On a dreary, rainy Tuesday in September, just days away from it being officially Autumn, approximately 150+ people who love books headed to the luxurious Ritz-Carlton in Toronto for the first annual Bookstravaganza! Hosted by Chatelaine Books & Random House Canada, we were greeted with a lovely assortment of drinks, a candy bar and lip gloss touch-up from Bourjois. As some of the fellow bloggers were saying, “Rose Exclusif lip gloss? It’s magical!” (Why magical? Because it reacts to the individual pH balance of your lips – so everyone has a unique colour!)
@everafteresther tries the @bourjoiscanada magical lip gloss – incredible! @chatelainebooks @randomhouseca instagr.am/p/PvC5aEis95/
— JennH (@lostingreatbook) September 18, 2012
Treated with make-up, drinks, treats and books!
After some mingling out in the reception area, we all grabbed seats at the tables with lovely books for centrepieces (which I don’t think were up for grabs, despite what the empty tables would say at the end of the presentation) The presentation consisted of really clever videos interspersed with some editors who got up to highlight some particular upcoming reads for the Fall. I really loved the videos, they were themed and a great way to showcase ALL the books in an interesting manner. The cookbooks were all placed within the setting of a kitchen, the books made into TV/Movie were done like a channel changing. Fantastic evening.
Once the videos, speakers & raffle prizes were drawn (which, I still think half the tickets that started with 5 weren’t put into the bucket since all the numbers drawn were 7-something), Laurie Grassi of Chatelaine Books got up to introduce the two special guests for the evening, Annabel Lyon and Shauna Singh Baldwin. Both fantastic women who spoke a bit about their respective new books, were incredibly engaging and absolutely captivated my interest in The Sweet Girl and The Selector of Souls. Copies of both (beautiful!) books were graciously provided to the guests who then had the opportunity to get them signed by both authors.
Our lovely emcees for the evening | Annabel Lyon speaking of The Sweet Girl | Shauna Singh Baldwin speaking about The Selector of Souls | Laurie Grassi of Chatelaine Books
What a lovely eclectic group of people at the event. I’m so used to going to events with many bloggers, that it felt a bit surreal being in the minority this time! While our table had many bloggers, and all of us being chatty and social, we definitely noticed some who didn’t seem too amused by our friendliness! 
Nonetheless, it was fantastic being surrounded by so many book lovers at such a fabulous venue.
Thank you to everyone at Chatelaine Books, Random House Canada and the Ritz-Carlton staff for a successful bookstravaganza evening!
Thank you for our amazing gift bag!
And hello & shoutouts to all the familiar faces I saw: Lindsey & RHC team, Laurie & Chatelaine team, Jenn, Brenna, Wendy, Leonicka, Dana, Kaley, Lindsey, Siobhan, Shilpa, Vikki & Shannon!
Other recaps:
- Retreat by Random House (with a lot more pics!)
- EditorialEyes Book Blog
- Turning the Pages
Wow that looks like it was really fantastic!! Toronto always has the best events!! Thanks for the great recap babe!
Amy @ Book Loving Mom recently posted..Review: Pretty When She Dies by Rhiannon Frater
Looks like you had a lot of fun! I considered going but I’m way too busy right now
I’m super excited for the Ontario Blog Squat meet up in November though!
PS. How did you embed that tweet into your post so that the links and buttons still work?!? I’ve never seen that before!
Natalie S. (@tobeshelved) recently posted..Book Nerd Problems: Naming Your Kids After Fictional Characters
What a cool event! I wish I lived in Ontario JUST so I could go to events like this.
That’s too bad that some people at your table didn’t seem too impressed with friendly people — how weird!
Thanks for sharing, Michele!
Kristilyn (Reading in Winter) recently posted..FEATURE: My Favourite Vampire Books (So Far) — And My Least Favourite
Very cool. I didn’t hear about this until now – was it for industry insiders or could anyone go?
Shannon (Giraffe Days) recently posted..Review: The Broken Kingdoms
Anyone could go! You just had to buy a ticket
Ugh, I’ll have to try and remember this for next year. Would love to do something bookish like this. Excited about Word on the Street this Sunday though! (And I am baby-free!!)
Shannon (Giraffe Days) recently posted..Review: The Broken Kingdoms
So glad you could come, Michele! It was great to see you again!