Mike Wallace and John Irving Among Authors Featured on BEA Events Program

Mike Wallace photo courtesy of CBS News

Doris Kearns Goodwin photo credit: Richard Goodwin

Umberto Eco photo credit: Anne Selders

Pam Muñoz Ryan photo credit: Steve Thanos Photograph

On Wednesday, February 9, BookExpo America (BEA) announced the speakers for its events program, which features the popular Author Breakfasts and Luncheon. Among the authors who will be appearing at BEA are Mike Wallace, John Irving, and Umberto Eco. BEA is scheduled for June 1 - June 5 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City.

"This is my first year as BEA Show Manager, and I quickly learned after coming on board that our Author Events program, which has been so wonderfully developed through the years by ABA, is our crown jewel," said Chris McCabe, vice president and show manager for BEA. "I have been pleased to see how eager publishers and their authors are to participate, and I'm thankful to the thousands of booksellers who have made it all possible by attending these events year-in and year-out. The success of this year's program is largely dependent on the industry's willing participation, and so it is only with a great deal of gratitude that I can boast about our excellent speakers. I am looking forward to helping make all our author events a huge success."

On Friday, June 3, Daniel Handler, legal, literary, and social representative of Lemony Snicket; Alice Provensen; and Pam Muñoz Ryan will be featured at the Children's Book & Author Breakfast, which is presented in cooperation with the Children's Booksellers and Publishers Committee of the American Booksellers Association, Association of Booksellers for Children (ABC), and the Children's Book Council (CBC). Jim Dale, the Grammy Award Winner known for his work on the Harry Potter audio book series and Around the World in 80 Days (Listening Library) will be master of ceremonies.

Saturday's Book & Author Breakfast will feature talks by authors Paul Theroux, Myla Goldberg, and Wallace, and will be hosted by Randi Rhodes. Author Bob Herbert will host authors Eco, Barbara Ehrenreich, and Irving at the Sunday morning breakfast. Tickets for the Book & Author breakfasts are $25, and the events will be held each morning from 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. in the Special Events Hall at the Javits Convention Center.

In addition to the breakfast programs, BEA will offer its Saturday Book & Author Luncheon, from noon - 2:00 p.m. in the Special Events Hall. The luncheon will feature Nick Hornby, Simon Winchester, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Michael Cunningham. Tickets for the luncheon are $40.

Also on Saturday, from 4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. will be "The Heard Word: BEA's Audiobook and Author Tea" in the Special Events Hall. This year's tea will feature Adriana Trigiani, Bruce Feiler, and Kathy Reichs and tickets are $15.

For more information and to register for BEA, go to www.bookexpoamerica.com or call (800) 840-5614 or (203) 840-5614.
For a look at ABA programming planned for this year's convention, click here.

The roster of this year's BEA events includes:

Friday, June 3

Children's Book & Author Breakfast, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m., Special Events Hall, $25

• Daniel Handler, legal, literary, and social representative of Lemony Snicket, the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events (HarperCollins Children's Books)
• Alice Provensen, illustrator of Klondike Gold (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
• Pam Muñoz Ryan, author of Nacho and Lolita (Scholastic Press)
• Host: Jim Dale, the Grammy Award Winner known for his work on the Harry Potter audio book series and Around the World in 80 Days (Listening Library)

Saturday, June 4

Saturday Book & Author Breakfast, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m., Special Events Hall, $25

• Paul Theroux, author of Blinding Light (Houghton Mifflin)
• Myla Goldberg, author of Wickett's Remedy (Doubleday)
• Mike Wallace, author of Between You and Me (Hyperion)
• Host: Randi Rhodes, author of The Big Encyclopedia of Republican Hypocrites (Miramax Books)

Saturday Book & Author Luncheon, Noon - 2:00 p.m., Special Events Hall, $40

• Nick Hornby, author of A Long Way Down (Riverhead)
• Simon Winchester, author of A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906 (HarperCollins)
• Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Master Among Men: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln (Simon & Schuster)
• Michael Cunningham, author of Specimen Days (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

The Heard Word: BEA's Audiobook and Author Tea, 4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., Special Events Hall, $15

• Adriana Trigiani, author of Notes From the Villa Di Crespi (Random House Audio)
• Bruce Feiler, author of Where God Was Born (HarperCollins Audio)
• Kathy Reichs, author of Cross Bones (Simon & Schuster Audio)

Sunday, June 5

Sunday Book & Author Breakfast, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m., Special Events Hall, $25

• Umberto Eco, author of The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana (Harcourt)
• Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream (Henry Holt)
• John Irving, author of Until I Find You (Random House)
• Host: Bob Herbert, author of Promises Betrayed: What Kind of America Do We Want to Live In? (Henry Holt)