Monday, June 8, 2020

Sampling the Inventory -- What do you Re-read?

One of the nice things about a used bookstore is that, providing you don't only stock books that you hate, there is always something good to read. As well, since these are used and not brand new books, it generally doesn't hurt to read them again. It is almost impossible to read a new book without damaging it, but if you bang up a used book, well maybe you knock a dollar off the price and go on. 😃

Rex Stout has always been one of my authors and a few weeks ago I started rereading a number of the Nero Wolfe mysteries. Walking into his old brownstone to spend some time with Nero and Archie is like relaxing in a comfortable chair. You have been there many times and you know that you are going to enjoy the experience.

I believe that one of the best compliments you can give an author is to consider his or her books worthy of rereading from time to time. It is even more special to realize that books written more than half a century ago still hold up and are enjoyable to read. Rex Stout is one author, Robert Heinlein (for the most part), Isaac Asimov and others. 

Of course, there are books I enjoyed reading that I have no desire to revisit. While I am happy to go back through many of S.M. Stirling's books, I don't particularly care to reread his Draka series. They were good books, but the series as a whole was depressing -- something about having the Bad Guys win in the end, I think. I enjoyed the series and found it an interesting take on an alternative history idea. But it's certainly not a world I would want to live in.

The other nice thing about sampling my inventory is discovering a new author. You see plenty of different books, and if one looks interesting, well what does it hurt to shuffle it off to the reading pile. It may be drek but you may just find a new friend. And after all, one of the reasons I got into this business is that I love to read. I never need to have a shortage of new - or old - books to dive into.

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Randolf Caldecott & Kate Greenaway

One of the absolute delights of book selling is the chance to see some of the gorgeous illustrations that are done for children's books. It is a real treat to open some of these books and sometimes it can be tough to let them go as they are sold.

What brought this to mind were a couple books I was recently putting online: They were published in the late 19th century and illustrated by Caldecott and Greenaway. You may see books that are listed as Caldecott or Newbery Medal winners, for example. What is easy to forget is that Randolf Caldecott was a real life children's illustrator -- and consequently there are books with his illustrations inside.

Agree or not with any specific winner of these awards, but the awards honor someone in the field who was a trailblazer or a particularly outstanding artisan in that field.

As I mentioned, there can be few things more fun than leafing through some of our old time children's books and enjoying the pictures. I am sure they make the books much better for the kids who read them.

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

ConTinual

One of our favorite authors -- Gail Z. Martin -- is, of course, stuck at home with all the rest of us in North Carolina. On the one hand she, and her fellow writer and husband, Larry Martin, have been working at home for the past 10 years so it isn't necessarily that much different to them.

On the other hand, they can't get out to conventions and bookstores to meet us fans and promote their new (and existing) books. Gail is a fairly prolific author and is constantly coming out with new stories, many of which are in e-book format and can be found on Amazon.

On the gripping hand, Gail recently decided to start a new Facebook group, which you can find here.

This group is a virtual science fiction convention called ConTinual, and she is featuring not only her own books, but a number of other authors, booksellers, and publishers. It is a way to both keep in touch during this era of social distancing and to send new stories out into the wild.

Gail plans to continue this project even after the current unpleasantness is concluded and I strongly recommend that you check this out.


Friday, March 20, 2020

Science Fiction Conventions

Well, I never expected to be at home today. We are supposed to be in Durham, selling books at FantaSci. Sadly the Governor's restrictions on gatherings have forced the con to cancel and reschedule for next year.

While I understand why the organizers felt they had no choice, it is still a sad occasion. Reading the news I cannot help but feel that we as a country might be overreacting just a bit. We certainly have had epidemics such as this in the past and did not see the need to shut down the whole country (it's still likely that seasonal flu will cause more deaths each year than the corona virus). But, not my choice to make.

On a more positive note, this does give me the chance to add some nice books to the online inventory. We stockpiled a lot of books by the Guests of Honor, and will likely be listing a number of those online in the coming weeks.

I do try to be listing books every week, although the first quarter is the hardest -- my other job is working as a tax preparer so I keep pretty busy up until April 15th or so.

I trust everyone is following common sense precautions to get through all of this, and I hope you all will stay healthy and as productive as possible.

Our next convention is over Memorial Day in Charlotte at ConCarolinas. Let's plan to see you there!