The first Dramarama print media review:
"Very smart and very funny... theater lovers will swoon, and everyone else will appreciate the twists and the ending you don’t see coming." -- Booklist, starred review

And I've recently put two preview chapters up on the site.
The bit where Sadye and Demi are in the car on the way to Wildewood Summer Theater Institute. (It involves corn nuggets, the Oliver! soundtrack, green apple lip balm, and outrageous dreams of dramatic success.)
And the bit where Sadye, Demi and Nanette watch the "meat market" -- aka the auditions at the start of the summer, where everyone has to dance, act and sing for the directors. (It involves the objectification of several hot boys, an unexpected change of musical numbers, discussion of audition techniques, and more.)

Dramarama is in stores May 1, 2007.

A post for librarians:
Going to the Texas Library Association meeting in San Antonio in April?

Friday the 13th, I'm signing
2 PM Random House booth -- Ruby Oliver books and
3 PM Hyperion booth, Dramarama -- finished copies, first time ever!

(also, if you're a children's librarian, rather than teen, 10:30 AM FSG booth for this and 2 PM at Random for this -- plus a talk on Saturday at 10 AM)

Dudes and dudettes,
my first-ever newsletter just went out, containing secret stuff not seen on this blog.
If you come to my website, on the right you'll see a subscription form. Then you, too, can be a recipient of occasional email goodness from yours truly.

Is all I'm saying.

xo
E

Last time Melanie Lynne Hauser visited me here at The Boyfriend List, she explained why you should never date a superhero. And here is her blog!

Now she's back with a fly survey, promoting her new book, SUPERMOM SAVES THE WORLD.
It's six months after the Horrible Swiffer Accident that left her a superhero, and Birdie Lee's hometown of Astro Park gets Little League fever in a big way. Rabid parents, performance-enhancing Gatorade and a domed stadium on shaky - potentially explosive - ground are just the beginning of Super Mom's problems; throw in a ticked off school janitor and a corrupt mayor, and Super Mom has her hands full. Can one superhero — one mother — struggle to keep her teenagers in tow with one hand while saving her hometown from disaster with the other?

"Hauser's quirky characters sparkle brightly as a newly Swiffered floor, and her writing shines like freshly polished glass." - Meg Cabot

The Fly on the Wall Survey
questions by me (because Fly on the Wall is about a superhero fanatic), answers by Melanie Lynne Hauser

1) If you could be a fly on the wall somewhere, anywhere – where?
In my sons' bedrooms when they're on the Internet, with their doors closed!

2) If you could have one superpower, what?
I'd want one of the ones I gave Super Mom - the Super Electronic Hearing one. Again - teenagers. Internet. It'd be wonderful to know what they're up to!

3) What is your superhero name? Why?
Super Worry Wart - because I'm a big worrier. I'm a mom. It comes with the territory.

4) Who is your favorite superhero?
Um - Super Mom, of course!

5) Favorite non-super hero?
My husband.

6) Recommend us a superhero movie.
I loved Spider-Man II. But I also liked Batman Begins. Both of them were great.

7) If you could turn in to any animal, what? Why?
A horse, I think - I'd love to be able to run and run and run like that, and never tire.

8) Do you (or have you ever) read comic books? What? When?
Sadly, only Archie comics when I was a girl. I've relied heavily on my sons for all my superhero knowledge.

Dramarama comes out in May -- with a nice big first printing! Here are two early reviews from YA and children's literature blogs:

From Bookshelves of Doom: "I loved Dramarama....Yes, it's a book that theater-mad teens will love. But not just them -- because it is, at its heart, it is about the evolution of a friendship and about figuring out Who You Are. Like any good coming-of-age story, it made me tear up at the end. The characters are many and varied, and I really didn't know how things were going to turn out until the Epilogue. Good one, E. Lockhart."

From Professor Nana: A new book by E. Lockhart is a cause for celebration....I love Sadye and Demi the two teens whose summer dream comes true when they are accepted at a drama camp. Demi, thrilled to be somewhere he does not have to pretend to be straight, takes the camp by storm. Soon he has landed leads in two plays and great roles in another. Sadye, despite her efforts, manages two small roles. She collides with the directors, manages to argue with Demi about stupid things, and generally is frustrated. She wants more than anything to be a part of the world of the theater, but she cannot seem to please anyone even herself.
...As a huge fan of Broadway and a frustrated ham, I absolutely identified with Sadye and her pals at summer camp. I suspect lots of readers will as, despite their interest in theater, these characters share lots in common with every teen.

Don't forget!

• MARCH 7th •
6 - 7:30 PM at the Tompkins Square Branch of the New York Public Library
331 East 10th Street (at Ave. B)

Maryrose Wood, Why I Let My Hair Grow Out (I have read this and it is HYSTERICAL)
Justine Larbalestier, Magic's Child (I've read this, too and it is magical and exciting)
Leslie Margolis, Price of Admission (I've read this, too and it is full of juicy Hollywood gossip)
Erin Downing, Prom Crashers (I haven't read! am excited!)
Eireann Corrigan, Ordinary Ghosts (this too!)
and readers from the 21 Proms anthology: Daniel Ehrenhaft and Adrienne Maria Vrettos

It's a not-to-miss evening, in my opinion!

(by the way: I am so into 21 Proms. I've read it cover to cover now. Stories by the two writers above, plus John Green, David Levithan, Holly Black, Cecily von Zegeisar, Libba Bray, Sarah Mlynowski, Brent Hartinger, Melissa de la Cruz, Ned Vizzini, Jacqueline Woodson...)