Shelf Awareness for Tuesday, February 17, 2009


Del Rey Books: The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Dial Press: Whoever You Are, Honey by Olivia Gatwood

Pantheon Books: The Volcano Daughters by Gina María Balibrera

Peachtree Publishers: Leo and the Pink Marker by Mariyka Foster

Wednesday Books: Castle of the Cursed by Romina Garber

Overlook Press: How It Works Out by Myriam LaCroix

Charlesbridge Publishing: If Lin Can: How Jeremy Lin Inspired Asian Americans to Shoot for the Stars by Richard Ho, illustrated by Huynh Kim Liên and Phùng Nguyên Quang

Shadow Mountain: The Orchids of Ashthorne Hall (Proper Romance Victorian) by Rebecca Anderson

Letters

E-book X-change

Our informal ongoing discussion of e-books has elicited more responses.

Rachel Whang of Atomic Books, Baltimore, Md., writes:

I don't understand why anyone would go to a bookstore to download e-books, as some have proposed. Do people go to record stores to download music? No. People don't go to places to download anything. That's why they like it. And that's why music-selling stores are going away.

And once there's a standardized book file, like MP3s for music, that will be the end of book sales in general.

I'm surprised that publishers haven't paid more attention to the music industry!

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Jodi Kaplan writes:

I'm not a bookstore owner, but I am a consumer and avid reader. I also run a Squidoo lens, arguing that print books are better than e-books.

For print and bookstores to survive, they have to add value. Bring authors in, host book groups, have authors blog on their sites (or connect to the authors' blogs). Send e-mails to loyal customers informing them of new books they might like to read. Invite people into the store to form connections with the store, the authors and other readers.

Don't just sell the book, sell the souvenirs and the experience. Nobody wants to pay for music, but they will pay for unreleased tracks, behind-the-scenes special interviews with the band and the special edition poster with the band's signatures on it.

Approach it that way instead; build an experience around connecting with the author's "tribe."

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Michael Herrmann of Gibson's Bookstore, Concord, N.H., writes:

As not only a bookseller but a booklover, I can see why e-books would be priced lower than real books. Not only do you not have printing, storing and distribution costs at the producer's end, but you also do not have a permanent artifact at the consumer's end. That is to say, e-books are not collectible. They are ephemeral. There is no guarantee that they will be readable or retrievable in two, 10, 50 years. They have less value than a real book. So perhaps they should cost less. 

On the issue of Amazon dictating price, Amazon is not releasing sales figures for the Kindle or for downloads. They are bullying suppliers into accepting ridiculously low prices in the name of a consumer demand that they are trying to invent out of the whole cloth. It is more of a religious phenomenon than a business discussion.
 
If Amazon succeeds in diverting publishers' creative energy into the e-book category, there will be incredible disruption in publishing and in retail. While there is a place for e-books in ephemeral categories and in textbooks, they will never amount to more than 10% of the market. As a technology and as a cultural artifact they are inferior to the printed book. The public will realize that, and e-book sales will eventually find their natural level, beyond all the hype.
 
Publishers should rededicate themselves to what formerly made their industry prestigious and modestly profitable: their core constituency of real bookstores and their greatest treasure, their backlist. There is no magic bullet for what ails them, whether it be celebrity bestsellers or e-books.

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Dan and Debbie Sullivan of the Book Oasis, Stoneham, Mass., write:

In a world where overall readership is down, the idea of doubling sales through e-books is not realistic. In the short run, publishers may increase sales in the way the music industry saw sales rise when people converted their record collections into CDs. This will not last long term. The solution is to keep releases in the order that has always been used. First release the book in hardcover, then trade, then paperback and finally e-book. That way the publishers and retailers, new and used, would continue to maximize their profitability.
 

 


HarperOne: Amphibious Soul: Finding the Wild in a Tame World by Craig Foster


News

Notes: B&N Downgrade; Text Sales Drop Hurts Shaman Drum

Borders Group and Pershing Square Capital Management, the hedge fund that is the single-largest shareholder of the bookselling company, have again extended the deadline of Borders's option to sell its Paperchase gifts and stationery business to Pershing Square for $65 million--until April 15. At the same time, Borders's repayment of the $42.5 million senior secured term loan from Pershing Square has also been extended to April 15. Borders is paying Pershing Square $750,000 for reimbursement of expenses and the extension of the option.

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Standard & Poor's has downgraded Barnes & Noble to strong sell from hold. The company noted that B&N shares have risen "about 40% over the past three months and are now trading well above" S&P's target price. The firm is projecting sales to weaken more this fiscal year and said it is "also concerned by the long-term trend of declining adult readership levels."

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Although Shaman Drum's trade book sales rose 10% in December and 15% in January, the Ann Arbor, Mich., store's textbook sales fell $510,000 this past fall and winter, which is what has caused the store's financial crisis, owner Karl Pohrt wrote in the Ann Arbor Chronicle. The main problem: last fall the University of Michigan "introduced a program which allows professors to list their textbooks online, which effectively drives a significant number of students to the internet," Pohrt continued. "It is impossible for local textbook stores to compete under these circumstances. I don't think there are any villains here (well, maybe some greedy textbook publishers), but this is one of the consequences of the university's policy."

Sadly he painted a bleak picture of the store's viability, even operating as a nonprofit.

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The Chicago Daily Herald reported that "independent suburban bookstores are writing a whole new chapter on survival" in an article focusing on the efforts of Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville, Town House Books, St. Charles, and Crocodile Pie Children's Books & more, Libertyville, to survive increased competition and the economic downturn.

"This is still a great escape with a great book," said Becky Anderson Wilkins, Anderson's co-owner. "You walk into the store and find your perfect book and have a unique experience. You can't get that anywhere else. . . . Sure you can buy a book at the big-box stores, but it won't be the same experience that we give you."

David Hunt, owner of Town House Books, noted that his bookshop is located "in a beautiful building and I have my dream job. And we're very careful on what we buy. We focus heavily on what our customers want. . . . We don't want to lose our momentum and want to keep our customers coming back."

Amy Moran, who owns an Irish dance studio, and Kim Zizic, a dentist, purchased Crocodile Pie last summer. "Sure it's been a lot of hours and a huge learning curve," said Moran, "after all we're learning how to manage a bookstore, but it's been a lot of fun. . . . We're going to keep our other jobs going because it helps to balance things out, especially with this economy."

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Congratulations to Bookends bookstore, Menomonie, Wis., which has won the 2008 Small Business Award of the Menomonie Area Chamber of Commerce! The store is owned by Harriett Christy.

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The Grand Junction Free Press profiles Twice Upon a Time Bookshop, Grand Junction, Colo., which sells new and used books and was bought 18 months ago by Margie Wilson and her husband, Frank Cooley. One of the unexpected, most-rewarding aspects of the job, they said, has been helping to change people's lives. An example: the mother of an inmate nearby has ordered books for him. "It made a difference in her son's life, and she thanked me," Wilson said.

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The closing of the Harry W. Schwartz bookshop in Shorewood, Wis., has inspired a local resident to start a blogging campaign. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that Joe Mangiamele "is waging a one-man campaign to have the village buy it and keep it open."

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In a Sebring, Fla., a News-Sun opinion piece headlined "Real books have pages," Laura Ware wrote, "I was raised with books. I learned to read early on and my addiction to books remains to this day. We hold enough books in our home to supply a small library. And more keep finding their way in. To me, there may be a place for e-book readers for some things. But I'm still going to spend quality time in bookstores, flipping pages, getting lost in what I'm reading until real life reminds me the clock is ticking."

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Xu Lai, a prominent author and blogger in China, was stabbed after a reading at One Way Street bookshop in Beijing. According to the International Herald Tribune, Xu's assailants "may have been seeking revenge for his provocative writings."

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Bookie's Paperbacks & More used bookstore, Chicago, Ill., "isn't a place where one can place a bet on the Bulls' next game," the Southtown Star observed, adding that owner Allison Platt "credits the poor economy for a boost in sales. New books may be a luxury some can't afford, and people are looking for deals."

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Turner Publishing, Nashville, Tenn., has bought the remaining inventory of Cumberland House, also in Nashville, and has the exclusive option to purchase the remaining 432 titles from Cumberland.

Turner Publishing will be vendor of record for the selected titles and handle marketing and events for the books and atuhors. In a statement, Turner president and publisher Todd Bottorff said, "We're excited to provide a home for these authors and will be fully supporting these titles. We will be selling the existing inventory and then converting titles to Turner imprints."

Cumberland founder Ron Pitkin said he was happy that the books and authors "will have a new home" at Turner.

For more information, go to turnerpublishing.com.

 


Park Street Press: An Autobiography of Trauma: A Healing Journey by Peter A Levine


In Memoriam: Jean Srnecz

This is the saddest news we've had to report in a long time:

Jean Srnecz, senior v-p of merchandising at Baker & Taylor who had worked at the wholesaler for more than 30 years, died last Thursday night in the commuter plane crash near Buffalo, N.Y. She was 59 and a cancer survivor.

Srnecz graduated from D'Youville College in Buffalo with a major in history and earned a master's degree in political science from SUNY at Buffalo and an MBA in finance from New York University. Her MBA thesis was on leadership types in the book world. (She might as well have studied herself.) She was also active in the book world and served on the board of directors of the Book Industry Study Group and the Educational Paperback Association. She joined B&T in 1975 as children's book buyer; at her death she was responsible for all book and audiobook buying and inventory management.

Many of us who had known her for decades are still shocked. As Michael Jacobs of Abrams wrote on Friday: "I am devastated by this news, and Jean is irreplaceable. I have so many stories--some revolving around the fierceness of Jean and her absolute intellectual drive to argue--and so much fondness for her memory and presence. Today was and is a sad day for all of us in this business; sadder even than all the sad news of late."

Chris Kerr of Parson Weems wrote: "Jean was one of the first book buddies I made when I took over calling on B&T for Oxford University Press. She was a committed professional, a proud Mom, an autodidact and a generous person. She was universally regarded as tough but fair--and personally, a great gossip. We are in shock."

In a statement, B&T CEO Tom Morgan said that the company was "tremendously shocked and saddened at this terrible loss. Jean was extremely highly regarded throughout the industry. She had tremendous industry expertise and was integral to Baker & Taylor's strategic growth, but was also valued as a kind and good person by all who knew her. She will be greatly missed by scores of people throughout our industry, and especially throughout our company. Our thoughts and prayers remain with her family."

B&T president Arnie Wright added: "I worked alongside Jean for 30 years and there was no one more knowledgeable and respected, as a professional and a person. Jean truly loved this business and was loved by many in it. She will be sorely missed."

 


G.P. Putnam's Sons: Take Me Home by Melanie Sweeney


Winter Institute, Part 8, Last Chapter: Roundtables

At the Small Stores gathering, booksellers were supposed to introduce themselves and offer a challenge or obstacle they faced in the past year as well as a great idea, then a discussion was to follow. Even though moderator and ABA board member Dan Chartrand of the Water Street Bookstore, Exeter, N.H., tried to keep the comments short, the room was so packed and the introductions took so long, little time was left for discussion. But no matter: the introductions led to further discussions throughout the weekend whenever booksellers had a chance to mingle.

The challenges store owners described ranged from how to deal with rowdy children in the store, how to let go and let managers and staff take on more responsibility to how to negotiate better terms, sidelines that work well, and, of course, how to cut costs without the store suffering.

Many booksellers are hurting enough to want to negotiate with suppliers. Kelly Justice, owner of the Fountain bookstore, Richmond, Va., described a deal she struck with a greeting card vendor who eventually not only met her price, but also took away her old fixtures and replaced them with new ones at no extra cost.

Other owners said they asked for free freight on shipments and received it, traded in sidelines that weren't moving and replaced them with new gifts and offered vendors links to their websites (not for retailing, but rather for product info and availability).

In a similar vein, one bookseller said she rented her audiobooks for $5 a week and that brought in terrific revenue.

Happily we also heard stories of people doing well in this economy. Time and again in conversation it came up that people had a good January and things were looking up.

While there wasn't much time to address all the issues raised, the roundtable provided booksellers a great introduction to each other and an opening for conversations that spilled over to the author cocktail receptions and the Sunday morning Roundtable Café.

At the Sunday morning free-form non-moderated discussion tables, people picked tables with subjects that interested them such as buyers; events; owners; frontline booksellers; and more. The crowds at the large and small store owner tables both grew so much that extra tables and chairs were added.

One woman declared that the roundtable discussion alone made the whole event worth it for her. In fact, this seems to be the essence of the Winter Institute: so many of us work in isolation and never have the chance to be with the "colleagues." At the Winter Institute we could be with peers, ask anything and usually find someone with an answer.

Many of us left Salt Lake City not only with fabulous galleys, new strategies, great memories and new friends, but also with a sense of optimism that we have people to turn to all over the country who can help when needed. Once again, the Winter Institute exceeded expectations (how does it keep doing that?) and spurred us on for another year.--Susan L. Weis, proprietress of breathe books, Baltimore, Md.

 


Media and Movies

Media Heat: David Denby and Snark

This morning on Morning Edition: David Denby, author of Snark (Simon & Schuster, $15.95, 9781416599456/1416599452).

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Today on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews: Peter S. Canellos, author of Last Lion: The Fall and Rise of Ted Kennedy (Simon & Schuster, $28, 9781439138175/1439138176).

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Tonight on Jimmy Kimmel Live: Don Rickles, author of Rickles' Letters (Simon & Schuster, $25, 9781416596639/1416596631).

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Tomorrow morning on the Today Show: Steve Harvey, author of Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man: What Men Really Think About Love, Relationships, Intimacy, and Commitment (Amistad, $23.99, 9780061728976/0061728977).

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Tomorrow on the Diane Rehm Show: Yiyun Li, author of The Vagrants (Random House, $25, 9781400063130/1400063132).

 



Books & Authors

Awards: NAACP Image Awards

Among the winners of the 40th annual NAACP Image Awards were eight books that won in the outstanding literary work category:

  • Fiction: In the Night of the Heat: A Tennyson Hardwick Novel by Blair Underwood, Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes (Atria Books/Simon & Schuster)
  • Nonfiction: Letter to My Daughter by Maya Angelou (Random House)
  • Debut author: Barack, Race, and the Media: Drawing My Own Conclusion by David Glenn Brown (David G. Brown Studios)
  • Biography/autobiography: The Legs Are the Last to Go by Diahann Carroll (Amistad)
  • Instructional: 32 Ways to Be a Champion in Business by Earvin "Magic" Johnson (Crown Business)
  • Poetry: Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of 'Poetry With A Beat' by Nikki Giovanni (Source Books/Jabberwocky)
  • Children's: Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Bryan Collier (Simon & Schuster)
  • Youth/Teens: Letters to a Young Sister: Define Your Destiny by Hill Harper (Gotham Books)

 

 


IndieBound: Other Indie Favorites

From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next picks:

Hardcover

Irreplaceable: A Novel by Stephen Lovely (Voice, $24.99, 9781401322823/1401322824). "Told in four sections and over the course of three years, Irreplaceable is set in Iowa and Chicago and vividly realizes the casualties and rebirths that occur when an organ is donated after a fatal accident. Lovely explores the nature of grief and guilt, salvation and healing."--Sarah Bagby, Watermark Books, Wichita, Kan.

Hands of My Father by Myron Uhlberg (Bantam, $23, 9780553806885/0553806882). "Myron Uhlberg is the hearing son who was brought up by deaf parents in a loving household, and the only thing more expressive than the beautiful sign language of the deaf is this writer's ability to describe the depth of emotion and perception in this splendid memoir."--Karen M. Frank, Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, Vt.

Paperback

Captain Freedom: A Superhero's Quest for Truth, Justice, and the Celebrity He So Richly Deserves by G. Xavier Robillard (Harper, $13.99, 9780061650680/0061650684). "Captain Freedom may be super strong and able to fly, but that doesn't seem to help him make the right choices with his career, secret identity, sidekick, or political decisions. (Can you say, 'Governor Freedom of California?') This fantastic fantastical novel brings superherodom into a whole new light."--Calvin Crosby, Books Inc., San Francisco, Calif.

For ages 9-12

The Truth About Horses, Friends, & My Life as a Coward by Sarah Gibson (Marshall Cavendish, $15.99, 9780761454595/0761454594). "I laughed out loud as I read Sophie's misadventures as she learns to overcome her (literal) downfalls and to juggle the challenges of learning about horses, and friends. An enjoyable book for horse lovers--and haters--it's lots of fun."--Jennifer Hall, Partners Village Store, Westport, Mass.

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

 


Attainment: New Books Out Next Week

Selected new titles out next Tuesday, February 24:

White Witch, Black Curse
by Kim Harrison (Eos, $25.99, 9780061138010/0061138010) is book seven in the Hollows series.

Terminal Freeze by Lincoln Child (Doubleday, $24.95, 9780385515511/0385515510) follows a paleoecologist who discovers a deadly ancient creature frozen in ice.

One Day at a Time by Danielle Steel (Delacorte, $27, 9780385340298/038534029X) explores the relationships between a bestselling author mother, a Hollywood producer daughter and a black sheep, dog-walking sister.

Temptation and Surrender: A Cynster Novel by Stephanie Laurens (Morrow, $25.99, 9780061243400/006124340X) brings a London gentleman back to his family's backwater rural estate.

Promises in Death by J.D. Robb (Putnam, $26.95, 9780399155482/0399155481) is the newest crime thriller with Lieutenant Eve Dallas set in the New York City of 2060.

Death of a Witch by M. C. Beaton (Grand Central, $24.99, 9780446196130/0446196134) is the 24th mystery featuring Scottish police constable Hamish Macbeth.

A Jury of Her Peers: American Women Writers from Anne Bradstreet to Annie Proulx by Elaine Showalter (Knopf, $30, 9781400041237/1400041236) is a history of American women writers from 1650 to 2000.

Now out in paperback:

Sonata for Miriam: A Novel by Linda Olsson (Penguin, $15, 9780143114703/0143114700).

Plague Ship: A Novel of the Oregon Files by Clive Cussler and Jack DuBrul (Berkley, $9.99, 9780425226698/0425226697).

First Execution by Domenico Starnone and Anthony Sugaar (Europa Editions, $15, 9781933372662/1933372664).

 


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