An unlikely theme in books seems to be more prevalent than I realized. The use of twins in literature has been around forever, and many more recent titles have explored the bond and relationship between two identical siblings. Naturally, Chang and Eng was one of the first titles that popped into my mind when I … Read more
My father didn’t read. Ok, he read the newspaper and model railroading magazines. But fiction? No. The exceptions were located at a shopping spot called the Mart, where stalls contained various low key vendors, meaning, most of the stuff in the place consisted of velvet Elvis paintings, soft pretzels, and troll dolls. One stall sold … Read more
Recently, an article highlighting prolific writer and fantastic sales person, James Patterson, brought to the forefront his foray into YA lit. I somehow missed the beginning of this venture. He apparently released his adult suspense novel on the same day a YA novel was also released. And critics find this to be a sales ploy … Read more
Serial Killer Days—David Prill—1996–available Forget competing for Miss America, the real prize is to become Scream Queen at Standard Springs’ annual parade honoring their local serial killer who arrives during the festivities to slaughter another member of the upstanding community. Back in 1996, the dark humor was appreciated and hilarious. Today, it rings a little … Read more
A former boss used to call Barnes and Noble, The Evil Empire, and meant it. I remember B&N before it became B&N, when it was a fantastic outlet for remainders and other books, a real bookstore–not oh so full of itself, with author illustrated shopping bags, prepaid shelving for certain books, and a coffee shop … Read more
Coming from a smaller venue where the books were mostly paperbacks and the space limited, to being seated behind a huge desk in a beautifully appointed room was a little bit of a jolt. The amount of employees was tripled, with two floors of stock, a shipping department, and rare expensive titles in an unlocked … Read more
Murder a la Richelieu—Anita Blackmon–1937–Doubleday Crime Club–OOP I can see most of you shaking your heads and wondering, where the heck I found this title. The Doubleday Crime Club, of course! All manner of oddball interesting and never heard from again titles lurk within their vaults. Published in 1937, Doubleday must have thought they had … Read more
I was thinking about recent criticism I received from an individual about my negative view of some booksellers I worked for and with. And although it’s all true, unfortunately, it doesn’t address how I felt about the job. Even within the most trying of atmospheres, it wasn’t as though I stood around whining or complaining … Read more
