News from Heidi

I read at the wonderful indie bookstore,RJ Julia in Madison, CT, on Thursday night. I didn't know what to expect in terms of turnout since I don't know anyone near the area, but what a lovely crowd turned out. RJ Julia had set me up with a big comfy chair at the front of the room so it felt like storytime as I read to the cozy group of some 2 dozen people. The group had wonderful questions and I was so excited to know that in Row 2 there was a group that had read and enjoyed the book last year when it released in hardcover; and in Row 1 there were two teenagers who created a book club for their high school which has 36 members! Go Caitlin and Brianna! There were so many other wonderful people there last nigh with lovely comments and good questions. I hardly wanted the night to end. Thank you RJ Julia! I'd love to visit when the new book is out!

I met Margot, the owner of Watchung Books, last year at a pre-publication event for booksellers. I was signing advanced reading copies and she came up to introduce herself and told me she (a white mom) had biracial kids. As Margot puts it, I then "lunged across the table to hug her" and expressed my love for her because she was part of my tribe. Yup. That's actually what happened. Well, since then, I've been trying to arrange a visit to her store, and it finally happened. And I'm so glad it did. There was a wonderful multi-culti crowd in the house--a lot of folks nodding as I talked about growing up mixed--and there were a lot of hugs all around. Thank you Margot for a wonderful night! It was an incredible special experience! Now, can you find me in the crowd?

Thank you Odyssey Books for another wonderful evening. I visited last year when The Girl was chosen as a First Edition pick -- a pretty exclusive book club for subscribers who trust Odyssey to send them First Editions in that nice collector seal stuff (what is that called?). Well, this visit was just as awesome! The night kicked off with a book club discussion led by the very lovely Ellen Meeropol (check out her new book House Arrest!). The group had read the book so incredibly closely I was hard-pressed for answers in some moments. I better go back and the read the book so that I know what I'm talking about. Then it was time to read. It's not often that I read to a group that has also read the book in advance. So I wasn't sure quite what to read. When I polled the audience, though, I discovered that just by chance everyone in Row 3 was new to the book and therefore I shouldn't read any of the later chapters. So Row 3 got a show and so did the rest of the group. But most of all I got another wonderful night on the road with the book, and met so many lovely people. Thank you guys all for coming out! And Row 3: let me know what you think!

I've been going non-stop these last couple of weeks. Let's see after my Book Passage reading I headed back to LA for an appearance at Diesel Books. And what a night that was. The awesome folks at Algonquin sent champagne to celebrate hitting the NYT Bestseller List and my dear friends came out to help toast the day. From there, I flew to Minneapolis and enjoyed a wonderful 1 degree Fahrenheit day (inside) and did a reading at Magers & Quinn. One of my favorite poets (and people), Kristin Naca, cheered me on--thanks man! So great to catch up with her again. And then it was off to Chicago where I read at Women & Children First during THE GAME, but was so happy that the Strater cousins came out in force--they had driven from 3-hours away for my reading. I am pleased to say I was named an honorary Strater cousin--Love you cousins! Next stop was Anderson's where the amazing Becky Anderson interviewed me for her TV show, and then a reading. Thank you Gil, Ilene, Anni, BooksOnTheTrain, and especially the Cress Creek Book Club for coming out. What a wonderful night! Are you tired yet from the whirlwind tour? Still a couple more to tell you about on this stretch: The next stop was the Bay Area for a Stanford University benefit--the Stanford Women's Club raises money for female undergrads with this wonderful event each year. I felt so honored to be part of a wonderful bill of writers: Kellie Corrigan, Steve Winn, and Tobias Wolff. Then it was off to Denver for the annual Writers Respond to Readers event at Tattered Cover. There were some 150+ audience members who had paid to hear 4 writers including me, and powerhouses Jennifer Egan, Julie Orringer, and Jess Walter. It was a crazy good show. I was taking notes as the other writers spoke! A storm started brewing and unfortunately I had to cancel my appearance at the Boulder Bookstore (I hope to reschedule for March--stay tuned). Now I'm at AWP where I did a panel, but not reading. Whew! So that's what's been going on --next stop is home for a couple of days and then on the road again! Hope to see you there!

Dude, this is the dream come true! The Girl Who Fell From the Sky Debuts at #18 on the New York Times Bestseller List! I am overjoyed! Thank you all! Now, let's break out the champagne!

We could barely see the Golden Gate Bridge as we drove toward it as we headed to Book Passage in Corte Madera. The entire bridge was obscured by fog. Had I been driving I surely would have headed back. But there was a show to do at Book Passage. And what a treat it was. I'd say there were some two dozen folks in attendance, not a big crowd, but the people who were meant to be there were there--in particular, I got to meet a Mixed Chicks Chat listener--Jamie--and Connie, another mixie who could relate. And then there were my homies who came as a complete surprise the wonderful writers Kathryn Ma and Kirsten Menger-Anderson who I met at Bread Loaf and hadn't seen for a while. Thanks guys! That meant a lot to me! (And if you don't know their work--you should! They are awesome!)

I was born in Seattle, WA though I was an infant when I left, it felt like a real homecoming. The trip ended with a fantastic event at Third Place Books where I was so happy read because of the enthusiasm and evangelism of booksellers Emily and Cheryl. You can see that the people really came out! What a thrill! Thank you to Anne Mini for bringing a whole crew, Amal's students who came for extra-credit (and I think enjoyed it too) and really to all of you who came out. It was a great night! And isn't it cool and appropriate that Barbara Kingsolver's Lacuna was placed just above me--like it was looking out to make sure everything would be okay.

The Northwest African American Museum, Elliott Bay Books and the Central District Forum got together to put on a wonderful event. There must have been some five dozen folks who came out for the reading among them the wonderful folks of Mavin (thanks Amanda), some friends of Mixed Chicks Chat like THE Contra-Barbie who I finally met IRL, and a couple of book clubs and many many more. I had the best time. I sure hope the audience did. Here are some photos from the night!

Thank you to everyone who braved the icy roads on Tuesday to celebrate the paperback release. It was a lovely evening and so exciting to debut the work in progress for you. And you really liked it? Really? Well I will keep plugging away then! Thanks Sally and Roberta for kicking off the tour in such a special way.