Three reviews

March, and often into April, seem to me especially good months for reading. It's a transitional time when winter's fading but the really lovely, warm spring weather hasn't arrived (except in a teasing "soon, but not yet" sort of way). I like to hunker down with a stack of books until green things start poking through last year's dead grass and the last of the snowbanks have finally disappeared from the yard--total escapism.

This week, we're each going to share one book that has kept us occupied (and sane) this season.

Linda:

I Thought You Were Dead by Pete Nelson (Find it on our Staff Picks table now!)


Talking dog? I had my doubts. But in the same way that I want a reader to take a risk--say when I am trying to sell them a book about sheep farmers in Iceland--I figured I owed it to this book to give it a try. In short, the relationship between Paul and his dog Stella is the best relationship between any characters--human, canine, feline, bovine--anything or anyone in fiction, and probably in life. I'd welcome Paul and Stella on my doorstep any day, and in the meantime I'll be so happy I met them while I was reading.

Sandy:

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan (available April 6)


I love this collaboration between David Levithan and John Green.  It's the story of two boys named Will Grayson who live in different suburbs of Chicago. One Will Grayson lives by rules that will keep him out of the spotlight, number one of which is "Shut up." Unfortunately for him, it's hard to avoid the spotlight when your best friend is Tiny Cooper, "world's largest person who is really, really gay."  The other Will Grayson faces a daily battle with depression and finds his only solace in online meetings with a guy named Isaac. One night, the Will Graysons' paths cross, and each boy finds his life changed in ways he wouldn't have imagined. Engaging from the first page, the story is funny, heartbreaking, redemptive, and completely captures the frustration of those teenage years when you're trying so hard to understand who you are and how to deal with life's highs and lows. (Not to say that ends as soon as the teen years are over.)


Stella:

My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira (available May 13)

Robin Oliveira's debut novel is a Civil War story full of wonderful historical detail and strong writing. Mary Sutter is a woman who wants to become a surgeon, succeeds, and discovers her strengths and limitations along the way.  The book is loosely based on the life of Mary Edwards Walker, the first American female surgeon and the first woman to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. [edited 3/29: Though some aspects of the character's life might be similar to that of Mary Edwards Walker and other female surgeons of the Civil War, the author would like to note that Mary Sutter is a completely fictional character.]

(I really enjoyed this book, but if you have a weak stomach there are some graphic descriptions of battlefield wounds and amputations that you might want to skip past.)

Guest Blogger: Ben Hewitt

This week, thanks to Cabot author Ben Hewitt for contributing. Ben will be launching his new book, The Town That Food Saved: How One Community Found Vitality in Local Food, at The Galaxy Bookshop on Tuesday, March 16, at 7 p.m.

When Linda and Sandy asked me to write a post on the upcoming launch
of my book, The Town That Food Saved, I almost said no. After all, I’d just written 70-something thousand words on the Hardwick area; I figured I’d stuck foot (pen?) firmly in mouth plenty of times, already. And then, ever the glutton, I decided what the hell: A time or two more can’t hurt.

I spent about a year writing this book. The process was by turns
exciting, dispiriting, confusing, and affirming. I’d naively sold the
book on a simple premise: That Hardwick needed saving, and that a
localized food system was just the thing to make it so. It didn’t take
long to determine that it would be vastly more complicated than that,
and the book began to turn on my struggle to understand these
unanticipated complexities. I’d say more, but of course then you
wouldn’t need to buy the book.

In the weeks following this launch, I’ll be spending a lot of time
talking about the book (and by extension, Hardwick) in communities
throughout the northeast. The degree of interest has far exceeded my
wildest expectations, and it feels incredibly important that I carry
with me the news of Hardwick, particularly as it relates to the
region’s evolving food system. I want to know how you feel about the
goings-on about town, the boom in food-based enterprises, and the
ensuing media coverage. Are you inspired? Disheartened? Or merely
indifferent? Is Hardwick really the town that food saved, or does it
need another agricultural enterprise like it needs a snowstorm in
September? (To be sure, both will probably happen)

So I invite you to come to the Galaxy Bookshop on the evening of March
16. I’ll read a little; I’ll probably talk a little too. But mostly, I’ll be there to listen.

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The Town That Food Saved is already receiving praise from reviewers around the country:

Times Argus

Publisher's Weekly (seventh title down)

School Library Journal (about two-thirds of the way down the page)

Los Angeles Times

Walking to Gatlinburg: A Recap

What a great way to start off our 2010 Reading Series! Howard Frank Mosher launched his nationwide book tour (which will include stops in somewhere between 60 and 100 cities across the country) at The Galaxy Bookshop last night. While we had some of the typical pre-event jitters (Will the books show up? They did--at 2:00 yesterday afternoon. Will anyone come? Most certainly--a standing-room-only crowd!) any fears we had were laid to rest as we welcomed Howard and his audience to the store.

Our friend Will--who, among other things is a Civil War reenactor--loaned Linda and I the fabulous period coats we're wearing in the photo above. We received a huge round of applause and laughter when we made our entrance. I think Howard got a huge kick out of this, too, since we decided to surprise him and not put on our costumes till the last minute.

Howard used to be known as a fairly quiet author, and one who never read from his books, but last night he spent an hour entertaining us with stories about his writing career and the work that went into writing Walking to Gatlinburg and read not one but two sections from the novel. One of our customers, hugging her new book to her chest, told me that she thought that no one would get much sleep that night, because they'd all be up, racing through their books!

After he'd signed several dozen books (including extra stock, which is available now), Howard, his lovely wife, the booksellers, and a few guests including contest winner Charlie, went to Claire's Restaurant to celebrate a very successful and enjoyable evening.

Thank you so much to everyone who joined us for this memorable event!

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Local and national praise for Walking to Gatlinburg.