Book Tour with my Mom, Day 2

More Chicago!

With apologies to all of you who sent in excellent restaurant recommendations, we went across the street from our hotel and shared a small Lou Malnati’s pizza and I had a very large glass of wine. Sometimes the closest thing is the best thing.

Today was an epic, and not to brag, but it started with a red carpet.

The first school we went to was bilingual, and they taught us that the Spanish word for goose is gonso. The kids were so adorable, and productive! They made signs, they decorated the sidewalk, they hugged Gaga’s goose.

Again, our suits from the Consistency Project look good in truly any context.

These kids put in SO MUCH WORK! Big ups to Rita the school librarian!

Then we drove on to Oak Park, where we had a little time to kill before our next school, and so we obviously stopped at the local independent bookstore. The Book Table very quickly earned our love, and I will tell you why.

Number one: they had all of my books. Literally every single one. Even Laura Lamont! Do you know how often this is true at bookstores I don’t personally own? Never. So I was already ready to pledge my love forever.

But then we went up to the counter for me to sign all my books and we met Linda, pictured here hiding behind Very Good Hats. Linda told us that she reads my father’s book Ghost Story every single year on her birthday. We had a wonderful, moving conversation with her about my dad, and his books, and it was the absolute highlight of our day. Thank you, Linda. Booksellers really make a difference. I have to say, we’ve popped into a lot of different bookstores on this trip, and may I just say, preaching to the choir here: there is nothing, nothing, nothing better than an independent bookstore.

That Linda glow.

An old family friend (he’s not old, he’s just been our friend for a long time) teaches kindergarten in Oak Park, and really this whole trip was just a ruse to be in the Blecha Bunch.

I would trust this man with my life. Look at his pink fanny pack. This is a man you can count on.

Honestly, the best spot, between lunch and library. The kids are FED and ready to READ.

We did our presentation in the auditorium, to hundreds of children. There is one slide where my mom talks about how father was given forks (like, a single fork) for his birthday every year, and the kids booed so loud, it was incredible. Best audience yet.

Brief rest in the school library. Again, wear a monochromatic suit and you will never feel bad ever again.

And listen: the reviews are in. The book is good. If you’ve read this far and don’t have a copy, I suggest you fix that! Signed copies everywhere all over Chicagoland, at Books Are Magic, etc.

Next stop, Milwaukee, birthplace of Gaga herself.