I’m delighted and beyond excited to announce that the American Booksellers Association has picked A GOOD AMERICAN as its “One Institute, One Read” title for the forthcoming Winter Institute 8, which takes place in Kansas City next February.

This, not to put too fine a point on it, is a pretty big deal.

ABA is the organizing body of independent booksellers throughout the United States.  Indie booksellers have already shown amazing support for A GOOD AMERICAN, voting it the #1 Indie Next List pick for February, and I am so proud that the book has been chosen for this new honor.  A copy of the novel (which will have just come out in paperback) will be sent to every attendee prior to the convention, and everyone is encouraged to read it before they get to Kansas City.  Then I get to stand up in front of a room of people and lead a discussion about it.  Since this will be a room full of some of the cleverest and best-read people in the country, yikes.  Other authors speaking at the Winter Institute include Sherman Alexie, Malcolm Gladwell, and Daniel Pink, so I am in rather stellar company!

There was already a fun connection between the book and Winter Institute 8, when, back last February, the wonderful Rainy Day Books in Kansas City issued a challenge to all independent booksellers, offering to award a scholarship to WI8 to the bookseller who handsells the most copies of A GOOD AMERICAN.  I do hope I’ll get to meet the winner of the challenge and thank them personally.  Indie bookstores remain the heart and soul of the publishing industry in this country and we all owe an enormous debt to those who work so tirelessly and passionately in them.

And so people.  If you haven’t visited your local independent bookstore recently, you should.

A copy of the announcement from ABA is here.