I pride myself on being on top of all of the latest things. I read four newspapers a day, multiple magazines a month and watch a lot of TV (probably far too much…). Bottom line: I try to be as informed as possible on everything possible.

Yet I only recently discovered the phenomenon that is Bananagrams! The creators call it “an anagram game that is so fast it will drive you bananas.”

All I can say is that this innocent appearing amusement – which consists of 144 letter tiles in a banana-shaped bag – is one of the most addictive games I have ever played.

And I’ve learned that I’m not alone. I started telling friends and colleagues about this amazing “new” game I’d found and they all laughed and said “Don’t you love it? I’m a huge fan.”

Well, now I finally have some news to break to them: there’s a new version of this ridiculously addictive past-time. Bananagrams! The Official Book has just arrived at a store near you.

The book has 575 word challenges to drive you … wait for it … bananas. They range from one banana (easy) to four bananas (hard). I have to admit even some of the one banana puzzles stumped me at first. But the more I did them the better I got. Now I even manage to get through some of the most challenging ones without taking a sneak peek at the answer key!

My advice: don’t come late to this new trend. Get a copy of Bananagrams! now.  Trust me. You’re sure to find it a–peel–ing. (Sorry – I couldn’t resist!)

Kristin Matthews
Director of Publicity

BookExpo America, (BEA) an annual booksellers and publishers convention, is a great time to see what everyone else is up to while showing off what we’ve got lined up for the new year. Our booth always attracts a lot of traffic, and this year was no exception.

We brought in authors Anne Byrn, Rufus Butler Seder and Amy Saxton to greet eager fans and sign books. Our booth served cake from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns along with copies of Don’t Forget to Sing in Lifeboats—an optimistic book full of “Uncommon wisdom.” We presented the hottest new idea for children—Indestructibles books, and announced BananaGrams!, a book version of the popular game.

But the BEA fun didn’t stop at the convention center—we held a 400-person cocktail party at the Workman offices!

Even though many predicted a smaller-than-usual show this year with scaled-down booths and events, this BEA had a few twists, but with all of the excitement of years past.

A proud moment and a successful show!