YA New York

I have been remiss in updating this here blog, but I promise you two more reviews, plus an interview, by week’s end. However, for now you need to know about some upcoming events:

E. Lockhart, Sarah Mylnowski and Lauren Myracle, authors of How to Be Bad and many other brilliant YA books, will be doing a reading in NYC this weekend. 1 p.m. at Books of Wonder, 18 W. 18th St., between 5th and 6th. From everything I’ve been reading, these gals are a bucket of fun. Actually, buckets of fun, plural. Alas, I won’t be able to attend their event this weekend, but I’ll be interviewing them tomorrow, so I’ll post about it by Saturday at the latest.

Now, if for some unknown and unimaginable reason this is not your cup of tea (how could it not be? How???), you can come with me to the Brooklyn Tee Party at Etsy Labs. Same time, but at 325 Gold St. in Brooklyn. Lauren Mechling, co-author of the Social Climber series, will be reading from her new book, Dream Girl. Rachel Maude will be reading from the first book in a new series, Poseur. And Zareen Jaffery and Emily Gould will be reading from their novel, Hex Education. If you choose the Tee Party over Books of Wonder — and I won’t hold it against you either way, because personally I want to divide myself in two so I can be in both places at once — remember to bring an old T-shirt with you, so you can paint it up and do all sorts of wacky things to turn it glam.

Choices, people. You have a lot of choices to make. And I’m certain you’ll make the right one. You have two choices. Not three. The third choice, the one you don’t have, is to stay home on your sorry butt and eat potato chips while watching re-runs of Gilmore Girls on your DVR. No, trust me. You will have way more fun if you go to one of these readings.

By the way, last time I was at Books of Wonder for a reading, there were lots and lots of free delicious baked goods. Just saying.

FYI, Cory Doctorow will be doing a reading and signing here in NYC at Books of Wonder on Monday, May 26 from 5 to 7 p.m. 18 W. 18th Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues.

Cory is going to be promoting Little Brother, a book about teen hackers who get taken in by Homeland Security when the Bay Bridge in San Francisco is blown up. This is his first YA book, but by no means his first book. In fact, Cory is no ordinary novelist. He is the King of Geek, one of the most acclaimed and awesome computer wizards of this day and age. (Thus the book about hackers? Mayhaps.)

I’ll be at the signing with my camera and notebook in tow, but until then … get this … you can download Cory’s book for FREE. This is because he released it under a Creative Commons license, hoping to make his work available to as many people as possible. You’ve got to admit the guy’s got moxie.

So spend this weekend reading his latest, and then meet up with me at Books of Wonder on Monday. I mean, what else have you got to do? Go to a barbecue? Pah!

PS. Scott Westerfeld himself told me to (a) read Little Brother and (b) attend Cory’s reading. And honestly? If Scott Westerfeld told you to jump off a bridge, you would, wouldn’t you?

Lauren Mechling, co-author of the fantastic 10th Grade Social Climber series, will be appearing at Etsy Labs in Brooklyn on Sunday, June 1, along with Rachel Maude, Emily Gould and Zareen Jaffery.

The event will be from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., and not only will the authors be giving away free books — so a little bird tells me — but folks will be encouraged to bring along old T-shirts to remake into vintage finds.

In fact, here’s a little ad for the whole shebang: