Halloween Event

We welcomed Joe Desantis and Roxie Zwicker as our guest authors for our Halloween event! More than 20 people turned out to meet the writers, and the event was a blast for everyone!

Joe spoke about his novel, Blue Dawn Over Gettysburg. Joe was incredibly witty and charming and the audience loved him!

Roxie then did a powerpoint presentation and we learned about local legends as well as the folkart of tombstones. (And footstones, and wolfstones!) Roxie was very well-spoken and personable, and eventgoers shared their own stories with her at the end of the evening.

If you happen to be in the New Hampshire area, and don't know what a footstone is but would like to find out, you can take a walking tour with Roxie!

Visit her website to learn more, www.newenglandcuriosities.com

We absolutely loved our guest speakers, and give a big thank you to Roxie, her husband Kenny, and Joe for visiting!
Also, thank you to Bakla Java for our delicious Halloween-themed cupcakes!
We have signed copies of Joe's and Roxie's books in stock, feel free to come look at one.
See you at our next signing!

The Best Time with Joanne Bellontine!

When we first met Joanne Bellontine, we knew we were going to have a great time hosting an event here for her. And we were right!

Today Joanne came to speak and sign her memoir, Resilience Matters. This phenomenal memoir is about Joanne's "journey through the foster care system, an abusive first marriage, and the ordeal of breast cancer," and learning to hold tight to your dreams. This is a story that inspired the staff here and many other people as well!

Joanne was joined by her husband, children, and grandchildren. Many friends and family members stopped by, and Joanne made and met new fans!

A passerby said it best when she stopped, looked into the events room, and said, "That sounds like success." It definitely is, and we are so appreciative to everyone who made it so wonderful!

Feiffer Mania at the Cove!

Today we were joined by first Kate Feiffer, and then Jules Feiffer!

Kate read President Pennybaker to the assembled group of excited children, many of whom had already met her through school visits. Kate had such a warm way of interacting with her little fans, and she impressed them by guessing which book of hers they already had! After the reading, Kate's books began selling out! We do have signed copies in stock of The Wild Wild Inside: A View from Mommy's Tummy and But I Wanted a Baby Brother, in case you missed the event and would like one.

After Kate's event finished, Pulitzer prize-winning cartoonist Jules sat down to discuss his memoir, Backing Into Forward. Jules' memoir was featured in Oprah's "O" Magazine and the New York Times. The audience members asked great questions, ranging from where he got his inspiration to what advice he would give to budding artists. Joining us was a gentleman all the way from Finland, who was in the area for a cartooning conference.
Every seat in the house was taken for both authors, and the day was such a treat for eventgoers, the authors, and the Cove staff. Many thanks to Kate and Jules for coming, and many thanks also to Katie B., without whom this day would not have been possible. And as always - thanks to our eventgoers!

The photo of Jules and Kate at the top of this post is courtesy of www.roycecarlton.com

Love To Our February Authors

Katharine Weber, Joanne Dobson, and Hans Wilhelm all came Coveside this month!

Katharine was our first guest author. Her newest novel, True Confections, received a glowing write-up in the New York Times in January, and Katharine was met with a warm reception by our eventgoers. Plus, check out the custom-designed cake that Bakla Java created to cater the True Confections event. Many readers stopped by for a chocolate and a chat!

Joanne's latest mystery is called Death Without Tenure. With many friends in the area, Joanne drew a crowd of admirers and well-wishers, and she was even interviewed by Hudson Valley Magazine!

Hans arrived, to the delight of over two dozen children, parents, and grandparents. In addition to the families, our favorite newswoman Susan Macura of Pawling Public Radio was on the scene. After reading I'll Always Love You and Noodles: I Love Snow, Hans signed and drew a picture for each enraptured listener who wanted one.

Ann Hood Draws a Crowd

All the seats were filled. Bestselling author Ann Hood began her talk, and then read an excerpt from The Knitting Circle. As Ann read, more and more people filed through the door. By the time Q&A started, more than 2 dozen people filled the room. A fair number of knitters had come, as well as some Ann Hood fans, and those just in the mood for a good read. Everyone listened avidly as Ann shared anecdotes from her life, drawing laughs and empathy from her listeners.

Ann and her friend Tracy came all the way from Providence, RI to join us! A sincere thank you to both ladies for making the trip, as well as to our audience members for being so great.

Visit the author's website: http://www.annhood.us/
Visit the Yarn and Craft Box's website, our local knitting haven: http://www.yarnandcraftbox.com/

Hudson River Celebration

The Henry Hudson Celebration went off without a hitch! Five authors joined us to speak and sign their books. Hudson Talbott, Joanne Michels, Sheila Buff, Kevin Woyce, and Lucey Bowen formed our panelist of experts. The event drew quite a nice crowd, with lots of questions and animated discussion. Two of the authors had written travel books, one had written for children, and the other two were histories of the Hudson. All in all, it was a great event!

Signing in the Summer

On a beautiful sunny Saturday afternoon, the Book Cove was fortunate enough to host two lovely ladies. Our first author, Jayanti Tamm, entered the store with such a graceful presence, we knew it was her right away! Jayanti journeyed from NJ with her friend Jose, who doubled as a camera man. Jayanti was incredibly beautiful and poised; she was arguably one of the most well-spoken authors we have ever had the privilege to listen to. Jayanti talked with the audience and read from her book, Cartwheels in a Sari: A Memoir of Growing Up Cult. Jayanti was very candid about the confusing and harrowing experiences that characterize cult life, including the futile desire to blend in socially, despite the associations with the (somewhat notorious) Sri Chinmoy sect. Listening to Jayanti speak about "Guru" was very thought-provoking. The stories of the guru's ploys for power, desire for fame, and manipulations of his followers were as fascinating as they were chilling, and Jayanti's audience listened spellbound as she read from Cartwheels and shared anecdotes. Selected as the "chosen one" by the guru for the cult, Jayanti grew up as the cult grew more powerful. The guru attracted followers such as Carlos Santana and Roberta Flack, among others.

Upon the guru's death in 2007, the New York Times wrote a warm obituary of the cult leader. Jayanti paints a different, yet fair, picture of this man. That was something the audience responded to, how honest and open Jayanti was, and how tranquil she seemed. Many people would have become embittered by such a turbulent childhood and traumatic young adulthood, but this woman has learned from it and gone on to build a life of her own. In attendence were Jayanti's mother, who also lived in and then left from the cult, and Jayanti's 19-month-old daughter, who was super cute in her yellow outfit and matching patterned shoes. Jayanti was so popular with the people in attendence that her signing ran for over an hour, with everyone asking questions and sharing personal stories and feedback.

As Jayanti's signing wrapped up, Gail Graham and Beaux, her faithful dog, took the stage. Gail is a very distinguished novelist, who has received numerous international accolades for her superb writing. Sea Changes is Gail's newest offering, and quite a few fans turned out to have a copy signed. Gail amiably chatted every one of them up, and random passerby grew intrigued and approached to learn more. Gail had a great deal of passion about her writing, and that came through and charmed our clientele. Gail joined us all the way from California, and we very much appreciate that she was able to stop by.

Thanks again, as always, to our audience members for coming and asking such great questions.

Finale for the Month of May

Actress and New York Times-bestselling author Isabel Gillies came to the Cove this past weekend. We all loved her! Plus, we got to ask her several questions, including the most pressing one: Will there be a sequel? We had our fingers crossed... and the answer is yes! Isabel joked that she will go on writing books until people get sick of them, and she is already writing another memoir, due to be completed this summer.

Isabel was our final author for the month of May. We have already blogged about how packed June will be; look for more information to be posted soon!

Signing Success Streak Continues!

Olivia reads from Life List.
Evelyn speaks about Murder Takes the Cake.
Questions & Answers.







And the signing!

We were very pleased to host Olivia Gentile and Evelyn David today. Both ladies were wonderful speakers, and the audience was captivated by their talks and readings. A lively discussion concluded the event, with lots of people asking questions and sharing feedback!
The Book Cove has been very fortunate with all of our authors; they are gracious, entertaining, warm, and personable. Many thanks to Evelyn and Olivia for coming, and thank you to the audience members as well.

A Signing Success

Today was the big day! Louise Shaffer and Jo Maeder came Coveside. Both ladies were incredibly lovely, warm, and witty. Louise spoke first; she talked about her life, including her acting career, which was cut short just a few months after her win at the Emmys. Louise was advised to take some time off for what the industry calls "knee surgery." Replace the word "knee" with the word "plastic," and you know where that was going! When Louise declined, she was let go from Ryan's Hope.
Looking at her today, seeing how comfortable she is in her own skin, was so inspirational!

Jo also gave a great talk, and did a laugh-out-loud funny reading from her memoir. One particularly memorable line was, "Family-the other F word!" Jo moved the audience by speaking about how she reacquainted herself with "Mama Jo," and how she discovered a whole other side to her "hoarding," "doll-collecting," "hours late" mother!

Jo and Louise were our first May authors. May 9th, Oliva Gentile and Evelyn David will be coming at 1 pm. One a mystery writer and the other a biographer, they promise to be a great pair. We hope to see you!

Many thanks to Jo and Louise for joining us.

We hope to see both of them again!

Also, thank you to the great audience-we hope you will come back for future events.