Jon Stewart, Sara Gruen Among BEA Headliners

BookExpo America announced today the author lineup for breakfast and lunch events at the 2010 trade show. Scheduled to appear are Cory Doctorow, Sarah Ferguson, William Gibson, John Grisham, Sara Gruen, Christopher Hitchens, Patton Oswalt, Richard Peck, Mitali Perkins, Condoleezza Rice, Mary Roach, and Jon Stewart.

BEA 2010 will be held from Tuesday through Thursday, May 25 - 27, at New York's Javits Convention Center.

"We are incredibly fortunate to have these authors assembled at our show, and I know that will be a great draw for BEA and will ensure that these events will sell out," said Steven Rosato, event director for Book Expo America, in a statement. "Above all, I am thankful to the publishers who support us, and who bring their authors to BEA so that we might all enjoy meeting them, and hearing what they have to say. It's a very unique and special opportunity for anyone who is part of the book industry and who attends BEA."

BEA noted that Stewart would be returning to the trade show as Master of Ceremonies for the Thursday breakfast, featuring Grisham, Rice, and Roach. (Stewart first appeared at BEA in 2004.)

The 2010 lineup of BEA speakers and events includes: 

WEDNESDAY, May 26, 2010

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), Association of Booksellers for Children (ABC), and the Children's Book Council (CBC)] this opening-day breakfast will feature:

• Cory Doctorow, author of For the Win (Tor Books/Tor Teen)

• Mitali Perkins, author of Bamboo People (Charlesbridge)

• Richard Peck, author of Three Quarters Dead (Penguin/Dial Books for Young Readers)

Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, and author of Helping Hand Books: Emily's First Day at School (Sterling Children's Books) will be the Master of Ceremonies. 

THURSDAY, May 27, 2010

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. THURSDAY BOOK & AUTHOR BREAKFAST (Special Events Hall)

The Thursday morning breakfast will feature:

• Condoleezza Rice, author of Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family (Crown)

• John Grisham, author of a forthcoming title from Doubleday

• Mary Roach, author of Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void (W.W. Norton)

Jon Stewart, author (along with the writers of The Daily Show) of The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Presents Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central Publishing) will be the Master of Ceremonies.

Noon - 2:00 p.m. THURSDAY BOOK & AUTHOR LUNCHEON (Special Events Hall)

This year's BEA lunch will feature:

• Christopher Hitchens, author of Hitch-22: A Memoir (Twelve/Hachette Book Group USA)

• Sara Gruen, author of Ape House (Spiegel & Grau)

• William Gibson, author of Zero History (G.P. Putnam's Sons)

Patton Oswalt, author of Zombie Spaceship Wasteland (Scribner) will be the Master of Ceremonies.

With this year's shortened, mid-week trade show schedule, there will be one less Author Breakfast; however, show officials stressed that there will be more author programming than ever before. After a successful debut last year, the Author Stages will return to the convention floor, and a new stage is being added. "Our focus remains on quality vs. quantity," Rosato said, adding, "Author Stages proved to be a fantastic opportunity last year for showcasing authors from all walks of life in an intimate setting for booksellers and the media. I know that we will have amazing content and dialogue on all three stages. It will be jam packed!"

An Opening Night Reception is planned for Tuesday evening, May 25, at 6:00 p.m., and the show's traditional evening of entertainment on behalf of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the Association of American Publishers' (AAP) Get Caught Reading Campaign is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 25, at Town Hall. Details about the Author Stages, Opening Night Reception, and ABFFE/AAP benefit will be announced soon.

For more information and to register for BEA, visit bookexpoamerica.com.