The gun deer season begins this weekend and I know may of you plan on hunkering down in your deer stands and reading Sarah Palin's new book. Are you as excited about it as these folks? The reaction of the kids at the end is priceless!The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10cExcitement Over Sarah Palin's Book Releasehttp://www.thedailyshow.com/Daily ShowFull EpisodesPolitical

This week the area’s park and recreation director and I have been discussing how we can team up to offer more programs in the community. In a community of this size, this is no easy feat. Businesses and organizations need to work together, not compete against one another. We do not want to offer more book clubs or story times that may draw away from the great programs the library offers. Card

In January, Borders will be closing 200 Waldenbooks, including the one located in Bay Park Square Mall in Green Bay. Luckily, there are still great independent bookstores located in and around the area. If you aren’t sure where your closest independent bookstore is located, this IndieBound link can help.Tomorrow would be the perfect time to discover these local treasures during National Bookstore

By now I’m sure you have all heard about the book price wars. I decided to leave it alone. These mass merchandisers are gaining more than enough publicity and I have no desire to help them out.However, after a customer recently asked why she couldn’t purchase a book online and then bring it in to be signed by the author, I felt the need to speak up. I refuse to mention the names of the retailers

I missed posting last week and for this I apologize, although, given the choice, I would do it all over again. For years my sister attended the Women of Faith Conference in St. Paul, MN. This year she wanted to share the experience with me. Two days away from the store and my family! This was a big step for me, but one I reluctantly took. And I’m thankful I did!There was a terrific lineup of

The Concord Public Library, like many other libraries, couldn’t afford to purchase all the books they wanted due to budget cuts. So they began thinking outside the box and came up with a creative idea. Why not post a wish list so that patrons could purchase books to be donated to the library? It would be convenient for the customers and the library would receive the exact books they needed.Great

It's finally here! Mitch Albom’s first non-fiction since Tuesdays with Morrie was released this week and it does not disappoint. Have a Little Faith begins with a request from his childhood rabbi that Albom deliver his Eulogy. Needing a deeper understanding of the man behind the mission, he is brought back to the world of faith he left behind years ago. Albom also meets a convict turned pastor

Tracy Ertl, publisher and owner of TitleTown Publishing, hand delivered my order of Torture at the Back Forty and Bodyguard to the Packers for the Mike Dauplaise’s book signing next month. Now that’s what I call customer service! One independent business taking care of another.We had a very informational and enjoyable conversation about publishing, selling, and the book business in general. I was

I’m currently engrossed in a book that has captured my attention so completely that I came into work an hour late twice this week. Well, late for me, still an hour before we actually open. It’s a book I’m psyched about discussing and sharing. So, what’s the title? I can’t tell you. . . or I may have to kill you.Not really, but sometimes it feels that way. You see, the book hasn’t been released

I'm off to apply for a job with HarperCollins Children’s Books!

This summer has been a great one, but all good things must come to an end. We are wrapping up the Annual August Giveaway after placing titles by great new authors in more hands than ever before. We’ve said goodbye to the book club members and customers who will seek out a warmer location until next summer. Most likely we’ve given directions to the last tourist of the year who must have taken a

Ask Indies, an effort by dozens of independent booksellers on Twitter to share our knowledge, went live this week. Just ask a question about books, add the #AskIndies hashtag, and booksellers will respond with recommendations, ideas, and opinions. Every book page on IndieBound.org now has an Ask Indies button which links to a simple twitter form so you can also ask your questions directly from

My son dropped me off at the store this morning on his way to the doctor. Nothing serious, he just smashed his thumb – 4 days ago. Typical mother, I wanted to take him in and hold his hand while he was examined. Typical 20 year old, he didn’t want his mother any where near him. After close to three hours he was back at the store giving me an update. THREE HOURS!Suddenly I was grateful that he

I am the parent of two teenagers learning to drive. The youngest has had two broken bones and needed stitches from three separate biking accidents. Last month he flipped a jet ski and last week he was run over by a skid loader (which explains my absence from the store on Thursday afternoon). This is a kid I’m supposed to hand over the car keys too?!? It is no wonder I assumed Velva Jean Learns to

Michael Norris, senior analyst at Simba Information and editor of the Book Publishing Report believes so and he’s not alone. The Populist article, Death of the Category Killers by Stacey Mitchell, describes how the specialty chains (category killers) that grew in the 1990s and early 2000s and bankrupted thousands of independent businesses are now losing ground to giant mass merchandisers. These

Attention customers:I read a mystery book by a popular author and I didn’t approve. There was a MURDER involved! How shocking! Therefore, I am eliminating all mystery books from the store immediately. I am also demanding that the library do likewise. I ask that everyone that currently has a title from this genre in their possession to join us in a public book burning to wipe out these types of

If you follow this blog, you have heard me rant plenty of times about the importance of shopping locally. The creative folks at a fellow independent book store, The Regulator Bookshop in Durham, North Carolina, have created a much more fun way to spread the message that shopping local is green.Thank you Tom Campbell and friends!If you don't know where your closest independent bookstore is located

On Tuesday the National Book Foundation announced that in 2009, for the first time, the public will choose The Best of the National Book Awards Fiction. National Book Awards is celebrating their 60th year by presenting a book-a-day blog on the fiction winners from 1950 to 2008. The blog, which runs from July 7 to September 21, started with Nelson Algren's The Man With the Golden Arm and will end

Can you name the best book ever written?Who can honestly answer that question?Has anyone read every book ever written?And who’s to say what the best is?Newsweek gave it a shot with their Meta-List. They combined the numbers from ten top book lists to come up with the top 100 books ever written . There are many classics, plenty of Shakespeare, even the Holy Bible; but Charles Dickensis notably

“I can’t believe you have this book! I’ve looked everywhere for it!!” I have heard this many times and while I take it as a compliment, all I can think is “why?”Time is money, as they say. Combine that with the price of gas, why would anyone choose to drive from city to city, store to store searching for anything? Especially when you have the convenience of shopping locally. Sure, I had exactly

Father’s Day is this weekend and if you are anything like me, you have yet to come up with the perfect gift. Face it; guys are hard to buy for. They buy what they want when they want it. Except for the completely out of the question gift ideas they continuously remind you of. Sorry honey, no Harley this year. Maybe that’s just the father of my children. Books make great gifts for so many reasons.

Did you ever have one of those days?I’m guessing I did recently when I placed an order for a book based on title alone.It must have been one of those days when all seven types of customers were the extent of my morning traffic.What else would have possessed me to add F My Life to my order? It must have been one of those days if the title was enough for me to say, “That’s the book for me!”

This weekend kicks off the wedding season in my family. Many years ago when my sister was searching for her wedding dress, my mother thought she should wear something elegant like in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. For months she talked about the high necked gown Audrey Hepburn graced the screen with. My sister, not yet born in 1961 when the film was released, couldn’t picture this beloved gown so the

School is almost out. Where are the summer reading lists? Do schools still do that? Way back when I was in high school I remember going through my list the day after school was out for the summer and rushing out to get the books on the list immediately. Yes, I was one of those students who did their homework on Friday night rather than worry about it all weekend. By the first week or two of

The sun is shining and it looks like another beautiful day. Occasionally I feel like I am missing out by being in the store all day every day. What a feeling it must be to feel the sun warming your winter weary face!Times like these I tend to spend a few minutes each morning browsing the shelves and making a mental list of what I look forward to reading and deciding what to order for seasonal