Bookseller trick or treat!

Possibly the most fun literary ghost story I've come across: AbeBooks lists the top 10 ghostwritten books. You might be surprised by the names of some of the ghostwriters!

There are now four "episodes" available in the Library of Congress's Exquisite Corpse Adventure--part 1 by Jon Scieszka, part 2 by Katherine Paterson, part 3 by Kate DiCamillo, and part 4 by Susan Cooper. Check in every two weeks for more exciting installments!

If you're like me and far behind on all sorts of reading, you may not have had a chance to read the New Yorker excerpt from Wild Things, Dave Eggers' novelization of Where the Wild Things Are.

Not really literary, and also an older article, but it seems like a good time to pull out this story about a scientific study of the odds of humanity surviving a zombie attack. Remember--aim for the head.

DON'T FORGET: For a Spooktacular time tonight (Friday, October 30) - head to Stardust Books for their POE-try Slam. It begins at 7:00, the suggested donation is $1 (all donations go into a pot that will be awarded to the best poet of the evening by specially selected judges) and costumes are encouraged!

Poets: Bring one spooky or seasonal poem and one poem on a subject of your choice to perform for the audience.

We'll start the Slam off with a dramatic reading of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven." It's guaranteed to be a Fangtastic evening!

Happy Halloween!!

Read-a-Thon Wrap-up

For our first Read-a-Thon, in 2008, we had prepared by talking with other booksellers who had hosted Read-a-Thons in the past. We had no particular expectations going in. We were bowled over to have 38 participants, mainly ages 12-17, raising around $830 for Hardwick Head Start.

This year, we'd been through the whole process and had a good idea of what we were getting into. We recruited extra volunteers to chaperone and set some new ground rules to make sure everyone was on the same page as far as what was expected and what was off limits during the 24 hours we'd be spending together in the bookstore.

Yet again, our expectations were blown away--we had 53 participants (including chaperones, many of whom found time to do some reading of their own) and, as of five days later, have raised $1040.98 for Hardwick Head Start and Early Head Start! According to several phone calls, emails, and drop-in visits, we are expecting to reach over $1,100 when all is said and done.

And what did the Read-a-Thonners do to honor the pledges they raised? Reading, of course, played a big part. Just from the participants who chose to keep logs of the books they read, we had a count of 14,063 pages read. In visual terms, that's the equivalent of a stack of 18 copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows--in hardcover! Our winner for most pages read logged over 4,000 pages in her 24 hours here!

Of course, these voracious readers also had an appetite for food, and this is another way in which our community showed generous support for the Head Start programs. Hall's Market donated several bags of fruit; Patchwork Farm & Bakery gave us a discount on delicious pizzas for Friday night's dinner; Connie's Kitchen delivered some fresh baked muffins and cinnamon bread for breakfast on Saturday; and Grand Union gave us a gift certificate that we used towards lunches and snacks.

We also wanted to give people a chance to take breaks from their books from time to time, and activities such as storytelling and Literary Jeopardy were popular diversions. Susan O'Connell--the children's librarian at Jeudevine Library--created a special "library annex" here at the store for anyone who ran out of reading material, and at midnight led a Raid on the Library that let people stretch their legs and stock up on additional books.

A 5 a.m. scavenger hunt through the bookstore found very few takers (two, to be exact), since nearly everyone else was fast asleep.

In the morning, however, they were awake and ready to hit the books again.

A moment of Zen

It's hard to focus on much when it's less than 24 hours before our 24 Hour Read-a-Thon, so enjoy these sleeping kitties until I'm able to write more! Stop by the store this weekend to check out our Read-a-Thoners; I'll try to post stories and photos from the event next week. ~ Sandy

Up all night, read all day

IT'S TIME FOR READ-A-THON 2009!

The Galaxy Bookshop's Second Annual 24 Hour Read-a-Thon is set to kick off Friday, October 16 at 4 p.m. and run through Saturday, October 17 at 4 p.m. The Read-a-Thon is a fundraiser for Hardwick Head Start and Early Head Start and promotes the importance and the enjoyment of reading at all ages. Hardwick Head Start and Early Head Start provide education, nutrition, health, community, and social services to low-income children.

Read-a-Thon participants collect pledges--all of which will be donated to Head Start--and can spend up to 24 hours at The Galaxy Bookshop reading and enjoying a variety of activities. Last year, thirty-eight readers participated in the Read-a-Thon, raising just over $800 for Head Start and collectively reading over 10,000 pages and dozens of books! Head Start used the money raised by our readers to purchase furniture for a reading area and books for the program's students.

Admittedly, Read-a-Thonning is tiring work, but lots of fun! You're welcome to stay for the entire 24 hours (as Morgan, above, did last year) or come join us for a short time. We also invite you to stop in during the day on Saturday--the store will be open for normal hours--to cheer on our readers and make a donation to Head Start.