Ok, maybe just the Book Of Genesis. And I think the illustrator has something to do it with this: iconoclast cartoonist R. Crumb. Crumb illustrates every single passage of the Book of Genesis, altering nothing and leaving nothing out. It has sold 120, 000 copies so far, and Publisher’s Weekly has an article on its success here: http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6717934.html
February 8, 2010
Valentine’s Ideas
Looking for something to really make Valentines Day personal and sincere? We’d be happy to help!
Between our Valentines display, and our vast selection of Poetry, Travel Writing, Biographies, Art, Music, Film, and more… you’ll be sure to find something especially sweet for your sweetie.
Come in for free gift wrap on any of your purchases, and we’ll give it some extra love…
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February 7, 2010
Jami Attenberg in The Globe and at Newtonville Books
Make sure you come see Jami Attenberg read with us on Sunday, February 28 with Steve Almond.
“Everyone’s a little damaged, honey.” No truer words are spoken in the small world of “The Melting Season,” a quirky soap opera that proves surprisingly endearing.
At 25, and naïve for her age, Catherine Madison is on the lam from a failed marriage as the novel opens, fleeing west from her snowbound hometown in Nebraska with a suitcase full of loot. Catherine has been rejected by her husband, the high school sweetheart she married too young, who is angry because she makes him feel like a sexual failure. In retribution she cashes in their savings, and when she reaches Las Vegas in a bit of a daze, she checks into a fancy hotel and commences spending the money at the urging of Valka, a flashy woman from California whom she meets in a casino.
Valka encourages her young friend to confront the truth about her toxic upbringing and her resultant sexual neuroses. We expect this tale, with its mismatched characters and farfetched plot elements, to crumble under its own slender weight, but oddly and heartwarmingly, Jami Attenberg makes it work.
Click here to see the rest of this review from The Boston Globe.
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Repeat Covers
Thanks, VSL, for the link to this gallery of recycled cover images from historical novels.
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Literary Inspiration for Runners
This year, two of my dear friends are running the Boston Marathon! Every day I get to witness their incredible journey, as they work harder and harder as the day gets closer and closer. I’ve heard them talk about the primal need to run, the huge community of encouraging runners found just about anywhere, the benefits of a running buddy, the technicality behind a strong run, who they run for, and where their fundraising is going. I myself have become more fascinated every day!
Lucky for us, both of these friends are avid readers… and they’ve recommended two very inspirational books for our runner-readers:
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
and
Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
Take a look at these two extremely loved books, and get inside the mind of a runner!
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February 6, 2010
Vintage book advertisements
Nothing helps define a period like its advertisements, and it’s fascinating how much one can learn of a bygone age through them. So I was really excited to see Read Me: A Century of Classic American Book Advertisements on our shelves — the book reproduces ads for books that have appeared in various publications over the years, decade by decade. It starts in the 1900s with Rudyard Kiplin and Theodore Dreiser and ends with Barack Obama and Andrew Sullivan. Great for your coffee table!
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Get Your Cowbells Ready
With the Winter Olympic Games quickly approaching, it seemed appropriate to share an article from ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap, who lists his five favorite books on the Olympics.
Here are his picks:
The Complete Book of the Olympics Series-David Wallechinsky
All That Glitters is Not Gold-William Oscar Johnson, Jr.
You Can’t Go Home Again-Thomas Wolfe
The Perfect Jump-Dick Schaap
The Amateurs-David Halberstam
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February 5, 2010
National Book Critics Circle Nominees
This year’s National Book Critics Circle Awards will be announced March 11. The finalists have been named in the categories of fiction, autobiography, biography, critcism, poetry and general non-fiction. Some highlights include Man Booker winner Wolf Hall, biographies of John Cheever and Flannery O’Connor, and surprise National Book Award nominee American Salvage getting another nod. The criticism category is superb this year; it includes Morris Dickstein’s history of culture in the Great Depression, a collection of essays by David Hajdu, and a fascinating history of recorded music by Greg Milner.
To see all nominees, check out the official announcement: http://bookcritics.org/blog/archive/national_book_critics_circle_announces_finalists_january_23_2010/
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February 3, 2010
Can You Write Your Autobiography… In 6 Words?
Inspired by Ernest Hemingway’s short story: “For Sale: baby shoes, never worn.”, Smith Magazine has (yet again) compiled hundreds of writers’ 6-word autobiographies in It All Changed in an Instant.
Nearing 60, still on rough draft. -Sydney Smith Zvara
My self image is Indiana Jones. -Christopher Day
Antidepressents ruined emo music for me. -Lucy Waters
The miserable childhood leads to royalties. -Frank McCourt
What would your autobiography be?
For more inpiration… click here
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The only question now is: