially a nightmare!  It’s even worse than it was two years ago!  They’ve moved the signs around because of construction and none of the employees seem to know where anything is anymore so it’s not like I could stop and ask directions.  Now the whole airport is way more counter-intuitive than it used to be.

After getting off the flight from Edmonton I had to of course go through U.S. customs and immigration.  This was a nightmare.  First off, I had to find the stupid thing (which was not labelled and was concealed down a tiny hallway under construction).  Secondly, I had to deal with the most miserable, surly security people I’ve ever dealt with.  And it’s not like this is my first time flying anywhere.  Every single person there looked like they’d rather be anything but there and God forbid you asked them a question about what you were supposed to do next.  They’d look at you like you admitted you loved killing kittens or something equally horrible.

The flight to New York was short and relatively pleasant because I had a window seat so I could prop my head against the side and sleep the whole time.  I fell asleep just after the security demonstration and didn’t wake up until we began our descent.  So when I got to the hotel after one wild cab ride I was relatively awake but still rather exhausted.  I slept a little bit before deciding to venture out and try my hand at the metro.  It was a little confusing at first but I eventually got the hang of it.

DSCN1944[1]The first thing I did was go to Union Square for the farmer’s market.  I picked up a little bit of local honey as well as some apples, cherries and bananas.  It’s expensive to eat in New York so that’s my snack food for mornings and mid-afternoons.  Good thing there’s a bakery near where I’m staying!  There’s nothing like a little fresh baked bread slathered with honey, is there?

After the farmer’s market I continued down on Broadway to go visit the Strand Bookstore, the famous ’18 mile of books’ one.  And I have to say I was actually quite impressed.  I bought more books than I should have and to be honest, you could probably leave me in there for a week and I’d be perfectly content to explore.  Yes, it’s that big.  I also went to go check out the Barnes & Noble store near the farmer’s market.  Why would I do that?  Well, it’s five storeys tall and the building looks at least a hundred years old so I had to go snoop.

DSCN1939[1]Now it’s only 9:00 at night local time and I’m utterly exhausted so I’ll leave you with the above picture from my hotel room window.  A longer essay will follow tomorrow because I’m going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and you guys know how long-winded I get where history is concerned.