Independent booksellers attending BookExpo are invited to join Penguin Random House for nightcaps as we kick off this year’s event!

Meet the Editor gives booksellers the opportunity to experience the book editing process through in-person visits with New York book editors at their offices. Booksellers will go directly to their assigned publishing house at 9:00 am, where they will meet with editors for approximately 90 minutes. The structure of the editor meetings will vary by publisher but they are meant to give a behind-the-scenes look at the philosophy and process of book editing. Booksellers will be on their own to return to Javits following the publisher visits. Booksellers will be randomly assigned and will receive their publisher information by email prior to BookExpo. Registration for Meet the Editor is closed.

he panel will be moderated by Genevieve Smith, features director of New York magazine, and will feature Dominique Raccah, publisher and CEO, Sourcebooks; Kim Sayle, v-p, associate publisher, Hachette Audio; and Jacqueline Woodson, author of Red at the Bone.

Open to BookExpo Grant Recipents Only. Questions should be directed to: Julia Garreaud, buyer engagement manager at Reed. Her email is: [email protected] [17]

BookExpo’s Adult Editors’ Buzz 2019 shows off the books that readers and media will be buzzing about. Join this session to hear editors share their excitement and passion for six of the fall’s biggest potential breakout releases:
The Warehouse: A Novel by Rob Hart, Crown, Publication Date: August 20, 2019
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, Putnam Books/Penguin Random House, Publication Date: January 2020
Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Publication Date: January 14, 2020
The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott, Alfred A. Knopf, Publication Date: September 17, 2019
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell, William Morrow, Publication Date: January 7, 2020
How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones, Simon & Schuster, Publication Date: October 8, 2019
Learn more about the Adult Editors' Buzz. [19]

ABA member bookstore owners, managers, and event coordinators meet with publicists from several publishers among the participating companies. Representatives from the same store will rotate together to assigned publicists’ tables. During the timed “dates,” booksellers have the chance to promote their stores and discover what publicists look for when planning author tours. Pre-registration is required; e-mailto be added to the waitlist [24].

The ABC Children’s Group and the Children’s Book Council (CBC) are partnering to produce the BookExpo favorite Children's Book Art Silent Auction. The event will benefit American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE) and Every Child a Reader. Award-winning children's book illustrator LeUyen Pham will serve as honorary chair of the event. This year’s Silent Art Auction program will honor Ursula Nordstrom, publisher and editor-in-chief of children's books at Harper & Row from 1940-1973 whose initial stable of authors included Margaret Wise Brown, Arnold Lobel, and Maurice Sendak. Tickets are on sale now [26]. ABC Children's Group members should email Gen de Botton [27] for a promotional code to get in for free.

Television host and political commentator Rachel Maddow will host this highly anticipated event and she’ll be joined by some of the nation’s leading voices in adult literature, including Malcolm Gladwell (The Tipping Point, Outliers), Karin Slaughter (The Last Widow), Ta-Nehisi Coates (The Water Dancer), and Marjorie Liu (Monstress) for an insightful and lively discussion of their works and the industry.
Learn more and register for the Adult Book & Author Breakfast [29].

Multi-platform digital marketing is now more important than ever because, let’s face it, a marketing plan is only successful when the content is presented where your audience is — and today, that’s everywhere.

In this session, you’ll hear from three guest booksellers about how they manage their digital marketing campaigns and carry them out successfully across their newsletter, blog, social media platforms, and website, while at the same time maintaining their store brand and ensuring that all the pieces tie in together seamlessly.

Visit the ABA Member Lounge to have books signed by the authors featured at the Thursday morning Adult Book & Author Breakfast [36], including Rachel Maddow, Malcolm Gladwell, Karin Slaughter, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Marjorie Liu.

Meet this year's BookExpo 2019 Adult Buzz authors:
The Warehouse: A Novel by Rob Hart, Crown, Publication Date: August 20, 2019
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, Putnam Books/Penguin Random House, Publication Date: January 2020
Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Publication Date: January 14, 2020
The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott, Alfred A. Knopf, Publication Date: September 17, 2019
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell, William Morrow, Publication Date: January 7, 2020
How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones, Simon & Schuster, Publication Date: October 8, 2019

Booksellers have the opportunity to hear from authors of the Summer/Fall 2019 Indies Introduce debut picks. This event will feature the bookseller panelists who curated the diverse list of upcoming titles and many of the authors, who will each read a short passage from their debuts and answer a question posed by a panelist.

This panel, moderated by Lynn Neary of NPR, will feature American Booksellers Association CEO Oren Teicher; Barnes and Noble Chief Merchandising Officer and Executive Vice President Tim Mantel; Penguin Random House US CEO Madeline McIntosh; and Sourcebooks CEO Dominique Raccah.

Formerly the Celebration of Bookselling Lunch, this year the Indies Choice Book Awards and the E.B. White Read-Aloud Awards will be presented in a new format on the trade show floor. Featured authors will be signing books exclusively for ABA members following the event.

The ABA Town Hall provides booksellers with the opportunity to express opinions and share ideas with the Board and staff in an informal setting. To provide an opportunity for as many members as possible to speak during the Town Hall, a sign-up sheet will be displayed in the ABA Member Lounge.
All ABA members are encouraged to attend the Annual Meeting, which directly follows the Town Hall. The Annual Meeting features reports from the Board of Directors and executive staff on the association’s activities over the past year, as well as updates on new and ongoing initiatives.
The ABA Member Lounge will be closed during both the Town Hall and Annual Meeting, and will reopen at 4:15 p.m.

The annual APA Tea is one of the favorite events of BookExpo every year! The talents of narrators and authors combine to create great audiobooks. Come drink a cup of tea and hear about what leads to fabulous listening from Hamilton star and audiobook narrator Euan Morton and authors Laurie Halse Anderson, Phillipa Gregory, and Jerry Craft. Ticket required. Learn more about the Audio Publishers Association Authors Tea [50].

Relax, refresh, and meet with friends in the ABA members-only lounge, located in the UnBound section on the trade show floor. Enjoy the galley room and special post-author breakfast signings. ABA staff and select affinity partners will also be in the lounge throughout the show.

Meet select Indies Introduce authors and Indies Choice Book Award winners in the ABA Member Lounge. Authors signing during this time include: Adam Rippon, Akilah Hughes, Alyssa Milano, Cadwell Turnbull, Candace Bushnell, David Yoon (Indies Introduce), De’Shawn Charles Winslow (Indies Introduce), Elin Hilderbrand, Eva Chen, Jacqueline Woodson, Jennifer Weiner, Jenny Slate, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Jonathan Van Ness, Julie Murphy, Lisa Taddeo, Madeline Miller, Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite (Indies Introduce), Margaret Renkl (Indies Introduce), Nic Stone, Philippa Gregory, Rajani LaRocca (Indies Introduce), Regina Porter (Indies Introduce), Ryan T. Higgins, Sarah J Maas, and Shannon Pufahl (Indies Introduce).

Justice Sonia Sotomayor will discuss her life and the experiences that led her to write her new book for young readers, Just Ask: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You. Illustrated by celebrated artist Rafael López, Just Ask will be released in both English and Spanish editions by Penguin Young Readers on September 3, 2019. This event is free, but booksellers must RSVP by adding the event to their registration [54].

This year’s breakfast will be co-hosted by sisters Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush (Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life), daughters of former President George W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush. Joining them will be Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong'o (Marvel’s Black Panther, 12 Years a Slave) to discuss her debut children’s book, Sulwe; Tomi Adeyemi, author of bestselling young adult fantasy novel Children of Blood and Bone and her upcoming Children of Virtue and Vengeance; Eoin Colfer, author of the beloved Artemis Fowl series and the upcoming spin-off novel The Fowl Twins; and Da Chen, bestselling author of Brothers and Colours of the Mountain, who will preview his forthcoming work, Girl Under a Red Moon.
Learn more and register for the Children's Book & Author Breakfast [56].

Meet this year's BookExpo 2019 Young Adult Buzz authors:
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett, Wednesday Books, Publication Date: September 17, 2019
The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: August 20, 2019
The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake, Hyperion, Publication Date: October 1, 2019
Scars Like Wings, Erin Stewart by Delacorte Press, Publication Date: October 1, 2019
Frankly in Love by David Yoon, Penguin Young Readers, Publication Date: September 10, 2019

At Editors Speed Dating, booksellers will meet with groups of editors to talk about new and upcoming titles.
Booksellers can select their top two genres, and ABA will try to make sure booksellers sit with editors who publish books in those categories. The categories booksellers can choose from are as follows: Adult Fiction, Mystery, Sci-fi/Fantasy, Romance, Narrative Nonfiction, History/Politics, Cooking, Poetry, Works in Translation, Art/Photography/Design, Graphic Novels, Children’s Fiction, and Children’s Nonfiction.
Bbooksellers will rotate to six tables in total for 17 minutes each. Registration for Editors Speed Dating is closed.

Visit the ABA Member Lounge to have books signed by the authors featured at the Friday morning Children’s Book & Author Breakfast [36], including Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush, Lupita Nyong’o, Tomi Adeyemi, Eoin Colfer, and Da Chen.

ABC Group members and friends of CBC who purchase tickets will enjoy a lively tea with nearly a dozen children’s book authors as they pitch their new projects. Authors include Elisha Cooper, Ashley Elston, Kimberly Jones & Gilly Segal, Pat Mora, Brittney Morris, Zachariah OHora & Bob Shea, Maulik Pancholy, Morgan Parker, Jen Wang, and David Yoon. Registration for this event is closed.

Meet this year's BookExpo 2019 Middle Grade Buzz authors:
Weird Little Robots by Carolyn Crimi, Candlewick Press, Publication Date: October 1, 2019
Free Lunch by Rex Ogle, Norton Young Readers, Publication Date: September 10, 2019
Pavi Sharma’s Guide to Going Home by Bridget Farr, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Publication Date: September 17, 2019
Jinxed by Amy McCulloch, Sourcebooks Young Readers, Publication Date: January 7, 2020
My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich by Ibi Zoboi, Penguin Young Readers, Publication Date: August 27, 2019