April 2008 Jabber

Upcoming Events

May 6, 6:30 p.m. Merriam-Gilbert Public Library, West Brookfield, Mass.
I'm teaming up with my friend and fellow author M.P. Barker (a.k.a. Michele Barker) for a reading and signing featuring The Secret Thief and Michele’s debut novel A Difficult Boy. While our stories are quite different, they both focus on coming of age and learning about relationships—how to be friends instead of enemies. And both books are great reading for adults and young adults alike.

May 8, 6:30 p.m. Charlton Public Library, Charlton, Mass.
I'll be discussing my road to publication at a gathering sponsored by the Friends of the Charlton Public Library.

May 20, time TBA (around 6-6:30 p.m.) Ames Free Library, North East, Mass.
I'll be joining M.P. Barker and fellow author Marissa Doyle (author of Bewitching Season) for a reading and signing.

May 28, 7 p.m., East Longmeadow Public Library, East Longmeadow, Mass.
You get to hear four authors at this reading and signing! M.P. Barker and I will be joined by D. Dina Friedman, author of Escaping into the Night and Playing Dad’s Song, and Michelle D. Kwansey, author of Baby Blue and Itch. Don’t miss this one!

Recent Events
Michele P. Barker and I enjoyed a reading and signing at Acoustic Java, near the corner of Main and Downing Streets, in Worcester, Mass., on April 19. Our friend and coffee guru Dave was kind enough to host us on the first warm, beautiful, sunny day of spring. You can find signed copies of both The Secret Thief and A Difficult Boy for sale at Acoustic Java—plus, you can pick up one of Dave's great coffees and a pastry, or one of their delicious sandwiches if it's closer to lunch time. Thanks for a great afternoon, Dave!

I was thrilled to be interviewed on "The Writers," a cable access show produced in Chelmsford, Mass., that airs in Chelmsford, Lowell, Westford and Billerica. Judy Buswick has been hosting the show for something like 17 years and is a terrific interviewer. She knew The Secret Thief thoroughly and had great insights and questions to discuss. Our half hour together passed like a minute! It was really quite an honor to be on this show, considering one of their recent guests was national book award winner Richard Russo, author of "Empire Falls." The show will air in May. Thank you, Judy, for a wonderful time.

Your Creative Kick in the Butt
The latest at: www.judithjaeger.blogspot.com

Gordon Ramsay is my new hero. Not the nasty, petulant, downright mean Gordon Ramsay of "Hell's Kitchen." That's a horrible show and not his best career decision. Sorry, Gordon, your agent steered you wrong on that one.

I'm talking about the Gordon Ramsay of "Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares," the BBC America version, to be exact. By now, most people have seen the Americanized version on Fox, but the original BBC show is tops. It's a brilliant show: world renowned chef Gordon Ramsay spends a week at a failing restaurant helping the owner turn it into a success. These are desperately failing establishments, their owners tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt because they are in over their heads in a business they know nothing about and can’t see any way out...

Judy Jabber Street Team Update

Simple things you can do to help promote The Secret Thief

• Recommend The Secret Thief to your local librarian.

• Recommend The Secret Thief to your book group, or a friend’s book group.

• Post a review on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com and/or Book Reporter.com.

Judy Jabber Street Team Contest
This month's winner is…Carol M.! Carol helped me secure a speaking engagement for a conference of Massachusetts library trustees and friends of libraries. I haven't had too many issues of the Jabber since then, so I haven't had the opportunity to give a proper shout out to Carol. Thank you, Carol, for such a fun day talking with book lovers!

Street Team Contest winners receive a signed copy of The Secret Thief, an "I Know the Secret" button and bookmark. If you already have all that, you can give it to a friend.

From Judy's bookshelf
Here are some of the books I’ve read lately.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: This story is told by an old man in a nursing home looking back on one summer during his youth, during the Great Depression, when he worked on a traveling circus. I loved this story. It weaves together colorful, compassionate and frightful characters, a fascinating history and subculture and a solid plot. And it has a few really good surprises that will put a smile on your face. I count this among my favorites.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve read this book. When I was recently sick with the flu I watched the movie (the Kyra Knightley version) twice in one weekend and got hooked on the story again. I just had to read it. Well, Mr. Darcy proposed to Lizzy Bennet last night, and it did not go over well at all. I won’t tell you how it ends.

January 2008 Jabber

Upcoming events
Well, no new events are planned yet. But I have some ideas to pursue and will keep you posted. If you need a speaker for an event or need someone to lead a cultural activity, I could be just the person you need. In the "About Judy" section of my Web site, you'll find information about the kinds of talks and workshops I can tailor to your needs. For more information or to hash out some ideas, e-mail me at judith@judithjaeger.com

Recent Events
This fall, I enjoyed some great events.

In September, I attended Betsy L.'s book group in Arlington, Mass. I met Betsy at the Barre Farmers Market over the summer. She purchased a copy of The Secret Thief there as well as one of my husband's famous sponge holders. Our conversation led to not only a book group visit, but a great article in Central Mass Magazine. My visit to Betsy's book group was a delightful evening of insightful conversation with smart and witty women. Book groups remain my favorite kind of book event, and this was no exception. Thank you, Betsy and your book group, for a lovely evening!

In October, I had the pleasure of speaking at the Massachusetts Trustees of Libraries/Friends of Libraries Conference in Marlboro, Mass. I gave the luncheon talk on "Why Writers Love Libraries." I had an attentive audience of about 100 book lovers and was able to meet and talk with them throughout the day between their sessions. I hope I have the opportunity to visit some of their libraries for book events in the future. My thanks to Carol M. and Connie C. for inviting me to speak at this conference. It was a treat!

Your Creative Kick in the Butt
The latest at Judy's blog: http://judithjaeger.blogspot.com

How Knitting Saved My Life
About two-and-a-half years ago, I got back into knitting. I'd known how to knit since middle school, when my mom first taught me. I dabbled in it ever since, learning more working my summers in college at Old Sturbridge Village, a living-history museum where I was part of a staff who demonstrated daily life in a rural New England village during the 1830s. This included demonstrating handcrafts, such as knitting, which weren't handcrafts then. They were essentials for life. If you didn't knit, you didn't have warm socks, hats, mittens or scarves to keep you warm during the cold New England winters.

Judy Jabber Street Team
Simple things you can do to help promote The Secret Thief

• I'm looking for ways to get The Secret Thief on summer reading lists. If you know a English teacher or a school librarian, tell them about The Secret Thief, or send me their name and school and I'll try to contact them. If you have other ideas about this, let me know.

• Recommend The Secret Thief to your local librarian.

• Recommend The Secret Thief to your book group, or a friend's book group.

• Post a review on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com and/or Book Reporter.com.

Judy Jabber Street Team Contest
This month's winner is…Betsy L.! Betsy recommended The Secret Thief to her book group, and I attended their discussion in September. Betsy is also a freelance writer who wrote about The Secret Thief and my husband's pottery in an article that was published in Central Mass Magazine Thank you, Betsy, for adopting The Secret Thief !

Street Team Contest winners receive a signed copy of The Secret Thief, an "I Know the Secret" button and bookmark. If you already have all that, you can give it to a friend.

You're a Closet Writer If...
You're a close writer if…you resort to writing down ideas on napkins at restaurants.

Take the first step: Buy a small notebook and keep it with you at all times instead.

From Judy's Bookshelf
Here are some of the books I've read lately.

The Book Thief, by Mark Zusak: A book group recommended this to me and it is one of the best books I've read in recent years. I read it over the summer and it is still with me. It takes place during World War II in a suburb of Munich, Germany. The story centers around a boy and girl, around age 10 or 12, and their families. My husband and my friend Martha are reading it now. I was just discussing it with my friend Martha and we were saying that what makes the book so powerful is that it's not about the great big gears of war, but about how an ordinary family, not particularly good or bad, is just trying to survive the circumstances. If you read only one book this year, read The Book Thief.

Maisie Dobbs, by Jacqueline Spears: This is the first book in a mystery series set in post World War I London. I loved this book, for the story and the characters, but also because of its unusual time period. I haven't found many books set between the World Wars and I found the authors treatment of how World War I affected veterans, their families and society quite interesting. The war is another character in the book, a ghost that haunts all the other characters, and especially Maisie for reasons that are revealed in this first book of the series. The second book is on my shelf, waiting to be read.