This past weekend, I was on a panel about children’s literature and war at the United States Board on Books for Young People’s bi-annual conference. The talk went well and I met with lots of great people who love kids and love books. Couldn’t ask to be among better people!

I always have a hard time coming home from conferences. For one thing, just getting my suitcase unpacked always seems hard to do. It shouldn’t be, right? I should be able to throw the clothes in the dirty clothes hamper, put my makeup bag and hair dryer in the bathroom, shut the suitcase, and be done with it. For some reason (sigh), it never seems that simple. I’m always overwhelmed with the sheer amount of paper that one conference generates. These include pamphlets, business cards (often with notes scribbled on them), postcards, and receipts (since these are always business trips and I need the receipts for tax purposes). All the paper usually means that I don’t get “unpacked” for one conference until the next one rolls around and sometimes not even then. Right now, for example, my desk is a sheer mess of papers, some of those papers dating back to the Texas Library Association’s annual conference from last April. Geez louise.

But I had a great time on my panel with Nancy Bo Flood, Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Juanita Havill, and Marge Pelligrino. I loved meeting Alma Flor Ada and Beverley Naidoo, catching up briefly with Ed Sullivan and Uma Krishnaswami, and meeting lots of great other folks.

This week, I’m doing two school visits in San Francisco with Beverley Naidoo, giving a reading at Stanford’s weekly Africa Table, and giving a talk with Beverley Naidoo at Stanford. Feels hectic….and great!