Don’t Forget … And Please Remember

Sorry it’s been a few days since I last posted. No, I haven’t been watching football. Or frolicking in the fall colors (OK, maybe a little). Rather, I was attending the Midwest Booksellers Association’s convention in St. Paul, an annual treat for those in the book biz.
While I was away several items (including an upcoming [...]

Oh What a Night

It’s events like tonight’s that make me feel fortunate to be a book reader in Northfield. Renowned author Jane Hamilton delighted a large crowd at Olin Hall on the Carleton College campus as part of the Northfield Reads! communitywide book club.
Hamilton, author of Disobedience, The Book of Ruth and A Map of the World, read [...]

Warm Up Pitches

I just looked at my clock and realized we’re less than 24 hours away from Jane Hamilton’s appearance as part of Northfield Reads! For those who haven’t heard — welcome back to town by the way — here are the particulars:
The event will be at 7 p.m., Sept. 27 (tomorrow), in Olin Hall, Room 149, [...]

Week Worth Marking

“Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.”
-Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas
I am interrupting my reading of Madeline to remind you — as I needed a gentle slap myself — that this week, from Sept. 23-30, [...]

Site Also Worth Checking Out

My favorite part of Northfield Reads! events is always the Q&A near the end. The back-and-forth between writer and reader sparks interesting conversation about the writing process, the book’s characters, and a career that, let’s face it, must be interesting otherwise we probably wouldn’t be there.
Readers of When Madeline Was Young are likely to want [...]

‘Madeline’ Has Arrived

Like a meteorologist in San Diego, I always have good news. Here’s today’s: Copies of Jane Hamilton’s new book, When Madeline Was Young, have arrived at River City Books. Stop by today — RCB is open seven days a week — to pick up this Northfield Reads! selection.
As I’ve mentioned one or eight times before, [...]

Ode to the Independent Bookseller

The other day I clicked on something that I think is pretty cool and when you read it maybe, just maybe, you’ll think of a bookseller down at River City Books. If not, at least you’re likely to get a good chuckle.
It comes from an acceptance speech by Libba Bray, whose Rebel Angels recently won [...]

The Reviews Are In

Jane Hamilton’s new book — published today! — has started to generate reviews all over the country. Here are a few I have stumbled upon:
Washington Post
Star Tribune
San Francisco Chronicle
USA Today

Publishers Weekly
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Perhaps my favorite was an essay in the Chicago Sun-Times, which covers more ground than a straight review. I also recommend checking out [...]

Hotter Than Koosh Balls

For a bird, I’m a pretty hip cat. I always try to stay up with the grooviest titles and my only failing may be that I still use “grooviest” in sentences. OK, maybe it’s one of several failings.
Anyway, if you’re under 18 years old and have been in a bookstore the past year or so [...]

Updating a Previous Story

A while back, I reported the long list of titles nominated for the prestigious Man Booker Prize for Fiction. Don’t want to leave you dangling, because the short list has been announced. For those scoring at home:
Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss (Hamish Hamilton)
Kate Grenville, The Secret River (Canongate)
M.J. Hyland, Carry Me Down (Canongate)
Hisham Matar, In [...]