Becky Live at Gibson's Bookstore in Concord, NH This Friday!!!

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I am in NH for personal reasons and figured, hey Ryan, who does events for Gibson's is THE BEST, let's see if the two of us can work something out, and well, we did!

Come see me and John Langan, in conversation, on Friday, July 31st at Gibson's Bookstore in Concord New Hampshire at 6:30pm. I will be doing a signing as well. Click here for details and to register so they know you are coming, and so they have enough books on hand. John will sign his essay in the book too. From their site:

Join us for a celebration of Horror with two award-winning authors!

Librarian extraordinaire and champion of Horror, Becky Siegel Spratford, visits Gibson's to share her book of essays, Why I Love Horror, which just won the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in Short Non- Fiction. She will be joined in conversation by John Langan, who just won the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection for his book, Lost in The Dark and Other Excursions.

A captivating anthology and heartfelt tribute to the horror genre featuring essays from several of the most celebrated contemporary horror writers including, Grady Hendrix, Paul Tremblay, Stephen Graham Jones, Josh Malerman, Victor LaValle, Tananarive Due, and Rachel Harrison.

For twenty-five years, Becky Siegel Spratford has worked as a librarianin Reader Advisory, training library workers all over the world on how to engage their patrons and readers, and to use her place as a horror expert and critic to get the word out to others; to bring even more readers into the horror fold.

Why I Love Horror is a love letter to the horror genre from many of the most influential and bestselling authors in the industry.

We are going to talk about horror in general, the book specifically, and our recent Stoker wins (which are connected. Ahh a tease to get you interested in joining us, yes I just did that).

I am excited to meet those of you who can make it. But I am also excited because this event marks the beginning of my 2026 book tour as well.

I will write up a post soon with all the details but I am appearing with Paul Tremblay in Springfield, MO in early September, Grady Hendrix in Danville, IL in late September and have multiple appearances in NYC and Brooklyn with a variety of authors at NYPL and Cass Khaw's book launch at Twisted Spine. Oh and a December appearance in Ann Arbor, MI. In between, I have a bunch of virtual and in person book club visits for Spooky season. And there are a few other podcasts and in person appearances still in the works or recorded and not yet dropped.

I will create a page for all of it for those of you who want to come out and see me. 

But right now, this Friday, July 31st, come out to Gibson's in Concord, NH. We already have a good crowd registered but we have room for more. I am driving an hour to be there, John even further. What is your excuse? We are only 1 hour from Boston folks. And it's a Friday night. Let's celebrate why we all love horror together, and support a great book store in the process.

American Booksellers Association's Winter Institute Recaps via PW and Self Awareness

I am back after a long weekend to watch my second kid's Junior recital at college with the whole family in attendance. I will be catching up on emails and such today but first, for all of you, I have something for you to catch up on as well.

Last week the American Bookseller Association had their Winter Institute 2026 (WI2026) in Pittsburgh. This event is comparable to their ALA Annual. Bookseller and authors converge from all over the country. There are panels, an exhibit hall, and tons of ARCs. 

I have said this before, but I know many of you still don't take it as seriously as I do, but understanding what independent booksellers are focusing on, how they are promoting books, and how they are attracting readers-- all of it-- is comparable to what we are doing. We need to be not only paying attention to them, but also, working with them more.

I am doing the working with them more part right now and there will be more on that soon. (Do stay tuned for more on this, I am working on a larger initiative and some smaller collaborations.  

In the meantime, you need to do your part and follow the news from last week's WI2026. I have made it easy for you. 

Click here to pull up all of PW's coverage.

Click here to pull up all of Shelf Awareness' coverage.

There is a lot of information here that you can use. This is the first major gathering of booksellers and authors for 2026. See what they are talking about, what authors were there, what the panels were about, what people said. It is all there. 

I did here from my colleague Lauren, one of the owners of the Twisted Spine, a horror only bookstore in Brooklyn, that there was a general consensus at WI2026 that horror author events are among the most popular at bookstore and this is true all year long. 

Finally, one of the reports that comes out during the Winter Institute is the Lee and Low Baseline Diversity Survey for Publishing. However, this year, Jason Low had to suspend the survey because of the state of book bans. And this suspension is indefinite. He instead released a call to action for everyone to work harder to fight books bans, especially those of children's books. Click here to read his call to action as published in PW.

And follow Kelly Jensen's censorship coverage on Book Riot for the most up to date information and even more action steps. 

Resource Alert: Independent Press Bestseller List

Yesterday, I wrote about the 2025 overall book sales numbers, but that data does not tell the entire story. From a PW story here:

The Independent Publishers Caucus, a collective of 117 small and independent publishers, has announced the launch of a new weekly bestseller list in partnership with the American Booksellers Association, creating what organizers say is the first national ranking focused exclusively on independent press titles sold at independent bookstores.

Dubbed the Independent Press Top 40, the new list debuts this Wednesday and offers separate fiction and nonfiction lists of 40 titles each. The intent is to surface popular titles that are typically denied appearances on traditional bestseller lists due to the dominance of Big Five blockbusters.

The new list draws from sales rankings reported by independent bookstores to the ABA—the same methodology the ABA uses for its Indie Bestseller and regional lists—but filtered to include only independent publishers. Updated lists will be published every Thursday and will be available as PDFs and Excel spreadsheets at the IPC website, with direct links to titles on Bookshop.org.

"When you take out Amazon, when you take out the large press books, and you just have independent publishers at independent bookstores, you get this really interesting list," Dan Simon, IPC cofounder and publisher at Seven Stories Press, told PW. "It's like going to a foreign land. It's really different." 

Click through to read more about the list and why it was created.

But why is this list important us? Well there are a few reasons:

1. Bestsellers lists identify titles that readers see as "pre-approved." Why? Because the human brain says, "well if this many people spent money on this book, it must be good." Of course this is not necessarily true. And just like with a book with high checkouts, we have no idea if all of those people even read it, let alone liked it. But that doesn't matter here. If something is a "bestseller" many readers will give it a serious look.
2. Allowing more books to shine as bestsellers in their own categories means more access to titles people wouldn't find without some help. The more bestseller lists the better. Why? Because each time you break the bestseller list down into smaller categories, more titles get their chance to shine. And with our readers, we want to find a way to make the overwhelming universe of books feel a little more manageable. A bestseller list is a type of display. Amazon does this very well as they make their lists very specific, so specific that even I was a bestseller with the orange banner in multiple categories this past fall.
3. Sales to independent books stores are a good mirror of the tastes of library users. Go look at the list. These are titles you know are very popular with your readers and supporting independent book stores is something libraries can easily get behind.
4. Not everything worth buying comes out from a Big 5 publisher. I say this as a Big 5 author myself. I know we know this, but the Book Scan driven bestseller lists do not reflect this.
5. This gives you another resource to find titles you should but for your library collection. I know that some of you cannot buy a book if it did not have a review in certain sources or (if not) at least made a bestseller list. This is a great bestseller list to help you add great titles to your collections. 

You can see the lists here. Bookmark it because it will update every Wednesday.

I would consult it weekly along with the USA Today, NYT, and of course the monthly LibraryReads list which comes out tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Independent Bookstore Day

Tomorrow is Independent Bookstore Day. Please share this information with your patrons. Supporting you local book store yourself and encourage your patrons to make a visit too.

But today I also want to make a plea for your library to be a customer as well. I know that we mostly buy our books from Baker & Taylor or Ingram, but it is important to support our local bookstores as well. A vibrant literary community has libraries and bookstores. 

When I was in collections and ran a book club, we worked with a local book store to buy 10 paperback copies of all 12 of our book discussion titles each year. We got a good deal (almost as good as Ingram) and we had the store put a sticker in the book so they could advertise themself and note their cooperation with the library. Those titles were used for our book clubs and then entered into our book discussion collection. They were a community collection in the truest sense-- bought form na local store and then shared throughout the community for local book clubs.

We also used the local independent book store to purchase prizes for summer reading. Totebags, book marks, pins, notebooks, socks, t-shirts, etc.... all that great stuff that these stores sell alongside the books. This also supported the store and gave us the prizes we needed.

Below, I am sharing the text from an email I received from my publisher, Saga Press, as to how we authors could help support our independent bookstores. I edited it a bit to be more directed at you-- the library worker-- but there are some great tips here.

And for my Chicago area friends, my favorite independent book stores are Exile in Bookville, City Lit, and Bucket 'O Blood Books and Records.

See the shared link below to use the map or visit the Independent Bookstore Day landing page for the most unto date information. 

One Day. Fifty States. 1,600+ Bookstores.

Sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, Independent Bookstore Day is a national celebration that takes place on the last Saturday of April each year. The day highlights the value of independent bookstores and the unique ways they contribute to their communities. It’s a celebration of books, readers, and indie bookselling.  

On IBD, indie bookstores often plan activities, host events, serve refreshments, and have special programming like scavenger hunts and bookstore crawls, raffles,  games, and more. And they ride a wave of positive publicity and social media buzz around indie bookstores.  

 

The ABA creates IBD-specific merchandise and swag for stores. None of these items are available anywhere except at ABA member indie bookstores. 

 

Here is a list of ways you can support Independent Bookstores on April 26 and beyond. Independent Bookstores champion authors and books, provide essential community spaces for readers, and collectively host thousands of authors each year for book launches, talks, and panels. 

 

1. Shop! Consider visiting your local indie and making some purchases. It's a great day to do some gift-buying. Mother's Day, graduation season, and Father's Day are all right around the corner, after all. 

 

2. Social shout-out: While you’re in the store, take a selfie (or shelfie) and/or a photo of your purchases to share on social media, tagging the bookstore and encouraging folks to buy at the indies. 

 

3. Participate in a Bookstore Crawl: Why visit one bookstore when you could visit several? Many stores in urban areas organize crawls, with punch cards for participants and prizes if you visit every store on a list.(Link to the Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl for NYC authors) Check with your local indie to see if they're organizing a crawl or look at the ABA bookstore finder map or the indie-to-indie directory and choose your own adventure! 

Share the Independent Bookstore Day homepage with your patrons and encourage them to visit your local independent bookstore.

Best Books 2021: Barnes and Noble Book of the Year Finalists

This post is part of my year end "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage. To see every post in my "Best Books 2021" series you can use the best lists tag. 

Halloween is over. November has begun. And now, the attack of the year end best lists begins in earnest.

I alerted you [here] to the bellwether for all best lists, the PW Best Books portal, which came out already, but now you should expect different opinion on "the best" to be coming at you multiple times a week for the last 2 months of the year. 

Today I want to alert you to the Barnes and Noble Book of the Year. They just announced the finalists. 

What I enjoy about this list is that the B&N staff don't worry about categorizing titles. They don't worry about fiction, nonfiction, genre, age level. These are the booksellers on the floor at stores all over the country getting together to talk about the books that "defined" their year. From the finalist announcement:

Which books have defined 2021? As we look back on another extraordinary year, we once again turn to our amazing booksellers for the best recommendations. What stories moved us? What were the books that captured those pivotal moments? How many times did we watch that BookTok?! Connecting with a great book is more important than ever, and this year our Book of the Year finalists offer a wonderful snapshot of 2021. From epic world-building to a world-class cookbook, musical memoirs, and explorations into the origin of the American identity, this year’s finalists are as captivating as they are reflective.

This "best" list is one of your most useful as it identifies titles that have been proven to work with the broadest of readers, from all over the country. All of these books are a great "best" option to give to readers right now. 

Last year's pick, World of Wonders, was one of my first reads of 2021 and it was fantastic! One of my favorite reads of this year. I would have never read [and loved it] without B&N. They know what they are talking about.

Most "best" books readers who come into the library at this time of year are asking for books from these year end lists not because the only want to read award winners. No. They ask for these titles because they have limited leisure reading time and don't want to "waste" it on something they won't like. When we expand our notion of "best," we help more readers find a book they will enjoy. 

Obviously this is a conversation that I will keep having for the next few weeks with you, just as I always do this time of year. 

Speaking of, you can use the "Best Lists" tag to pull up all of my Best Books coverage in reverse chronological order anytime. It will have the most current first, but it will also have the backlist of best and I have been addressing this issue for many years, so there is much to read on the topic.

Holiday Schedule and Two Reminders

For the next 2 weeks, the blog will not be every day. Expect a post or two here this week. On the horror blog, I will post my detailed and annotated best horror of 2020 and I will alert you here when it goes live.

Next week [between Christmas and New Year's ] I will have my annual Best Books I Read This Year with all the fun categories.

Otherwise it is finishing the Third Edition of the Horror book and family time. The end is in sight for the book and it is exciting. 

I hope everyone has a chance to have some reading time this week. I for one am excited to settle in with my audio book while I wrap! 

In the meantime 2 reminders. 

1. Don't look at your "reading goals" this week. I have seen a few of you on Twitter talking about trying to race to meet your goals. No one cares how many books you read this year; here is my longer, more eloquent discussion of this and why you need to stop keeping track of a number. But please, do not stress yourself out to reach a "goal" that is completely arbitrary and, honestly, not veery helpful. Again, read the post for details.
2. Support your local bookstore. I bought almost every gift this year from local stores. My last stop is later today at my local independent book store, The Book Table. But I also supported the local book store near my family in VT to get them gifts, Bridgeside Books. I ordered and they wrapped them up, labeled who they were for and my Dad did curbside and gets to play Santa. Don't just support your local book store. Support the ones near the people you are buying gifts for. Many of them are even offering local delivery. And here is why. Every community is better if it has a local bookstore, and specifically libraries are better when there is a bookstore in town. Bookstores and library work hand in hand together to create a wonderful sense of community and to encourage reading. They do not compete. So please consider making a last minute run to your local independent book store and or calling one near family and friends to place an order.

Using a Single Twitter Thread to Record Your year in Reading: A Guest Post by Bookseller Danni Green

Earlier this year, I came upon Danni Green on Twitter through this amazing thread she did for 2020, posting the cover of every book she read in 1 single thread.

I loved the simplicity of it but also how easy it was to see her reading in one place over the course of an entire year. I immediately thought, I need to hear more about her and this idea. Turns out, Ms Green is a bookseller, so she put a lot of thought behind this. I asked her to share with you, my library worker audience, how this came to be and what she learned both about how others benefited from the thread and what she learned about herself and her own reading.

It is fascinating and I hope some of you take this up in 2021 too.

You can follow Ms Green on Twitter here. And now, here is her guest post.

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I’m Danni Green, and I read over 100 books a year. It’s also my job to read as I work full-time as a bookseller at a bookstore in Brooklyn, NY. Although booksellers and librarians have different entryways into the book world, I’ve always felt a kindred with librarians. We both belong to that demographic of American readers who read more than the American average. We have spent hours reading books and talking about books. Personally, I literally always want to know what someone has read and their thoughts on it. 

At the end of 2019, my Twitter feed was predictably peppered with links and videos to best-of lists and favorite-of-the-year lists. However, a new thing also started to make the rounds. A sizeable number of people I follow created threads of their favorite books of the year. They would post a picture of the book’s cover or with them and the book, a synopsis, and a star rating. These threads varied greatly as some were ten posts long while others were thirty posts long. I thought this was genius. 

As great as I found the idea of a Twitter thread of top reads, I also found them limiting in that they only shared what people greatly enjoyed. As I said, I always want to know what someone has read. This interests me for several reasons. Key among them being wanting to discuss a book that I too have read or am interested in reading. Knowing what someone reads, in my opinion, gives a better indication of their reading life in a way that I don’t think an end of year wrap does or can do. 

Inspired by what I saw, I decided that I would modify this idea by creating a Twitter thread of all the books that I read in the upcoming year, 2020. Each time I finished a book I would add to my thread. 

Right now my thread has over one hundred fifty titles. I intentionally do not include a star rating nor a synopsis. To that end, this thread functions more as a way of tracking my reading than as a way of reviewing. I’m simply sharing my reading life, which is the part of Goodreads that I enjoy and value the most. I should point out that this thread is of read books. I do not share what I am currently reading because I do not complete all the books that I start. As Twitter is a very public forum I do not want to disrespect authors or get mired in a social media fight over not enjoying a person’s favorite book. If a person wants to know my thoughts on a book I’m happy to DM them or text them if they’re a friend of mine. 

About a month or so ago—or maybe seven months ago as 2020 has obliterated linear time—a good friend texted me, Wow I had no idea you read so much romance. It was a gentle ribbing, yet I think it speaks to how he’s getting insight into me. He knows I read a lot and read a widely, but seeing it appear on his timeline is quite a different thing altogether. I really like this. I like that people are not just seeing that I read horror or romance but seeing the volume at which I read those genres and which subgenres and tropes I read. 

As I get older my tastes simultaneously expand and get more specific. I read horror (cosmic, body horror, creature features, science fiction, weird fiction, slasher), romance (historical, science fiction, romantic suspense, erotic, erotica), mystery (whodunit, howdunit, detective novel), science fiction (time travel, dystopian, multiverse, thriller), experimental fiction, and sociological novels. A friend of mine whom I met at work will tag me in posts when a person she follows is looking for a particular type of book. The most recent example is when a person was looking for a romance in which someone was gifted to another person and wanted the characters to be plus size and people of color. This made me so happy because my friend trusts my knowledge and tastes, and I get to recommend a book to someone. This same friend reads romance as well, but we have very different tastes in romance, so this particular request was more in my wheelhouse. 

In general, I’m the one my friends turn to for recommendations. They do this because of my profession but also because I’m constantly reading. The thread is a shortcut for them to find their next read—especially books that are not as well-publicized. I read a good amount of books in translation and books from small independent presses. For example, this year I read The Worm and His Kings by Hailey Piper. It is a cosmic horror novella published by Off Limits Press, a new horror publisher. I absolutely loved it, and in tandem with posting it on my thread, I also tweeted about how much I enjoyed it. This created publicity for the title and the author, which is something that wouldn’t likely otherwise happen.

People have retweeted my posts or liked individual posts when they see a book that either they want to read or have read. Seeing people engage in this project has solidified that I’m definitely doing it next year. Right now the thread is pinned to my Twitter account and I expect that the current year’s iteration of it will always be. 

Announcing a New 1 Day RA CODES Convo on Parenting with Authors, Publishers and Booksellers

Today I am appearing as part of Library Journal/School Library Journal's Library Con Live [click here for info on that event].

But while I am busy doing that, I didn't want to forget to remind you all about the next RUSA Codes Convo.  I am automatically subscribed, but I know not all of you are.  You do not need to be a member of CODES to participate, all you have to do is click the link provided below.

I was a part of this committee last year and have participated in these convos as a moderator and a participant.  I find them extremely valuable as a learning tool even if all you do is lurk. However, please go into this knowing that for an entire day you will be inundated with messages, but that is a good thing because they are filled with useful tips and conversation with your colleagues from all over the country. At this point every email system has a filtering option that allows you to send all of the Convo emails to one inbox, so please consider doing that rather than being upset that your inbox is very active.

While there are many other more "high-tech" ways to have a one day conversation [LibraryCon Live is one such example], I have to say, the email discussions work very well for what the CODES Convo is trying to do-- have a dynamic discussion for one 8 hr period about a very specific RA and Collection Development issue. Also, the committee is all volunteer and they sign up to take shifts being your moderators [again, I have done this so I know]. With no technical support, email is something the moderators can troubleshoot on their own [and we have had to....a lot].

I would highly suggest signing up and at the very least, read through the threads when you have a chance. Also, if you sign up now, you will also get the wrap up notes sent to you. I will post them on the blog too.

Here is the announcement with all of the details.

Building Book Communities – Partnering with Authors, Publishers, and Booksellers

Hello all! The next RUSA CODES Convo is scheduled for Tuesday, November 19th from 10am-6pm EST! Do you want to attract more authors to your library, but you’re not sure how? Do you want to help local or mid-list authors find their audience? Books are still the library’s brand and connecting readers with books is a core library mission. Topics covered will include how to plan an author event or speaker series at your library, how to use social media to publicize books and connect with authors, and how to frame your library as a destination point for book discovery and exploration. 

Guest moderators Kaite Stover (Kansas City Public Library) and Dena Heilik (Free Library of Philadelphia) will be joining our discussion. CODES Conversations are focused electronic conversations on issues facing collection development and readers’ advisory librarians—or anyone interested in those areas. 

The conversations are open to all who wish to participate (or lurk)! To subscribe or unsubscribe from the list, click http://lists.ala.org/sympa/info/codes-convos and select subscribe or unsubscribe on the left side. We hope you will join us!

RUSA CODES RA Research & Trends Committee.

Victoria Caplinger Fredrick, Chair

Attention Chicago Area Librarians-- Event 7/24

Click here for details about an event I will be attending at Bucket O Blood, a fantastic independent book and record shop in Chicago this Thursday.

ARRT Takes Over the Blog: Merchandising by Leah White

Today Steering Committee Member Leah White from Northbrook Public Library joins the fray with her thoughts on merchandising our books in the library setting.

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Recently, I was in New York City during BEA, and decided to take a day trip to visit my friend Stephanie Anderson - aka @bookavore - at the Darien Library in Connecticut. When I first met Stephanie she was the manager of WORD, a small but mighty independent bookstore in Brooklyn (worthy of both your money and emulation, by the way). Now she is the Head of Readers’ Advisory at Darien and with her background of working for a totally rad indie bookstore, she is doing some very cool stuff with merchandising that I have been implementing at my library, Northbrook Public Library, and wanted to share.

Merchandising is something that bookstores do every day. Not sure what it means? Basically it is the act of promoting sales. I know, I know. Libraries aren’t selling anything. So what does that really mean and what does that mean for libraries? Often we find that when a book moves from the New Books section to the regular stacks, it goes there to die. Every now and again, the book sees the light of day because low and behold, someone needs that exact title and you help them find it or perhaps you grab it for your Beach Reads display. But let’s be real here. Most stacks are just not browsable.

Merchandising is the answer to your browsability problem. This can be as simple as turning a book faced out. We see this every day when we put out book displays. Good looking covers attract people. We know it is true and yet we hide these covers for the sake of organization. We have to stay organized but how do we get around this? Start using a few merchandising techniques and I promise you will be amazed. Most of these techniques do not require new shelving or even a big investment of money. It does require you to re-think your displays and put in some time and thought.

This is a picture I took at Darien Library and there are two really great things happening here. The Librarian Favorite bookmark is the first thing I started doing when I got home from NYC. This takes a book display or a book that is facing out already to the next level. Patrons LOVE them. I have found that some like to keep them and use them as bookmarks, while others set them politely next to the empty book holder, in case we want to re-use them.

The other technique being used is what I’m starting to call  the stacked book method. Do you have multiple copies of a book? Set one underneath your book on display. Why? How many times have you had to tell people that they can check out the books on the display? Instead of creating yet another sign to put on your display telling people display books are all available for check out,  this simple act of stacking shows patrons a few things. First, it gives them permission to take the book, and second, it removes their feeling of guilt that they are somehow taking a book that someone else should have a chance to read. Also, it looks awesome, and saves time. When someone takes the book, you now have another one right underneath it.

This, librarians, is a shelftalker. Meet your new favorite thing. There are a lot of libraries jumping on the shelftalker train right now and that is because they work. There’s something eye catching about them that draws people down aisles and gets the patron to take a closer look in the stacks. You can use shelftalkers in all sorts of ways - you can promote past literary award winners, write a small blurb for an author, highlight a specific book, or you can follow Darien’s lead and highlight your staff member’s reading tastes and put the shelf talker right on your Staff Picks display.  You can do them on the cheap too. Slap your logo on some cardstock and laminate them. Voila! You have a shelftalker! You can also purchase shelftalker holders from a company like ShelfWiz, which is what my library is using.

These are just a few things that you could start doing, and there is much more. Increased displays, uniform signage, books faced out within the stacks - really the sky's the limit here. Now here is your homework - visit your local independent bookstore. Not sure where that is? Indiebound will tell you: http://www.indiebound.org/indie-store-finder For a time, libraries were trying very hard to be like bookstores but, in my humble opinion, the wrong ones. We don’t want to be the next Borders. We should want to be more like WORD or, if you’re in the Chicago area, Unabridged Bookstore. These local businesses are thriving because of their awesome staff, their knowledge of excellent books, and their ability to make those books appealing to people who might not even know what they’re looking for yet. Libraries can learn a lot from the indie bookstore, and a big thank you to Stephanie at Darien for showing me that.

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Leah White is a Reader Services Librarian at the Northbrook Public Library and a 2012 Library Journal Mover and Shaker. She is a member of the Adult Reading Round Table Steering Committee. Leah graduated from Dominican University with her Master of Library and Information Science in 2008. She enjoys reading comic books, Instagramming pictures of her pets, and spending too much time reading the Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin. You can find her on Twitter: @leahlibrarian or check out her website:leahwhite.weebly.com.

Tomorrow Is Star Wars Reads Day!

Readers of all ages, celebrate one of the most enduring stories of our time and participate in the first annual Star Wars Reads Day, Saturday, October 6, 2012.

From the official Star Wars Reads Day FAQ:

What is Star Wars Reads Day?

Star Wars Reads Day is a national event that celebrates reading and Star Wars. It was created by Lucasfilm and its publishing partners--Abrams, Chronicle Books, Dark Horse, Del Rey, DK Publishing, Random House Audio, Scholastic, Titan Magazines and Workman.

Click here and zoom in on the map to find events at Libraries and Bookstores near you. (The closest event to the BPL is at Magic Tree Bookstore in Oak Park.)

You can also  go to the official Star Wars blog to read guest posts by many of the authors who have written books under the Star Wars umbrella.  It is amazing to see, but there are books at every reading level from baby to adult and titles from fiction to nonfiction included.  There really is something for everyone.

Also, check out this great piece on from NPR entitled, "How Star Wars Seduced Another Generation of Kids."

At our household, just about every day is a Star Wars Reads Day (see NPR link in the previous paragraph for reasons why), but we will be marking the day by looking through this book together.

May the force (of reading) be with you.

Nancy Pearl Teams Up With.....Amazon?

I was all set to write about something else today, but then I saw this article in my daily Shelf Awareness email.  I will cross post it at the bottom of this post, but the gist is that Nancy Pearl, America's most famous librarian and champion of local book stores is going to begin publishing books with Amazon exclusively.  She will be donating the money to her scholarship fund, but still.  Her other argument is that she is championing the backlist, another issue close to my heart.  But still.

This news is troubling to me, especially given that I am about to go pick up the 40 book club books I ordered from my favorite local, independent bookstore, The Book Table.  While they give the library a very good deal, and I have tax exempt status when buying for the library, I could probably still save a couple bucks by buying them from Amazon.  But where would that leave me?

Jason and Rachel and their staff at The Book Table are huge library supporters and enhance our community by simply being open.  I send patrons there all of the time when the book they need "immediately" is off the shelf at all of the area libraries.  They have yet to fail me.  In fact, I sent somewhere there just on Monday to grab a nonfiction title which was needed for school.  I used their online stock search and found the patron a used copy for just over $5.  If I didn't support them by buying books from them, they wouldn't be there to help me and my patrons when we needed to something.  And who else could I talk to about books?  Sometimes even I crave book conversation with non-librarians.

Besides, Jason and I are part of a three person team that puts on a fun presentation called, Back to Books.  We will be appearing next at Reaching Forward on May 4th.

Anyway, click through or read the article below.  I am sure Nancy Pearl will have a lot to say about the reaction to her announcement in the coming days. I say in the mean time, visit your local book seller.  I will be at The Book Table tomorrow.

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Seattle Shocker: Pearl to Publish with Amazon

Nancy Pearl, the former librarian and bookseller, author of the Book Lust series, NPR book commentator and champion of reading, libraries and independent bookstores, is launching the Book Lust Rediscoveries series with Amazon.com.

The series of about six books a year will consist of Pearl's favorite out-of-print books that will be available "in print editions via Amazon.com and as audiobooks via Amazon.com and Audible.com, at bookstores, wholesalers and libraries nationwide and as eBooks in the Kindle Store," Amazon said. The company's statement had no information on how non-Amazon outlets might be able to obtain the printed versions of the books. The books will include introductions by Pearl, a list of discussion questions for book groups and suggestions for similar titles.

Pearl will donate part of the proceeds from the books' sales to the Nancy Pearl Endowment for Public Librarianship at the University of Washington's Information School. "Helping these wonderful books find new readers is, for me, a joy and a delight," Pearl said, adding that she has received many requests from readers who found some of her recommended titles--a significant number of which are out-of-print--difficult to find.

The first two titles in the series are:

• A Gay and Melancholy Sound by Merle Miller, to be published April 3. ("Joshua Bland tells the story of his life growing up in small-town Iowa as a child prodigy to his career as a theater producer and his most recent divorce: a life marked by a failure to love and be loved.")
• After Life by Rhian Ellis, which appears June 5. ("A charming novel that's part psychological thriller, partly a story of mothers and daughters, and partly something entirely original.")

The move has shocked some people in the industry. The Stranger, the Seattle website, outlined why: "Pearl built her fame on a career at Seattle Public Library and through partnerships with local bookstores. Many of the local librarians and independent booksellers who supported her can't stand Amazon.com, which means that things could get a little awkward around here real soon."

In an update to yesterday's post RA for All Loves Independent Bookstores, I forgot to link to this column in The Chicago Tribune by Dawn Turner Trice in which workers at local independent bookstores suggest "timeless and engaging" summer reads.

Feel free to add your own "timeless and engaging" summer reading options via comments.

RA for All Loves Independent Bookstores

As I have professed many times on this blog, as a librarian, surrounded by books, with easy access to interlibrary loan services every working day, I do not often purchase books.  However, not often, does not mean never.

In every small town or neighborhood I visit, I spend time in the local independent bookstores, browse, talk to the workers, and always buy something.  Here are some of my local favorites:

• The Book Table (Oak Park, IL): just overall awesome.  They have staff picks, host tons of authors, partner with the Oak Park Library frequently, and give back to the community.
• Women and Children First (Andersonville neighborhood in Chicago): the staff is welcoming, they have great suggestions especially for my kids, and they stock great women power gifts.
• Unabridged Books (Lakeview neighborhood in Chicago): has a gay slant, but is welcoming to all, and our BPL RA fearless leader Kathy used to work there.
• 57th Street Books (Hyde Park neighborhood in Chicago: while it has a university press slant, they still know how to have fun...case in point: A Dance With Dragons midnight release party on 7/11!

A few other  gems of note which I have personally visited:

• The Book Loft (Columbus, Ohio): over 30 rooms of books in the historic German Village.  I ate sausage and looked at books for hours.
• Bridgeside Books (Waterbury, Vermont): a small store with a leisure reading bent.  Children's, Adult fiction, Adult narrative nonfiction, local authors and local interest, as well as interesting gifts.
• Bearpond Books (Montpelier, Vermont): A large independent bookstore with a little bit of everything.  Again, great local author focus.
• City Lights Books (San Francisco): any trip to SF is incomplete for a book lover without a trip to this store.  It is a landmark, independent store and publishers that specializes in world literature, the arts and progressive politics.
  

And the two nationally known independent book stores worth your time:

• The Strand (NYC): 18 miles of books!
• The Tattered Cover (Denver): very active in the indie bookstore community.  In fact, last week NPR had the owner on here to talk about how to be successful as an independent bookseller.

The point I am making is while I love the library, and our books are unlimited for the cost of your particular tax bill, if you are going to buy a book or a book related gift, please make sure to find a local, independently owned bookstore to patronize.

How does this pertain to Readers' Advisory though?  Good question.  I find that the people who work at independent book stores have more in common with readers' advisors than more traditional reference librarians do. In fact, when I teach at least 3 students each semesters (if not more) have book store experience.  As I mentioned above, Kathy spent years at independent bookstores before deciding to go to library school.

Independent bookstores care about books.  They want to sell you books sure, but they also want to share them, talk about them, and spread the book love.  These workers have the RA spirit.  While I spend hours in workshops trying to convince traditional librarians how to stop judging readers and just have a conversation with them abut books and reading, independent bookstore workers just do it naturally.  While I have to hammer home the idea of letting the patrons' tastes drive the suggestions we provide, no matter what the "level" of the book, independent bookstores thrive on this interaction. They put books in readers' hands; the books the readers' want.


Next to getting lost browsing in the stacks of the library, there is nothing I love more than browsing a good book store and talking to its workers.  I may find the next great RA librarian among their ranks.