The "Loot" Part 2

Wow, I could really see the effects of the economy at this conference. While last year, there were free books everywhere, and it was sort of a free-for-all, this year was very different. As I mentioned in my previous post, I snagged 10 free books on Wednesday. I snagged a total of 4 more over the next 2 days. Many publishers had limits on the number of books people could take and some made people form lines and request books. Very different. Some of the bigger publishers didn't have anything out at all whenever I passed by. Even the other swag, like pens, etc., were scarce.

Here's what I did end up with on Thursday and Friday:

1) The Girls by Tucker Shaw
2) Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink
3) You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith
4) The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya by Nagaru Tanigawa

I grabbed #4 for Laura, since she is totally into manga right now, and the back says "the phenomenon that took Japan by storm." Little did I know this is a coveted item! I handed it to Laura and she literally squealed with delight; she was so excited! So even though the pickings were slim, I did end up with a gem.

The Loot, Part 1

I'm already prefacing this with "Part 1" even though the exhibit halls have only been open for 1 day. I know I'll grab more stuff tomorrow. I am definitely restraining myself - last year I grabbed books indiscriminately, but this year I'm at least reading the back before deciding to take. Still, I came home with 10 ARCs today and bought 3 other books for my family. Here's the lowdown so far:

1) The Edge of the World by Kevin Anderson
2) Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud
3) Dodger for President by Jordan Sonnenblick (thought Eli might like this)
4) Boyology: A Crash Course in All Things Boy by Sarah O'Leary Burningham (I actually didn't grab this one; my coworker grabbed 2 and gave me one. Laura may not be quite old enough to appreciate it yet, but she'll grow into it.)
5) Clara's War: One Girl's Story of Survival by Clara Kramer
6) I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci
7) Lyonesse: The Well Between the Worlds by Sam Llewellyn
8) Don't Let It Be True by Jo Barrett
9) The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
10) Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez

I bought:
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld (for Laura)
Interworld by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves (for Jimmy)
Dangerous Days of Daniel X by James Patterson (for Eli)

I'll be back tomorrow and Thursday. I'm sure I'll snag more...

TLA 2009

It's that time of year again! Most of this week I'll be attending the Texas Library Association conference, which is here in Houston this year. My goal is to NOT come home with the 45 advanced reader copies I ended up with last year, which I've barely made a dent in. I'm sure I won't be able to resist a few, though. Hopefully the fact that I'll have to drag them home on the bus will be a deterrent!

On a reading-related note, I'm still plugging away at The Mists of Avalon. Sheesh, that's one big book!