Gayle Forman will be back for her new book Where She Went on Thursday, May 12 at 6:30pm at Books & Books in Coral Gables for The Ballad of Mia & Adam Experience.
Bestselling If I Stay Author Gayle Forman comes back to Books & Books to help to guide us through The Ballad of Mia & Adam Experience for the companion book, Where She Went.
It's been three years since the devastating accident . . . three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future and each other – and, of course, the music.
Told from Adam's point of view in Gayle Forman’s spare, lyrical prose, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance. Mia and Adam’s story isn’t finished. Neither is ours. The song plays on – at The Ballad of Mia & Adam Experience.
There’s always the music. Check out and download the Where She Went playlist. And then play us a tune from or inspired by the playlist or book at the event. Click here to email us at yathenaeum@yahoo.com to sign up. Performance slots are limited, so sign up today!
Carrie Ryan: The Dark and Hollow Places Tuesday, 3/22, Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale, 6pm
Join us for the OFFICIAL BOOK LAUNCH of the newest book in Carrie Ryan’s bestselling The Forest of Hands and Teeth series.
There are many things that Annah would like to forget: the look on her sister's face before Annah left her behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth, her first glimpse of the Horde as they swarmed the Dark City, the sear of the barbed wire that would scar her for life.
But most of all, Annah would like to forget the morning Elias left her for the Recruiters. Annah's world stopped that day, and she's been waiting for Elias to come home ever since. Somehow, without him, her life doesn't feel much different than the dead that roam the wasted city around her.
Until she meets Catcher, and everything feels alive again. But Catcher has his own secrets. Dark, terrifying truths that link him to a past Annah has longed to forget, and to a future too deadly to consider. And now it's up to Annah: can she continue to live in a world covered in the blood of the living? Or is death the only escape from the Return's destruction? Find the answers to these questions at the book launch for Carrie Ryan’s The Dark and Hollow Places.
Claudia Gray, Courtney Moulton, and Kimberly Derting, authors of Evernight, Angelfire, Body Finder, and Desires of Dead, respectively, will be at Books & Books for a very special event on March 19th at 7pm at
Books & Books
265 Aragon Ave
Coral Gables, FL 33134
This night will not only be a Teen Band Night, but will also be live-streamed on their facebook page, so if you will not be able to attend, you can still virtually attend! If you do watch the live stream event and have any questions you'll be able to send them in and we will choose 4-5 to ask the authors for you.
We hope to see you there or at least hope you can watch the live-stream!
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner: An Eclipse Novella
Friday, June 4, 9:30pm
Books & Books Coral Gables
LIVE MUSIC from Courtesy of Paco
Bree Tanner got just 10 pages in Eclipse, but now she’s getting her due: Her own book in the Twilight family, and her own daylight-kickin’ party at Books & Books. Live music, Twilight trivia contests, costume contests, prizes and oh so much more!
It’s a Books & Books Midnight Release Party, where time flies with all the fun. And then – before you can say, “What the Cullen?!” – we’ll be counting down the final seconds before the midnight release of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. 10, 9, 8, 7 …
At the stroke of midnight, you get your pre-paid copy of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. Pay for your copy of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner at any Books & Books bookshop in South Florida and get a voucher to pick it up at midnight at the Midnight Release Party. And then you can be first among your friends to read The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. You won’t be able to put down this riveting story of Bree Tanner, and the darker side of the newborn vampire world she inhabits. It’s all the stuff that happened in Seattle that you were dying to know about.
This will be Night for Newborns, full of new fun. Play the Twilight Quiz Show. Enter our Bree To Be You and Me Contest. And our What the Cullen?! Test.
Dress the part for the night’s fun: Come as your favorite character. And while all you Bellas, Edwards and Jacobs are welcome, we’ll be giving prizes for the best of the lesser-knowns with our Supporting Character Costume Contest. (Bree much? Jane, anybody?)
So, start dressing as the New Moon rises that night. All the fun of our Night for Newborns Party will Eclipseyour anxiety over the book’s impending release. And then starting at midnight, you can begin reading The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, turning the pages until the Breaking Dawn and reading on until Twilight…
We’re going back – back to when New Wave was new and even Carrie Bradshaw would have rocked the dropped-waist mini and the side pony…
Whether you’re a teenager now – or you were one in the 1980s – join us for a flashback fiesta full of Cosmo cool...
Meet bestselling author CANDACE BUSHNELL Discussing and signing her new novel, The Carrie Diaries (Balzer & Bray, $18.99)
Friday, April 30, 7:30pm The Biltmore Hotel, Country Club Ballroom 1200 Anastasia Ave., Coral Gables
TICKETS REQUIRED. Tickets are available for $5 at all Books & Books stores – and the $5 ticket can be used as a credit toward any book purchase.
Wear your 80s best – banana clips and fingerless lace gloves, perhaps – and sip virgin Cosmos for this evening that only Candace Bushnell could bring us.
Click here for the time-traveling tunes that set the soundtrack for your peek into Carrie Bradshaw’s high school diary.
Before Carrie Bradshaw was the Carrie Bradshaw we know from Sex and the City, she was a small-town girl who knew she wanted more...
She’s ready for her real life to start, but first she must navigate her senior year of high school.
She and her best friends – Walt, Lali, Maggie, and the Mouse – are inseparable, amid the sea of Jens, Jocks and Jets. And then Sebastian Kydd comes into the picture. Sebastian is a bad boy - older, intriguing, and unpredictable.
Carrie falls into the relationship that she was always supposed to have in high school—until a friend's betrayal makes her question everything. With her high school days coming to a close, Carrie will realize it's finally time to go after everything she ever wanted. So, like, oh my gawd, don’t miss out. Get your tickets now. Totally...
We have a pretty awesome year planned out (or at least first half). Lorena, Erika, and Brigitte will be graduating come June, so as a graduation gift from us we're going to go all out!
.:Events:. We have a full line up of bestselling authors this Spring including Heather Brewer and Lisa McMann. Here's a list of our upcoming events:
April 17th: Christina Gonzalez - The Red Umbrella 23rd: Lois Lowry - The Birthday Ball This list is subject to change as more authors are added to our roster! Be sure to stop by and say hi at the signing!
.:Giveaways:. This will we our blog's second year running, and we really want to thank all of our readers. Throughout the months of May and June we will be having weekly giveaways of YA books. Here's a picture of our ever-growing stack of giveaways:
Yes, those are 4 copies of Lisa Mantchev's Perchance to Dream. Right now we have copies of:
Perchance to Dream by Lisa Mantchev (4)
Explorer X-Alpha by LM Preston(2)
The Owl Keeper by Christine Brodien-Jones (1)
Everwild by Neal Shusterman (1)
We'll be updating this list as we add more books to the giveaway so keep a lookout for those!
.:Websites:. We're happy to announce that we are now contributors to Flashlight Worthy an awesome new site where you can find handpicked recommendations of any type of books. From the Best YA of 09 to the Best Back-to-School Books. We'd love for you to head over and check it out!
Thanks to you, Miami beat eight other cities to win this stop on Richelle's tour. So, we know you have all been excited as we have been to have her come.
She'll finally be here tomorrow, Sunday, January 17 at 7pm at the Coral Gables Congregational Church.
Coral Gables Congregational Church
3010 De Soto Blvd.
Coral Gables, FL 33134 (across from the Biltmore Hotel)
The tour brings the Vampire Academy: Signature Edition which includes a sneak peek of the first chapter of Vampire Academy 5: Spirit Bound to be released in May.
"St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where royal Moroi vampires are educated in the ways of magic alongside half-human/half-vampire teens, called dhampirs, who train to protect them from Strigoi, a race of evil immortal vampires. Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth’s magic. She must be protected at all times from the Strigoi; the fiercest vampires—the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa’s best friend, makes her a Dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.
After two years of freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir’s Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardians-to-be, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. But inside the iron gates, life is even more fraught with danger...and the Strigoi are always close by."
“Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson return for another fabulous Books & Books launch party for the newest book in their series: Peter and the Sword of Mercy (Hyperion, $18.99). The year is 1901--it's been twenty-three years since Peter and the Lost Boys returned from Rundoon. Since then, nobody on the island has grown a day older, and the Lost Boys continue their friendship with the Mollusk tribe, and their rivalry with Captain Hook. Meanwhile in London, Molly has married George Darling and is raising three children: Wendy, Michael, and John. One night a visitor appears at her door: It's James, one of Peter's original Lost Boys. He is now working for Scotland Yard and suspects that the heir to England's throne, Prince Albert Edward, is under the influence of shadow creatures. These shadow creatures are determined to find a secret cache of starstuff which fell to London many centuries ago. The starstuff is hidden in an underground vault which has only one key: the Sword of Mercy, a legendary weapon kept with the Crown Jewels. Molly is determined to help, but when she suddenly goes missing, it is up to her eleven-year-old daughter, Wendy, to keep the starstuff out of the Others' clutches. She has heard her mother's stories of a flying boy named Peter Pan, and he may be her only hope in saving the world from a shadowy doom”
As always, we’ll be there so don’t forget to stop by and say hi!
Kristin Cashore will be signing books tomorrow, October 11th at 1pm in Books & Books. Books & Books 265 Aragon Avenue Coral Gables, Florida
"It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her. Exquisitely romantic, Kristin Cashore’sFire (Dial, $17.99) is the companion to the highly praised Graceling but has an entirely new cast of characters, save for one person who plays a pivotal role in both books. You don’t need to have read Graceling to love Fire. But if you haven’t, you’ll be dying to read it next."
As always, hope to see you all there. And don't forget to bring your best graceling outfit!
We're eagerly anticipating our Sarah Dessen Post-Prom tomorrow (June 26th) and hope you'll join us! There will be performances by Generation, M.O.B., All At Once, and Matt Keilson. All gearing up for the woman of the evening, bestselling author Sarah Dessen in honor of her newest book, Along for the Ride!
Books & Books
265 Aragon Ave.
Coral Gables, FL
The bands will begin at 7 and Sarah Dessen will begin at 8.
Here's a little about Along for the Ride, which is now a bestseller!:
It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live. A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she’s been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend. In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect in Along for the Ride(Viking Children’s Books, $19.99).
So, wear your nicest dress (or not, it's not required) and join us with an incredible author for questions answered, books being signed, music, dancing, and anything else you'd like to have. Hope to see you there!
Think your band is ready for the Teen Band Jam Night lineup?
Then, enter our In the Lineup Contest!
On June 26th, none other than Sarah Dessen will be at the Books & Books in Coral Gables in honor of her new book Along for the Ride. And we thought, what better way to make this event the best than to have a Teen Band Jam Night? So, we're having one. (There will be more details about the event in the weeks ahead, stay tuned!)
But there's more! There's a spot left in our Teen Band line up and it could be yours!
.:Rules:.
E-mail an audio link of your band performing to yathenaeum@yahoo.com.
The band members must be 18 years old or younger.
Your band must be able to perform on June 26th. The event starts at 8, but plan you may need to get there early. Exact time will be given if/when you win.
Deadline for entries is Sunday, June 21st at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
Winning band will be picked, based on the link provided, by Books & Books and The YAthenaeum Team.
.:Prizes:
One lucky band will be chosen to perform at Teen Band Jam Night.
Well, there really isn't too much to say this time and we have pictures to demonstrate the most important parts. (Though my camera doesn't like me right now, so we only have a few pictures...)
We were each in a select color being "cats". I looked more like an astronaut because I was in white pants and white long sleeve turtleneck... I thought this would be corrected with the face paint, but no one ended up painting my face, so I looked like I should be in outer-space the whole time. (There are no pictures as evidence)
Anyways, we painted faces, there was a nice turn out, not much more to say.
Here's Lorena painting a fan's face:
Here's Gaby (friend of Julie's) painting Julie's face. It took forever to come off... The residue of the brown made Julie look like she had a bad spray tan until she managed to get it all off. :
And finally, I'll leave you with Erin signing a reader's book:
In honor of the 25th anniversary of The House on Mango Street, we are pleased to have Sandra Cisneros joining us for an event on Tuesday, April 28 at 7:30pm.
Coral Gables Congregational Church
3010 De Soto Boulevard
Coral Gables, FL
Acclaimed by critics, beloved by children and their parents and grandparents, taught everywhere from inner-city grade schools to universities across the country, and translated all over the world, Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street (Doubleday, $10.95) has entered the canon of coming-of-age classics even as it depicts a new American landscape. Sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous, The House on Mango Street tells the story of Esperanza Cordero, whose neighborhood is one of harsh realities and harsh beauty. Esperanza's story is that of a young girl coming into her power, and inventing for herself what she will become. The San Francisco Chronicle has called The House on Mango Street "marvelous... spare yet luminous. The subtle power of Cisnero's storytelling is evident. She communicates all the rapture and rage of growing up in a modern world." As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of Cisneros’ best-selling novel, we realize that it is an extraordinary achievement that will live on for years to come. With her fiction and poetry, Cisneros has been an important part of introducing the modern Hispanic American experience to our national literature. With her distinctive, rhythmic style, she has brought us stories of Mexican heritage and American cultural enclaves. Presented in collaboration with Florida Center for the Literary Arts.
We're happy to announce again (for those who missed it) that author of the bestselling series Warriors, Erin Hunter, will be at Books & Books to speak and sign books on Monday. Hope to see you Monday, April 27 at 6pm.
Books & Books
265 Aragon Ave.
Coral Gables, FL
There will be three, kin of your kin . . . who hold the power of the stars in their paws. A mysterious murder in the ranks has ripped ThunderClan apart. But more secrets still remain to be discovered in Erin Hunter's newest book, Warriors: Power of Three #6 Sunrise (HarperCollins, $16.99).
Jayfeather is determined to find out who his real parents are. But he'll have to trample through a forest of lies in order to uncover the truth. Hollyleaf is shocked by her Clan's disobedience of the warrior code, and distraught enough to strike out at someone she's always admired. And Lionblaze must bear horrified witness to events that will change everything he believes.
In the harshest days of leaf-bare Clanmate turns upon Clanmate, danger lurks behind familiar faces, and one more warrior may be lost forever. . . .
There will also be facepainting to look like part of the ThunderClan! It's going to be awesome! Hope to see everyone there! It will be tons of cat fun!
Not really, but as close to it as we can, which consists of your chance to virtually meet her with us!
Libba will be hosting "Dial Into Summer" live chats with select groups through Skype starting May 11th.
While we already have our spots reserved, we do believe that yes, "the more the merrier." Four lucky winners will get a chance to join in on this afternoon of comic relief and mad cow disease.
There are however a few catches. While we hate limiting our contests to locals, or anyone in the area, you will need to be in Miami on May 23rd to partake in this contest.
.:Rules:.
In 2 sentences, tell us why you want to come to the chat. No more, no less.
E-mail entry to yathenaeum@yahoo.com OR post in a comment below including name and e-mail address
You must be in Miami on May 23rd
Contestants are limited to 1 entry
Deadline is Saturday, May 16th at 7:00 p.m. Eastern
.:Prizes:. 4 entrants will each receive:
1: Spot to sit in with The YAthenaeum Team at Libba Bray's "Dial Into Summer" live chat.
Winners will be chosen on Saturday, May 16th at 8:00 p.m. and announced shortly after.
Live chat will be held Saturday, May 23rd at 4:00 p.m. Winners will be given directions as to where to report after drawing has ended.
In the upcoming week of April 27th, we're happy to announce that author(s) of the bestselling series Warriors, Erin Hunter, will be present at Books & Books to speak and sign books. Which Erin however is still a mystery.
There will be three, kin of your kin . . . who hold the power of the stars in their paws. A mysterious murder in the ranks has ripped ThunderClan apart. But more secrets still remain to be discovered in Erin Hunter's newest book, Warriors: Power of Three #6 Sunrise (HarperCollins, $16.99).
Jayfeather is determined to find out who his real parents are. But he'll have to trample through a forest of lies in order to uncover the truth. Hollyleaf is shocked by her Clan's disobedience of the warrior code, and distraught enough to strike out at someone she's always admired. And Lionblaze must bear horrified witness to events that will change everything he believes.
Brought to you by Lorena. With comments by Erika in blue, Brigitte in yellow.
The afternoon started just as any other event afternoon did with myself frantically calling Brigitte trying to figure out how we would manage to get to the bookstore on time/back home. When it was decided that I would pick up and she would drive back, we made our way to the store. It was probably sometime around 4:45 and Erika calls me telling me that Laurie is already at the store. Please note this is way early, even for an author. So I start freaking out and press my dad to hurry up (though that is impossible seeing as we live in Miami). I got there early, about 4:15 because Julie was selling cards for her New York trip. Once I saw Laurie, I immediately called Lorena and Debra. I felt all secret-servicey especially since Julie and I were still in our uniforms and hadn't changed yet, so we blended in.
Debra came a few minutes later and I told her that Laurie had gone into the east side. We met in the hall and Debra was all stressed out and confused. Then, she relaxed. Laurie went to the cafe to have dinner and since she had to leave at 8, we had her sign stock beforehand. So, Debra and I took down the nice Wintergirls display, flapped the books, and brought them over to the cafe for Laurie to sign. After a few minutes, Julie and I went to change into our white clothing. Right after we got back to the cafe, Brigitte and Lorena came. I now bring you back to Lorena...
We finally got to the store a bit past 5 and started searching for everyone. Laurie had decided to have dinner at the cafe so we found everyone huddled in conversation in the back of the store. Some light introductions on our part and we were off to figure out how we were going to announce the contest winners. We finally managed to get the poems/reader lists to print from the computer behind the register, and began our slow mingling trying to figure out how the evening would be run. At some point during this my friend Sacha arrived to lend an extra hand to our Wintergirl troop.
Debra came to remind us that Laurie had to leave early, so we had to figure out at what point in time we could do the Time Warp with her. So we set out to ask Laurie when she would like us to do it and to get our books signed. Though this ended up as a flurry of "where did so-and-so go?" Whether it was Julie or Brigitte, there can only be one who bears the Time Warp Question and tis I, Highlander!, every 5 minutes someone would disappear somewhere, so actually getting to Laurie took a lot longer than expected. Yep... And we also post-ited all our books in this time...
Eventually we made our way to the cafe and asked Laurie if she would be willing to perform the Time Warp as part of our tradition. She was more than willing, and we decided we'd perform it after her Q&A. Apparently Debra had also mentioned to her our fear of higher education possibilities after reading Catalyst. So we entered this long conversation dealing with how the #1 university in the nation was not needed for a successful future. (I'm still a nervous wreck about this... Though a little calmer than before.) Laurie then got to signing our books (I finally beat Erika)(It's okay, it's just the once. :P And I still had 4 books signed.) and we proceeded back into the east wing to finish setting up for the event.
First order of business, contest winners. Debra introduced me to the audience and asked for me to announce the 3 winners of our Speak Up Poetry Slam. Though one was not present to read his poem, we had two amazing readings from Nicole and Bianca.
After the readings, both winners were presented with a copy of Wintergirls, and the floor was opened for Laurie to begin speaking. She discussed her reasons for writing Speak which then lead on to about Wintergirls.
Question and Answer began shortly after this, and we then got our chance to do the Time Warp. I have devised a new formula as to which way we all turn. Wherever the author is, we turn. Though Laurie sort of ruined my formula. (Maybe from now on we should go opposite author? It does back it easier for them so they can see where we turn.) I think we should go with the formula that makes the least sense.
As Laurie sat to begin signing, we opened the floor for anyone who had brought poems to read. We went on our usual post-it duties, and made conversation with anyone who approached us.
After work was done and Laurie had to leave, we grabbed a quick picture with her and bid our farewells.
Brought to you by Erika. With comments by Julie in green.
I’ll start from when I got home from school. A little while later Julie (That's me :D) and her friend (Sasha) came. We put on our super cool painted jeans and Books & Books t-shirts and at 4:30, we all hopped into my dad’s SUV (my mom needed the extra room for the way home, more on that later) and were on our way.
Once we got to Bal Harbour, we immediately went to the store. Debra wasn’t there yet, so we just put our stuff in the back. Then, we found a café and ate. Debra found us and said how she had been stuck in traffic coming from a school event. FOR ONCE WE WERE THERE BEFORE LORENA AND BRIGITTE!!!!!!! (See miracles happen)
When we were done, we went back to the store and soon Lorena, Brigitte, and Lorena’s cousin came. (After we were waiting FOREVER) We just kind of stood around and looked at the books in the YA section. I also went over what I was going to say in my introduction. Julie wanted me to do an April Fool’s that Ann wasn’t here, but: 1. She would be coming through the front so everyone would see her and 2. That was pretty mean considering how it was cancelled in January. I still think it would've been a good idea...
Then, people started coming, Catherine (my friend) came with her neighbor (Ann’s cousin), so I went over and started talking to them. When I went back they were looking at pop-up books… COOL pop-up books.
Since the newspaper had said 7:30, we decided to wait a little while just in case. Then, Ann came in and Debra introduced her to us. As I thought the plan for our joke wouldn’t have worked since she past everyone. Whatever...
So, Debra introduced us. Lorena introduced our contest winner and gave her the book. Here's a picture of the contest winner with Ann:
Then, I introduced Ann. We all went to the back and stood as we listened and filmed.:
Once she was done talking and answering questions, Debra announced how when Ann was supposed to have come in January Julie was going to have her birthday party and since it was also Brigitte’s birthday the week before that she got a cake. It was blue for 3 Willows. Though I had given up sweets for lent... And I found out Catherine did too, so we were resisting the cake together. It was really thoughtful...
We started post-it-ing and stacking up the chairs. Once everyone was finished, I got all my books signed (notice how she said "my" books. She still won't let me get any signed to me...3 Willows was signed to both) and we asked her our Q&A questions (The Q&A will be up in the next week).
She started signing stock and we were still just talking. We asked our typical Q&A question if she could do the timewarp. Since she said not really, we did it in front of the table while she was still signing.
A while later, Debra came up to us and said, “Have you heard of Kevin Rudolf? Apparently his song is number 3. He’s the guy in the black back there.” (Referring to near the front door behind us.)
We all went, “Nope, never heard of him.” After going home I looked him up and realized I’ve heard his song countless times… (I WAS/AM SO MAD WE DIDN'T GET HIS AUTOGRAPH!!!!! IT WAS SUCH A GOOD OPPORTUNITY!!!!)
Ann finished signing stock and then we said our goodbyes, piled into the car (there were now 6 of us plus my mom) (it was a tight fit) , and headed to my house where everyone was being picked up.
