Bookseller Summer Reading: Part 2

Diane Grenkow is the second bookseller to ring in with an answer to our "back to school" question: What did you read this summer? 

Here are some of the books I've read this summer.  I really did read The Pickled Pantry even though it is about pickling and doesn't really tell a story exactly.  Except maybe the story of summer.  I read it cover to cover anyway and stuck slips of paper in where there are recipes I want to try.  It turns out, it would have been easier to mark the ones that I DON'T want to try.  I have been reading Anne of Green Gables books to my daughter and wishing we could run off to Prince Edward Island.  My son suggested I read the Ranger's Apprentice series and I'll admit I picked up the first one just to be nice because he asked me to.  Then I couldn't put them down and neglected the things that should have been pickled because I was too busy reading the whole series.  Whoops!  The Man Who Quit Money provided food for thought about how to live one's life and how to relate to money and what we do to get it and keep it that might not be in our best interest.  I love Archer Mayor and Toni Morrison, whatever they write.  Birds of a Lesser Paradise, a collection of stories, and Wild took me places the way you want a good summer read to take you.  Right now I am reading Louise Erdrich's forthcoming novel, The Round House.  It tells a brutal story but I'm completely taken with it so far.

Bookseller Summer Reading: Part 1

Hey! We're back! And we're turning a (virtual) fresh page on the blog with a new series of bookseller Q&A.

For the first question, we're tweaking the quintessential "What I did on my summer vacation" a bit and asking, "What did you read this summer?"

Our first answer comes from Edgar Davis, who has two books to recommend:

Blonde Faith, by Walter Mosley, is part of the Easy Rawlings Detective Series which includes Devil in a Blue Dress and Little Yellow Dog. This installment deliver the same detailed, imaginative and introspective narration from the story's hero, Ezekial Rawlings, a private-eye and Korean War veteran who makes his home in the L.A. of the 1950's, 60's and 70's. While using his detective's skill  to aid a member of of his close-knit African-American community, Easy's own life becomes complicated when he's abandoned by Bonnie, the love of his life.

The Devil's Storybooks, by Natalie Babbitt, is a delightfully collection of fables written with a rare combination of light-heartedness and sharp wit. The tales are both funny and profound. A good book for anyone from 13 to 30.

Busy weekend ahead!

This coming weekend, May 26th and 27th, is a busy one for the Hardwick area. Saturday is the 62nd Annual Hardwick Spring Festival, beginning with a 5K run at 9 a.m.; parade at 11:00; and an outdoor exhibitor and vendors fair, rides, food, and games at Atkins Field until 4 p.m.

Before or after (or during--we have a great view from our window!) the Main Street parade, visit The Galaxy Bookshop, take a look at some of the wonderful new books filling our shelves and browse through our sale bin for some great finds.

While you're in town, or perhaps the following day, you can also take advantage of Open Studio Weekend, visiting a number of local artisans and galleries that will feature beautiful handmade items for sale, and in some cases demonstrations and sales.

In addition to the Vermont Crafts Council website linked above, more information about both events can be found on the Hardwick Area Chamber of Commerce online calendar.

Time for another party!

We strongly believe in having parties--period. We had a party to celebrate the announcement of our move, a party to move the store, and a party to celebrate our re-opening. This month, we have another reason to celebrate: the gorgeous mural that Tara Goreau designed and painted for us has been installed! Over the past few months, we've heard numerous creative suggestions for decorating our walls, and each time we were mentally rubbing our hands together with glee, thinking, "Oh, just you wait and see!" Well, the waiting is over, and the artwork is even more amazing than we could have imagined. A whimsical view of Hardwick overhung with a sky of sparkling constellations, full of so many imaginative details that it can take multiple viewings to notice them all; this painting is, itself, a celebration of books and reading and community.

Join us this Saturday, May 5th, from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. to to toast Tara and her work!

Review: Oh, No, George!

Every dog--and every kid--knows that the best intentions can be blown to the wind in the face of temptation, and this is what the hapless hero of Oh, No, George! discovers, time and again.

" 'Yes,' says George 'I'll be very good.' I hope I'll be good, George thinks," when Harry steps out for a little while. But, "Oh, no, George!," the lure of a cake, a playful cat, and a garden bed prove too strong to resist. How will the poor, disgraced pup redeem himself?

Using a vibrant palette of reds and purples, author/illustrator Chris Haughton paints George and his antics in an abstract style that allows the characters expressions to shine through, eliciting both laughter and sympathy for this well-meaning pooch.

Haughton wrote a fantastic, well-illustrated, blog post about the process of writing and illustrating this book, from conception to layout. Click here to read all about it!

The League of Vermont Writers 2012 Literary Competition

Calling all writers: The League of Vermont Writers (LVW) has announced its 2012 Literary Competition!

This year's theme is "My New England."

Categories are Fiction, Personal Essay, and Poetry.

Entry fee is $15 per submission.

Deadline for submission is May 15, 2012.

The Final Judges are David Budbill, Ron Powers, and Howard Frank Mosher.

Grand Prize is $1,000 (one prize awarded for each category) and an opportunity to read the winning selection at the LVW's Summer Conference, as well as publication in the Leagues 2012 Journal!

For more information about the contest and guidelines, visit the LVW website.

The Further Adventures of Scout and Jem

For everyone hoping for an update on Jem and Scout, our former bookstore kitties, we are happy to share some of the poetry they have inspired their new owner to write. From the sounds of it they are having a ball!

Morning Grand Prix

By Rick Eschholz

I suspect that the spirit of the late Brazilian
Formula-One champion, Ayrton Senna,
overtakes my two cats briefly at exactly
five-thirty every morning. That is when
they kick into high gear. A spectator
in the grandstand that is my bed, I hear
them flying around the house. Their
cadence, paws alternately gripping
for braking power and then the bite
of acceleration, tells me that now they
could only be circumnavigating the
distinctive turns of Interlagos, the setting
for, perhaps, Senna’s most heroic win
in the Brazilian Grand Prix of ninety-one.
After a gearbox failure left him with
only sixth gear, Senna collapsed at the
end of the race. His muscle spasms
visible on the podium, he could
barely lift his trophy overhead.
My cats, too, slump the rest of the day,
and collapse on the couch in the sun,
their calm demeanor belying what comes
out at dawn, what rests in the heart of any
champion: something fierce, untamed, wild.

Check back for future installments of 'cat-inspired poetry!'