Conference News

Massachusetts Library Association (MLA) - Online Auction

The Massachusetts Library Association (MLA) will be holding an online auction fundraiser. The online auction will open on March 3, 2006 and close on March 31, 2006. Please visit http://masslib.cmarket.com to view items and place your bids. Your generous bids will help raise funds for MLA!

Closing General Session with keynote speaker Paco Underhill

Best-selling author Paco Underhill will present the keynote address at the closing session of PLA’s 11th National Conference, March 25, 2006 at 11:45 a.m. in Boston. Underhill is the acclaimed author of "Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping" (2000) and "The Call of the Mall: The Geography of Shopping" (2005). His talk will draw on research of over 20 years on how shoppers interact with stores and the geometry that, as he puts it, "rules the shopping universe." As founder and managing director of Envirosell, a New York-based behavioral market research and consulting company, Underhill has developed what some style "retail anthropology." Using detailed observation, customer tracking and video, Underhill has cataloged over 900 aspects of interaction between the shopper and the store. These vary from how people enter (the "human downshift period") and walk through the store (most of them turn to the right) to how they react to the size and layout of aisles. Thanks to NextReads for their support of this program.

Adult Author Luncheon with Sarah Susanka and Michael Schlow

Two speakers have been added to the PLA 2006 National Conference line-up. Sarah Susanka and Michael Schlow will be the keynote speakers at the Friday Adult Author luncheon. Sarah Susanka is a cultural visionary leading a movement that is redefining the American home. Today, her "build better, not bigger" approach to residential architecture has been embraced by homeowners, architects, and builders across the country and her "Not So Big" philosophy has sparked a national dialogue. She is the authors of several books: The Not So Big House (1998) Creating The Not So Big House (2000) Not So Big Solutions for Your Home (2002) Home By Design (2004) Prior to her work as an author and public speaker, Susanka was a principal and founding partner of Mulfinger, Susanka, Mahady & Partners, Inc., a firm specializing in residential architecture in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She spent 16 years at the company, which was selected to design the 1999 Life Dream House. Susanka is a registered architect, a member of the American Institute of Architects and is a certified interior designer. For more information about Susanka and her work, visit http://www.notsobighouse.com, http://www.notsobigshowhouse.com, http://www.homebydesignshowhouse.com and http://www.taunton.com/susanka.

Michael Schlow is a renowned Boston-area chef. Before making Boston his home, Schlow served as chef at a handful of restaurants in the New York area, devoting a great deal of his culinary career to developing his skills in classic Italian cooking. In 1995, he moved to Boston where he soon garnered nearly every culinary distinction imaginable, including Boston Magazine's "Best New Chef in Boston" and Food and Wine's "Top 10 New Chefs in the Country," Schlow and Meyers turned the heat up on their larger plan. His Boston restaurant, Radius, was named one of the 50 best American restaurants in the September, 2001 issue of Gourmet and Best New Restaurant in 2000 by Food & Wine Magazine. The restaurant, described by one critic as "stylish, streamlined, and sophisticated," was named "Top 50 Most Exciting Restaurants in the World" by Conde Nast Traveler. Schlow has now opened Via Matta, in Boston's Back Bay area, where he can return to his first great love in the kitchen: Italian cuisine. Schlow says of his intentions behind the menu, "We want diners to experience the freshness and authenticity of Italian cuisine." He also is the author of "Its About Time: Great Recipes for Everyday Life, " which "Fine Cooking" magazine called "A thoroughly engaging and useful cookbook that shows home cooks how easy great food can be." Thanks to Random House for their support of this program.