Iconoclast's new home

After revealing last week that her bookstore had been served a controversial eviction notice, Sarah Hedrick, owner of Iconoclast Books & Gifts, Hailey, Idaho, had much better news to share with her customers on Saturday. The shop will be moving to a new space.

"SO... this is Iconoclast Books & Gifts' GREAT NEWS!" Hedrick posted on Facebook. "This is our future home. And PLEASE let it be my last move! The locale is 15 E. Bullion Street where The Encore Room used to be. (And Mitzi Mecham's music programs were offered.) I feel beyond indebted to the new owners of this building for seeking me out after they learned of our 55% rent increase. They are kind, amazingly giving, and care about the fabric and livelihood of Hailey and don't want to live in a town without a bookstore. I am a bit overwhelmed by their generosity AND by the prospect of moving and all that the improvements to the space will entail, but I'll think about that tomorrow! Love y'all! Feel free to spread the good word!"

On Sunday, Hedrick posted an update with more details, noting that the "new owner of this building is offering below-market rent because he wants to see the store survive. But this ALSO means I have a very limited budget to improve the space, which needs a bit of love.... I have until the end of October to be out of the Meriwether Building so the work in the new space is the most important to meet this deadline. Y'all are the best! I will still be open in my current space until the bitter end so please keep visiting and I can't wait to have a huge party in the new space!"

Joie Des Livres, a nearly three-year-old independent bookstore with new titles for all ages, is weathering the pandemic and helping build community in the beach town of Seabrook, Wash., the Seattle Times reported.

Owners Kathy and Dan Ardourel opened the store with their daughter Kristin Ardourel, who manages the bookstore day-to-day. The trio had no prior experience in bookselling; to help learn the ropes they consulted with the owners of several independent bookstores in the area as well as the book buyer for Costco, Pennie Clark Ianniciello, who retired earlier this year.

The store carries some 7,500 books along with tote bags, board games, tea, art supplies, candles and other nonbook items. Genre fiction and children's fiction do well, and the store's customers have helped shape the inventory since Joie Des Livres opened. Based on customer feedback, the store's nonfiction section, particularly memoirs and local history, has grown significantly. Kristin Ardourel noted that as a cookbook lover, the store had a "decent selection" of them to begin with, and that section has continued to grow.

Joie Des Livres had not yet started hosting events before the Covid-19 pandemic began. Once life returns to normal, Ardourel wants to host author readings, writing workshops, book clubs and more. Throughout the pandemic, she added, "everybody's really rallied around us, and all of the stores here in Seabrook."

Posted by Klindt's Booksellers and Stationers, The Dalles, Ore.: "That feeling when the banned books display can no longer be contained on a mere shelf, but requires an entire display... with the long shadows to strengthen the metaphor. Read on fearless booklovers, read on."

Congratulations to Bluestocking Social, Evansville, Ind., named best bookstore in the Best of Evansville issue of Evansville Living magazine, which wrote:

"Opened in August 2020, Bluestocking Social has had an eventful first year in business. Tucked in a basement-level space underneath Honey + Moon Coffee and Juniper Jade Boutique & Salon, Bluestocking Social takes its name from the 18th-century English literacy group the Blue Stockings Society. The independent bookstore carries local and new releases, hosts book signings, and partners with other small businesses for discussion clubs.

"Guests especially love visiting with Matt and Annie Fitzpatrick's dogs, Huxley and Eleanor, who often are seen peeking out from behind the checkout counter."

The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Sophie Blackall (Candlewick Press).

Three book-related productions came up big winners at last night's Tony Awards: 

The Inheritance by Matthew López, a re-envisioning of E.M. Forster's novel Howards End: Best play; direction of a play (Stephen Daldry); actor in a leading role in a play (Andrew Burnap); actress in a featured role in a play (Lois Smith)

A Soldier's Play by Charles Fuller, loosely based on Herman Melville's novella Billy Budd: Best revival of a play; actor in a featured role in a play (David Alan Grier)

A Christmas Carol by Jack Thorne, based on the classic story by Charles Dickens: Original score, music and/or lyrics written for the theatre (Christopher Nightingale, music); costume design of a play (Rob Howell); scenic design of a play (Rob Howell); lighting design of a play (Hugh Vanston); sound design of a play (Simon Baker)

Today:
NPR's the Takeaway: Dave Zirin, author of The Kaepernick Effect: Taking a Knee, Changing the World (The New Press, $25.99, 9781620976753).

Kelly Clarkson Show: Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, author of Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter (Amistad, $17.99, 9780062953810).

Tonight Show: Chris Colfer, author of A Tale of Sorcery... (Little, Brown, $18.99, 9780316055994).

Tomorrow:
Late Night with Seth Meyers: Spencer Ackerman, author of Reign of Terror: How the 9/11 Era Destabilized America and Produced Trump (Viking, $30, 9781984879776).

Jimmy Kimmel Live: Gabrielle Union, author of You Got Anything Stronger?: Stories (‎Dey Street, $27.99, 9780062979933).

Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Phoebe Robinson, author of Please Don't Sit on My Bed in Your Outside Clothes: Essays (Tiny Reparations Books, $27, 9780593184905).

Netflix has given a series order to All the Light We Cannot See, a four-part limited series adaptation of Anthony Doerr's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Deadline reported that Stranger Things producer Shawn Levy "has been developing the project for a couple of years through his company 21 Laps Entertainment at the streamer, where he has an overall deal." Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight is writing the adaptation, and Levy is directing all four episodes.

Levy and the producers have launched "a worldwide casting search for the lead role of teenage Marie-Laure, and actresses who are blind or low vision are especially encouraged to apply," Deadline noted. Levy, Dan Levine and Josh Barry of 21 Laps Entertainment will be executive producers on the series. Knight will also serve as an executive producer. Joe Strechay (See) is an associate producer, blindness and accessibility consultant.

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Producer Matthew James Wilkinson (Yesterday) is teaming up with Poldark and Endeavour exec producer Tom Mullens on a TV adaptation of The Business by Iain Banks.

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to adapt Iain Banks' wickedly satirical The Business for television," Mullens and Wilkinson said. "As relevant today as when it was first published, we look forward to honouring Iain's work with a powerful, entertaining thriller."

The shortlist for the 2021 Cundhill History Prize, administered by McGill University in Montreal, has been announced. The winner, who receives $75,000, will be named October 20. Two runners up each receive $10,000.

The Loss of Hindustan: The Invention of India by Manan Ahmed Asif (Harvard University Press)
Survivors: Children's Lives After the Holocaust by Rebecca Clifford (Yale University Press)
The Horde: How the Mongols Changed the World by Marie Favereau (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press)
Underground Asia: Global Revolutionaries and the Assault on Empire by Tim Harper (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press)
Vanguard: How Black Women Broke Barriers, Won the Vote, and Insisted on Equality for All by Martha Jones (Basic Books)
Blood on the River: A Chronicle of Mutiny and Freedom on the Wild Coast by Marjoleine Kars (The New Press)
An Infinite History: the Story of a Family in France over Three Centuries by Emma Rothschild (Princeton University Press)
White Freedom: the Racial History of an Idea by Tyler Stovall (Princeton University Press)

LibraryReads, the nationwide library staff-picks list, offers the top 10 October titles public library staff across the country love:

Top Pick
All the Feels: A Novel by Olivia Dade (Avon, $15.99, 9780063005587). "Alex is an actor on a Game of Thrones-type TV show entering its final season. Lauren's job is to keep him out of trouble. Their relationship develops over forced proximity, a road trip, and tons of fanfic tropes (only one bed!). This steamy romance, with flawed, genuine characters and sensitive treatment of mental health and body issues, is a delight from start to finish. For fans of Spoiler Alert, Girl Gone Viral, and One to Watch." --Lauren Mitchell, Neenah Public Library, Neenah, Wis.

Cackle by Rachel Harrison (Berkley, $27, 9780593202029). "Annie is floundering after an unexpected breakup and a subsequent move to a small, quirky town. Her new friend Sophie is a little strange, but Annie is so happy to have someone who has chosen her that she ignores her concerns. This delightfully creepy fall story will work well for those who like paranormal fiction and light horror, and fans of The Year of the Witching and The Deep." --Rebecca Swanson, Fitchburg Public Library, Fitchburg, Wis.

Death at Greenway: A Novel by Lori Rader-Day (Morrow, $16.99, 9780062938046). "In this departure from Rader-Day's usual thrillers, two young women, hired as nurses to care for a group of children, are evacuated to Agatha Christie's country estate during World War II. Then a dead body shows up, and suddenly there's no telling what is safe and who can be trusted. For fans of Agatha Christie and Louise Penny." --Linda Quinn, Fairfield Public Library, Fairfield, Conn.

The Death of Jane Lawrence: A Novel by Caitlin Starling (St. Martin's Press, $27.99, 9781250272584). "Jane, a sensible young woman, decides that she must get married. Her first choice is Dr. Lawrence, but she soon discovers his dark, terrifying secrets and becomes engulfed in a tangled mystery of magic, ghosts, demons, and bizarre rituals. A well-written story for fans of gothic fantasy and horror like Gideon the Ninth and Mexican Gothic." --Sandra Allen, South Community Library, St. Petersburg, Fla.

Last Girl Ghosted: A Novel by Lisa Unger (Park Row, $27.99, 9780778311041). "Wren meets Adam on a dating app, and they seem to hit it off. After she tells him a secret, though, he ghosts her. She refuses to let it go and starts searching for him. What she finds is shocking, but she can match him in the secret department. Chilling, twisty, and hard to put down. Give to fans of Ghosted and The Couple Next Door." --Shari Suarez, Genesee District Library, Goodrich, Mich.

The Lincoln Highway: A Novel by Amor Towles (Viking, $30, 9780735222359). "In 1952, castoffs from a Nebraska juvenile detention camp embark on a road trip that takes them in different directions than initially intended. There's so much genuine sweetness and aching loss in this exuberant book full of characters you'll care about deeply. For fans of John Irving and Ann Patchett." --Diana Armstrong, Multnomah County Library, Portland, Ore.

Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw (‎Tor Nightfire, $19.99, 9781250759412). "This short, creepy haunted house tale, brimming with Japanese folklore, cleverly reveals the monstrousness in ordinary human callousness--we're awful not from horrendous actions or beliefs, but because we just react and shout each other down. For fans of My Heart Is a Chainsaw and The Toll." --Matthew Galloway, Anythink Libraries, Thornton, Colo.

Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi (Sourcebooks Casablanca, $14.99, 9781728239828). "In this classic fairytale with a twist, a prince and princess who became a cursed king and queen are given a second chance at a future. The storyline and characters are engaging, but it's the beautiful, flowing writing that really stands out. Recommended for readers of Stardust and Kill the Farmboy." --Sandra Woodbury, Burlington Public Library, Burlington, Mass.

Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper (Berkley, $16, 9780593336069). "Emmy reluctantly returns to her hometown to serve as arbiter of a magical tournament. But the town now seemingly has much more to offer, including a gorgeous witch. Will she be enough incentive for Emmy to stay? Romance and a well-developed magical system make this perfect for fans of TJ Klune and Seanan McGuire." --Alicia Ahlvers, Henrico County Public Library, Henrico, Va.

A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow (Tor, $17.99, 9781250765352). "Harrow delights with a queer fractured fairy tale novella. Zinnia Grey, forever obsessed with the Sleeping Beauty story, gets a spindle for her 21st birthday. When she pricks her finger, she's transported to another dimension and finds a princess who'd rather not marry the dashing prince. For fans of Naomi Novik and Margaret Atwood." --Jill Minor, Washington County Public Library, Abingdon, Va.

The Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has always found inspiration in unlikely places: "The idea of writing this book came to me after I was taken into police custody in 2011," he writes in his acknowledgments for 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows. "During that period of enforced isolation, I felt a need to think through my relationship with my father, Ai Qing." The upshot is an extravagantly rewarding hybrid: a combination history of modern China, biography of a dissident poet and memoir by his provocateur son.

The celebrated poet Ai Qing (1910-1996) was an open critic of the Communist government, putting him in the crosshairs of Chairman Mao's Anti-Rightist Campaign, which targeted outspoken intellectuals. In 1967, a " 'Liberation' truck" took him, along with Ai Weiwei and his stepbrother, to "Little Siberia," where Ai Qing would spend five years learning "reform through labor." Writes his son, "It was not until I myself became a target of the regime's hostility that I came gradually to appreciate what he must have gone through."

The author's own story begins toward his book's midpoint: born in Beijing in 1957, Ai pursued the arts and went to the United States in 1981 with intent to become "a second Picasso." He ended up forfeiting his scholarship to Parsons School of Design--"I had lost patience with painting but had yet to find an appropriate visual language to replace it"--but stayed on in New York, where the 1988 riot in Tompkins Square Park awakened him to the galvanizing beauty of protest movements.

After Ai returned to Beijing in 1993, he worked as an architect and committed himself to "little acts of mischief," such as painting the Coca-Cola logo on the surface of a Han dynasty earthenware urn. He embraced blogging in 2005, using it for activism, as when he launched a campaign to hold the government accountable for the deaths resulting from 2008's Wenchuan earthquake. In 2011, the police detained Ai, nominally for "residential surveillance," and freed him on bail 81 days later, when "the reason for my release was just as opaque as the reason for my detention."

A rousing but even-tempered call to action, 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows also succeeds as something uncharacteristically modest for a work by Ai, known for commanding installations like his 2010 Tate Modern exhibition of 100,000,000 ceramic sunflower seeds: his book is the story of an artist finding his voice. --Nell Beram, author and freelance writer

Shelf Talker: This charged but graceful memoir by the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei begins as a biography of his poet father, whose battles against censorship and authoritarianism mirrored the author's own.