Shennen Bersani's Weblog

A visit to the John Marshall School in East Hampton, NY

Oh the places you will go when you read (illustrate) a book......

Yesterday I visited the John Marshall Elementary School in East Hampton, NY. Wow, what a lovely location, I had never been to the Hamptons before and I was delighted by the ocean views and quaint seaside towns.

These kids were tremendous! I thank librarian Danielle Schuster for her wonderful hospitality.

Monday night I had a chance to do some site seeing. I stayed at the East Hampton House Resort and the hotel's staff was very helpful in directing me to the best eateries and 'sites'. I took a ride down to the historic Montauk Point Lighthouse.

Deer were grazing on the front lawn. Simply breathtaking.

Caught in the act in NY

Sweet Ruth McNally Barshaw captured me, again this year, in her SCBWI Midyear sketchbook.

Ruth keeps a record of the conference's events in sketchbook format, please check it out - SCBWI NY 2007 - her sketches are fabulous! And they helped land her her own book, ELLIE MCDOODLE: HAVE PEN, WILL TRAVEL which will debut on May 1st!!!

I wish you a world of success Ruth! I have seen the advance copy - it is great! Everybody, go out and buy it.

A Visit to the LCHS, Rogersville, Alabama

Each school that I visit touches my heart in a special way, yesterday I had the wonderful pleasure of visiting LCHS (Lauderdale County High School) in Rogersville, AL.

But, let me start from the beginning of my trip....

Thursday I head off out of Providence RI... I have a layover in Washington DC. I have previously skirted the city, but I haven't actually 'been to DC', so, while I had another week of US Air delays (giving me ample time to read The Fifth Vial), I also had a chance to sight see from the airport window:

...and later from the plane:

I flew into Huntsville, then drove 50 miles west to the Joe Wheeler State Park Resort. Thursday night's accommodations were at a lodge, miles into a state park. I drove in the dark, my headlights the only glow in the sooty darkness - occasionally spooking an opossum or raccoon family out of hiding. I was leery that I was traveling in the right direction - until I eventually came across the lodge....

It was a spectacular wood and stone building - the inviting smell of warmth wafting from the fireplace... the scent of Southern Hospitality in the air. But the best was yet to come, I awoke to this view of the marina from my balcony yesterday morning:

paradise

I soon headed off to the LCHS and was greeted outside by their wonderful librarian, Vicky Nelson. Gosh, is she a wonderful woman! She had baked me a cake and also had fresh breakfast crescents, water, and orange juice waiting for me in the library.

For me to say that the students of LCHS were fabulous children would be an understatement! They were some of the best kids I have met - filled with warmth and hugs for me, personal stories, and inquisitive questions!

I left them an apple to remember me by:

The Fifth Vial

I'm going to put a plug in here for my friend Michael Palmer's newest book, The Fifth Vial. The book is currently #18 on the New York Times Hardcover Fiction list.

I picked up my copy last month at Michael's book launch party - a very nice time where Michael read out loud to us in attendance. (I always love it when authors read their own words... there always is so much emotion in their voices.)

I have been reading The Fifth Vial while I have been traveling, in airports, on planes, biting my fingernails as I look over my shoulder... this is a suspenseful medical thriller. Basically it 'feels' all too real. What if a sample of your blood is tissue typed and put into a massive database without your knowing it? What if you are the perfect match for a person of wealth or power and they need your organ? Who has the right to play God? Who is to say whose life is more important - say, a poor farm worker or a teenage virtuoso? And then the plot thickens...

Palmer fans will find all their favorites, locales of Boston, pet cats, hints at the supernatural, and a plot that makes you think.

Of course what I find the most fascinating is catching all the inserts from Michael's personal life tossed in. For instance, Ben the detective mentions that his zodiac sign is Libra. Wouldn't you know that Michael's birthday is October 9th.... also note that Michael's grandson's name is Ben, but I'm not sure if he's also a Libra - I'll have to remember to ask.

So I am about half way through the book, I am looking forward to tomorrow's trip to Alabama (again), I have a date with a killer.....

Young Authors Conference in Shelby County Alabama

Saturday I had the pleasure of presenting to the third graders at the Young Authors Conference in Shelby County Alabama.

Third graders from Shelby County find out just HOW big a whale shark is.

I flew into Birmingham on Friday, leaving terrible weather behind in Boston, losing my luggage along the way.... Upon arrival I went to dinner at Fox Valley Restaurant in Helena with program director Heather Mays, her husband, and authors Marsha Diane Arnold, Patricia Hermes, and Laurence Pringle. It was a nice treat to dine with such wonderful company!

Mrs. Mays coordinated some very impressive speakers for this year's conference.

Saturday we arrived early to the Thompson High School in Alabaster - there I also had the pleasure of meeting author Charles Ghigna and story teller (Times magazine writer) Verna Gates (Verna spent the next day in Selma with the Clintons and wrote about it for Time.com).

I was greeted by University students and a delightful third grade mother named Robin. I can't speak enough of the wonderful Southern hospitality that I received.

I gave three presentations to third graders, students who were chosen to attend this year's conference after writing and illustrating their own books in their classrooms. Students from 19 schools were bussed in for the day's activities - which also included story telling and face painting. It was a remarkable experience for me to see such enthusiastic kids! At book signing time, I looked through countless books written by the children, I saw some absolutely gorgeous illustrations and read some delightful stories!

Then, flying home Saturday night, I saw the lunar eclipse from the plane window - what an amazing ending to such a delightful weekend!