ALA Cognotes Annual Conference - July 2013 Highlights - (Page 1)

Ann Patchett Celebrates Libraries — see page 5 HIGHLIGHTS ISSUE Cognotes ALA 2013 ANNUAL CONFERENCE July 2013 Octavia Spencer Owns the Glass By Ginger Rogers University of Southern Mississippi By Ashley Smolinski University at Albany SUNY S he’s an Academy Award winning actress who tends to take on powerful projects involving social issues. She was the reader of the audio book version of The Help, although she said it was the most difficult project she had ever taken on. She is now a children’s author, who calls herself an arm-chair detective with a keen interest in martial arts. Equally proficient at comedic and tragic acting, although she prefers to be the comedic element in a drama, Octavia Spencer delighted and endeared herself to the audience in the closing session of the ALA Annual Conference on July 2. Randi Rhodes Ninja Detective is the name of Spencer’s series of books aimed at middle school students who love Encyclopedia Brown or Nancy Drew. The Case of the Time Capsule Bandit, the first book, includes an appendix of advice for would-be kid-detectives A Octavia Spencer Annual Conference Attendance Paid 15,918 Exhibits Only 4,319 Total Attendees 20,237 Exhibitors 6,125 Grand Total 26,362 focused on “learning more about ALA memberships and meeting some of the authors.” With so many options, it was T he July 1 Auditorium Speaker Series featured filmmaker Oliver Stone and historian Pe- Oliver Stone, foreground, and Peter Kuznick autographed copies of The Untold History of the United States for hundreds of librarians after their Auditorium Speaker Series on July 1. Ford and Egan Win Carnegie Medals for Best Books A More than 780 companies exhibited at this year’s conference. By Stacey P. Flynn Montgomery County Public Schools (MD) Click here to see our ad on page 3. gainst the glowing backdrop of the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel ballroom, attendees gathered to celebrate the second Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction. Excitement and appreciation filled the room as the winners were announced, delighting fans, family, and friends. Richard Ford’s Canada received the medal for fiction, and Timothy Egan’s Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life low buzz began to grow shortly after 5:00 p.m. on June 28 at the entrance to the Exhibit Hall. By 5:25 p.m., both the anticipation and crowd had grown to full capacity, culminating in excited quick-moving crowds as librarians embraced a highly cherished and highly appreciated tradition: conference swag. First-timers, experienced veterans, and everyone in between gathered together, contemplating their plans for navigating the aisles. While some mentioned ebooks or a chance to win an iPad mini, some easy to find something to pique your interest and fill » see page 2 Stone and Kuznick: Learn From the Past to Face the Future » see page 4 By Ashley Smolinski University at Albany – SUNY Exhibits Overflow with Excitement and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis received the medal for nonfiction. The highly competitive awards, funded through a generous grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York, provide winning authors with a medal and $5,000. Both winning authors were present to receive their awards and mingle with attendees afterward. Ford’s Canada, published by Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, begins, “First, I’ll tell you about the robbery our parents committed.” The » see page 4 ter Kuznick for a thought provoking discussion about the darker side of American history. Their joint project, “The Untold History of the United States,” is told in both a 10-part documentary film series for Showtime as well as a companion book. Stone and Kuznick meticulously researched and documented the events that lead up to the atomic bombing in Japan, the subsequent Cold War, and the fall of Auditorium Speaker Khaled Hosseini HD 16:9, 3 COL » see page 13 http://ala13.ala.org/

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ALA Cognotes Annual Conference - July 2013 Highlights

ALA Cognotes Annual Conference - July 2013 Highlights