Meeting Educators & Kids

Rich and I had the chance to speak with educators at the Barnes & Noble in Manchester, New Hampshire and we really enjoyed meeting local high school and elementary school librarians and teachers. We had tea and cakes and talked about our novels, then chatted to some of the attendees after.

What was really special though, was heading to the Barnes and Noble in Nashua right after and signing books there. The events co-ordinator timed our visit perfectly. Students from a nearby Catholic school were just finishing their poetry readings (lots of great odes to their teachers!)so we had a captive audience.

We sold out of our books and got to chat with little Jack (pictured below with Rich),

and lots of other kids who were looking for summer reads.

The store was really busy and though it's quite huge, still has the feel of a local bookstore, with helpful and enthusiastic staff who know about books.

Pennsylvania Bound

Little Joe's "Blue Ribbon Tour" hit Pennsylvania the first weekend in November and it was really great for Rich and I to visit our old home state. Kickers, Rich's soccer series, already has quite a fan base and one young reader wore his Bobcats shirt, just like Ben does in the books. Little Joe, set in PA farm country, was bought by parents and grandparents to read aloud and share experiences familiar to some of the generations who were in 4-H.
We were smack in the middle of farm country in Muncy, where Madison, pictured with me, got Little Joe for her Christmas present and promised not to read it until then. Thanks to Joyce at the Borders there, who made us feel special and had our signing table hopping!
We met up with teachers as one of our stops coincided with a book fair and a few burgeoning young writers who have been penning realistic fiction since before they got into double digits.(Can't wait to read their books in the future.)

A Blue ribbon for all the Pennsylvania stores that carry our books and for those that hosted our signings!