Spring Bestsellers
1. Justin Trudeau on the Ropes by Paul Wells
2. Age of Revolutions by Fareed Zakaria
3. Health for All by Jane Philpot
4. The Women by Kristin Hannah
5. This is How You Lose a Time War by Amal El-Mohtar
6. The Ninth Forsvar by Oliver Dyment
7. Dark August by Katie Tallo
8. Snow Road Station by Elizabeth Hay
9. Fresh Water for Flowers by Valerie Perrin
10. The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson
Summer Bestsellers
1. Justin Trudeau on the Ropes by Paul Wells
2. The War We Won Apart by Nahlah Ayed
3. A Death in Cornwall by Daniel Silva
4. Montreal Expos: A Cartoonist’s Love Affair by Terry Mosher
5. Crosses in the Sky by Mark Bourrie
6. Long Island by Colm Toibin
7. Unwinnable Peace by Tim Martin
8. Table for Two by Amor Towles
9. The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
10. The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh by Claudia Gray
Greetings Book Lovers,
Happy summer in September! We hope you’ve been enjoying the lovely sunshine out there this past week – it certainly makes a change from the very chilly reminder we had the previous week that fall is on the way! Thankfully, the mild case of weather-whiplash we’re now suffering at the hands of Mother Nature won’t stop us from escaping into the pages of innumerable great books this fall! There are certainly lots of exciting new fall books already peppering our shelves, with many more due to release in the coming months. We’re very much looking forward to introducing you to them as they arrive!
So, before we get into the real heart of our newsletter, we wanted to take a moment to apologize for how long it’s been since we last wrote. This past year has been a bit on the topsy-turvy side (at the shop and for our staff) and apparently it’s our newsletter that suffers when something’s got to give. We’re hoping that this first fall missive will make up for our recent radio silence!
The first very exciting piece of news we have to share with you is that this month we are celebrating our 30th Anniversary! Books on Beechwood first opened its doors in the fall of 1994 in a small white two story house at 86 Beechwood Avenue. Founded by the late Jean Barton and the late Mary Mahoney, the bookstore was an exciting new arrival to the street and definitely filled a need in the neighbourhood. After a move to 35 Beechwood in 2000 and a change of ownership in 2013, the shop that was dubbed “the little bookstore that could” by our beloved Di Bethune is still going strong! We are so grateful to all the people who have supported us for all these years! It has been a three decade long whirlwind and we hope that we have many years and decades ahead of us still. From our earliest customers to those who found us during the pandemic, our friends and fellow businesses along the street to all the wonderful staff who have moved through the shop over the years – Books on Beechwood exists because of all of you! You’ve made it what it is with your loyalty, your support, your care, and your abiding love of books. Thank you for keeping our little piece of Beechwood alive and well!
To help celebrate our anniversary, we thought we would have a special sale! On Saturday, September 21 there will be a store-wide discount of 20% on all in-stock books, gifts, games, and stationery. Exceptions include magazines, CDs, DVDs, the Globe and Mail, and special order items. You can take advantage of our sale both in person here in the store, or through our online store. When shopping online, be sure to enter the promo code BDAY30 as you’re checking out to ensure that the discount is applied to all items in your cart that qualify. In addition to our sale, we’ll also have door prizes, giveaways, and some new, special Books on Beechwood bookmarks! This coming Saturday is also the New Edinburgh Garage Sale, so be sure to take a walk around the neighbourhood while you’re out and about to see what other treasures you might find!
Though our summer didn’t afford us quite as much reading time as we would have liked, we still managed to dip into enough books that we came out with some favourites! For anyone who loves Jane Austen but also has a soft spot for a good mystery, be sure to add the Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mysteries by Claudia Gray to your reading list. Preceded by The Murder of Mr. Wickham and The Late Mrs. Willoughby, The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh is the third in this delightful series which combines all your favourite characters from Austen’s novels and throws a bit of murder and mayhem into the mix! In this newest mystery, young Jonathan Darcy (the eldest son of Elizabeth and Darcy) and Miss Juliet Tilney (the daughter of Henry and Catherine Tilney) are summoned to the daunting monolith that is Rosings Park to uncover the villain behind multiple murderous attempts on the life of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Full of all the charm and delight of an Austen novel and laced with enough mystery to keep readers guessing, this story is a real treat! The murder and mayhem continue in Katarina Bivald‘s novel, The Murders in Great Diddling! Featuring a run-down village, an explosion in a grand manor’s library, a shocking death, and a cast of very quirky, eccentric characters, this book is a fun, charming, humourous novel that’s sure to make you giggle into your tea… but hopefully not spill it!
Far from the small country towns of Great Britain, Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell is our very favourite middle grade book of the year! Taking readers to a mysterious Archipelago full of magical creatures, this wonderful novel follows the adventures of Christopher, Mal, and a rescued baby griffin as they try to figure out why the world’s magic is fading. After tangling with all manner of creatures, it soon becomes clear that the only way to discover the truth and restore the magic is for Christopher and Mal to do it themselves! From fun adventure to epic quest, this story is perfect for fans of Once There Was by Kiyash Monsef, Skandar and the Unicorn Thief by A.F. Steadman, and The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer.
There’s no doubt that the fall is a big time for fascinating non-fiction and we’ve come across a few recently that have really peaked our interest. As avid collectors (and sometime users) of beautiful notebooks and luxurious stationery, Roland Allen‘s book, The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper, had us hooked right away! From the notebooks penned by Leonardo DaVinci and Sir Isaac Newton to those containing the thoughts of writers such as Agatha Christie and Henry James, Allen explores how the simple act of putting ink down on paper has influenced society and often changed the course of history! Even more interesting are Allen’s thoughts on our modern age of screens and technology – the idea that the humble notebook and the very act of putting pen to paper can not only help with our focus, attention span, and creativity, but it could in fact make us happier. Another book that caught our eye recently was Et Cetera: An Illustrated Guide to Latin Phrases by Maia Lee-Chin and Marta Bertello. Perfect for that special linguist in your life, this book explores the ways in which latin still permeates so much of our modern culture, despite being “dead” for an age! Alongside beautiful illustrations by Bertello, Lee-Chin delves into the deeper meanings behind phrases as common as carpe diem (cease the day) and those virtually lost to time, such as alea iacta est (the die is cast). Beautifully packaged and intensely researched, this book is definitely worthy of a permanent home on your bookshelf!
It never ceases to amaze us that in a year that’s been so full of great new books, there are still so many wonderful new titles to come! Since we can’t highlight them all, here are some other recent and forthcoming releases that we think you might enjoy: The Life Impossible by Matt Haig, At a Loss for Words by Carol Off, Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari, Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson, Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell, Blood Bound: Stories of Cursed Books, Damned Libraries, and Unearthly Authors by Johnny Mains, Bright I Burn by Molly Aitken, Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune, Our Green Heart by Diana Beresford-Kroeger, Proof by Beverley McLachlin, Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner, What Time the Sexton’s Blade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley, The Siege by Ben MacIntyre, The Black Loch by Peter May, Just Say Yes by Bob McDonald, Oak: The Littlest Leaf Girl by Lucy Fleming, The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave, Something Lost, Something Gained by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas, Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (September 24), The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel (September 24), Investigators: Class Action by John Patrick Green (September 24), Playground by Richard Powers (September 24), A Grave in the Woods by Martin Walker (September 24), Murder at King’s Crossing by Andrea Penrose (September 24), The Crescent Moon Tea Room by Stacy Sivinski (October 1), The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer (October 1), Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten (October 1), Into the Uncut Grass by Trevor Noah (October 8), A Most Extraordinary Ride by Marc Garneau (October 8), War by Bob Woodward (October 15), Precipice by Robert Harris (October 15), What I Ate in One Year by Stanley Tucci (October 15), Patriot by Alexei Navalny (October 22).
As we continue to enjoy extra sunny, summer-like weather in mid-September, it’s hard to come to grips with the idea that fall is just around the corner. Despite the heat though, the leaves will turn and start carpeting the ground in shades of russet and gold; our woolly socks will come out of hibernation and sandals will make way for boots. Although this will all eventually lead to winter (not everyone’s favourite season), fall is undeniably one of the most beautiful seasons… especially when enjoyed from under a cozy blanket with a warm beverage and a good book close at hand!
Wishing you all a wonderful book-filled autumn!
Happy Reading!
The Staff at Books on Beechwood
Hilary’s Bookshelf
What I’m Reading: Nothing Like the Movies by Lynn Painter
“As soon as I read my first Lynn Painter book, I was hooked! Sweet, funny, charming, and full of heart, her novels always leave me feeling completely satisfied – not to mention warm and fuzzy! This new novel (due October 1) is no different. Continuing the story of Wes and Liz from Better Than the Movies, this book finds our teenage heroes a couple of years, one tragedy, and two broken hearts later. Now in college, Wes is trying to win Liz back with everything he’s got! Will he succeed? Only time will tell!”