Saner, better shopping for Christmas

I am not someone who does their Christmas shopping early. Ever.

But I do try to find the right gifts for people (even if I do buy them late). :-)

But this year was a wonderful shopping experience for me AND I felt like the gifts were more particularly selected. In looking at ideas for the bookstore, I also found beautiful, unique gifts at local markets and shops, such as Eastern Market, Politics and Prose, McLean Craft Fair, The Grape Juice and others.

...which also allowed me to shop and buy locally, from local businesses...and to get ideas for artists whose work I'd like to sell in my shop. The ABA's Indiebound program is all about recognizing the contribution of bookstores and other local merchants to the local economy and community - maybe it's finally sinking in with me.

Whoohooo...we're #2!

#2 is pretty darn good considering the competition. Shelf Awareness noted: "Seattle has once again topped the list of America's most literate cities, but this year Washington, D.C., edged traditional literate city powerhouse Minneapolis as a surprise runner-up."

America's most literate cities for 2009:

Seattle
Washington
Minneapolis
Pittsburgh
Atlanta
Portland, Ore.
St. Paul
Boston
Cincinnati
Denver

The annual study by Jack Miller, president of Central Connecticut State University, "focuses on six indicators: newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment and Internet resources," USA Today reported.

The mystery binge continues

In my independent bookstore prowl, I continue to pick up more books. Faster than I can read them, but I enjoy trying to keep up.

Recently finished The Italian Secretary by Caleb Carr, author of The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness. This is a change up from those books in both location and cast of characters, moving from Dr. Laszlo Kreizler in New York City to Sherlock Holmes in Scotland. I liked it quite a bit, but not as much as the Alienist which I love.
"The Italian Secretary captivates." - Publishers Weekly.

Another book add to the reading list...City of Silver by Annamaria Alfieri. Read Daniel Mallory's review in the Washington Post: "...Densely brocaded with period detail, "City of Silver" reads like an El Doradan "Name of the Rose," all cloistered intrigue and New World decadence." Having spent several weeks in Peru and Bolivia and reading up on the history, I look forward to reading this book. What's the term for a history mystery??

Another adult book related to a children's book

First, Neverland: J. M. Barrie, The Du Mauriers, and the Dark Side of Peter Pan by Piers Dudgeon and now...

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin due out January 12, 2010.
"The story about the inspiration for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass concentrates on Alice Liddell: we savor the richly imagined life of a privileged child, a young woman smitten with a prince, a society wife and mother, an elderly widow, and of course "Alice," the perennial Child...As this marvelous novel opens, in 1932, Alice Liddell Hargreaves is starting a letter to her son:

"But oh my dear, I am tired of being Alice in Wonderland. Does it sounds (sound?) ungrateful? It is. Only I do get tired.

"Only I do get tired.

"I pause, place the pen down next to the page and massage my aching hand; the joints of my fingers, in particular, are stiff and cold and ugly like knots on a tree. One does get tired of so many things, of course, when one is eighty; not the least of which is answering endless letters.

"However, I cannot say that, not to my own son."
(From Shelf Awareness Maximum Shelf Oct 26, 2009)

Still shopping? More books suggestions because Indiebound says...

Some new and others not so new...
The Monster in the Box by Ruth Rendell.  Last book featuring Reginald Wexford, Chief Inspector of Kingsmarkham, UK.  "One of the best written detective series genre" says Michael Sims of the Washington Post.

The Race for Timbuktu by Frank T. Kryza. Read Jonathan Yardley's review of the story of the expedition to find and lay claim to the riches of this fabled city.

The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner. Read Weiner in the Washington Post on undertaking this adventure, starting with: "I am not a happy person, never have been. As a child, my favorite Winnie-the-Pooh character was Eeyore."

Shadows Still Remain by Peter de Jonge (co-writer of three of James Patterson's best-sellers). Patrick Anderson's review in the Washington Post concludes: "When the crime-fiction aficionados set out to pick their best first novel of the year, "Shadows Still Remain" will be a contender."

Misc musings on NYC, e-books, fairies and Steig Larsson

Really looking forward to going to NYC this weekend to visit my college roomies and to visit some indie bookstores AND catch up with a new friend whose store is scheduled to open in January. Hope to check out several of these...

Idlewild Books at 12 West 19th Street (near 5th Avenue)- a travelers mecca - my dream store.

And several in Brooklyn, which seems to be home to many independent bookstore:

BookCourt at 163 Court Street (between Pacific & Dean)
Greenlight Bookstore at 686 Fulton Street - I think it just opened this past fall
WORD bookstore at 126 Franklin Street

Freebird Books & Goods at 123 Columbia St.

And a few more...
Three Lives & Co. at 154 West 10th Street
St, Mark's Bookshop at 31 Third Avenue
Book Culture – 2915 Broadway

Good books...
Always love it when a friend is enthused about a book as much as I am -- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson, the first of his trilogy with Lisbeth Salandar. Fans love this series so much that booksellers are purchasing the final book in the trilogy from the UK where it has already been released. It's unclear why it will take several months to be released in the U.S.

E-books...
"HarperCollins became the third major publisher in two days to make the decision to delay e-book publication of selected titles in 2010. Simon & Schuster and Hachette had made a similar announcement earlier (Shelf Awareness, December 10, 2009)."
Not sure that I agree with this strategy -- ebooks will come whether they're delayed or not.

Last but not least...in a switch from omnipresent vampires in teen novels, Fragile Eternity is a book about fairies, but they're kick-ass fairies who are way stronger than humans, who fight and are flawed. Fragile Eternity is the third book from Melissa Marr and her Wicked Lovely universe. It is the sequel to her first book, Wicked Lovely, and includes characters from her second book, Ink Exchange. And of course it involves star-crossed lovers...

"Because cheese and crackers never changed anyone's life"

"The value of books... because cheese and crackers never changed anyone's life: When people get yet another basket filled with fruit or wine or cheese and crackers--it is hard to remember who sent what--but when they receive a book or a basket of books...it feels thoughtful and personal and memorable."
--An e-mail newsletter sent by Roxanne Coady, owner of R.J. Julia Booksellers, Madison, Conn., promoted "Corporate Gift Ideas."