it’s viral

from PW, the all-out marketing campaign for Robin Cook’s latest, “Foreign Body,” spreads to the web.

intriguing…

from Shelf Awareness, an idea that appeals to me despite being a very picky reader! a little on the pricey side, though.

Surprise in a Box: Powell’s Launches Subscription Club

Powell’s Books, Portland, Ore., is launching a subscription club that every six weeks will deliver an unusual edition of a new book in a box along with at least one surprise–which may be a DVD or CD, a literary magazine, signed blads from graphic novel, a zine, a mug, excellent chocolate, etc. The program costs $39.95 per box, including shipping and handling, and begins on March 5 with a hardcover first edition copy of How the Dead Dream by Lydia Millet (Counterpoint Press) with a matching full-cloth slipcase (see illustration). The first shipment will be limited to 200 copies, signed and numbered by Millet. People who buy a membership for themselves may cancel at any time. Those who buy it as a gift take it for at least three, six or twelve installments.Many of the books will be sent around the time of publication and may be first editions, special editions and in some cases higher-quality ARCs, and many will be signed. Publishers will be able to include something in the box such as a note, a reader’s reaction card and more. The boxes themselves may be somewhat fancy, depending on the cost. “At the least, the boxes will be lovingly packaged,” Dave Weich, director of marketing and development at Powell’s, told Shelf Awareness.

Called IndieSpensable, the book club is “basically handselling,” Weich continued. “We want people not just to be pleased but be surprised and entertained. Members won’t know what they’re getting, and part of the thrill is of getting that book before anyone else.”

Authors will include both established and new voices, and Powell’s will emphasize independent press titles, aiming to have about two-thirds of the first nine choices published by indies. Powell’s is not asking for financial support from publishers. “This is selective and high quality,” he added.

From a base of 200 boxes the company hopes to expand, and eventually the club could regularly account for sales of 300 or 400 copies of a title. Powell’s will also send some 25-30 complimentary boxes to the media, industry people and good customers. Powell’s is marketing IndieSpensable online.

Among reasons for establishing the IndieSpensable book club were for the store to “reinforce that we are independent booksellers who partner with others” as well as creating “an opportunity to put books out there that might not get much attention,” Weich said. Powell’s staff intends “to turn on a lot of people to our favorite authors in a genuine way.”–John Mutter

Everything Jane

With the ongoing PBS series of Jane Austen’s works, we are experiencing pretty heavy demand for her books.  I have ordered multiple copies of her books in paperback format.  As soon as they are at our Service Center and barcoded with Classics labels, I’ll distribute them to all community libraries.  Sorry to be so slow!

New downloads by Terry Brooks and Bernard Cornwell

New and added copies of titles by these popular authors.

Title	Creator
The Elfstones of Shannara	Terry Brooks
The Elves of Cintra	Terry Brooks
Jarka Ruus	Terry Brooks
Straken	Terry Brooks
The Sword of Shannara	Terry Brooks,
Tanequil	Terry Brooks
The Tangle Box	Terry Brooks
The Wishsong of Shannara	Terry Brooks
Witches’ Brew	Terry Brooks
Wizard at Large	Terry Brooks
Sharpe’s Fury	Bernard Cornwell
Sharpe’s Rifles	Bernard Cornwell
Sharpe’s Siege	Bernard Cornwell
Sharpe’s Tiger	Bernard Cornwell
Sharpe’s Triumph	Bernard Cornwell
Sharpe’s Waterloo	Bernard Cornwell

A day in the weeding area.

Our guest Chy Ross, helped us sort through a lot of red boxes before he had to leave to open the Lake Stevens Library. Thanks, Chy!

Red boxes 9am

11 am Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

3pm.

For a few bright shining seconds, we thought we’d have a completely empty weeding area–and then delivery came (sigh).

3:15 pm

Oh, for crying out loud these weren’t here a minute ago.

By 4pm titles have been searched for holdings and await reallocation by Collection Development the next morning.

a fascinating man

though i haven’t read many of his books (someday, i’ll finish “The Stand”), i’d like to have Stephen King over for dinner. there’s a too-brief article in USA Today with some King factoids.

not another “Million Little Pieces”

over the last week or so, a quibble has started between a journalist at The Australian and the author of “A Long Way Gone,” Ishmael Beah.  the latest compilation of the “he said, she said” is covered by Publisher’s Weekly. 

oh good, mid 30s is still young!

from “Shelf Awareness,” a Bainbridge Island and Poulsbo bookstore join forces for a book group that combines drinking and discussing for the under 40 crowd:

Tasty Blend: Two Stores, One Book Club

On tap last Friday evening at Liberty Bay Books in Poulsbo, Wash.: the inaugural gathering of the Books and Brew over 21 Book Club. After discussing Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, a dozen participants continued their discourse at a nearby watering hole. The club is co-sponsored by Eagle Harbor Book Co. on Bainbridge Island, some 15 miles from Poulsbo, and monthly meetings will alternate between the two store locations.

The idea for the dual venture came after Liberty Bay Books owner Suzanne Droppert attended a session on reading groups at the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association trade show last fall. After hearing about the success Queen Anne Books in Seattle has had with the books-and-bars combination, Droppert decided to give it a try and enlisted a 20-something employee to helm the gatherings at Liberty Bay. “We thought it would be a great way to go after the younger set,” Droppert said. Participants in the book club must be under the age of 40.

Teaming up with Eagle Harbor was a natural choice, noted Droppert. Staff members already have a close working relationship, often referring patrons to the other locale if a book is not in stock, attending trade shows together and meeting jointly with publishers’ sales reps. The retailers also are part of a consortium of independent bookstores and libraries that stages West Sound Reads, a program that sponsors author appearances to promote reading in the community. Lisa See and Jane Smiley are slated to appear as part of West Sound Reads on March 25 and April 16, respectively.

The next joint endeavor for Liberty Bay and Eagle Harbor is co-hosting a fête in February for Bainbridge Island resident Kristin Hannah, whose latest novel is Firefly Lane (on sale February 5). “She’s so good to both of our stores that we thought it would be fun to do it together,” said Mary Gleysteen, events coordinator at Eagle Harbor. “Kristin appeals to both our readerships,” she added, and the soiree–which will be held at a local restaurant–is expected to draw women’s fiction and romance readers who shop at one or both stores.

The pubs and wine bars the group visits for après discussion drinks will vary each month. The club is being promoted with signage in both store locations, and staffers are talking it up to appropriate customers. It also received a write-up in a local newspaper, in part because of its name. The club’s moniker “has piqued people’s interest,” said bookseller Andrew Maiers, who will host the club when it convenes at Eagle Harbor.

Droppert selected Into the Wild as the club’s first read because of its appeal to both men and women. Choosing a book that had been turned into a movie was a suggestion that was made at the PNBA workshop. “That way if somebody didn’t have a chance to read the book but saw the movie, they could still attend and take part in the discussion,” Maiers said. The next pick is Atonement by Ian McEwan.

This month Liberty Bay Books is launching another second initiative. The store is collaborating with the Resort at Port Ludlow, which will be the site of a monthly Writers Series. An $85 admission price includes a Saturday evening reception, a five-course dinner, presentations by regional writers and signed copies of their books. The first event took place this past weekend with Dr. Pepper Schwartz, the author of Prime: Adventures and Advice on Sex, Love, and the Sensual Years, and Linda Costello and Wendy Edelson, the paper engineer and illustrator of Lighthouses: A Pop-Up Gallery of America’s Most Beloved Beacons.–Shannon McKenna Schmidt

it’s a mystery

the 2008 nominees for the Edgar are out.  i am sure that it’s no accident that Patricia Cornwell’s latest, “Book of the Dead,” isn’t included!

Will the kindle warm the cockles of

consumers and public libraries?  Today’s Seattle P.I. says that while Amazon has sold out on the Kindle the reviews from users have only given it 3.5 stars.  At the heart of the matter is price and limited functionality since you can spend $4oo dollars and get a blackberry or an iPhone that will browse the web, store your music, and books, and oh yeah by the way–its a phone.  The buzz around the Kindle was huge and at least one library is already lending Kindles to its customers.  I applaud them for being responsive to the public interests and showing the library is the place to go for cool stuff.  I just wonder if the Kindle will go the way of the Rocketbook.  Time will tell.