First Proof Copies Of The (Dis)Appearance Of Nerissa MacKay

These arrived on Thursday.
Yes, I know that the cover has problems.  I've already talked to the resident artist (aka Dad) about how to fix it.  And I'm averaging about 8-10 changes per page on the text right now.
But.
Getting the first copies of a book is always SO exciting!  And you should've seen the faces of the 7th graders who'd signed up to be  beta readers!  Yes, I let them choose from a package of colored pens so that each beta reader has a different color (about 4 kids will read each physical copy of the book, so having them stay consistent with their own color will be very helpful to me), showed them some printed instructions on how to make constructive comments (these kids are 12 years old; they don't already know how to do this), and then let them have their first go at it during reading time on Friday.  A couple of them are still too scared to write anything, but one boy dug in immediately, making several valid points.  And they definitely were envied by those who had not signed up/been selected.
I hope to get them all through this by the end of the school year.  Then I can do another copy over the summer and have more beta readers next fall.
I'm still waiting for one of the English teachers to finish his copy edits on Becoming Brigid, too.  I'm in hopes that one can be ready for publication by August (fingers crossed).  The librarian said he'd be happy to set up the book trailer over the summer, which is good.