Buy A Book

In many parts of the country the economy has hit people pretty hard. First the real estate market fell down and broke it's crown and the auto industry came tumbling after, so it's not surprising that the publishing industry has also taken a great fall. As the holidays approached I figured people would take stock and return to the simpler things in life like homemade wooden toys for the kids, baking cookies, and giving books as gifts for their loved ones. However, I was wrong. Books went the way of the seven dollar grande half calf latte with foam on the list of things to cut. And that is unfortunate. Unlike a cup of coffee, a book is forever.

Up until October and November NeilsenScan was reporting that sales for books were up. But the tightening of belts across the nation left so much stock in all the bookstores that the returns effectively nullified any profits most publishing companies had gained up until that point. And because of that many publishing houses are reducing their staff and putting a freeze on acquisitions of new books.

But the rumblings that there was trouble in paradise started back in April when the big box book stores that had slain most of the smaller independent bookstores had a new enemy in places like Amazon.com, Wal-Mart, and Costco. Suddenly the big stores weren't king of the hill anymore and found themselves on the recieving end of tricks they had used against the independents. Slashed prices and convenience. Who can beat being able to shop in your pajamas and have your choices delivered to your door? Not even Barnes & Noble or Borders with their big comfy chairs and coffee bars with sticky buns or the funky jazz playing over the in store sound system.

What worries me isn't really that Borders or Barnes and Noble might start closing their doors. No. What worries me is that a lousy economy means less choice. It's not really the big bookstores themselves that are in trouble. It's the people that create the stock and those people pay the writers who create the content of that stock. But if they have to cut back on what they publish to ensure profit you know they are going to start choosing works that appeal to the most people. And that means "lowest common denominator".

So what is a bibliophile to do?

Buy a book. But a few even. Christmas is just around the corner. Need gift ideas? Books. Books make the perfect gift. They come in all shapes and sizes. There is bound to be a volume for every person on your list. Go look! I promise you'll find something that fits even the most particular of your gift giving circle. Plus, they're square and easy to wrap.

Some tips:

If ordering online, try BetterWorld.com. For each book they sell a portion goes to various literacy charities. The shipping cost for any book is just 2.97. They also recycle by accepting books for resale which keeps all of that paper out of the landfills and gives them even more money to donate to their chosen charities.

If buying locally but want to shop an independent store try indiebound.org. There you can enter your zip code and it will give you a list of independent bookstores in your area. Or if you can't get out to the shops but want to support the independents, find their websites and make a purchase online. Most, if they are smart, will fill orders via the world wide web. Like Powell's in Oregon or Changing Hands in Arizona.

Want to make your shopping even easier and judge the books by the cover alone? Here's a list of the best desinged of 2008.

If you are going to use Amazon.com, find a site that you support that has an affiliates store. The price of the book is the same but the site with the store gets a percentage of the sale. (Actually, it's like a percentage of a percentage. But these days, every 1/3 of a penny counts.) If they don't have a book you want in their store, email them and ask them to add it. You get what you need while helping out someone else. Isn't that cool?

And when you are done, list the book(s) here. They are trying to reach 1 million books by January 1st and I can't do it all myself. Although, I'll try. I'm already up by 7 books so far.

He Talk Pretty ~ David Sedaris Live

Quote of the Day: "I love things made out of animals. It's just so funny to think of someone saying, 'I need a letter opener. I guess I'll have to kill a deer.” ~David Sedaris

I had written down on two different calendars that David Sedaris would be at the Palace Theatre on the 19th of September; one being the calendar on my desk and the other on my bedroom wall. I was wrong both times. And it’s a good thing too because on the 19th I had a horrific headache and had decided to stay home. Even though I was confident I had made the right decision I couldn’t help but look at the clock between the hours of 8 and 10 and think periodically, “He’s being funny right now. People are laughing at this very moment. I wonder who is sitting next to my empty seat.” I discovered my mistake days later thanks to a blurb in my local paper about our local entertainment journalist being there at the upcoming performance and ‘twittering’ from the audience. Hurray! I could still go.

I have never been to any of his shows so I wasn’t sure what to expect. On the stage was a podium and that was all. No backdrop even. He came out and the person behind me said over the applause, “He’s so tiny!” in that way that people say it about puppies, meaning they want to snuggle with the bundle of cuteness incarnate. None of the stories he read were from his latest book When You Are Engulfed In Flames. He explained that he was tired of that book. That elicited laughter from the audience. As did most of what he said all night. He read stories about talking to people on his book tours, two stories about the undecided voters of the US election- one from the perspective of a person that can’t understand how someone could be undecided and the other as if he were one of those unsure folk, a trip to Costco with his brother in law, traveling, meeting a taxi driver that wanted to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for traveling with the youngest child to all 7 continents, and a few of his favorite bits from The Braindead Magaphone by George Saunders. A book he apparently liked so much that while reading a selection of letters called “Dear Optimist” he kept having to stop he was laughing so hard himself. I have a feeling that if people were more on the ball, this book would be on the ALA’s most frequently challenged list. He took questions from the audience but I don’t really remember any. On person did ask if he was still not smoking, which he isn’t. Then he confided that he sometimes dreams of smoking but in his dreams after he remembers that he had quit, he starts to feel guilty, which is what happened to me when I quit over 10 years ago. I’d wake up just gutted that I had succumbed to having a cigarette after not having one for months until I would realize it was a dream and I hadn’t actually had one. And that was the thing about the evening. Even though as a home town bound woman 16 years his junior to his world living life, his thought processes that he revealed during every story mirrored what I probably would have thought had I been in his place. (Even when he was putting men he had seen on a list of viable candidates should the need arise... You know what I mean.) And judging by the reactions of everyone else in the audience, I suspect I'm not the only one who felt that way. The laughter was inspired by his humours turn of phrase but also by recognition. Yes! We would laugh. Exactly! He then announced that if anyone had any more questions they could ask him personally because he was going to be signing more books, wished everyone a good night and left the stage to thunderous applause. And that was it. My review: I’d go again in a heartbeat. In rain or no, horrific headache or picture of health. Laughter is the best medicine anyhow, right?

Click to purchase any titles from the David Sedaris library or the book by George Saunders.

The Book of Lies, the trailer

I saw this trailer and thought it was an ingenious way to advertise a book... with a movie trailer! And why not?

For more info, visit BradMeltzer.com.

And for more truth visit TheBookisReal.com

IndieBound.org

Today I added a new sidebar button. With this button you can add your zip code and it will give you a list of local bookstores that would be happy to provide you with whatever book your heart desires. I feel this is an important feature for several reasons. But I'll let IndieBound.org say it for me:

The Economy
Spend $100 at a local and $68 of that stays in your community. Spend the same $100 at a national chain, and your community only sees $43.
Local businesses create higher-paying jobs for our neighbors.
More of your taxes are reinvested in your community--where they belong.

The Environment
Buying local means less packaging, less transportation, and a smaller carbon footprint.
Shopping in a local business district means less infrastructure, less maintenance, and more money to beautify your community.

The Community
Local retailers are your friends and neighbors--support them and they’ll support you.
Local businesses donate to charities at more than twice the rate of national chains.
More independents means more choice, more diversity, and a truly unique community.

So the next time you need a book, take a walk in your own neighborhood and spend your cash where you make it. At home in your own community.

David Sedaris on tour.

Recently author and humorist David Sedaris was on David Letterman reading excerpts from his latest book, When You Are Engulfed In Flames. This prompted this reader to hit Google and I discovered that tickets are on sale for a book reading tour. Listed on Ticket Master are about 15 cities in the US and one in Canada.