I just got back from attending my first Book Expo of America in L.A. WOW! My first impression was this was like a Star Trek convention for bookies.

Children’s lit, non-fiction, cookbooks, tell-alls, celebs’ books, famous authors in the chutes, comic books, romance (of course), authors, librarians, booksellers, publishers (so many I really couldn’t begin to count). This giantic mass of books and book-related business took up two buildings at the LA Convention Center. It really was mind-boggling.

My dear sister Jan, bless her heart, agreed to go with me on this great adventure. We set off in her Prius and made the round trip in 745 miles. Gas-wise, because I know you’re curious, we made 47.2 MPG. Go Prius!!!

We stayed with our good friends Nancy and Bill in Huntington Beach. This meant more driving (about 45 minutes each way into downtown LA) but being somewhat naive about traffic, I didn’t think this would be a problem.

Guess what? Traffic should qualify as a source of Post Traumatic Stress. The morning of my signing (the only time I really had to worry about getting there on time) 11 lanes of traffic on the 110-N came to a complete stop for ten minutes. I was totally freaked out, but somehow the time gods were with me because I got to my cute little bistro table in the RWA booth with about two minutes to spare. (But my hand was so shaky I could barely sign my name )

Here are a couple of shots I took. I wish I’d taken more, but the mass of bodies made it hard to stop and gawk.

Here’s Tara Taylor Quinn signing copies of her book, TRUSTING RYAN, which won’t be out until July. It’s a sequel to her book that’s up for a Rita. I’m reading it now and really liking it.

I didn’t get to see my pal Ken Casper, but I took this cool shot of his new NASCAR release. Way to go, Ken!

Here’s one last pic. Jan and I were invited to the Harlequin party, which was held at the historic Park Plaza Hotel. Historic is right! The outside is stunning, the inside so steeped in history you just want to find a quiet corner and eavesdrop on the ghosts of all the famous people who probably stayed there. The building started off life as LA’s Elk’s Lodge, then segued into a hotel. It was also used as a film set for many movies. Jan and I had a blast. Oh, and the park it sits across from is McArthur Park. Took me two days to get that tune out of my head.

There’s a free book for the first person who tells me who sang it.

Deb