My ALA Midwinter book haul

Remember how I said I'd have to practice restraint, because I could only take back what I could carry? Well, apparently I can carry quite a bit in a backpack, large purse, and tote bag. The number of books I got at this conference was only slightly less than the number of books I got at my last conference. Admittedly, several of the books are pretty skinny.

Here's a list, in no particular order, of what I managed to get:

• Kylie Jean, Football Queen (book) by Marci Peschke - This is the only one I got that I didn't get for myself. It's short, so I may read it anyway, even though it's aimed at a younger audience than the books I normally read. According to Amazon, this book was released earlier this month.
• Whatever After: Fairest of All (book) by Sarah Mlynowski - This looked like fluffy fun. Due out in May 2012.
• Belles (book) by Jen Calonita - Due out in April 2012.
• The Peculiars (book) by Maureen Doyle McQuerry - The back of my ARC indicates that this may be steampunk. Due out in May 2012.
• I Hunt Killers (book) by Barry Lyga - Of all the books I brought back, this one has the most interesting presentation. It's in a bag made to look like an evidence bag. Due out in April 2012.
• 172 Hours on the Moon (book) by Johan Harstad - The cover is creepy. The description on the back of the book confuses me. I passed this one by several times before finally caving and picking up a copy. Due out in April 2012.
• Pandemonium (graphic novel) written by Chris Wooding, illustrated by Cassandra Diaz - Here's hoping the story is good, because the art really isn't to my taste. The cover is eye-catching, though, and makes me wish the whole thing could be in color. Due out in February 2012. EDIT: Whoops, my bad. I just came across the bit in my ARC that explains that the ARC is primarily in black and white, but the final version will be in full color. The full-color pages at the beginning look pretty good, and this explains why the black-and-white pages look unfinished. It's because they are.
• The Wood Queen (book) by Karen Mahoney - I may decide I need to read The Iron Witch before I even get started with this book. According to Amazon, The Wood Queen is due out in February 2012, but the copy I snagged has nothing on it to indicate that it's an ARC.
• Fracture (book) by Megan Miranda - This was released earlier this month.
• Skyship Academy: The Pearl Wars (book) by Nick James - The cover badly needs a redesign - I and several other people who took a closer look at it thought it looked like steampunk. The publisher reps had to keep telling people that it was actually science fiction. Actually, maybe it's the title that's the problem. To me, "skyship" sounds very steampunk. I do like science fiction, so I picked this one up anyway. According to Amazon, this was released back in September 2011.
• Digit: She's Got Your Number (book) by Annabelle Monaghan - The FBI needs the high school-aged heroine's help, because she's a math genius. I decided I so needed to read this book. Due out on June 5, 2012.
• So Pretty It Hurts: A Bailey Weggins Mystery (book) by Kate White - The cover caught my eye, and I'm curious to see if Bailey is really "a heroine who keeps us laughing while sitting at the edge of our seats." Due out in March 2012.
• Brave New Love: 15 Dystopian Tales of Desire (anthology) edited by Paula Guran - The only contributing author whose name I recognize is Maria V. Snyder. I picked it up hoping that "tales of desire" meant that at least some of the stories were romances. Due out in March 2012.
• Epigenetics in the Age of Twitter: Pop Culture and Modern Science (non-fiction book) by Gerald Weissmann - No, this isn't at all what I usually read, and, no, I don't know what I was thinking. I had been at the conference for a few hours by then, and I was tired. I'll still give this one a go, because I tried out a few random pages and it seems very readable. Due out in March 2012.
• My Boyfriend Is a Monster #5: I Date Dead People (graphic novel) by Ann Kerns, illustrated by Janina Görrissen - The artwork caught my eye. Due out in April 2012.
• Poison Most Vial (book) by Benedict Carey - Due out in April 2012.
• The Dead of Winter (book) by Chris Priestley - I was going to skip out on this one, until I noticed the bit on the back saying that fans of Neil Gaiman would enjoy it. See how easy I am? Due out on January 31, 2012.
• Cruising Attitude (memoir) by Heather Poole - I occasionally enjoy reading blog posts written by flight attendants, and it's possible that I've already read some of Poole's writings online. This seemed potentially light and funny, so I snagged it, even though I don't read many memoirs. Due out in March 2012.
• A Perfect Square (book) by Vannetta Chapman - It's an Amish mystery! And not a YA or middle grade novel! Due out in April 2012.

Believe it or not, I did practice restraint - even with all the books I got, there were still quite a few books I was tempted to take but didn't.

After the last conference I went to, I had this great plan to review all my ARCs just before or just after their release dates. This time around, I know better. There are a few things, like the graphic novels, that I am highly likely to read and review in a relatively timely manner. Everything else...who knows? I have ever-growing physical and digital TBR piles, several library books, and an addiction to Japanese anime, so all I can say is that I'll get to things when I get to them.

All in all, it's been a good day. I'm tired, but I picked up lots of interesting-looking books and talked to all the vendor reps I wanted to talk to. There weren't nearly as many people visiting the exhibits as I had thought there would be, which I'm sure was disappointing to the vendors, but I kind of liked not having to fight my way through a crush of people.