Author: Hilary

Bob Abell Signing “Trails” on Sunday, February 9 from 1:00-3:00pm

trailsLocal author Bob Abell will be in the store on Sunday, February 9 to launch his newest novel Trails. He will be here from 1:00pm to 3:00pm and will also be available to sign copies of his two previous books: a novel called The Corporation and a business book called Salvaging Capitalism Saving Democracy.

From the jacket of Trails:

“When Shelley, a 25-year old Ph.D. ecology student, is caught in a sudden rainstorm while hiking in the canyons of an Arizona mountain range, her life takes an unexpected turn – throwing her highly organized and disciplined personal life into turmoil.

It also exposes an international intrigue involving criminal activity – and posing great danger to Shelley and all those around her, as well as to the environment.”

We hope to see you on Sunday!

Snacks and refreshments will be served.

 

Margaret Singleton Signing “The Box in the Closet: My Journey to Claim Who I Am”

boxinclosetLocal author Margaret Singleton will be here on Saturday, February 8 from 12:00 to 2:00pm to sign copies of her memoir The Box in the Closet: My Journey to Claim Who I Am.

From the jacket:

“This powerful and unusual story contrasts the Bicknells, a wealthy and influential family in Rosedale, Toronto, Ontario, into which I was born out of wedlock, with a farm couple near Brockville, Ontario, who adopted me in 1935. At the age of sixteen I began to feel unsettled and lost. Eighteen years later I finally acted on that feeling and began the search for my lost parents.

Using documents I found in a box in the closet of my adoptive mother after her death, I have retrieved the moment when a sleek limousine emerged from the dust of a gravel road delivering me to my new home.

The memoir is a story of loss and recovery but it is also a story of love, strength and redemption.”

We look forward to seeing you all here for this great event!

“The Broken Road” by Patrick Leigh Fermor

m-15.phpPatrick Leigh Fermor was a famous British travel writer whose two books, A Time of Gifts and Between the Woods and the Water describe the time he walked across Europe, 1933-35. But they only get part of the trip. The end section, from the Iron Gates of Rumania to Constantinople remained unwritten at the time of Fermor’s death in 2011.

Fermor went to war in 1939, serving in occupied Crete where he won the DSO. He lived a good part of his life in Greece, and wrote books and articles for U.S. and U.K. publications. He had planned all along to finish the third book on his boyhood adventure and by the 60’s had a typescript almost ready. It was not until his death, however, that two of his literary executors brought the work up to date. The result is a fascinating book by this beloved writer who spun his pound-a-week allowance into amazing encounters, from sleeping in the bush to the occasional luxurious stay in friendly embassies along the way.

The editors note that “in retrospect it seems as if the whole continent through which he travelled was sleepwalking towards disaster. The Balkans were still in the grip of the Great Depression, and of deep peasant misery. The twin behemoths of Nazism and Bolshevism were already looming huge. In Germany, Hitler had come to power the January before, and many of those whom Paddy encountered – the dashing aristocrats, the Rumanian Jews, the Gypsies – seem marked, in retrospect, by foreboding.” All in all it makes for a wonderful read.

Reviewed by Anne McDougall

February Newsletter

Yes, February has just arrived even though, judging by the recent severe cold, it feels as if it has been February for several months. One bright spot is that more people are curling up in the warmth with a good book!  Perhaps confirming that escapism is a factor,our best-sellers list for January (see below) shows a stronger inclination to works of fiction than is usual, with several new titles making the list. History is still popular with local historian Tim Cook (“The Madman and the Butcher”) joining Margaret MacMillan (“The War that Ended Peace”) on the list in informing us about the “Great” War in this anniversary year of its outbreak.

February completes our first year as owners of the bookstore. It has gone quickly. The financial results for the year were very good with a significant increase in revenues and we have been able to put money into improvements in the bookstore such as new equipment and into increased choices of stock. Some challenges remain, of course, but we’re very optimistic about the future.

In the publicity surrounding the new ownership last year we were continually asked the question ‘Why on earth did you do that?” We had two responses. “We think it will be fun” and “We think the bookstore can become a self-sustaining business”. The former has proven true. There has been much to learn but, with the help of our superbly knowledgeable staff, it has been fun. It’s a great place to work except for the temptation to buy books every day.  My excuse is that it’s now part of my job to read more books!

As for the second response, we have taken an important step in that direction.

Some of the things that we learned in the last year might interest you. The bookstore is not at all like a library. It is much more dynamic. For example, the average “age” (i.e months the stock has been on the shelves) is about 4-5 months. The average age of the books sold is less than 3 months although this is weighted by the many special orders that are only in our hands for a few days. These numbers are typical for successful bookstores today. Books go back and forth to the publishers (and a lot of paperwork is generated).

Somewhat to my surprise, the book-selling and book appreciation business is also a very social activity. I’m sure we have many “lone” readers but social activities attract many and influence sales. People come in to the bookstore to chat about what they’ve read or might want to read. Our staff gather impressions and pass them on to other customers. We have expanded to two Book Discussion Clubs because of popular demand. Our Books n’Brew sessions giving the opportunity to meet authors (in collaboration with the Clocktower pub) were almost all sold-out, books providing the key to a pleasant social evening. Book launches were similarly popular. We’ll be doing more events in the coming months. Please check our calendar page.

Some areas that we hope to improve on are sales to schools and to teachers for instructional purposes. We offer discounts to encourage such sales (contact any of our staff to discuss your needs and hear how we can help). We have longstanding connections to a few of the local schools- even suggesting lists of titles for school prizes -but there is room to expand our services to others.  We also serve some libraries in small municipalities and would be pleased to help more there too.

A final comment is how positive an experience it has been to be part of this neighbourhood, to support neighbourhood initiatives whenever we can and to collaborate with other neighbourhood businesses. Thank you everyone.

Our January Bestsellers

1.       In the Garden of Beasts                  Erik Larsen                          History

2.       The Best Laid Plans                          Terry Fallis                           Fiction

3.       The War that Ended Peace           Margaret MacMillan       History

4.       Imposter Bride                                  Nancy Richler                     Fiction

5.       Dear Life                                             Alice Munro                       Fiction

6.       The Goldfinch                                   Donna Tartt                        Fiction  

7.       The Orenda                                       Joseph Boyden                  Fiction

8.       Up and Down                                   Terry Fallis                           Fiction

9.       The Lost beneath the Ice               Andrew Cohen                      History

10.   How We Lead: Canada in a…          Joe Clark                              Politics

11.   Being, a Tale for the Time               Ruth Ozeki                          Fiction

12.   Underground to Canada                 Barbara Smucker                   Youth

13.   Winter in Madrid                              C.J. Sansom                        Fiction

14.   Life after Life                                     Kate Atkinson                    Fiction  

15.   The Madman and the Butcher         Tim Cook                             Biography

January Newsletter

Happy New Year to all our customers! We finished off 2013 with excellent sales in December. As with many retail businesses, November and December are critical to our financial well-being. Many “Thank you”s to all our customers. We hope that we solved a few gift dilemmas for you and also that we provided a pleasant shopping experience in the process.

Now we come to a less interesting part of our business operations-assessing the inventory that we built up so as to provide enough choice during the Holiday rush and returning excess products to the respective publishers. We will be closed all day on Sunday January 26 to carry out a complete inventory check-individually counting about 5000 or so books. In preparation for that, we will hold an inventory sale in mid-January. Watch this space for details of the big event -coming shortly.

The two Book Clubs resume in January.   On January 15th, the first group meet at the New Edinburgh Square Residence at 7.30p.m. On January 29th, the second group meet at the Edinburgh Retirement Residence also at 7.30p.m. The January book is “In the Garden of the Beasts” by Erik Larsen. Beginning in 1933 in Berlin, it tells the story of William Dodd who became the first American Ambassador to Hitler’s Germany in what was a critical point in history. “The book lends a stunning eye-witness perspective on events revealing an era of surprising nuance and complexity”. The book is available in the bookstore at a discount during this month. We’ll have more book events to announce later.

Our December best sellers list is given below. We have the usual mix of non-fiction (Biography/Politics/History) and Fiction and the numbers are heavily influenced by book signing events and the word-of-mouth that follows. There are a few surprises. One is that Victoria Abbott made the list twice with her “book Collector mysteries”. It is interesting that both Joseph Bryden’s “The Orenda” and Charlotte Gray’s “The Massey Murder”, which have been on the best sellers list for several months, had a resurgence in December. A sleeper near the bottom of the list is “The Rosie Project” by Graeme Simsion for which we’re getting great reports back from customers as a feel good read. Maybe it will be this year’s version of “The hundred year old man who jumped out the window and …” which had steady sales throughout 2013 as word spread about it.

Good reading in 2014! Remember that one of the few guaranteed antidotes to brutally cold weather (that doesn’t involve long distance travel) is to curl up indoors with a good book.

Our Best Sellers for December

Check our e-store for details of each book.

1.       How we lead: Canada in a…        Joe Clark                                              Politics

2.       The Sayers Swindle                         Victoria Abbott                                 Mystery

3.       Dear Life                                              Alice Monro                                       Fiction

4.       An Astronauts guide to..               Chris Hadfield                                    Biography

5.       The War that ended the Peace  Margaret MacMillan                       History 

6.       The Way of the 88 Temples         Robert Sibley                                     Travel

7.       Lives of the Family                           Denise Chong                                    History

8.       The Longer I’m Prime Minister..                Paul Wells                          Biography

9.       The Orenda                                        Joseph Bryden                                  Fiction

10.   The Massey Murder                       Charlotte Gray                                  Fiction

11.   Shopping for Votes                         Susan Delacourt                               Politics 

12.   True Confessions of a Film Critic          Robert Fontaine                        Arts & Music

13.   Road Ends                                           Mary Lawson                                     Fiction

14.   Building the Orange Wave           Brad Lavigne                                      Biography

15.   Conversations with a dead man            Mark Abley                           Biography

16.   The Luminaries                                 Eleanor Catton                                  Fiction

17.   In the garden of beasts                 Erik Larson                                          History

18.  Longbourn                            JoBaker                                   Fiction                                                  

19.   The Christie Curse                           Victoria Abbott                                 Mystery

20.   Sweetness of a simple life           D. Beresford-Kroeger                    Sci & Nature

21.   David & Goliath: Undergoing ..   Malcom Gladwell                             Psychology

22.   The Rosie Project                             Graeme Simsion                               Fiction

23.   The Day the Crayons Quit             Drew Daywalt                                    Kids       

 

 

“Road Ends” by Mary Lawson

roadendsMary Lawson has been called an old-fashioned story-teller. Her ability has won many prizes for her first two novels. She has done it again with her new book, Road Ends.

Born in a small farming community in Ontario, Lawson grew up with winter storms such as we’re getting this year in Ottawa. You get a vivid picture of families buried in deep snowbanks. She also has a strong feeling for these families, one in particular, and for the tragedies, the shocks, for the capable members and the ones that let everyone down.

Part of the story takes place in London, England, where Lawson herself is living now. The daughter who has left home finds her way in swinging London of the 1960’s and tension builds as she has to choose her own future.

Mary Lawson’s first novels were Crow Lake and The Other Side of the Bridge. In the new one you get a real feeling for life in Canada (where she still spends a lot of time). It makes a good Christmas page-turner.

Reviewed by Anne McDougall

Booklovers Holiday Quiz

December 2013

Try our holiday quiz and then test your friends. 20 questions on recently published books. Answers given below or use the bookstore search engine.

1.      Who is the police Inspector in the crime novel featuring the village of Three Pines?

 2.      What book is about a maid who shoots her employer on his doorstep?

 3.      How many temples are there in the Shikoku Pilgrimage ( the “Henro Michi”)?

 4.      What are the recent books written by past or present Prime Ministers?

 5.      What detective series features an overweight, turban wearing, chain smoking Inspector? Where does he live?

 6.      Where is the setting for Alice Munro’s short stories in “Dear Life”?

 7.      Who won the Giller prize this year? What was the book?

 8.      What two books recently appeared about NDP stalwarts?

 9.      What famous book is set in New Zealand in the 1800’s?

 10.  Which crime series is set around Palermo, Sicily and features Sicilian cuisine?

 11.  What did the hundred year old man do?

 12.  Who made an unlikely Pilgrimage?

 13.  What is the Rosie Project?

 14.  Who wrote “The War that ended the Peace”?

 15.  Where is the No1 Ladies Detective Agency set?

 16.  What shopping does Susan Delacourt describe?

 17.  In local author Barabara Fradkin’s Mysteries, who are the Inspector and the Staff Sergeant?

 18.  What did the Road do in Mary Lawson’s latest novel?

 19.  What Nation features in Joseph Bryden’s “The Orenda”?

 20.  What is the title of Margaret Atwood’s third volume of her dystopian trilogy?

 Good luck!

Scoring:

All 20 correct:             Book-loving Champion (but you should get out more)

15-19: Qualified for a job in a Bookstore

10-14: You must be one of our highly valued customers

5-9: The store re-opens on Dec 27th

0-4: You have a great reading opportunity ahead.

Quiz Answers:

1.        Chief Inspector Gamache in Louise Penny’s “How the light gets in”:

2.        “The Massey Murder” by Charlotte Gray

3.        “The Way of the 88 Temples” by Robert Sibley

4.        (a)”A great game” by Stephen Harper (b) “How we lead: Canada in a century of change” by Joe Clark

5.        Inspector Singh Investigates. He is based in Singapore. Series by Shamini Flint.

6.        SW Ontario

7.        Lynn Coady for “Hellgoing”

8.        (a) Sven Robinson “A life in Politics” (b) “Building the Orange Wave” by Brad Lavigne

9.        “The Luminaries” by Eleanor Catton; Booker Prize winner

10.     The Inspector Montalbano Series by Andrea Camilleri

11.     “climbed out of the window and disappeared” by Jonas Jonasson

12.     Harold Fry. (author Rachel Joyce)

13.     The scientific search for the perfect partner. Novel by Graeme Simsion

14.     Margaret MacMillan

15.     Botswana: Series by McCall-Smith

16.     “Shopping for votes”

17.     Inspector Michael Green and Staff Sergeant Brian Sullivan

18.     “Road Ends”

19.     Huron

20.     “MaddAddan”