Texas Book Festival

This weekend (November 3 and 4) the Texas Book Festival sets up again on the grounds of the state capital in Austin. I’m glad to be on the roster this year. It’s a great festival, its only problem being that there are more authors to see and hear than time allows. As for me, I’m at the children’s story tent on Congress, Sunday the 4th at 11:00. I’ll be reading from The Racecar Alphabet and Lightship (one book about vehicles that go fast, and one book about a vehicle that doesn’t go at all). If you’re around stop by and say hello. Attending my spiel will also give you a good chance to beat the mobs and to get a good seat for the great Mo Willems, who’s up at 11:30. The size of the Pigeon’s crowd will help keep my ego in check — but it probably won’t beat a few years ago when I was at the signing table next to John Bemelmans Marciano, who was there with copies of Madeline in America and Other Holiday Tales. That book features on its cover (1) Madeline, (2) Christmas decorations, and (3) the Alamo. I bear John no ill will; he’s a smart and talented and nice guy (and he’s dating a friend of mine, to boot). But going up against Madeline, Christmas, and the Alamo in Texas in November — it’s not work for the easily discouraged.