Still Alice, still going!

My books feel in some ways like my children (so far, I’ve given birth to 3 babies and 2 books). Each one is unique, I love them all, and you’d better watch out if you have anything bad to say about any of them (well, I understand that not all reviewers and readers are going to love all of my books, but they’re not allowed to say anything mean about my kids!).

And even though I have no favorites, there’s a special place in my heart for the first one, both child and book. I didn’t know what the heck I was doing with either one (as a mother or an author), and I’m eternally grateful to both of them for bumping their way into this world and into my life, however ungraceful and ignorant I was in guiding them here.

This week I received phenomenal news about STILL ALICE, my firstborn book. STILL ALICE won the Bexley 2011 Book of the Year award! More than two years after its publication date, I couldn’t be more proud!

Because this distinction is awarded from England, I thought I’d share with you some of the UK STILL ALICE covers (the different covers are like showing people pictures of your baby dressed in different outfits).

Here’s the original UK cover concept that was rejected:

And the original UK paperback that was released in March 2009:

And the STILL ALICE paperback released in the UK a year later, the copy on the stands there now:

Cute, huh? Thank you so much for choosing STILL ALICE as the 2011 Bexley Book of the Year. I’m truly honored and thrilled! Thank you for reading STILL ALICE and for using the book as a vehicle to discuss Alzheimer’s. So many people are afraid to talk about Alzheimer’s. It’s incredibly rewarding to know that readers are braving this scary topic and coming away with a better understanding of this disease, the people who live with it, and that we are more than what we can remember. Again, so proud. Now off to pay some attention to my third “baby,” LOVE ANTHONY….