Ralph Macchio in NYC part 4

Ralph and celebrities at the NY Times Great Childrens Read.

with Brobee:




with Choo Choo Soul:

LL #3 - in stores 2 months from today

On December 22nd, Lunch Lady's third adventure will hit bookshelves everywhere. In Lunch Lady and the Author Visit Vendetta, Lunch Lady does battle with an eeeeevil children's book author. Lewis Scribson writes books about a fuzzy, cheery bunny named Flippy. But Mr. Scribson's motives are anything but fuzzy and cheery. What evil plans could this author be drafting? And will Lunch Lady be able to stop him?

Find out two months from today! Here is your official sneak peak:

Borders Radio

I will be interviewed on Borders Radio this Thursday, October 22nd. I will be on live at about 11:30 AM. The show can be found at http://www.bordersmedia.com/adviceforliving and in various markets across the country.

Tune in if you can!

ATTN: BOSTON -- events this weekend

This Saturday, I will be in Boston for some Lunch Lady events.

At 10:30 AM I will be in Cambridge, MA at Curious George & Friends.

At 2 PM I will be in Braintree, MA at Borders.

Hope to see you there!

A Gaggle of Lunch Ladies

Check out the Knopf Delacorte Dell Books for Young Readers Art Department at the 2008 Random House Children's Books Halloween party.

Apple saucy!


What are you dressing up for this Halloween? If you plan on heading out as everyone's favorite cafeteria crime-fighter, I'd love to see the pics! They can be sent to me via props@studiojjk.com.

Ralph Macchio in NYC part 3

Ralph signs books at the NY Times Great Read.






As you can see he has a VIP pass. A Very Important............Pug.

Sketchbook Saturday

October is Annie Was Warned
month here at the Sketchbook Saturday.

Where the Wild Things Are

Rich Michelson over at the R. Michelson Galleries put out a special call to his artists for this year's Children's Illustration show. He asked us to create a piece of art that paid tribute to a book that was especially influential to us. I, like many, love and adore Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak.

I had so much fun creating this piece and I hope that you enjoy it. You can view the painting in person, along with my original picture book art and Lunch Lady art, at this year's exhibit, which opens on November 8th.

And in true pinch-me fashion,there will also be original Sendak Wild Things drawings on the walls.

Are you as excited about the Where the Wild Things Are movie as I am?

Vote for Scott Fischer

I don't typically get involved with political issues on this here blog, but we're dealing with cereal boxes, people! My buddy, Scott Fischer, has a new book coming out called Jump -- and it is awesome. It also has a shot of landing in boxes of Cheerios nationwide. The "Spoonful of Stories" program has gone democratic and is giving the power to the people. Jump on over to the below website, scroll to the right and look for the above cover and VOTE!

http://promo.simonandschuster.com/cheerios-poll/poll.php

And if you need more convincing, check out Mr. Fischer's video:

Texas State Fair

We visited the Texas State Fair during our stay in Frisco. Like all of Texas, this state fair is big! The biggest in the country, actually. Every year, the vendors try to outdo each other in the fried food department.

This year's selection was the fried butter. Everyone was talking about it, even Oprah. So we thought, "Why not?" You are all probably wondering, "What does fried butter even taste like?" Well, it's like fried dough except inside-out.

It seemed like a good idea at the time . . .

Judy Schachner at the Decatur Book Festival

I had a blast hanging out with Judy Schachner of Skippyjon Jones fame in Decatur. Her audence was massive--what a rock star! And she did something that I have never seen before. She drew Skippyjon from BEHIND the easel! Color me impressed!

Judy is a hoot. Just like her work. If you ever see her name on an event near you, don't walk, run! She's awesome.

Ralph Macchio in NYC part 2

What's a pug gotta do to getta taxi in this town?

The NY Times Great Children's Read ROCKED!

Here's the view from backstage.

Sketchbook Saturday

October is Annie Was Warned
month here at the Sketchbook Saturday.

LL posters

Random House Children's Books produced these wonderful Lunch Lady posters and sent them out at random. (no pun intended.) Here are posters that surfaced in Texas and Connecticut. Perhaps you will soon see a poster at your school? Better be nice to your lunch lady!

Speaking of lunch lady photos, make sure you get your entries in soon for the Lunch Lady Photo Contest!

Ralph Macchio in NYC part 1

Ralph gave the lions at the NYC Public Library some lessons in regality.

Scenes from Frisco, TX

Check out these pictures from Pink Elementary. Wow! They went all out!

Frisco Reads

I have had the great pleasure of visiting with 28 (count 'em...28!) elementary schools in Frisco, TX. What a wonderful community filled with great students, great teachers and of course great librarians! (Not to mention great Mexican food and great BBQ. . .) I'm just wrapping up my final days in Frisco. (Everyone was very understanding when I needed to reschedule those last few days when the CBS opportunity popped up. Thank you so much to everyone!)

Every year, the Frisco school system hosts an author on a district level and the author visits are planned around Frisco Reads. Frisco Reads is a remarkable evening filled not only with additional author presentations, but events for the whole family. My favorite program that was offered to the community was a session for dads that talked about how important it is to read to your babies. I've been reading to Zoe since the very start and it is such a powerful bonding experience.

Frisco Reads brought in about 700 people, a remarkable accomplishment. To read more about the program, check out this article in the Star Local News. I hope it can serve as an inspiration for you to host a similar event in your community.

Here are some pictures from the evening:

This picture of the Frisco librarians represents a small fraction of the

librarians that I met during my time here. Fifteen years ago, this town had

one elementary school. Next year, there will be thirty!

Thank you to everyone for a great evening at Frisco Reads!

CBS Early Show

We made it to the air on Saturday morning! The segment aired at different times in different markets, but reports came in across the country from people who caught Bullseye and me on the CBS Early Show. Thank you to all who tuned in!

Sketchbook Saturday

October is Annie Was Warned
month here at the Sketchbook Saturday.

CBS Early Show rescheduled

My appearance on the CBS Early Show has been rescheduled. I should be on Saturday morning at 7:45AM.

Justin Roberts at the Target Book Festival Minneapolis

Here are some shots of my buddy Justin Roberts, performing with my other buddies, the Not Ready for Naptime Players, at the Target Book Festival in Minneapolis. Head on over to Justin's website to listen to some great indie rock kids' music. My favorite song right now is "Meltdown", which ends with the lyrics, "I'll stop the world and meltdown with you!" Brilliant!

Want to see Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players perform live? Come on by the NY Times Great Read on Sunday. The band will be taking the Target stage right after I read. (I am at 10:55 AM, they are on at 11:25 AM.)

Yo Gabba Gabba at the Target Book Festival Minneapolis

Have you ever seen the show Yo Gabba Gabba? I loved the show when it was an online only show, was so psyched to see it get picked up by Nick Jr and am now so happy to call DJ Lance Rock (and Brobee) a friend. If you have never seen the show, head over to the show's website and watch some videos. I'm so happy to have such a cool show to enjoy with my daughter.

If you'd like to see DJ Lance Rock and Brobee live, come on by the NY Times Great Read on Sunday. The Yo Gabba Gabba crew will be taking the Target stage at 10 AM. (Which is two slots before I do.)