Just when you thought I'd covered Book Expo, I found this excellent article written by journalist Paul Constant for The Stranger. I kept hearing about those upscale industry parties and here is proof they actually existed. Mr. Constant attended Larry King's party for the launch of Ted Turner's book, "Call Me Ted." (I saw Mr. Turner at Expo, walking slowly with two very young women on either side. And yes, he is much smaller than I expected).
Paul Constant definitely captured the surreal quality of Book Expo as he writes about Jeff Bezos' of Amazon.com speech about the Kindle, the teeth whitening booth, and publishers dressed up like teddy bears. I tell you, that event is more bizarre than a trip to Oz! He also writes about excellent books coming from small presses such as Soft Skull and McSweeney's.
From the article:
Larry King's backyard in Beverly Hills, with its high hedges, glittering pool, and verdant lawn, is full of Industry People. Besides Larry King, there aren't any movie or television stars here, but you get the sense that these are the people who hire the stars. There is a giant portrait of Larry King made entirely out of Jelly Bellies in the room overlooking the lawn. On the buffet table in the dining room is a mountainous spread of medium-rare bison, a layer-cake-like dip composed of seven varieties of goat cheese, dishes of duck pâté, and platters of other things so bizarre they almost seem like they were ordered off a menu from a myth.
Follow the above link for the rest. Excellent story!
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