Madeleine Albright, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Gerry Adams Headline BEA Breakfast Speaker Program

Ellen DeGeneres to Appear at Benefit Performance

BookExpo America (BEA) has announced speakers for its special events at this year's trade show, including its annual Book & Author Breakfasts. BEA will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, May 28 - June 1, 2003.

The speakers appearing on Saturday morning, May 31, are Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Jhumpa Lahiri, and Gerry Adams. That morning's event will be hosted by Noah Adams. The speakers participating in the morning program on Sunday, June 1, are Madeleine Albright, Maxine Hong Kingston, and Michael Moore.

This year's Saturday Book & Author Luncheon will have a political slant, as some of the nation's top commentators, including Al Franken, Molly Ivins, Bill O'Reilly, and Tucker Carlson, will participate in what should be a lively discussion of their forthcoming books.

On Sunday, June 1, Jonathan Lethem, Dennis Lehane, Anita Diamant, Suzan-Lori Parks, and Cristina García will speak at a Book & Author Tea from 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. "The Heard Word": BEA's Audio Book & Author Tea, which is annually hosted by the Audio Publishers Association, will take place on Saturday, May 31, and will feature Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez, T. Jefferson Parker, and Doris Roberts.

Comedian Ellen DeGeneres

As previously announced, Ellen DeGeneres will address the book industry in a solo comic benefit performance at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday evening, May 31, at The Wiltern. Proceeds of BEA's Evening With Ellen will benefit the Book Industry Foundation, which is comprised of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the Association of American Publishers Get Caught Reading campaign.

"This year's special events are notable not only for the range of speakers participating at BEA, but also for the wealth of knowledge these speakers bring to their individual areas of interest," noted Greg Topalian, vice president and show manager for BEA. "BEA's speaker program is a highlight of convention activity, and I am always pleased and grateful to see that publishers recognize this by submitting their most interesting authors for consideration. We try to balance our final selections with authors who are not just well known, but who may also have something of an interesting personal nature to share. This year, many of the authors participating in our speaker program are distinguished not just by who they are, but by what they have done, and we look forward to hearing their observations based on their unique set of experiences."

The roster of BEA '03 Special Events includes:

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

Barbara Park, Junie B., First Grader: One Man Band, Random House Books for Young Readers

Walter Dean Myers/Christopher Myers, Blues Journey, Holiday House

Robert Sabuda, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: A Classic Collectible Pop-Up, Little Simon/Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Presented in cooperation with the Children's Booksellers and Publishers Committee of the American Booksellers Association, the Association of Booksellers for Children, and the Children's Book Council.

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

Henry Louis Gates, Jr., America Behind the Color Line: Dialogues With African Americans, Warner Books

Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake, Houghton Mifflin

Gerry Adams, A Further Shore: Ireland's Long Road to Peace, Random House

Host: Noah Adams, The Flyers, Crown Publishers

Book & Author Luncheon: MediaTalk, Noon - 2:00 p.m., Concourse Hall, $40

Al Franken, Lies: And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them, Dutton Books

Molly Ivins, Bushwhacked, Random House

Bill O'Reilly, Who's Looking Out for You?, Doubleday Broadway

Tucker Carlson, Politicians, Partisans, and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News, Warner Books

The Heard Word: BEA's Audio Book & Author Tea, 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., Concourse Hall, $15

Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez, The Dirty Girls Social Club, Audio Renaissance

T. Jefferson Parker, Cold Pursuit, Brilliance Audio

Doris Roberts, Are You Hungry, Dear?, Audio Renaissance

Host: Audio Publishers Association

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

Madeleine Albright, Madame Secretary, Miramax

Maxine Hong Kingston, Fifth Book of Peace, Alfred A. Knopf

Michael Moore, Untitled, Warner Books

Book & Author Tea, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., Concourse Hall, $15

Jonathan Lethem, The Fortress of Solitude, Doubleday Broadway

Cristina García, Monkey Hunting, Alfred A. Knopf

Dennis Lehane, Shutter Island, HarperCollins

Suzan-Lori Parks, Getting Mothers Body, Random House

Anita Diamant, Pitching My Tent, Scribner

For more information concerning BEA and for registration for the above events, call (800) 840-5614 or (203) 840-5614 (International) or visit the BEA Web site at www.bookexpoamerica.com.