Conference: Book Expo America #BEA13

As many who are involved in the publishing and book world know, this past Wednesday, May 29th through Saturday, June 1st, was the annual BookExpo America. Held in New York City, at the Jacob Javits Center, it's a pretty huge deal for those of us living on the east coast.

Usually I represent Read My Mind for the entire event, however real-life work commitments interfered this year, and I was only able to attend one full day on the exhibit floor.

Saturday, June 1st, the last day of the convention, also coincides with one of the event's newest venture, Power Reader Day, where the public can register to attend as avid readers and book lovers.


For some, BEA is not just about acquiring "free books". It's the chance to network and build stronger relationships with publishers, publicists, and representatives of the world that exists to promote authors, a love of reading for the next generation, and improve literacy overall. This is the approach that I have taken in the past couple of years and how I want to present Read My Mind at the event. I think, because this is my 4th BEA, I've gotten a bit over the idea of grabbing as many free things as possible. That's not to say that I don't get super excited to hear about some of the books and authors making an appearance at the conference, by any means!

Since I was only in New York for an abbrieviated stay, I did not have a chance to attend some of the events that sounded really exciting this year.

I was uber excited to hear about the Publishing Hackathon that started the week before BEA. The finalists were presented at the conference. The idea of this type of event intrigued my inner geek girl.

Check out the Hackathon website for more info about the event itself, and who the finalists were.

One of the other improvements this year at BEA was the mobile app, available for Android, iPhone and iPad. I thought the Android app was fairly user-friendly. I was able to not only look up authors and their events, but also the books they would be promoting. There was a complete list of books being represented, and an "email" section where the conference sent updates during the day for some of the advertised events.

Sponsored by:

Check back to Read My Mind where I'll have a post about my personal experience at BEA, and of course, THE BOOKS!

BEA Book Spotlight: Dare You To by Katie McGarry Book Review

Blurb:
If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....

Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him.

But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all...


There are some books that I read and are completely blown away by. Last year, one of those books was PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry. Not only did she deliver a powerhouse of a novel, but she delivered a complete story arc that satisfied me to the bone. Therefore, I was utterly excited to read the next book. Not only was Beth Risk such an interesting character when she first showed up, but the edgy tension and so, so real environment promised to continue, and even be ratcheted up a notch.

To my surprise, McGarry takes Beth out of her friendly space, the space that I loved during PUSHING THE LIMITS, plops her down in a totally foreign world, then has Beth deal with all manner of distractions. The Beth Risk that I wanted to know more about was revealed layer by layer, in such a complex and engrossing story that I read 300+ pages in one sitting. I couldn't put the book down until I read the last page. That's how compelling it was.

Everything I have to say about DARE YOU TO is a rave. From Ryan's very detailed character, to Beth's family relationships and hardships, to the peek we see of old favorites, Noah and Echo... McGarry brings an awesome character-driven novel to the table, grabs the reader by the throat and pulls us along for a ride. Anyone who likes books should read this.

I dare you.

My Rating:
14/15
Must Read
4.5 star
A


I obtained this book from Harlequin Teen. No other compensation was given for the expectation of an honest review.