In April, I was invited to sign books at the LA Times Book Festival. It was a fabulous event with dozens of bookstores and publishers who welcomed authors to sign books. The public was invited and I enjoyed meeting all the kids and parents who bought signed copies of CORA COOKS PANCIT.
One of the cool parts of this experience was meeting other Filipino authors and poets like Estrella Sybinsky and her hubby. We had such a great time "talking story" about living in Hawaii and cooking up our fave Filipino delicacies.
One of the thrills of being part of the LA Times Festival of Books was seeing my fave celebrity chef, Giada de Laurentis. (Yes, my daughter is named after this Italian mama!)
Giada was there for a live interview at the Food Tent and she signed copies of her latest cookbook, Giada's Kitchen. Unfortunately, the hundreds of people in line for her autograph deterred us from actually meeting her. Maybe next time!
Next stop on the book signing train was San Francisco. We stayed in Pleasanton with my Auntie Sheilah (Dad's first cousin). We enjoyed her "bed and breakfast" little condo and fabulous healthy food.
The signing was at Books, Inc. - and independent bookstore in Palo Alto. This signing was part of Kids Otter Read Day Around the Bay and I had 30 minutes to entertain the kid audience. I started by serving up the famous "pancit" to let kids taste what the book was all about. Meilani helped me pass out spoons and the kids helped me swirl the noodles like in the book.
I enjoyed reading the book to the kids and sharing with them about the illustrations. They had fun looking for all the bears and penguins and dogs featured on each page by illustrator Kristi Valiant.
Lots of family from the Bay Area showsd up. We even met some cousins we haven't seen in years. Even my college roomie, Jen Vander Meulen, showed up with her family as a surprise. They drove two hours from Escalon.
2 comments:
I wanted to tell you that the little girl we gave your book to wrote in a thank you note, "I think it is cool that the author signed my name in the book. It is a very good book! I like to read it with my Mommy and Grandma." :)
I am so proud of you, again! You are an inspiration to the Filipino community, celebrating one of the most infamous cultural dishes in the community. It is amazing how you weave each of your cultural roots into life that connects with so many. You are delivering on earlier dreams to provide children with diverse books, celebrating culture, ethnicity, and heretage! What an incredible role model and inspiration for your own girls. Love you, keep on!
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