Oh, What a Week!

It started last Saturday with a visit from one of our favorite Wisconsin authors, Victoria Houston . Since the publication of the ninth book in her Loon Lake mystery series was postponed a month, her visit was also postponed. This gave customers a whole extra month to reserve copies. Unfortunately the extra month didn’t help. As a small town bookstore, our orders are based on the number of reserved copies and previous sales. Since this is the third year this particular author visited us, we at least had the previous years’ numbers to go off of. We had an excellent turn out this year which proved to be good news/bad news. We had about half a dozen frustrated customers walk away without a signed copy of Dead Hot Shot – all but one were first time visitors from other towns. This is something we felt absolutely terrible about, which almost overshadowed the feeling of glee at selling twice as many as last year.

This has me concerned about tomorrow’s release of Breaking Dawn. Once again based on last year’s sales of Eclipse and the number of pre-orders, we should have plenty of books for all…I guess we will know soon enough.

Hopefully tonight musician extraordinaire, Skip Jones, brings enough copies of his newest CD, Life is Delicious!

Luxury or Necessity?

It is no secret that times are rough right now. With gas and food prices soaring, who can afford luxury items? And, what would be considered a luxury item?

Books?

Books a luxury?? No way!! I have noticed a shift in the book buying habits of customers this summer compared to last. It may not be the change you would expect, though.

In the past I would have customers stopping in to purchase a paperback or two for something to do on the airplane or the long car ride as they set off for their vacations. This year it seems more and more people consider a vacation an extravagance they can do without. The trip anyway. They still have the vacation time and are obviously going to make the most of it. Since they are saving hundreds of dollars by not taking that trip, they think nothing of spending some of that savings on books.

There were some great comments on this blog about eliminating book buying from the budget:

I’ve found that I don’t really save all that much money by cutting out book buying. The problem is that if I don’t have a book to read, I’ll start looking around for other types of entertainment that are usually more expensive. A book costs between 8 and 30 dollars, and generally will keep me entertained for 5 to 15 hours, depending on the length. By contrast, a movie is $12 and only keeps me entertained for two and a half hours.

Buying books is a real weakness of mine. … it’s one of my main forms of relaxation, stretches my mind and is probably the one thing I do for myself.

…Browsing in local bookstores as a child and in college made special memories and we seek out shops when we travel now. Their owners may recommend something we’ve never heard of and the shops have a sense of place that B&N or Borders lack. Our house is also overflowing with books. Yeah, it is in need of culling every once in a while. But it is part of who we are as a family. Hasn’t anyone read the studies directly linking books in the home and academic success? Both our kids benefited from this “literacy-rich” environment and achieve well above their peers who do not read for pleasure. We love the library and visit regularly, especially for audio books. But books at home are a must. And my daughter’s perfect critical reading score on the SAT was a bonus ;-)

This summer I’ve had more and more customers purchase stacks of books for themselves and for their children. Since they are staying home for their vacation, they want to make sure they have plenty to do.

What about you?

Are you giving up any luxury items due to the economy?

What do you consider a necessity that others may not agree with?

Life is Like an Old Pop-Up

Last Friday is lost to me and by next Friday I will be another year older. Realization dawned on me when I noticed the trailer hidden among the weeds in our yard. Isn’t it about time we get rid of that old piece of junk? I asked my husband. The trailer started as a pop-up camper which my family spent some of the best weekends of my life in when I was a little girl. We grew up and moved on and the camper was passed on to an uncle. Once his kids grew up, the camper made it full circle back to me. We spent many weekends with our own kids in the camper until the tarp could no longer hold any more duct tape and we eventually turned that old camper into a trailer. It may not look as good as it use to, but it still serves a purpose, just not the one it was originally meant for. Isn’t that trailer about the same age as you? my husband responded.
I suppose my life isn’t so different from that old camper. My kids are getting older and my life is taking on a new purpose and I know I’m not alone. Many of us take new directions in our life, either by choice or happenstance. Many of us want to make sure we are doing everything we can to have a happy life, which is obvious by looking at the bestsellers lists. The Secret , Quantum Wellness, Soul Wisdom, A New Earth , You Can Heal Your Life, The Power of Now , The Purpose-Driven Life , and Your Best Life Now . I have another personal favorite, Critical Choices that Change Lives .

What about you?

Have you found an inspiring book that changed your life?

The Heat Is On!

This is a near perfect weekend with the sun shining and the weather finally warm enough to enjoy those outdoor activities. My son is fortunate enough to have a friend with a pool – how can you beat that?

I must settle for lying out on the deck with a book in hand. My daughter and I are currently arguing over the teen book club pick, Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen. Since it is her book, I have to stay up awfully late or get up extremely early to get a chance to read it. I have a stack of books I should read next, but none of them is really jumping out at me, so I could use your help.

What are your top summer picks?

Something Old Something New

In this day of living green, recycling has become more important than ever. Recycling can mean so much more than hauling bins of paper and bottles to the recycle center each week. Reusing is a form of recycling as well. HGTV actually built and decorated a completely green home which they gave away this month. Sadly I wasn’t the lucky winner, but there was a lot to be learned about living green.

I suppose purchasing second hand books would be a way to recycle, although, I have to admit, I have never thought of it that way. Used books aren’t just trash to be hauled away, but treasures waiting to be found. The library is another great location for a treasure hunt. In my city, the treasure box is as endearing as the treasure. The Farnsworth Public Library has a history of it’s own since it was dedicated on this day 105 years ago!

I thought everyone thought as I do about the joy of browsing through classic and out of print titles, so imagine my surprise when I came across this this Guardian Books Blog post by Chas Newkey-Burden, an author who hates second hand books. Not only used books, but library books as well! Oh horror!

Now you may not find it odd that an author would hate used books, or even a bookstore owner for that matter. After all, don’t they lose money when customers purchase used books or even pick them up at their local library? Surprising enough, I don’t think so.

Growing up, I spent endless hours at our local library finding the perfect titles to spice up my summer. I soon became the type of reader no single author could possibly keep up with. Visiting the library or used book store is the perfect way to discover new authors. Of course, when my favorites release a new title, only a new book store can help me. I can’t possibly wait for someone else to read the book first!

What about you? Do you adore or abhor used books? Do you feel the same way about the library?

Romance Anyone?

This week I have been closely following a story by fellow blogger and Wisconsinite, Barbara Vey about a poll on MSNBC called “Do You Read Romance Novels?”

It sounds like an innocent enough question, doesn’t it? So, why are romance readers across America outraged? Read Beyond Her Book and let me know what you think.

Everyone needs a little romance in their life, my only question is why do they have to muddy the covers up with so many words?

Bon Voyage!

We have been getting a lot of rain here in Wisconsin. Well, not me personally, but more in the south. For me it’s just enough to keep the sun away and the mood bleak. I thought of something that was able to bring a smile to my face, though.

Two of my kids have been visiting relatives this week. Now I can finally get rid of all the unwanted items in the house without guilt. When they get home, I can tell them the two turtles and two cats joined the rest of the animals on the ark! They can’t blame me for that, can they?

Seriously, though, what is there to do with all this rain? I’ve found myself spending a lot of time reading. Currently I am reading our book club selection, Can You Keep a Secret . This is definitely the perfect selection to lift anyone’s spirits. Another laugh out loud hit from Sophie Kinsella .

My daughter read the Pretty Little Liars series and now she has me hooked, too. Finally some of the mysteries are revealed in book four, Unbelievable. Ky finished in a day or two and then was disappointed because she couldn’t share her excitement. Now I know how she feels. I finished while she was away and now am anxiously awaiting her return so we can finally discuss who “A” is. Sara Shepard has been stringing us along for almost two years, so it was both thrilling and a little depressing to find out. Luckily, there will be four more books to continue with the characters we know and love and/or hate.

I began the week engrossed in Little Face by British author Sophie Hannah. This psychological mystery starts strong and had me from page one. In my mind the story could go one of two ways, so I devoured the story to see which direction it took. Although I enjoyed the journey, the end was like returning from a trip visiting relatives. I dump the dirty laundry out of my bag in exhaustion and don’t care enough at the moment to sort through it all. Maybe one day, but more likely it will be forgotten forever as I move on to the next journey.

What about you? Have you read anything you loved or were disappointed in this week?