Wake up, little blog!

Whew, it's been much too long since we've blogged here, but we're making a resolution to do better from now on. (Who says you can only make resolutions at New Year's?)

Thought 2011 is not over yet, the yearly lists are coming out now, and we'd like to share two of our favorites:

The New England Independent Booksellers Holiday Catalog is a list of some of the top choices of booksellers around our region.

The Association of Booksellers for Children (ABC) has also put out their annual catalog of Best Books for Children, and it must be said, there is a great crop of children's books this year.

Read it Again, Please!

This week, the A.V. Club asks what books you love to re-read--over and over and over. Mine would be Jane Eyre, which has been a favorite since I first read it at age 13 (a mass market paperback that my mom picked up for me at The Galaxy Bookshop--I still have and read that same copy.) What's your choice, whether it's to take something new away from the text or for pure comfort?

How Many Cups of Tea, Exactly?

I read Three Cups of Tea along with countless others- it was even required reading for troops deploying to Afghanistan at one time. I was as captivated and inspired as most; I greatly admired Greg Mortenson for doing the scary, difficult work that I would never undertake myself. In short, he was the change that I wanted to see in the world.

Then came the allegations. A special investigation into Mortenson and his nonprofit, Central Asia Institute (CAI) by 60 Minutes "revealed" that parts of the book may be "fabricated" and author Jon Krakauer, once on the board of CAI says that Mortenson uses his charity like his own "personal ATM," citing his lack of documentation, receipts, and the one tax statement that the CAI has made public, which shows that they spent a great deal on helping Mortenson promote his books than on building actual schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Mortenson went from "hero" to "fraud" in the blink of an eye.

I couldn't bring myself to jump on the proverbial bandwagon and add Greg Mortenson to the "bad author" list alongside the likes of  James Frey. Condensing, expanding, perhaps even a little exaggeration, hey, chalk it up to creative license. One of Mortenson's alleged lies is that he wrote that he visited a village in Pakistan called Korphe (the town which purportedly inspired him to start his nonprofit) in 1993 after getting lost while attempting to climb the world's second highest peak, K2. It turns out that he probably visited the village in 1994 after another attempt at climbing the mountain.

There are more examples like the one above, but I find I am neither shocked nor offended by them.  And here is why: people generally won't donate to a cause unless they are asked, whether this is via ads on television, people on street corners, emails, catalogs, etc. Charities exist because we cannot be counted on to take care of each other without some prodding and pushing. After directing our attention to a cause they then employ tactics to make average citizens look into their hearts (and then their wallets) using combinations of bribery ("free gift with every donation!") and guilt-inducing bullying ("if you don't donate you are effectively killing the children on this screen") to fund the work they do. These tactics, while not the most efficient or tasteful, work on some level.

If Mortenson had written a book that simply bemoaned the plight of girls in Afghanistan and Pakistan, it never would have become the phenomenon that it is today. Mortenson was wise to weave those elements in with his own Indiana Jones-like tale because as a nation we prefer our heartbreak cut with a dose of heroism.  If Mortenson lied about the need that existed ("oh wait, there are plenty of schools for girls throughout Afghanistan!") I would have felt angry and cheated indeed. He didn't lie about the need. The need is there.

I don't want to be an apologist for those who commit crimes or defraud investors, but I am not ready to hang Greg Mortensen or his organization out to dry. It sounds like Mortenson's nonprofit suffers from moderate mismanagement (which, from my experience, is the nature of the beast when it comes to nonprofits) and would benefit greatly from some restructuring and additional oversight. Mortenson could definitely profit from taking a business class or two. But with so many criminals on Wall Street walking away scot-free (many with millions of dollars in bonuses) after swindling the American public out of their life savings, telling me that Greg Mortenson is the villain to watch out for just falls flat.

Read Three Cups of Tea. Take it not as gospel but as more of a suggestion. It is a compelling read, regardless. And most importantly, don't let programs like 60 Minutes divert your attention away from the real  frauds in this country. He may not be perfect, but there is no doubt in my mind that Greg Mortenson is at least attempting to do good work, if not completely succeeding.

Go Out for a Good Cause

Looking for an excuse to get out of the house this Saturday night? Well, here are a couple of possibilities for you, both offering a great evening of entertainment and both supporting good causes.

Highfields Center for Composting is hosting their Second Annual Compost Cabaret & Silent Auction. This "evening of steaming hot entertainment for the whole family" will take place at the Cabot Town Hall this Saturday, February 26, from 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. A suggested donation of $10 will go to support Highfields' work Closing the Loop--an outreach that helps communities establish sustainable composting programs.

In Maple Corners, you can get down to the sounds of the Fresh Greenes, a trio of musicians hailing from Woodbury who play an original blend of jazz, folk, and rock infused music. This Saturday, from 7:30 p.m. - 10 p.m., you'll find them at the Maple Corners Community Center playing a benefit concert for the 4 month old daughter of Liz Knapp and John Dubois who has been diagnosed with acute infant lukemia. The suggested donation is $10, but every little bit helps.

The Hardwick area seems like a pretty quiet place, but there are often a lot of things going on! Typically, you can peruse the flyers on bulletin boards around town to find out about events and classes, but you can also keep tabs on what's happening in our area through some online resources. Just recently, a Front Porch Forum was created for the Hardwick/Walden community -- click on the link to sign up for email updates from the forum and to be able to add your own news and events for the area. The forum is new and just beginning to grow, but the more people who sign up, the more active and useful it can become.

You can also find and post events on the Hardwick Area Chamber of Commerce calendar, or sign up to receive calendar updates by email.

Amelia Bloomer Project

There are probably as many "best books of __" lists in existence as there are stars in the sky. And I'm touting yet another one! But this particular list has some very specific criteria, more specific than "decently written" in any event, and one that I think is certainly worth taking (more than) a glance at. I'm talking about the Amelia Bloomer Project, which recently announced its top 10 of 2011 list! This is a really neat organization affiliated with the ALA that creates a yearly booklist for the top feminist books for readers aged 0-18.  Not just a nod to literature featuring plucky, brave, daring and genius female characters navigating their way out of sticky situations, the books on this list (a mix of non-fiction and fiction) must be actively feminist. What does that mean exactly, you might ask? To meet the list's criteria books must openly acknowledge- and confront- the disparities that women face and show them dealing with and overcoming obstacles. Just as importantly, the stories must be told in an engaging, thoughtful, well-written and age appropriate way.  Looking for an alternative to Bella Swan? How about a graphic novel by Jane Yolen about a girl who, in addition to feeling like a misfit at school, is also a master swordswoman? I know I would have appreciated a list like this when I was younger (I most certainly appreciate it now) and look forward to using the list as a gift guide for the egalitarian-minded young people in my life. You can find the list here.

A list to end all lists

(via Powell's)

Wow. You know how, come December, there are all of those lists of "Best of the Year"? Well, blogger Largehearted Boy is compiling a list of links to all of the Best Books of 2010 lists available on line. And it is a looooong list. However, if you have some time to kill and are wondering which books you might have missed over the past 11-12 months, or find out if you agree with the critics, do take a look.

I'm pretty sure these are on that list, but I had to point it out, because it's a pretty fun idea: the literary mix tape. GalleyCat has assembled "mixes" of books that you can read excerpts from--Best YA Books of 2010, Best Novels of 2010, and Best eBooks of 2010.

And, although it is not technically a "best of" list, I would also recommend a browse through our own Staff Gift Picks list! (Scroll past our everyday Staff Favorites for the special Holiday list.)

Happy Reading!

Served with a twist of lemon

After a couple of long, hot weeks, my brain feels something like butterscotch pudding, so even though I've read a number of wonderful books I'd like to review, I don't see that happening today. Instead, here are some tidbits from the wonderful world of books.

NPR invites you to vote for the most thrilling books of all time. The Top 100 list will be announced August 2.

Also from Shelf Awareness, my friend Michele Filgate received high praise from Pulitzer Prize winner Paul Harding, who called her "one of the patron saints of  the book world." I would wholeheartedly agree with him, and am renewing my vow to visit RiverRun Bookstore in Portsmouth, where (St.) Michele organizes a fantastic roster of events year-round.

One way some publishers are competing with growing e-book sales is to create books that can't possibly be replicated in a digital format. These "luxury editions" might come with, say, a piece of moon rock or a bit of the blood of your favorite cricket start. (Um, ew?!) Most of us may never have the kind of money that would allow us to own a $15,000 biography of Muhammad Ali (comes with four autographed photos and a Jeff Koons sculpture), but it's a fun bit of "book porn" to ogle.

Booksellers reminisce about their first "summer book" memories.

And while you're reading that nice, fat novel--whether you're on the beach or in a lawn chair--wouldn't a tall, cool glass of lemonade be nice to have at hand? I found a great, simple, recipe at Our Best Bites that I've been making a lot this summer. Of course, I can't ever follow recipes to the letter, so I use about half of the sugar, and instead of simmering it in water to dissolve, I pour a cup or so of warm-to-hot tap water in my container, stir in the sugar till dissolved, then add the rest of the ingredients; prepare a glass with ice, and enjoy!

Get Lost in a good book

As a fan of the tv drama Lost, I'd like to pay my small homage to the show that has entertained, mystified, frustrated, and amazed me and millions of other viewers over the past six years. In my mind, one of the best things that Lost brought to television was its writers' love of literature.  References to books popped up in nearly every episode, whether in a character's name, like Henry Gale (not to mention the plethora of philosopher's names that were used in the series); or the use of a book title as an episode title, such as 'A Tale of Two Cities;'  or a shot of a book cover, whether being read by a character or sitting on a shelf. It was a great way for the writers to both work in some of their own favorite stories and give fans a little extracurricular work to do--many 'Losties' read the books referenced in the show to try to develop theories about what was happening and why and where the show was headed.

So, in honor of perhaps the most literary-minded show on network television, here are a few links to suggested Lost reading.

The LA Times talks to the show's creators about some of the most influential books of the series.

Squidoo offers a fun selection of reading lists, from Sawyer's wide array of titles to the Others' book club picks.

TV Guide's choices for the 13 books that most influenced the series.

Dark UFO is a Lost blog with a whole section dedicated to chronicling books on the show.

Of course, for a full bibliography (and more information about a tv show than you thought could exist outside of the world of Star Trek) visit Lostpedia.

And just for fun--because it really doesn't have anything to do with books--Lost, as depicted in cakes.

Indie Booksellers With Clout

Some tidbits from around the interwebs for your enjoyment and edification:

Major kudos to Michele Filgate (a friend and an awe-inspiring person) of River Run Bookstore, whose praise of Paul Harding's Tinkers helped push the novel toward his Pulitzer Prize win!

Fellow Neil Gaiman fans, feast your eyes (and ears) upon this video featuring Charles Vess's artwork and Neil himself reading from the upcoming picture book Instructions. Like Blueberry Girl, Instructions is a previously published poem by Gaiman; I can't wait to see the final book!

Book reviews, by the kids the books are written for. I think this is a fantastic idea, and if any local teachers are reading this and would like to do a similar program with us, please get in touch!

Any crafty readers out there might want to try their hands at making one of these gorgeous bird houses. I know it's hard for some people to cut up books (a sacrilege!) but if you can find an extra used copy or two at a yard sale or library sale, you might consider it a way of saving the books from the dump and giving them a whole new life.

Do you want to know how long I can save a story? This one, about the longest outdoor bookcase ever built (so far) is from February 1. But if you haven't seen it yet, it's pretty cool.

At the AV Club, Zack Handlen's answer to the question, "has there been a book, film, album, etc., that actually effected a real change in some aspect of your life?" is a wonderful affirmation of the power of books:

"I don’t know how far I was into the story before I got the idea that I’d like to try my own kind of writing, but I do remember that it felt like the most natural thing in the world, like waking up. I was a smart kid, not a super-genius or anything, but I never had a sense of purpose before. Reading The Stand, and all the King books I read after, gave me a reason to be alive, because they gave me a language to speak in."

NPR's Monkey See blogger did a series of posts about reading and discussing Twilight, for the first time, with a colleague. I liked their discussion in this post about whether or not there should be a different standard for critiquing literature for teens. (I also have to note that, as someone who has never read Twilight, I found this installment really frightening as regards the romanticizing of an abusive relationship.)

Shareable profiles Chicago's Gabriel Levinson and The Book Bike, which he rides to various public areas, distributing free books to anyone who wants them. We've often joked about taking the bookstore outside on especially nice days--maybe this is our answer!

And, finally, I want to mention a brand new literary blog, authored by a friend of mine from way back in high school. The Picaresque Blog promises book reviews, original writing, and more. Good luck, D!

Macmillan: Hero or Villain?

The title of this post is, for me, a rhetorical question. Despite Amazon and many of its customers crying foul over Macmillan's refusal to meet Amazon's terms on lowering the prices of its e-books, as both a bookseller and a member of a democratic and capitalist society, I am thrilled that Macmillan has stood firm on its pricing policy. Macmillan's stand paves the way for other publishers to do the same, and to assert control over their products and services--something Amazon has been trying to take for themselves in subtle and overt ways.

I've discussed the issue in the past, and during this week, with people outside the bookselling world, and their thinking is often along the lines of, "Well, publishers make plenty of money--they're just being greedy;" and on the subject of Amazon ceasing to sell all Macmillan titles since Friday, "That's Amazon's perogative." The second comment is certainly true--Amazon can choose to sell or not sell any products it wishes. Despite this particular move coming off as a bit of a temper tantrum to some, that fact remains. As for the first comment, the concrete numbers of publishing profits continue to elude me. I am not going to argue one way or the other on that issue--or on the issue of the value of good literature.

For what it's worth, here is my take on the matter.  This conflict with Macmillan (and any other publishers that come to their senses) is all about the online retailer trying to bully publishers into doing business Amazon's way. Amazon is a huge company that, for many publishers, is their biggest account, and this gives the company a huge amount of leverage in any negotiations. At least, that's how it's been up to this point. After all, this isn't the first time Amazon has tried strong-arming a publisher by ceasing to sell its books (perhaps one of Hachette's motivations in joining Macmillan's side in the e-book price war).

However, as The Amazon Kindle Team so misleadingly put it in their "poor us, trying to stick up for the little guy" * letter to customers, publishers do, indeed, have a "monopoly" over their books. That is, if you define "monopoly" as one company owning the rights to the products that it produces and sells. I think most of us would agree that, while the vocabulary might be correct in a literal sense, it in no way corresponds to the typical use of the word.

Macmillan and other publishers need to finally realize that, yes, they do own the books that they sell, and that means that they get to have the final say in how they price and distribute those books. I'm not suggesting that all of the publishers join together in setting prices for their books--that would be getting into monopoly territory, and very illegal--but they each need to determine the appropriate value of their books, in physical or digital format, that will sustain both the publishing house and the larger industry long into the future. If the publishers don't assert themselves now, it will only get harder down the road, and they may find themselves out of business after allowing Amazon to drive them down to unsustainable prices while driving the publisher's other customers (i.e. your friendly neighborhood booksellers) out of business.

More links:

Macmillan's jab at Amazon, in a New York Times ad

Macmillan's latest comment

It's important to remember the other injured party here: the authors whose works are being made unavailable by Amazon. Of course, this works to the advantage of other booksellers (Indiebound!) when authors choose to link to Amazon's competitors.

Author John Scalzi (a Macmillan author) has had a lot to say on the subject

• More here and here

A really wonderful post by a fellow New England bookseller

I'd love to hear from you on this--thoughts, questions, debate. What's your take? Do you feel this affects you one way or another...or not at all?

*Sorry, I don't buy it. It was Amazon's choice to take a loss on e-book sales by pricing them below wholesale. By demanding that publishers make $9.99 (or less) the standard retail price, Amazon is trying to save face with their customers and start making a profit on sales again.

Link salad

I do not follow basketball, or any other sport for that matter, but I think it's pretty cool that the LA Lakers' coach has made it a tradition to give his players books to read during their time on the road.

Over at Powell's blog, first-time novelist D.C. Pierson talks about why he thinks we should live our lives (or at least narrate them) as if we're in an adventure story.

For Linda's fellow fans of Scandinavian literature, a video interview with Karl-Ludwig Wetzig, an Icelandic translator.

The Onion reports on a dispute about the accuracy of a children's book depicting the friendship between a horse and a caterpillar. It's an outrage!

Author Stephen Elliot writes about taking his book tour directly to the people. I love the flyer advertising FREE CUPCAKES! with the bit about the author reading in small print, near the bottom.

I caught a recent episode of Diggnation* in which hosts Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht discussed the (hypothetical) pros and cons of the highly anticipated Apple tablet. I'm no tech geek and I've still yet to read an e-book, but I'm fascinated by Kevin's idea that the tablet could allow people to "follow" other readers, a la Twitter. How cool would it be to read the same books that Neil Gaiman (a personal favorite--go ahead and insert your idol of choice) has on his nightstand, and also get to read his comments on those books? If that doesn't do it for you, how about reading a book with a friend who lives far away? You could make comments to one another in the margins in a type of digital book discussion.

Who knows what features Apple's new product will include--or even what they're going to call it--or if it will be the "Kindle Killer" that some journalists are grandly predicting (much as I dislike Amazon's business practices, I can't imagine that a product that's likely to cost close to $1,000 could shut out a $259 competitor). Whatever Apple reveals next week, this is a company that is a proven trend-setter; their device is sure to set the tone for future e-readers, and it will be interesting to see in what direction this will send the book industry.

*Contains potentially offensive language.

[Update: Just a few more links to stories about the "Apple tablet" and its forseen rivalry with Amazon's Kindle.]

Is this game tax deductible?

I think that it's safe to say that people who love books are people who love words. For all you word junkies today, some excellent free word games you can play at your desk. On your lunch break, of course.

Although, if you play Free Rice during work hours, it seems like you and/or your company should get some sort of tax write-off. After all, you're earning grains of rice to feed the hungry!

Less altruistic is Must Pop Words, which pits the player in a race against an ever increasing shower of letters.

Lexulous (the game formerly known to Facebook users as Scrabulous until Hasbro sued for copyright infringement) continues as a fair imitation of Scrabble (TM), and is still free. You need to create an account in order to play against other people online and save games, but if you'd rather not have yet another user name and password to remember, you can choose to play solitaire or against the computer in a practice game.

Of course, after realizing how popular the Scrabble-esque game was, Hasbro did launch its own, official Scrabble application for Facebook. (I have to admit, being able to play Scrabble with friends and family in other states is the real reason I joined Facebook.)

From one of the ultimate authorities on language, Merriam-Webster's website offers a number of fun, quick, and of course free word games.

Happy Spelling!

P.S. And now for a commercial announcement: The Galaxy Bookshop now carries Bananagrams! It's a portable, simple word game that people of all vocabulary levels can play together. Come by the store to play a demo game or two with one of us anytime.

Those "lazy" days of summer

How does the week fly by so fast? Here it is, Friday again, and August is halfway over. There's so much to do during these last weeks of summer, as we try to pack in as much activity as possible before vacation is over. On top of that, it looks like we have one of the most gorgeous weekends of the summer ahead!

Here are a few of the events you might want to enjoy, right around our community this weekend:

Circus Smirkus! Final shows of the season are in Greensboro--Saturday, August 15 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, August 16 at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. (It's recommended that you get there quite early if you haven't bought tickets in advance--lines can get long.)

The Vermont Philharmonic Pops Concert at the Hardwick Town House--Saturday, August 15, at 7:30 p.m.

Catch folk musicians Rick & Bec at The Music Box in Craftsbury--Saturday, August 15, at 8 p.m.

Enjoy music on the water at Landon Lake Cottage on Caspian--Sunday, August 16, at 7:30 p.m.

And, don't forget, The Galaxy Bookshop has two events coming up next week:

Dinner and book signing with Allison Hooper of Vermont Butter & Cheese--Monday, August 17, 6 p.m. at Claire's Restaurant. Seating is limited, reserve tickets in advance at The Galaxy Bookshop.

Reading and book signing by naturalist Bernd Heinrich--Tuesday, August 18, 7 p.m. at the bookstore. Free, and no reservations necessary.

Have a great weekend!!

Beautiful objects

Many people (myself included) are fairly squeamish at the thought of purposely damaging books. Some artists and crafters, however, have created incredibly beautiful and just plain cool items out of the pages and covers of books. Here are a few examples for your enjoyment. Happy Friday!

Thanks to Alison at Shelftalker for sharing this amazing stop-motion video, which was produced for the 25th anniversary of 4th Estate, a HarperCollins imprint in the U.K. (Due to Wordpress constraints, and my own shortcomings as a  computer user, I can't embed the video, but do click through--it's jaw-dropping.)

Su Blackwell is a British artist who builds incredibly detailed sculptures from old books. Each piece is inspired by the book it is created from and uses only the pages from that book. See the article here and a slideshow of the sculptures here.



I love Thomas Allen's gorgeously pulpy diorama photographs, which he creates using covers from vintage paperbacks.



I could probably spend all day clicking through on images from a simple Google search for "book art." Just, wow.

Of course, I haven't even gotten into books as works of art in themselves. Powell's blogger Kirsten Berg writes about rare books and book bindings that are so beautiful it could make a bibliophile swoon. My favorite entry was on fore-edge art, something I have never seen on any modern book.



Finally, some edible art based on books. Cake Wrecks (a site that spends most of the week hilariously riffing on terrible cake decorations) has had a couple of book related cake posts, including children's books and Harry Potter.

PBS offers more examples of kid's book inspired cakes that are nearly too lovely to eat.

The Books of Summer: Part 1

Though summer isn't officially here, we are into the longest days of the year, school's out (or nearly), and the summer reading lists have hit newstands and airwaves.

This week, a small selection of lists found around the internet--stay tuned for our personal picks, coming next week!

National Public Radio has a lot of good recommendations, from mysteries to cookbooks; they also link to excerpts from some of their picks.

Also from NPR, bookseller recommendations (always among our favorite lists to peruse).

The L.A. Times book blog Jacket Copy takes the long view with a list of over 50 books that are being published in the coming months.

Wall Street Journal offers their five choices for vacation reading.

Entertainment Weekly has the PopWatch edition and Steven King's picks.

The Seattle Times shares picks from librarian Nancy Pearl.

International summer reading: from Canada - some of these won't be available in the states, but others, like Guillermo del Torro's horror-fest The Strain, are being published simultaneously in Canada and the U.S.

The Indie Choice Awards provide a list of bookseller-approved reading, good for anytime of year (actually, that applies to all of these books, really). Highly recommended: Sarah Vowell's funny acceptance video.

The Onion's A.V. Club has introduced Wrapped Up in Books, an online book club to introduce or re-introduce readers to modern classics. Currently on the table is Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. Another online book club idea is Paste magazine's Infinite Summer Reading Group, which is honoring the late David Foster Wallace by reading Infinite Jest.

Author Kenneth C. Davis gives history buffs a list of his favorites. (Enough with the "not all summer books are light reading" disclaimers already, though, Mr. Davis. That's been done to death.)

Salon interviewed authors about their favorite books and/or books they plan to read this summer.

Are these some of those frothy books Kenneth Davis was referring to?

[Edited to add:] There it is - thanks, New  York Times, for a list of fiction by women, for women. There are some really good books on this list, though I think we could all do without the condescension towards "chick lit."

And let's not forget younger readers:

The Horn Book has some great suggestions for kids and teens.

ReadKiddoRead says Summer Reading Doesn't Have to Be Punishment, and provides a long list of reasons why, including books like Adele & Simon, Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things, Coraline: The Graphic Novel, and The London Eye Mystery.

Links Galore, or Ways to Pass the Time till the Weekend Starts

What's Friday for, if not procrastinating in anticipation of the weekend? In honor of the day, I give you a multitude of links for your distraction.

Better than CliffsNotes? Get your classic lit in 140 characters or less.

Related to my review last week of The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, one writer explains why he can't take another book featuring a child prodigy. I can sympathize with him, but really felt like Reif Larsen did an admirable job of balancing precociousness with a real childlike sensibility in his young character.

Photos of  bookstores that will make you drool (or is that just me?). The same site offers a look at truly amazing libraries around the world, as well. Wow.

Along the same lines: University staircases.

"In Toronto, picture standing on the Bloor Street Viaduct and reading about a nun who falls into the abyss at the end of the unfinished bridge and is caught by a man suspended underneath, from Michael Ondaatje’s In the Skin of a Lion. Or reading Dennis Lee’s classic children’s poem, “The Cat and the Wizard” to a young visitor while marvelling at the castle itself." Yet another reason to love Canadians: Project Bookmark Canada

Perseus Books Group invites you to submit "the first sentence for a yet-to-be-written sequel to any book ever published." (For example:  "It turned out not to be the worst of times at all; they got so much worse later." —From A Tale of Three Cities by Charles Dickens) The publisher will collect entries and publish them in BOOK: The Sequel at Book Expo America at the end of May.

Can't decide what to read next? Cynthia Crossen at the Wall Street Journal offers suggestions for some interesting book recommendation sites.

Get something for nothing: The New Yorker offers a free download of John Lithgow reading selected works by Mark Twain.

That free download is legal, of course. Authors and publishers are becoming more concerned (or not) with the increase in pirated ebooks. Please note: do NOT mess with Harlan Ellison. (via Vroman's)

The Outsiders was one of my favorite assigned books in high school, so I loved reading Cecil Castellucci's write-up of Ursula LeGuin's interview of S.E. Hinton. (That's a whole mouthful of excellent YA authors!)

Travel along with Mark Fitten, author of the recently published Valeria's Last Stand, as he tours the country, making stops at 100 independent bookstores.

In honor of Lost's season finale this week, I thought I'd pull out this old article about the show's many literary "cameos." (The final episode contained an extended closeup of Flannery O'Connor's Everything That Rises Must Converge.) (via RIB)


Not at all book related, but too much fun not to share: Tweenbots get people to lend a hand. It helps that they're adorable.

• Local businesses get media attention:

The Galaxy Bookshop and this very blog were mentioned in the Times Argus article about bookish happenings around the state.

The latest edition of Edible Green Mountains features an article about Highfields Institute. (Magazine available, free, at various local businesses.)

Claire's Restaurant chef and co-owner Steven Obranovich was interviewed at Farm to Table.