On Tour: Day One

I am in Seattle, Washington (which means I had to take an airplane, which means I’ve been washing my hands obsessively in order to avoid that swine flu that’s all over the news.) Speaking of airplanes, I swear to God I always get seated next to nutty passengers. This one traveled with his cat, which he kept trying to pet, so he put his multiple drinks (wine, beer, two waters–not that I was counting) on my tray table.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books went by in a blur; I was there for just one day and ran from event to event before I had to leave. The writers at Jacket Copy have a great round-up of the book panels, including the one I did with Sarah Shun-Lien Bynum, Julia Leigh, and Louise Ermelino. There’s also a festival photo gallery up at the site.

Early reviews of Secret Son have appeared here and there this week: Michael McGregor in The Oregonian, Ellen Heltzel in the Seattle Times, Elliot Walker in Bookreporter, and Daniel Olivas in the El Paso Times. Take a look.