Peonies are my favorite flowers. I have four bushes of them at the house, and they typically come out the week of the Book Expo America (BEA) conference, so I get to see them maybe for a day or two. By the time I get back they are usually just massive clumps of petals on the ground. This weekend the weather at the house was glorious, and the peonies went from buds to full blossoms like they were on steroids. I cut a few lush flowers and put them in a vase and plopped that on my desk in New York, then moved it to the hotel in the city where I am staying. At least I can enjoy some peonies since I know rain, cold and wind will scatter the petals by Sunday afternoon. Between those and the lilacs, the weekend did smell lovely.

I decided to read a lot for the weekend and relax. As much fun as conventions are, they are non-stop for me with 8AM breakfasts (which is like dawn for me) and late evening events. Fun does take its toll, so I wanted to rest up. I started with THE ELEGANCE OF THE HEDGEHOG, which was deliciously smart and wonderfully written. I see why it’s been attracting so many readers. Muriel Barbery has a new book coming in August called GOURMET RHAPSODY. It’s a novel translated from the French about the greatest food critic in the world.

Next up, I went to a book that has given me guilt for not reading sooner, THE GLASS CASTLE by Jeannette Walls. People were surprised I had not read this when I went to a cocktail party on Tuesday night, but what was interesting is how the three people I was talking to remembered small details from the book as I was talking about episodes from the memoir that had shocked and surprised me. I am looking forward to seeing Walls at BEA where she will be talking about HALF BROKE HORSES, her first fiction book, which will be out in October. So there was an air of “homework” to this assignment. There are a number of other “books I should have read” on the piles at the house, and this summer I want to attack them, as well as move ahead.

The third hammock read was WHEN YOU REACH ME by Rebecca Stead, a YA title that is at once a mystery and a coming-of-age story. Miranda has found notes, and they seem to have clues to a story, but what is it? It’s really tightly written with a story that keeps unwrapping itself. While it clearly is very, very well plotted, it never felt contrived. I could see the characters, the neighborhood and every emotion. And there was a lot to think about once you closed it.

I closed out the weekend with DIE FOR YOU by Lisa Unger, which will be in stores on June 2nd. I first read Lisa when her debut BEAUTIFUL LIES was published back in 2006. As DIE FOR YOU opens, a woman’s husband has vanished, his office has been vandalized and all his co-workers have been murdered. "Where is he" becomes "who is he" rather quickly. It’s very quick-paced, but filled with lots to talk about, like this line: "Love forgets, acceptance comes in time." While a thriller, it’s eminently discussable. We plan to post our review next week.

Oh, for those looking for the update on the boys. Drumming went extremely well in the parade. Cory had fun (see the photo), though he is not going to admit it, and between him and his friend Josh playing the cymbals, there was a lot of banging going on --- though wickedly on beat banging --- as they made their way down the street. Afterwards he spent a chunk of the weekend reading CATCHING FIRE, the follow-up to the hugely acclaimed THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins. CATCHING FIRE will not publish until September 1st, making this a pretty cool treat for him! He is vowing to read it slowly and enjoy it.

Greg called from onboard the Queen Mary 2 as the parade was kicking off and left a very funny message about wanting to tell me he loved me in case the QM2 went the way of the Titanic. Nice way to panic me. Luckily he knows his mom well enough that he made another call about an hour later when they were still chugging through the harbor with land in sight so we could chat. He pulls into New York on Sunday morning and plans to throw down his bags and meet me at Javits for the last day of BEA. He’s gone to the show a few times and is looking forward to it. One more funny one on this. There is a webcam on the QM2 and it shows online where they are. Monday night I checked it around six; the picture was all black and it said "headed to NY." Before I went into a full-bore panic on why the screen was black, I realized it was night there. Phew!

Wednesday night I went to see Lisa See, whose new book SHANGHAI GIRLS is in stores this week. There was a standing room only crowd at this event, which was the first stop on her tour. I always love Lisa's presentations as she can tell, as well as write, a wonderful story. We have our review from Roz Shea and she says, "The deprivations and hardships of Asian émigrés in the mid-20th century is brought sharply into focus in SHANGHAI GIRLS and adds admirably to her status as a novelist. Once again, her rich characterizations, strong sense of time and place, and mesmerizing storytelling offers page-turning suspense, romance and drama."

I loved this book, and Lisa became a friend after our Books and Books Cayman Islands adventure last May. Thus this was a truly fun evening of visiting with an author I love. You can read a blog post from Lisa here where she shares how three book clubs gave her some direction and footing when she was writing SHANGHAI GIRLS. She told me this story over breakfast in LA in April, and it’s truly lovely insight into what goes into writing a book.

Thanks for all the notes from those of you who are excited that the Beach Bag of Books Contest is back. This week’s title, THE EX-MRS. HEDGEFUND by Jill Kargman, is a perfect beach read. It's 2006 and Holly Talbott has all the trappings of a hedgefund wife, which she talks about in humorous detail when she discovers her husband has found himself a replacement babe. From there, she who never really was enamored or ensnared with the trappings of the high life discovers there's a lot of fun being the EX instead of Mrs. Hedgefund. I confess to watching "The Real Housewives of New York City" the night before I cracked this one. I am glad Holly escaped, or was exiled. Great breach reading. And as always, pulling together the beach bag was fun. You can enter this week’s contest here.

In addition to this week's Beach Bag of Books spotlight, this week has many new exciting features in store. We are bringing back our Father's Day Contest for a fourth year. Read on to learn more about our featured titles.

We are thrilled to announce that we have launched a brand new "Literary Fiction" Author Spotlight. Our first author to be featured under this mantle is George Rabasa, whose critically acclaimed title THE WONDER SINGER is now available in paperback. We have 10 copies of the book to give away to those of you who would like to read and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, June 5th.

We are also launching a new feature for Heather Barbieri. Her new title, THE LACE MAKERS OF GLENMARA, will be available in stores on June 23rd. We have 10 copies of THE LACE MAKERS OF GLENMARA to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, June 5th.

In addition to this week's new features, we also invite you to take a moment to revisit a past one. John Manning, the author of the recently spotlighted ALL THE PRETTY DEAD GIRLS, has responded to questions submitted by our advance readers of the title. Click here to read his answers. We also have more reader comments about CRAZY FOR THE STORM by Norman Ollestad, which is in stores on June 2nd.

BEA is always time for me to take stock. Many of you may remember my story of the first show I attended in 1996 when I knew no one. I made my way through the aisle collecting catalogs and trying to absorb the scene that was unfamiliar to me. This year I know there will be aisles and aisles of seeing friends and making new contacts in a world I really love.

Big question of the week: How has Greg done laundry these past 2 1/2 weeks? When he was at school he managed to have the housekeeper continue to do it by bringing it back and forth. This mystery will be solved soon! He did prove he can sleep through the snooze alarm as easy in the UK as he can in the US as he woke up at 7:05 for the 7:30 ferry on the Isle of Man. Not one to travel light, he ran for the boat, still in the Fordham shirt he slept in with a backpack on front, one on back and his rolling suitcase behind him. He confessed to still not having socks on hours later, with endless thanks to the cab driver who rescued him as he jogged like a human rectangle of suitcases and took no fare.

Have a great week….do some great reading. My mission…to find you more books while I am at BEA, so keep up the pace reading now…there’s a lot more to come.

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

Throughout his career, George Rabasa’s work has been met with critical acclaim and recognized by numerous awards, including The Writer’s Voice Capricorn Award for Excellence in Fiction, the Minnesota Book Award for Short Stories and Minnesota Book Award for Fiction. Now available in paperback, Rabasa’s novel THE WONDER SINGER is an operatic literary caper about one grandly beautiful life and one young writer’s manic attempt to expand his world by capturing it.

We have 10 copies of THE WONDER SINGER to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, June 5th.

-Click here to read George Rabasa’s bio.
-Visit George Rabasa’s official website, www.GeorgeRabasa.com.
-Click here to listen to George Rabasa’s radio interview with Minnesota Public radio, October 3, 2008.
-To pay your respects to Ms. Casals, we invite you to check out the Diva’s fan page on Facebook.
-To hear opera selections that inspired this story, please click here.
-More about Mark Lockwood, his series for teens and his work with the Diva can be found at Unbridled Books and Facebook.

More about THE WONDER SINGER:
George Rabasa’s novel, THE WONDER SINGER, is an entertaining literary caper, often funny, beautifully told and rich with history.

For freelance writer Mark Lockwood, landing the job as ghost writer for opera diva Mercè Casals is a dream. But when she dies in her bath and her agent wants to give the project to a renowned celebrity biographer, Lockwood makes off with the interview tapes to save his last best chance at writing success.

From the age of three, Norman Ollestad was thrust into the world of surfing and competitive skiing by the intense, charismatic father he both idolized and resented. In CRAZY FOR THE STORM, Ollestad’s riveting memoir of survival, the author recounts how these exhilarating tests of skill prepared him to become a fearless champion --- and ultimately saved his life. CRAZY FOR THE STORM will be available in stores on June 2nd.

-Click here to read an excerpt from CRAZY FOR THE STORM.
-Click here to read Norman Ollestad’s bio.
-Click here to read critical praise for CRAZY FOR THE STORM.
-Visit Norman Ollestad’s official website, www.NormanOllestad.com.
-Visit the publisher’s website, www.harpercollins.com/normanollestad.
-Click here to watch a video in which Norman Ollestad discusses CRAZY FOR THE STORM.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.
-Click here to read the second round of advance readers' comments about CRAZY FOR THE STORM.

More about CRAZY FOR THE STORM:
February 1979: 11 year-old Norman Ollestad is the lone survivor of a harrowing plane crash that kills his magnetic, adrenaline-addicted father, a man who stopped at nothing to mold his son into a fearless surfer and ski champion. Set amid the uninhibited beach culture of Malibu and Mexico, this story of an extraordinary father-son bond has also been hailed by Susan Cheever as “a heart-stopping adventure” that asks “what it means to lead a life without limits.”

THE SCARECROW by Michael Connelly (Thriller)
Forced out of the Los Angeles Times amid the latest budget cuts, newspaperman Jack McEvoy decides to go out with a bang, using his final days at the paper to write the definitive murder story of his career. He focuses on Alonzo Winslow, a 16-year-old drug dealer in jail after confessing to a brutal murder. But as he delves into the story, Jack realizes that Winslow's so-called confession is bogus. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

-Click here to read an excerpt from THE SCARECROW.
-Click here to see the reading group guide for THE SCARECROW.

THE SECRET SPEECH by Tom Rob Smith (Thriller)
Tom Rob Smith, author of the acclaimed debut CHILD 44, returns with an intense, suspenseful new novel: a story where the sins of the past threaten to destroy the present, where families must overcome unimaginable obstacles to save their loved ones, and where hope for a better tomorrow is found in the most unlikely of circumstances. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

DEAR HUSBAND: Stories by Joyce Carol Oates (Fiction/Short Stories)
With the unflinching candor and sym¬pathy for which Joyce Carol Oates is celebrated, these 14 stories examine the intimate lives of contemporary American families: the tangled ties between generations, the desperation --- and the covert, radiant happiness --- of loving more than one is loved in return. Reviewed by Marge Fletcher.

THE DIARY by Eileen Goudge (Fiction)
When sisters Sarah and Emily stumble across an old diary while cleaning out their mother’s attic, they are stunned to learn she was in love with another man before their dad. As they read on, they are left with more questions than answers. What made the youthful Elizabeth choose their dad in the end? What became of the mysterious AJ? The answers may surprise you --- and have you asking, “How well do I know my parents?” Reviewed by Judy Gigstad.

-Click here to see the reading group guide for THE DIARY.

DARK PLACES by Gillian Flynn (Thriller)
When Libby Day's family was massacred 24 years ago, seven-year-old Libby survived and then testified that her brother Ben was the killer. Now Libby wonders if Ben, currently serving a life sentence, was truly the murderer. She sets out to prove it one way or the other. Libby's story, although bleak, is irresistibly intriguing. Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon.

THE BIRTHDAY PRESENT by Barbara Vine (Mystery)
When a new Barbara Vine/Ruth Rendell mystery is released, her fans celebrate. Vine is Rendell’s alter ego, and in that incarnation her books are a bit edgier, a little more grisly, somewhat sexier and often more political. Such is the case with THE BIRTHDAY PRESENT, a highly suspenseful cautionary tale, mixing murder, morality and politics. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.

STRONG ENOUGH TO DIE: A Caitlin Strong Novel by Jon Land (Thriller)
Jon Land’s latest suspense novel blazes across border towns in Texas, boardrooms in Washington, D.C, marketplaces in Bahrain, slums in Venezuela and crime-plagued cities in Mexico. Beyond the adrenalin-pumping action and complex characters, STRONG ENOUGH TO DIE presents a message of mercy, understanding and redemption. Reviewed by Donna Volkenannt.

IMPEACHED: The Trial of President Andrew Johnson and the Fight for Lincoln’s Legacy by David O. Stewart (History)
Twice in recent years the possible impeachment of an American President has been front page news. But the most potentially serious such event took place over 140 years ago when President Abraham Lincoln’s successor, Andrew Johnson, came within one vote of being deposed in the bitter aftermath of the Civil War and Reconstruction. In this book, lawyer-historian David O. Stewart takes a somewhat revisionist stance on that congressional battle that transfixed the nation. Reviewed by Robert Finn.

Tell us what books YOU are reading and loving --- or even those you don't.

This week we have three great prizes: FIVE readers each will win a copy of THE LATE, LAMENTED MOLLY MARX by Sally Koslow, SHANGHAI GIRLS by Lisa See and THE SIGN by Raymond Khoury. Tell us what you are reading and rate the titles 1-5 by noon on June 5th to ensure that you are in the running to win these books.