We just had another super fun week of Summer Kids Events in our stores. There's no better way to beat the heat and hang out with your kids at the most awesome bookstore on the planet then for our annual Summer Kids Events. Each week every Bookmans location hosts an hour long fun activity, craft, music or whatever to bring the fun of summer right to you. Check out what happened at our stores:

Recently Pride in the Pines celebrated its 16th year, ten of those were sponsored by Bookmans. It was also my tenth Pride. Eight of those I attended as a representative of Bookmans. Over the last few months, I have been asked why I support Pride and why Bookmans supports Pride. The short answer is because it's the right thing to do. The long answer is a bit more complicated.

Just like supporting local businesses, it's important to support your local authors. With help from Inkwell Management, we threw a Children's Author Fair featuring three talented writers and their unique kids' book. Authors included Daddy Bookins with the Lil' Boo series (a Bookmans favorite), 11-year-old author Jesse Dowell with The Magic Forest, and John Woody with Ernie Tales and his Siberian husky Ernie.

Each week car loads of young people pile into our kids rooms for crafts, story times, music or other fun activities. Last week was no expection as every Bookmans location hosts weekly Summer Kids Events. Check out what happened throughout our six locations and visit our Flickr feed documenting the merriment.

The Konamis is a webcomic by Jack Crawford and Bookmans own Tavis Maiden (@tavismaiden). Updated each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, follow the adventures of The Konamis, a real comic tale about the real comic adventure of The Konamis (meaning "little waves"), the little ol' rock band that makes a big splash!

The Konamis: Macho Men

The Konamis is a webcomic by Jack Crawford and Bookmans own Tavis Maiden (@tavismaiden). Updated each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, follow the adventures of The Konamis, a real comic tale about the real comic adventure of The Konamis (meaning "little waves"), the little ol' rock band that makes a big splash!

The Konamis: Minion Meal

Actor, producer, director and author LeVar Burton is best known for his roles in Roots, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and my personal favorite Reading Rainbow. Attendeding Spotlight on LeVar Burton at 2012 Phoenix Comicon, I expected a flock of Star Trek fans standing in line to ask questions about his role as Geordi La Forge but what I witnessed was an hour of amorous devotion to his dedication in the vast world of children's literacy.

* By Guest Blogger, Debe Branning, Arizona Haunted Sites Examiner

The Phoenix Comicon 2012 offered several late night happenings for convention goers. One of the popular places to be was the Phoenix Comicon Film Festival held in the ballrooms of the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Fans of scifi, horror, thrillers, fan films and zombies were treated to up-and-coming short films from all around the world including several by Arizona filmmakers.

"Date of the Dead" was one of the spectacular zombie movies that premiered at Comicon on Saturday, May 26. Written by Melodie Bogart and directed by Mark Urias of Arizona, most of the cast and crew of "Date of the Dead" attended the event in the packed ballroom.

This is a hot topic that many of us may have to deal with sometime in the future -- dating and dealing with the anticipated Zombie Apocalypse. Will zombies still be feared? Or will they begin to blend in the survivors' daily lives? The story is set fifty-one years after the Zombie Apocalypse. In it we learn how three young women attempt to battle self-esteem issues, controlling mothers and the living dead to try and win over the men of their dreams.

Have you had a Date with the Dead lately? Photo credit: Mark Urias