BookExpo America Announces Stellar Special Events Lineup

BookExpo America (BEA) today announced the roster of speakers for the trade show's popular Author Breakfasts and Luncheon programs. This year's lineup brings together top names from the diverse worlds of literature, children's books, politics, sports, and Hollywood. Among the participants are Sherman Alexie, Neil Gaiman, Christopher Buckley, Richard Engel, Azar Nafisi, Alec Baldwin, Michael Moore, Magic Johnson, and Ted Turner.

Noting the array of talent that will be featured at this year's show, BEA Vice President and Show Manager Lance Fensterman said, "We're very lucky to be able to showcase these writers at our convention and to provide a forum where they may speak their minds."

Tickets for BEA's 2008 special events will be available for purchase through the BEA website, www.bookexpoamerica.com, beginning Wednesday, March 5.

Registration for the American Booksellers Association's Day of Education, which will be held on Thursday, May 29, at Hotel ABA, will also open on the BEA website on March 5.

The lineup of BEA's special events to date includes:

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.: CHILDREN'S BOOK & AUTHOR BREAKFAST (Concourse 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)]

• Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
• Judy Blume, Going, Going, Gone! With the Pain and the Great One (Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers)
• Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book (HarperCollins)
• Eoin Colfer, Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox (Hyperion Books for Children/Disney Book Group) will be the Master of Ceremonies
• Introductory Remarks by Jon Scieszka, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature

General Admission: $15. Breakfast Admission: $35.

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. SATURDAY BOOK & AUTHOR BREAKFAST (Concourse Hall)

• Magic Johnson, Magic Moves: 32 Lessons on How to Be an All-Star in Business (Crown Business)
• Philippa Gregory, The Other Queen (Touchstone/S&S)
• Andre Dubus III, The Garden of Last Days: A Novel (Norton)
• Alec Baldwin, A Promise to Ourselves: A Journey Through Divorce and Fatherhood (St. Martin's) will be the Master of Ceremonies

General Admission: $15. Breakfast Admission: $35.

Noon - 2:00 p.m. SATURDAY BOOK & AUTHOR LUNCHEON (Concourse Hall)

Focusing on political and social issues will be:

• Richard Engel, War Journal (S&S)
• Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, Taking on the System: Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era (Celebra)
• Jon Krakauer, The Hero (Doubleday)
• Michael Moore, author of an as yet untitled work (Grand Central)
• Christopher Buckley, Supreme Courtship: A Novel (Twelve) will be the Master of Ceremonies

Admission: $50.

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. THE HEARD WORD: BEA'S AUDIOBOOK & AUTHOR TEA (Room 403)

Discussing their recent and upcoming audiobooks and the experience of hearing their works translated into audiobook format will be:

• Robert Crais, Untitled Elvis Cole Novel (Brilliance Audio)
• T. Jefferson Parker, L.A. Outlaws (Brilliance Audio)
• Michael Connelly, The Brass Verdict (Hachette Audio)

Hosted by the Audio Publishers Association. Admission: $20.

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. SUNDAY BOOK & AUTHOR BREAKFAST (Concourse Hall)

• Ted Turner, Call Me Ted (Grand Central)
• Azar Nafisi, Things I've Been Silent About: A Memoir of Family (Random House)
• Dennis Lehane, The Given Day (Morrow)
• John Hodgman, More Information Than You Require (Dutton) will be the Master of Ceremonies

General Admission: $15. Breakfast Admission: $35.

As BEA previously announced, three-time Pulitzer Prize winner and National Book Award recipient Thomas L. Friedman (Green Is the New Red, White, and Blue, FSG) will be this year's 2008 keynote speaker. Friedman will appear at the convention on Friday, May 30, at 11:00 a.m. at a non-ticketed event open to all BEA badge-holders.

In addition, bestselling author and Daily Show regular Lewis Black will perform exclusively for trade show attendees at BEA's annual fundraising event to benefit the American Booksellers' Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the Association of American Publishers' Get Caught Reading campaign. The Book Industry Foundation Benefit will be held at the Orpheum Theater in downtown Los Angeles, near the convention center. Tickets for Black's performance cost $35.