Stephen Colbert in the Zeitgeist: This is the Colbert (Book) Report!

BookExpo America has come and gone, leaving many people — the “around 35,000 publishers, booksellers, authors, agents and librarians [who] attended the four-day carnival of promotion for the all-important fall lineup of titles,” as The New York Times called it — the happier for having been there. Here are a few final thoughts from the news and the ‘net:

• Waxing Philosophical, Booksellers Face the Digital – The New York Times: “There were also the usual flashy parties, giveaways and autograph signings at the convention, which is not open to the public. Celebrities sold out $35-a-head breakfasts and lunches (Stephen Colbert, Alan Alda and Rosie O’Donnell all had books to hawk), and impersonators stalked the exhibition hall. (Elton John, Borat and a twinkling star who could be mistaken for a banana with arms were all sighted.) And publishers and booksellers attempted to figure out the Next Great Book (popular galleys included Denis Johnson’s ‘Tree of Smoke,’ Alice Sebold’s ‘The Almost Moon’ and ‘Loving Frank,’ a debut novel by Nancy Horan.)

  But in what has become another rite of the BookExpo in recent years, the industry continued to grapple with its evolving techno-future with a mixture of enthusiasm, anxiety and a whiff of desperation.”

• BookExpo brings together assorted authors, publishers and a few fans – The Plain Dealer:
  

  New York- Bibliophiles converged this weekend to parse the power of the book – to change lives, move the world and provide all those in orbit around publishing a living.

  “You people are pushers of knowledge; it’s like junk,” mock-chided Steven [sic] Colbert, the comedian at Comedy Central who introduced a panel of A-list authors and drew wolf-whistles of his own. His shtick poked fun at book clubs as “women with torches in one hand and cheap white wine in the other” in a routine that “The Kite Runner” author Khaled Hosseini joined.

  “It’s un-American to dis ‘The Kite Runner,’ ” Hosseini teased Colbert, turning the comic’s own language back on him. “Now you know how the president felt.”

  The mention of Colbert’s infamous verbal take-down of George W. Bush at the Washington Press Club delighted thousands of listeners jammed into a banquet room at the Jacob Javits Convention Center. More than 30,000 writers, editors, publishers, booksellers and librarians are gathered for BookExpo America, the three-day industry trade show.

• The Skim Trade: At New York’s BookExpo, the Literary Event of a Lunchtime – The Washington Post: “Why the Friday afternoon fatigue? It’s no secret. The accumulation of social capital requires a lot of party-going.

  Thursday night it was the bash thrown by the newly renamed Grand Central Publishing, formerly Warner Books, at (of course) Grand Central Station. TV laughmeister Steven [sic] Colbert, author of Am America (and So Can You),’ due out in October, was said to be there, but Akre never saw him. She did get her picture taken with humorist Amy Sedaris, though.

  ‘I did it for my friend,’ she explains. ‘She’s taking care of my cat. It’s the least I can do.’”

• BEA correspondent WordsWithGrace says, “Sorry I’m not quite A-list enough to get invited to events like these. Stephen was indeed there, though — an author (evidently also published by Grand Central) who saw me reading Stephen’s blad on Friday said, ‘Oh, Stephen Colbert! I love him! He was at the party last night, but I was too shy to say anything to him!’ “
• Colbert…AND Amy Sedaris – Brad Meltzer’s Journal: “The Grand Central launch party was all snazz. And did manage to meet Colbert. Started by asking about comics, then stumbled through thanking him for mentioning The Book of Fate on his show. With each second tick I embarrassed myself more. A full 30 seconds of just fawning. I was 17 again — talking to the pretty girl and regretting every word that left my lips.

  BUT…got to meet Amy Sedaris, who I was told was hysterical in person, and who was honestly one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. Truly. And I’m a comic snob and don’t toss words like that lightly. Made my entire weekend.”

• BookExpo America’s slideshow from Day 2 (you’ll see our roving reporter featured there, too!)
• And the award for most awesomesterest book goes to… – Wordsmiths Books: “In case you missed it (and it would be easy to, unless you scour the vast world of internet book news coverage intently each and every morning-and then, why?), this past week has been the book industry’s versions of parent/teacher conference night AND spring break all rolled into one-BookExpo America 2007, held this year in New York City. It’s the who’s-who and what’s-what that sets the tone for the rest of the year in publishing. We at Wordsmiths Books couldn’t attend because, well, we’re doing the whole ‘opening a bookstore’ thing (as you may or may not be aware). While blogs like Book Patrol and the cleverly snarkyGalleyCat (which wins my award for best-named book blog ever) have kept those of us ‘in the biz’ (as they say in the big apple, I’m told) abreast of what’s been going on at the conferences, meetings, and parties of the past week in BEA (Good: Stephen Colbert. Bad and belabored: the continuing battle of book bloggers vs print-publication book critics . . . )”

Thanks for the memories, everyone.

• Stephen Colbert in the Zeitgeist – March 13, 2010
• Stephen Colbert in the Zeitgeist – March 3, 2010
• Please don’t sue us – An open letter to Tony Fox, PR rep for Viacom
• Eye Candy: Stephen Colbert at Christ Child Society’s Great Gatsby Gala