Books of Wonder

On my second visit ever to Books of Wonder, I decided it is the best book store ever.
I could be biased by the fact that Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, Suzanne Collins, Libba Bray and Kristin Cashore were all in attendance - in other words, a good half of my favorite current YA writers ever.
Alas, I arrived too late to hear Justine's introduction of Liar, which is unfortunate, because she may or may not have revealed the true ending to the book. I will never know! By the way, I missed out on three hours of sleep pre-Monday-workday because I could not put Liar down the other night. If you're searching for a mind-bending, fast-paced read and an intruiging, impossible to pin down narrator, I definitely recommend it.
I also missed Kristin's description of Fire, companion novel to Graceling. I have to say, I enjoyed this book even more than Graceling, which I enjoyed immensely. It is a refreshing feminist take on the high fantasy adventure story (don't worry guys - not the kind of feminism where we beat you up. Just the kind where men and women are equally capable and respected).
Luckily I caught the very tail end of Scott's discussion of Leviathan, another book I highly suggest you read. It is, in his own words, a "rip-roaring adventure" that retells the way World War I would have panned out, if genetic engineering had begun in the late 1800s in Britain and the Allied powers, and if Germany had developed giant scary walking machine technology around the same time. Way more fun than the real war, in my opinion (but I'm not a big war-story fan). Still, if you like historical fiction, alternate realities, steampunk or war novels, you'll probably enjoy this one.
Next came Going Bovine, Libba's newest book. It sounds like the most insane, psychedelic road-trip/coming-of-age/mad-cow-disease story ever, and subsequently, it is now at the top of my To Read list.
Suzanne then spoke about Catching Fire, the thrilling sequel to the Hunger Games If you've followed this blog for a looong time, you may remember it's been at the top of my Recent Reading List before. It is also quite possible the best-paced book I have ever read, with a flawless plotline. Attempting two more novels of my own since reading it has only increased my awe. And Catching Fire keeps the action moving right along.
In conclusion, I recommend all of these books. And this bookstore. And looking at a map before you attempt to ride the subway train. And wow, I can't believe I got through this entire post without using the a-word, because everyone on this list is awesome.
To everyone who's braving it: Happy NaNo-ing! More on this later, when I haven't just written my 2,000 words for the day and need to be up for work in the AM.

P.S. - Dear FTC, No one paid me and/or gave me free books in order to endorse these novels. But I would not complain if they did.