BEA Announces 2009 Special Events Author Lineup

On Thursday, March 5, BookExpo America announced the lineup of authors participating at special events at this May's trade show in New York City. Among the writers to be showcased at the Author Breakfasts, the Saturday Lunch, the Audiobook Tea, or Meet the Bestsellers are Julie Andrews Edwards, Craig Ferguson, Tracy Kidder, Jeanette Walls, Pat Conroy, Kathie Lee Gifford, Joe Scarborough, Richard Russo, and Nicholas Sparks.

"Our lineup is as robust as it is diverse, which is a point of pride and satisfaction for us, especially since we still have more dynamic author programming to announce over the next two months," said Lance Fensterman, vice president and show manager for BEA, in a statement. "I am profoundly grateful to the publishers and authors who make these quality events possible. Our biggest priority at BEA is to keep building our author programming."

BEA will be held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center from May 28 - 31. Tickets for BEA's 2009 Special Events will be available for purchase through the BEA website, bookexpoamerica.com, beginning Wednesday, March 18; prices will be announced at that time.

The lineup of events and speakers includes:

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.: Children's Book & Author Breakfast (Special Events Hall)
Presented in cooperation with the Children's Booksellers and Publishers Committee [A cooperative committee of the American Booksellers Association (ABA), the Association of Booksellers for Children (ABC), and the Children's Book Council (CBC)].

• Meg Cabot, author of Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls Book 4: Stage Fright (Scholastic Inc.)
• Tomie de Paola, author of Strega Nona's Harvest (Penguin Young Readers Group)
• Amy Krouse Rosenthal, author of Duck! Rabbit! (Chronicle Books) and Little Oink (Chronicle Books)
• Julie Andrews Edwards, author of Julie Andrews' Collection of Favorite Poems, Songs, and Lullabies (Little Brown Books for Young Readers) as Master of Ceremonies

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.: Saturday Book & Author Breakfast (Special Events Hall)

• Tracy Kidder, author of Strength in What Remains (Random House)
• Jeannette Walls, author of Half Broke Horses: A True Life Novel (Scribner)
• Ben Mezrich, author of The Accidental Millionaires (Doubleday)
• Craig Ferguson, author of American on Purpose: A Memoir (HarperCollins) as Master of Ceremonies

Noon - 2:00 p.m.: Saturday Book & Author Luncheon (Special Events Hall)

• Pat Conroy, author of South of Broad (Doubleday)
• Lorrie Moore, author of A Gate at the Stairs (Alfred A. Knopf)
• Daniel Pink, author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Truly Motivates Us (Riverhead Books)
• Ken Auletta, author of Googled: The End of the World as We Know It (Penguin Press) as Master of Ceremonies

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.: The Heard Word: BEA's Audiobook & Author Tea (Room 1A10 & 1A12)
Hosted by the Audio Publishers Association

• Kathie Lee Gifford, author of Just When I Thought I'd Dropped My Last Egg (Random House Audio)
• Lisa Scottoline, author of Look Again (Macmillan Audio)
• Katherine Kellgren, narrator of the Odyssey Honor-winning audiobook Curse of the Blue Tattoo (Listen & Live Audio)

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.: Sunday Book & Author Breakfast (Special Events Hall)

• Richard Russo, author of That Old Cape Magic (Alfred A. Knopf)
• Gail Collins, author of When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1950 to the Present (Little, Brown and Company)
• Pete Dexter, author of Spooner (Grand Central Publishing)
• Joe Scarborough, author of Up From Republicanism: How Conservatives Can Take Back America (Crown Forum) as Master of Ceremonies

Noon - 2:00 p.m.: Meet The Bestsellers! (Room 1A10, 1A12, 1A14)

A complimentary lunch courtesy of Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group will feature Nicholas Sparks, author of The Last Song, coming in September 2009, and David Baldacci, author of an untitled novel to be published in November 2009. A Q & A and autographing session will follow. Seating is limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Admission is free.