2006 ALA Annual Conference

Gala Author Tea
Monday, June 26
2:00-4:00 p.m.
Sheraton Grand Ballroom A/B

Five authors will speak about their writing at this traditional FOLUSA event sponsored by ReferenceUSA. The event will feature finger sandwiches, coffee and tea, and a variety of sweets. A book signing will follow. Tickets are $35 in advance ($30 for FOLUSA members) or $45 on site. Advance tickets sales are available online or by phone at (800) 936-5872 through June 20, 2006. Tickets will be available while supplies last at Booth 2325 in the Exhibit Hall during all exhibit hours and just prior to the event at the door.

Marie Arana, author of Cellophane
Marie Arana received tremendous praise for her memoir American Chica, which went on to become a National Book Award Finalist. Arana, who is the Book Editor at The Washington Post Book World, returns this summer with her debut novel Cellophane, an exuberant work of fiction which further ratifies her strengths as a storyteller and stylist. Arana has served on the board of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the National Book Critics Circle. She lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband.

Mary Jane Clark, author of Lights Out Tonight
Mary Jane Clark writes what she knows. Since her emergence on the media-thriller scene in 1998, Mary Jane has been praised for her ability to use insider knowledge of the news business to create action and intrigue in her novels. And an insider, she is. Clark is a writer and producer at CBS News' New York City headquarters, where she began her television career as a desk assistant after graduating with degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Rhode Island. Clark is the author of nine novels, including Do You Want To Know A Secret, Do You Promise Not To Tell, Let Me Whisper In Your Ear, Close To You, Nobody Knows, Nowhere To Run, Hide Yourself Away, and Dancing in the Dark. She lives in New Jersey. (Photo Credit: Herman Estevez)

Bob Greene, author of And You Know You Should Be Glad: A True Story of Lifelong Friendship
A highly personal and moving true story of friend-ship and remembrance from the New York Times bestselling author of Duty and Be True to Your School. Growing up in Bexley, Ohio, population 13,000, Bob Greene and his four best friends -- Allen, Chuck, Dan, and Jack -- were inseparable. Then the fateful call came: Jack was dying. And in this hour of need, as the closest of friends will do, Bob, Allen, Chuck, and Dan put aside the demands of their own lives, came together, and saw Jack through to the end of his journey. Tremendously moving, funny, heart-stirring, and honest, And You Know You Should Be Glad is an uplifting exploration of the power of friendship to uphold us, sustain us, and ultimately set us free.

Erica Jong, author of Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life
Erica Jong began this book as a guide for aspiring writers. It was to be a book full of practical advice, inspiring examples, and sage wisdom ("Dare to dream," for instance). But she quickly realized that writing such a book would be dishonest, a way to veil the difficult nature of the writer's life with platitudes and encouragement. Jong tells us she writes "to get my life down on paper so it can never be extinguished," and "to keep from going mad." An uncanny combination of bookish and bawdy, literary and libidinous, Seducing the Demon is an invaluable glimpse into one of the most provocative minds of our time. (Photo Credit: Mark Schafer)

Harry Paul, author of Revved! An Incredible Way to Rev Up Your Workplace and Achieve Amazing Results
From the coauthor of FISH! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results, the bestselling book that put fun and passion back into the workplace, comes REVVED! - an incredible three-step program that helps you to maximize the returns that come from caring about your most important asset: your people. Paul has become a road warrior, logging nearly 100,000 air miles a year to share these winning principles with organizations large and small.

Tickets are $35 in advance ($30 for FOLUSA members) or $45 on site. Advance tickets sales are available online or by phone at (800) 936-5872 through June 20, 2006. Tickets will be available while supplies last at Booth 2325 in the Exhibit Hall during all exhibit hours and just prior to the event at the door.