News from Heidi

Um, guys--the paperback is here! (Isn't it cute?)  I'm celebrating tonight at Broadway Books at 7pm in Portland, OR, and soon I'm coming to your town on the 2011 Book Tour. Would you please join me in the celebration?

I'm celebrating! The paperback is climbing the charts and went from #31 on the National Indie Bestseller List last week to #16 this week! Thank you everybody for your part in making this happen.  I'm so thrilled and so grateful!

Wow! What a night! My Bread Loaf friends--the amazing writers: Belle Boggs, Lori Ostlund, and Ross White all came out in force--and my very dear poet/actor/friend Bob Moyer took the whole day to be able to attend the reading.

Flyleaf, a beautiful beautiful bookstore, had a great spread and wine and tons of people! There must have been a good five dozen folks there. Again, wow! And then there were the Algonquin peeps. My Algonquin peeps. I'd never done a reading with them in the audience and I was nervous. But it turned out okay I think. I mean I felt good and there was a wonderful energy from the crowd.

But I'd have to say the best part was having the whole Algonquin crew upfront with me. They were talking about other good Algonquin book club books --and there are many--but I can't describe to you how cool it was to have the whole Algonquin crew there in force. It just felt, well, cool to have all that back up! I'm back in Chapel hill on Feb. 20 and Feb. 21. I can't wait!

A light snow began to fall as we kicked off a series of Algonquin Book Nights at some wonderful indie bookstores around the country. Craig P., Algonquin's marketing guru, and I, met with a wonderful bunch of avid book readers and book club folks at Malaprop's last night to showcase some great Algonquin book club titles including yes, The Girl Who Fell From the Sky! It was a lot of fun--Craig kicked off the night with an original poem!  Lyrical?  Well, it was written to the tune of Ice Ice Baby--you decide.  And yes, I have it on video.  But I'm not sure if I can release it.  Let me get back to you on that one.  I also met the amazing and lovely Patti Digh IRL.  She is exactly who you think she is when you read her blog and her books.  I heart Patti.   Thank you Malaprop's and everyone came out on a chilly, snowy night!  I hope I can come back again soon!

A huge thank you to my hometown newspaper, The Oregonian, which named The Girl Who Fell From the Sky to its list of Top 10 Books of 2010!

Bookreporter's got a wonderful blog series featuring stories about writer's holiday celebrations and the power of the written word! My post on my Double Christmas-es ran this weekend.  Check it out!

Give a book this holiday season. You can't give more enchantment for less.  The Fiction Writers Co-Op—five dozen authors of distinguished, award-winning, and best-selling fiction—recommend:

Dracula in Love by Karen Essex. "...the writing is so vivid, lusciously sexy and chillingly outrageous by turns..." - The Star Ledger http://tinyurl.com/2eyohd4  (I met Karen at the Beverly Hills Lit. Escape--she's lovely and smart!)

The Last Will of Moira Leahy by Therese Walsh. "This tender tale of sisterhood, self-discovery, and forgiveness will captivate fans of contemporary women’s fiction.”- Library Journal  http://theresewalsh.com/books.html

The Murderer's Daughters by Randy Susan Meyers. "A powerful portrait of sisters growing up in the shadow of violence . . . A thought-provoking, heart-tugging debut." Boston Magazine http://tinyurl.com/264efbn

The Day the Falls Stood Still  by Cathy Marie Buchanan. "A wonderful love story…Buchanan weaves Niagara Falls’ history and her storytelling together masterfully.” − Elle http://tinyurl.com/2wmccyv

By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan. "Remarkably learned and heartbreaking romantic novel... Despite its medieval setting, the story has contemporary echoes... Hard to put down, beautifully executed, highly recommended." Minneapolis Star Tribune http://bit.ly/fzZoET 

Simply From Scratch by Alicia Bessette. "Fans of Cecelia Ahern’s PS, I Love You will find a lot to like here ... strong, richly detailed ... with a truly lovable heroine ... the spins and turns the story takes along the way are well worth the ride." —Library Journal

 The Love Goddess' Cooking School by Melissa Senate. "Senate handles the hefty topics of loss and remembrances with lightness and respect and in so doing, redefines comfort food." --Publishers Weekly  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1439107238

Seven Year Switch by Claire Cook. "Bestseller Cook [Must Love Dogs, Life's a Beach] charms again with this lively warm-hearted look at changing courses mid-life."-People Magazine http://ClaireCook.com/

The Lace Makers of Glenmara by Heather Barbieri. "This hopeful, comforting novel is a testament to the power of taking chances and starting fresh, and a reminder that life can bring joy after sorrow."--Miami Herald

 All the Numbers by Judy Merrill Larsen.  "Larsen depicts a mother's year of grief and recovery with a sure and honest voice."--Booklist  http://www.judymerrilllarsen.com/buy.htm 

Spin by Catherine McKenzie. "The tag line is: ‘How far would you go to get what you always wanted?’ and Kate Sandford, protagonist of Catherine McKenzie's first novel, Spin, goes so far she makes you cringe. … Where A Million Little Pieces … was tortured and powerful, Spin is more about entertainment and fun. … Full of pop-culture allusions, some really funny ones. … Spin is a compelling, fast-paced read.” – The Globe and Mail  

The Truth About Delilah Blue by Tish Cohen. "Both of Cohen’s previous novels (Town House and Inside Out Girl) are in development as films, and The Truth About Delilah Blue is sure to follow. She is clearly familiar with the cinema’s propulsive rhythms, and has an almost Hitchcockian sense of how to uncoil audience guts and play double dutch with them." --The Globe and Mail 

The Bird Sisters by Rebecca Rasmussen, forthcoming from Crown Publishers, April 12th. "A magical debut, original and poignant, lovely and moving. I absolutely loved The Bird Sisters and will carry Milly and Twiss with me as if in a locket for a long, long time." --Jenna Blum, Bestselling Author of  Those Who Save Us. Visit http://www.thebirdsisters.com/ 

Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos.  "[W]hat happens when life throws us kinks and crumbles the plans we've so carefully laid out . . . There is poetry in her words and all around the world she has created."--Richmond Times-Dispatch  

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin.  Diana Gabaldon says of this fictional biography of Alice Liddell, the inspiration for Alice in Wonderland, "This is magic!  Childhood, sensuality, love, sorrow and wonder, all bright and complex as the shifting patterns in a kaleidoscope." http://melaniebenjamin.com/books.php#buy 

Mistress of the Sun by Sandra Gulland. "Here's a warning: Mistress of the Sun is dangerously seductive. It's one of those books that will grab you and hold you captive till the last page is turned." —Calgary Herald  http://amzn.to/mistressofthesun  

Stay by Allie Larkin. "Larkin makes writing look easy. Stay has everything...humor, heart -and, endearingly, buckets of dog slobber." —The Miami Herald http://allielarkinwrites.com/  

Kings of the Earth by Jon Clinch. Robert Goolrick calls it "eloquent and moving, written with precision and clarity to stave off loss — the loss of history, of art, of humanity." O Magazine's lead pick for summer reading, and a Washington Post Best Novel of 2010.    http://www.jonclinch.com/ 

My Husband's Sweethearts by Bridget Asher. "... rendered with humor and heart." -- People "... a laugh-and-cry novel whose plot includes equal portions of heartache and hope." -- The Chicago Tribune    http://juliannabaggott.com/  

 The Confessions of Catherine de Medici  by C.W. GortnerPower. Passion. Poison: History's most notorious queen tells us her side of the story. "Fans of Alison Weir and Philippa Gregory will devour this!" - BookList. http://www.cwgortner.com/ 

Souvenir by Therese Fowler.  An IndieBound selection and book club favorite, this novel about family, fate, regret and redemption is "truly impossible to put down."--Booklist.  USA TODAY says it's "Compelling...the characters are likable, troubled, and human, and are well worth following on their journey." http://www.theresefowler.com/

After You by Julie Buxbaum.  Jodi Picoult says of this novel about love and friendship: "Buxbaum writes with honesty and grace about the things we know about our friends and the things we wish we didn't. After You highlights—beautifully and compellingly—the truth that sometimes we have to lose the people closest to us to find ourselves." http://www.juliebuxbaum.com/

Children of the Waters by Carleen Brice Jacquelyn Mitchard author,The Deep End of the Ocean, says of this novel about what really makes a family: "I was exhausted and singing the blues the hour I began Carleen Brice's new novel, Children of the Waters. Five hours later, I'd finished this fresh, free-rein novel about mothers' secrets and children's sorrows and was shouting 'Hurray!'" www.carleenbrice.com  (I adore this woman!)

Claude and Camille by Stephanie Cowell, the story of Claude Monet in his young struggling years which led to the birth of impressionism and his great love for his model and wife , the tragic Camille.  The Boston Globe said, "an enthralling story, beautifully told" and Bookpage added, "A vivid portrait of Monet's remarkable career." www.stephaniecowell.com

Remedies by Kate Ledger.  Remedies explores the complicated nature of pain, in the nerves of the body and the longing of the heart.... "an immediately gripping, expertly woven tale of pain and healing. Ledger is a brilliant writer; the book is dazzling, but more importantly, it is moving."--Elin Hilderbrand http://tiny.cc/ofni9

Shelter Me by Juliette Fay “What a gorgeous paradox of a book:  a deep, thoughtful exploration of a young mother’s first year of widowhood that is as much a page-turner as any thriller" says bestselling author Marisa de los Santos. Publishers Weekly deemed it "a wise and inspirational debut." http://juliettefay.com

Amaryllis in Blueberry by Christina Meldrum.  In the stirring tradition of The Secret Life of Bees and the Poisonwood Bible, Amaryllis in Blueberry is "spellbinding...A perfect melding of family saga, murder mystery and a meditation on faith, loyalty and love."--Susan Wiggs, New York Times Bestselling author www.christinameldrum.com

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman  - a New York Times bestseller. “Exemplifying Southern storytelling at its best…”  (Starred review) from Library Journal.

Pinch me! I'm a part of this amazing line-up for the annual sell-out Writers Respond to Readers event January 29, 2011 along with writers Julie Orringer, Jess Walter and Jennifer Egan. I'm going to b ea little star-struck--if you're in the Denver area be sure to get your tickets as soon as possible. For complete information click here.