Just The Facts, Ma'am

To get this ball rolling, I'm going to have to provide you with information that will seem trivial at first, but I promise has some kind of relevance.

I've worn many hats around this bookstore of ours. Before making my triumphant return to the sales floor as a bookseller, I worked in our events department. This might seem like something I'm just throwing out there, as I don't intend to elaborate much more than that, but this means that I rubbed elbows with an unsung hero who is, in one case, becoming all the more unsung as time goes on.

On June 16th, 2009, we hosted an event for local author, and all around great guy, Matthew Simmons. We were there, at the College Inn Pub, for his novella (really a novelette, as you will often hear me say) A Jello Horse. Book Editor for The Stranger, and all around nice guy, Paul Constant was also in attendance.



At the time of the event, neither myself nor Mr. Constant had any kind of firsthand knowledge of the book itself. Matthew had intimated that there were jackalopes, but that was literally the full extent of how informed I was. Danielle, my equally bespectacled counterpart in events, had already read the book and shared a theory which was then transmuted into advice. She said something to the effect that the book was best experienced in one read. With a total of 67 pages, this is an entirely achievable goal, and something that I'm not alone in saying I totally appropriated from her.

These words undoubtedly influenced Paul to say what he said (re: how it should be read), and I can quite honestly say that they alone led me to say what I said in my staff recommendation for the book (something to the effect of "read it in one sitting. If not for yourself, for your children").

The reason why I'm writing about this now is that A Jello Horse has made it into its fourth printing from Publishing Genius Press, which has led to a new jacket design for the book.



See that in the bottom corner? Danielle's words have reached, I think, the height of what a reader's words can reach in regards to a work of literature. That is, a variant is featured on the cover of the work itself. So, to Danielle I say: thank you for sharing your words with us. It enhanced my experience with the book, and has done/will do the same for plenty of others.

Since I still have you here, I feel I should suggest that you take a look at the work of Matthew Simmons. He's an impressive talent that is really on the rise, and for good reason. Along with being the author of A Jello Horse, he is The Man Who Couldn't Blog, the forthcoming author of too many things to count (a novel and two short story collections, I think), and teaches a class at the Richard Hugo House from time to time.

But don't take my word for it! Instead, look at this and see (a second opinion) for yourself.

-Griffin

PS: Thank you, Paul Constant, for allowing me to lean on your words for some kind of credibility.

What Better Way to Celebrate a Love of Books?

Images from our smashing event last night, celebrating the 40th Anniversary of 84 Charing Cross Rd. Days before, Pam and Brad took some time for one last practice (pictured above). All their hard work paid off with a huge crowd and teary eyes by the end. The sweet friendship between Helene and Frank was brought to life and the wonder, nostalgia, and connection that books bring was indeed emphasized. What better way to celebrate a love of books?

If you missed the event, stay tuned here for a video recording. Or, grab the book and revel in Helene and Frank's letters on your own.


Anna, in Events

A Peek Into our Story Time

Yesterday Les Gamins de Paris, a French immersion pre-school, stopped by our main branch to listen to Caitlin read the best in Kids picture books.  Caitlin livened up a Tuesday morning with transportation noises from Roadwork!, growls and songs from The Story of Growl, alternating train and shark sounds from Shark vs. Train and rhyming tongue-twisters from Bubble Trouble.

Did you know that we host a story time every week? More than that, actually. At our Main branch, we invite young'ns to read with us on Tuesday and Saturday. And at our Bellevue and Mill Creek stores, experienced story-time readers gather their best books and share them aloud with little ones every Thursday.

Come join the fun and bring your best train sounds!

On Instances of Authorial Lurking

The subject line may not accurately describe what it is I wish to talk about, but I'm led to believe what I'm about to discuss is something entirely universal in nature. I like to think that we all find ourselves in situations where one author in particular is lodged firmly in our craw, and for whatever reason circles and swirls in your general area. It is entirely possible that my slightly obsessive nature intensifies this occurrence, but allow me to give you a rundown of my week with David Foster Wallace.

Thursday: Rearranging fixtures for our event with Karl Marlantes, who was immensely kind, not to mention modest (which is particularly refreshing given the unanimous praise his debut novel Matterhorn has received), this was the cover located directly in front of (and underneath) me:



Friday: While shelving in our Mathematics section, I noticed a book that was slightly out of alphabetical order. It was Everything And More: A Compact History of Infinity by one David Foster Wallace.

Saturday: Nothing.

Sunday: As if to make up for the day off, Mr. Wallace struck twice during our short day here at the bookstore.

First, a discussion about the ins and outs of book collecting brought about a digression (the only one of its kind) to the current value of a first edition, first printing of Infinite Jest.

Then, just before closing, I helped a customer locate a book for her book club. She wasn't sure who the author was, but she knew "Curious Hair" was in the title. As in Girl With The. Upon arriving in the section, there was a brief discussion about DFW and the importance of experimental fiction. As a degree carrying English major, I walked away elated by this exchanging of ideas.

Monday: Mere moments ago, I was hailed by one of our lovely events associates. When I reached the top of the stairs where she was prepping a display for this evening's author event with Kim Severson, she held a copy of the book that started all of this: Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace by David Lipsky.

While I was sold on the idea of someone (anyone, really) taking some kind of road trip with a figure the likes of David Foster Wallace, I am pleased to report that the specifics should yield far tastier fruit for all of us to enjoy (the specifics being that this road trip took place during DFW's book tour for Infinite Jest)!

As it turns out, we received an uncorrected proof of the book today, and it had yet to be claimed. Since I seem to be incapable of keeping my likes and dislikes to myself, it was known to the aforementioned staffer that I'm something of a fan. So, due to the fact that I have thoughtful, sweet co-workers, I sit here with a new book in my hot little hands.

With all of this out in the blogosphere now, I'm curious. When was the last time you, my patient, possibly bored reader, have had an author embedded in your life in oddly tangible ways? Furthermore, who was it?

-Griffin

Apostrophes

Not to start anything, because I know people feel quite strongly about their punctuation, but as we were setting up an account for the Kids Department on this here blog, we ran into a snafu that we often encounter. Somehow, the question is never settled, even when we finally make signage and someone gives a thorough explanation: Is it Kids' Books or Kids Books? We know it's not Kid's Books, even though that unfortunate possessive occasionally sneaks onto signage. But of the other two, we decided to go with Kids Books on our giant sign and whatever flyers we produce. As in, these are books for kids, not books that belong to kids. That official decision, however, hasn't stopped us from having the same plural v. possessive conversation every time we have to do something (like make our name for this blog).

Morphic Resonance?

“Morphic resonance" is a term coined by Rupert Sheldrake in his 1981 book A New Science of Life. He uses the expression to refer to what he thinks is "the basis of memory in nature....the idea of mysterious telepathy-type interconnections between organisms and of collective memories within species." from http://www.skepdic.com/, authored by Robert T. Carroll.

You may be wondering why I am wandering into the field of morphic resonance when I'm writing about three fantasy novels that I am about to recommend. Well when I start to notice a pattern, and then the pattern repeats itself, I like to have some notion about where all of that came from.

Protagonist Joanne Walker, in Urban Shaman (an earlier staff pick by Mechio), has been working in the Seattle Police department motor pool, as a mechanic, until she sees something bizarre and stirring from her window seat on her return flight from Ireland. Once the plane has landed, she wastes no time and follows the scene--incredible though it may seem--which leads her and you to the discovery of her true, previously unknown, full identity.

Joanne is an amazon of sorts, as tall as the chief of police, and that proves to be a plus and a minus while he vacillates on whether to keep her assigned to the brutal cases that have been popping up all of sudden. And then there's a pesky, trickster coyote that keeps showing up with riddles that would puzzle the sphinx. And, of course, more adventures to come in the books that follow Joanne's story.

And then there's Mercy Thompson, in the first book that Patricia Briggs features her in, Moon Called. Would you believe that she's a walker, a skin-walker, and a mechanic to boot? She's made it a little further in the world than Joanne, because she owns her own garage ... sold to her by a gremlin. There's more than your standard fare of vampires, werewolves, and what have yous. But our kick-a.. heroine can take care of herself ... and rescue some others along the way.

Another similarity between Mercy and Joanne is the ancient native blood that seems to run through their veins, making them warrior-queens. And, yes, they're both mechanics who don't seem to get too much grease under their fingernails. And while Joanne had a lonely abandoned childhood, Mercy Thompson grew up with a werewolf clan, for her own safety, but do remember that she is not one herself, she is special ...

And then last, but certainly not least is Charles de Lint, urban fantasy writer extraodinaire, who wrote about Altagracia (her friends call her Grace) Quintero, in yet another female mechanic story, The Mystery of Grace, with a twist. She worked at Sanchez Motor Works customizing hot rods, and here's the twist, until she died. But that is nowhere near the end of the line for this also heroic character. Alice Hoffman wrote, on the jacket cover: "Charles de Lint is the modern master of urban fantasy. Folktale, myth, fairy tale, dreams, urban legend---all of it adds up to pure magic in de Lint's vivid, original world. No one does it better.” And my earlier favorite book of his is the wonderful Someplace to be Flying ... check it out too! So, there you have it, three great writers all coming up with the idea of their heroines being mechanically inclined and gifted. It's fun to read about those ideas since I have absolutely no idea what's under the hood of my boyfriend's car, nor do I really want to. But I was definitely entertained by these three different women and their stories. So do read on.

And, if you want to read more about Rupert Sheldrake's work, check out his fun nonfiction piece, Dogs that Know When their Owners are Coming Home. There's some cool stuff in there, too!

Namaste, Jan

aka Calendar Girl, Pet Gallery Coordinator, Kids Books, Cookbooks, etc.

The Series

This is my inaugural post here, and I hope to establish myself as someone who has much content of interest to offer you. With that goal in mind, let's get down to brass tacks, shall we?

The series.

I've been a bookseller for long enough to genuinely wish that I could take part in one of those monstrously popular series. The Harry Potter and Stieg Larsson books spring to mind right off the bat, but to be fair, I'd even settle for being on board for something like Twilight. Anything that inspires the kind of obsessive hunger pangs that one must endure while they await the next volume.

The point I'm awkwardly fumbling around here is this: I simply haven't had the opportunity to experience the love, frustration, and waiting associated with serial fiction. Or any kind of serialized writing, for that matter.

Until one fateful day (a handful of weeks ago) when a co-worker told me about a comic book written by the incredibly talented Bryan K. Vaughan called Y: The Last Man.

I have to acknowledge, this is by no means a new series. It started its 60 issue run in 2002 and concluded in 2008, so I definitely missed out on all of the award buzz and fanfare.

At any rate, I trusted the co-worker who recommended it, and I saw that we had volumes one through four. Within the week, I had torn through all of them, was placing orders for volumes five through eight (as we had nine and ten in stock), and was literally dreaming about the series. Dreaming! It's so good that it literally permeated my subconscious, and got me to put down a collection of short stories that I'd been enjoying. When you're craving pizza, sushi will not leave you feeling satisfied. Though this series transcends mere sustenance, my friends.

This narrative is simply amazing. Not once did I complete a volume with anything but an intense need to continue the tale and know what happens next. Oh, the twists, oh, the turns!

To give you a spoiler-free idea of what you're in for, the premise is that one day in 2002, all of the men in the world die except for, you guessed it, our protagonist (and his pet Capuchin)! As Hollywood has proven with Every Which Way But Loose and Bedtime for Bonzo, anyone with a monkey is pretty worthwhile (see: Clint Eastwood, Ronald Reagan). I feel like this is a good time to mention that this series shares no similarities, and thus cannot be described as cheesy (or anything negative, for that matter).

Since receiving this final pay-off, I've been exploring new avenues in the land of graphic novels and arty comics. Brian K. Vaughan's stint with Runaways was pretty amazing, as well as Bill Willingham's Fables, and Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead.

Now, to the best of my understanding, these are all relatively well-established titles and authors. I don't wish to present them as undiscovered gems simply because their collective awesomeness went under my radar until somewhat recently. I'm just hoping that maybe someone will stumble across these titles, sample the flavor, and find themselves delightfully hooked on at least one awesome series.

As for me, I'm off to continue my romp through the post-apocalyptic world of Rick Grimes and co. in The Walking Dead Compendium.


-Griffin

Sending Books to Haiti

You can still get Creole/English medical dictionaries here. The Haitian (Creole) - English Pocket Medical Translator was put out by the International Medical Volunteers Association and is available to print on the Espresso Book Machine for $8. We recently took an order from an aid team about to head to Haiti.

From our bookseller, Terri: "On April 12th I took a call from a woman at a Seattle hospital. She was looking for several copies of a French/English medical dictionary and the Lonely Planet travel guide to Haiti. I asked her if she would be interested in a Haitian/English medical dictionary instead. She told me that a group of medical staff were leaving in three days for Haiti and would need the books as soon as possible. I let her know that we could have the books ready for her by that afternoon. She was "wowed" and very appreciative of our ability to make the exact book for their needs when they needed them."

- Tera, EBM Operator