Today And Yesterday At LA Times Festival Of Books
I'll soon be weaponizing my eyelashes for yet another day at LA Times Festival of Books.
Today is the panel on my book -- at 10:30 a.m., moderated by the LA Times' Sandy Banks, and with Antwone Fisher and Tom Matlack. I'll be signing books after the session (they're on sale there...at an economy-friendly $16.95!)
Carla Hall very sweetly came to my panel yesterday and mentioned it in her piece about the Festival for the paper:
Moderator and advice columnist Amy Alkon merely announced the title of comedy writer Julie Klausner's book, "I Don't Care About Your Band: What I Learned from Indie Rockers, Trust Funders, Pornographers, Felons, Faux-Sensitive Hipsters, and Other Guys I've Dated" -- and drew applause from an audience of delighted women and somewhat amused men.
"My book is about how terrible it is to be in your 20s ... dating guys who were faux-sensitive," said Klausner, the first of the three to explain her book.
"Mine is about cooking for the guys Julie went out with," said Giulia Melucci, who penned "I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti: A Memoir of Good Food and Bad Boyfriends."
Sascha Rothchild, author of "How to Get Divorced by 30," went last: "Uh, mine is about marrying one of the guys that Julie --" The audience erupted in howls before she could continue.
Later today (at 1:30), I'll be interviewing the darling young actress Joey King, who played Ramona the pest in the super-cute kids movie Beezus and Ramona, based on the Beverly Cleary books I read when I was a kid.
I recommend the movie to anyone who has kids, but Gregg came with me to the screening, and I now owe him 25 war movie dates, starting with the uncut version of The Sorrow and the Pity
Books of that genre always seem kind of mean spirited to me. They're inevitably by some single middle aged woman who's regretful about the choices she'd made, who portrays all of her ex's as broken losers. The guys are humiliated and made to look like bastards, but typically their biggest crime is having disappointed the author. Of course she's totally blameless and just following her heart and learning to love herself, or whatever.
Realistically if every guy you've ever been in a relationship with is a loser, you've got problems of your own.
Janoodle at April 25, 2010 9:34 AM
It may seem that way Jano, but selection bias being what it is, you are likely to keep tossing bad ones and keep the one good one. That and who would want to read about your blissy relationship? Misery loves company and all that. There is a flip side of the coin... many of those guys that didn't work out would likely be the ones to say: "her? yeah, completely neurotic and self centered, can't stand to be wrong..." Not to say that those guys mightn't even have been bastards, or whatever. It's just that there are at least 3 sides to a tell-all.
SwissArmyD at April 25, 2010 10:41 AM
So the Beezus and Ramona movie was pretty good? My daughters have been through the Cleary books. I remember enjoying reading about Henry, Beezus, and the other kids when I was younger as well. We weren't sure we liked the idea of Selena Gomez as Beezus, though, as we were afraid she'd overshadow the kid playing Ramona.
old rpm daddy at April 25, 2010 5:17 PM
That little girl -- Joey King -- carried the movie. She's a huge tiny person, with star power, and great spirit. I really can't imagine her being overshadowed by anyone.
She was wonderful today -- even inspired the kids there, I think.
Amy Alkon at April 25, 2010 7:00 PM
Also, very refreshing to see, this is a close-knit, very supportive family, and manners are the norm for them. I went to Twitter today and found this from Joey:
This girl is the anti-Lohan, to say the least!
Amy Alkon at April 26, 2010 10:29 AM
If you see The Sorrow and the Pity then you must complete the Holy Trinity with it's soul siblings House of Exorcism and Messiah of Evil.
Paul Hrissikopoulos at April 30, 2010 9:55 PM
Damn you, apostrophe!
Paul Hrissikopoulos at May 3, 2010 9:44 AM
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