There was a wonderful service for Peter Dawson several weeks ago and all the wonderful comments about Peter from friends and supporters of Books on Beechwood were very much appreciated. We shall certainly miss Peter’s guidance and humour at the bookstore.

As Peter would have wished, Books on Beechwood will carry on the tradition of serving the nearby communities of New Edinburgh, Vanier, Lindenlea, Rockcliffe, Manor Park and Sandy Hill as well customers from further afield, both inside and outside of Ottawa. We thank you for your ongoing support and we hope to be serving book-lovers as an independent bookstore for book-lovers for many years to come!

The exciting release of Harper Lee’s book Go Set a Watchman is set for 14 July 2015.  This book was written by Harper Lee before she wrote To Kill a Mockingbird and it has been described as its ‘parent’ or ‘sister’ book:

“Go Set a Watchman features many of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird some twenty years later. Returning home to Maycomb to visit her father, Jean Louise Finch—Scout—struggles with issues both personal and political, involving Atticus, society, and the small Alabama town that shaped her.

Exploring how the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird are adjusting to the turbulent events transforming mid-1950s America, Go Set a Watchman casts a fascinating new light on Harper Lee’s enduring classic. Moving, funny and compelling, it stands as a magnificent novel in its own right.”

You can pre-order Go Set a Watchman before its release date by calling Books on Beechwood or by dropping in at the bookstore.

Clifford Jackman will be at Books on Beechwood for a signing of his new book, The Winter Family, on Saturday, 11 July 2015 from 1:00 to 3:00pm.

 

“… The Winter Family is a hyperkinetic Western noir and a full-on assault to the senses. 

From the 1860s to the 1880s, the outlaws known as the Winter Family roam the harsh frontier, both serving and battling the fierce advance of civilization. With its haunting, hard-edged style, The Winter Family is a feverishly paced meditation on human nature, violence and the deep contradictions of progress.”

Clifford Jackman was born in Deep River and raised in Ottawa. He is currently practising law in Richmond Hill, Ontario.

The 10 best-selling books at Books on Beechwood for June 2015 were:

1. “Losing the Signal” by Jacquie McNish & Sean Silcoff
2. “Dispatches from the Front” by David Halton
3. “I Woke Up With the General Too!” by Ken Grant
4. “The Ascent of Women” by Sally Armstrong
5. “Matrons and Madams” by Sharon Johnston
6. “The Children Act” by Ian McEwan
7. “The Green Road” by Anne Enright
8. “The Girl on the Train” by Paula Hawkins
9. “The Arrogant Autocrat” by Mel Hurtig
10. “Punishment” by Linden MacIntyre

Now that summer has (really!) arrived, come in and check out all the great new summer reads at the bookstore!

—Brian, George and the staff at Books on Beechwood

1. “Two Days in June”             Andrew Cohen                   Biography
2. “Brave New Canada”         Burney/Hampson             Politics
3. “Transatlantic”                    Colum McCann                   Fiction
4. “After the War is over”             Jennifer Robson             Fiction
5. As Chimney Sweepers come..” Alan Bradley                 Mystery
6. “The Girl on the Train”             Paula Hawkins                Fiction
7. “The Cat out of Hell”             Lynne Truss                         Fiction
8. “The Orenda”                        Joseph Boyden                   Fiction
9. “Fields of Blood..”                  Karen Armstrong              Spiritual
10. “Missing Person”                    Patrick Modiano                Fiction

1. The Last Straw                              Jeff Kinney                Kids
2. Two Days in June                         Andrew Cohen         Biography
3. Dispatches from the Front         David Halton            Biography
4. US Conductors                             Sean Michaels          Fiction
5. Opinionated Old Cow                 Alena Schram           Humour
6. You are here; Around the world.. Chris Hadfield        Sci & Nature
7. Punishment                                  Lynden Macintyre    Fiction
8. Sweetland                                     Michael Crummey    Fiction
9. Canadian-Cheese                        Kathy Guidi                Cooking
10. The Orenda                                   Joseph Bryden         Fiction
11. Fields of Blood                             Karen Armstrong     Spiritual
12. The Morning After                      Chantal Hebert         History
13. Plenty More                                 Ottolenghi                 Cooking
14. Tell                                                 Frances Itani              Fiction
15. Party of One                                 Michael Harris           Politics
16. All my Puny Sorrows                   Miriam Toews           Fiction
17. The Children Act                          Ian McEwan               Fiction
18. The Comeback                             John Ralston Saul     History
19. The Back of the Turtle                Thomas King             Fiction
20. Da Vinci Catapult                                                             Toys

November’s bitter mid-month weather and arctic winds had an impact on the store but we salute those hardy customers who came in anyway. The Beechwood and McKay corner seems particularly subject to blustery gusts but think of the bookstore as a warm haven. The pre-Christmas rush is now well underway. Our sale of Christmas cards and calendars has depleted stocks but there is still a good choice remaining with many original designs. A calendar tailored to the recipient’s interests is a great choice for a small gift. Other gift ideas that we carry include a wide selection of family size jig-saw puzzles, a few board games and a series of wooden construction toys. I like the ones based on designs by Leonardo da Vinci. They would appeal to kids of all ages and are fairly simple to assemble. We even have a few CDs for sale, mostly by local performers such as the Stairwell Carollers. (We also sell tickets to their upcoming Christmas concerts.)     

The best gifts of all are books. We have a selection to appeal to any taste. There is a good selection of cookbooks that we carry year-round but sell mostly near Christmas. Cookbook is a poor description for many of them-they are really food bibles with mouth watering photos and songs of praise for food. Ottolenghi’s latest book “Plenty More” is a great example with its fabulous photos of vegetable dishes. The gift recipient does not have to be an expert cook –just a foodie. We have books on gardening, crafts and nature as well as our strengths of history, biography and politics and fiction.      

On our on-line store (store.booksonbeechwood.ca) you can find lists of national best-sellers in various categories plus some staff picks. Look under the Features tab. You can also make up your own lists on line for later ordering or for sorting potential choices and bringing to the bookstore. For anyone stumped for ideas, our staff members often have suggestions. We not only read lots of books, we also get welcome feedback from our customers about books that they have read. Popular choices for gifts are the book prize winners. Here’s a short list of recent winners.

Mann Booker Prize for English Language Fiction: “The Long Road to the Deep North” by Australian Richard Flanagan. This is a tale about Australian prisoners of the Japanese who are building the railroad in Burma and about the aftermath for the survivors. It is brilliantly written and necessarily gruesome but what stays in the mind are the post-war consequences for both Australians and Japanese.

The Giller Prize for best Canadian Fiction: “Us Conductors” by Sean Michaels. The jurors wrote “Michaels’ book is based on the life of Leon Theremin, the Russian-born inventor of the Theremin, the most ethereal of musical instruments. As the narrative shifts countries and climates, from the glittery brightness of New York in the 1920s to the leaden cold of the Soviet Union under Stalin, the grace of Michaels’s style makes these times and places seem entirely new. …He makes music seem to sing from the pages of a novel.”

The Governor General’s Literary Awards:            

For Fiction: “The Back of the Turtle” by Thomas King.

For Non-Fiction: “The End of Absence: Reclaiming What We’ve Lost in a World of Constant Connection” by Michael Harris

            For Poetry: “Lake of Two Mountains” by Arleen Pare.

The City of Ottawa Awards:            

For Fiction: “A Pretty Sight” by David O’Meara. The Jury said “David O’Meara’s A Pretty Sight captures wonderfully the strange fragility of human existence. Sometimes serious, sometimes puckish, always perfectly tuned, O’Meara’s poems delight and disturb.”          

For Non-Fiction: “The Longer I’m Prime Minister: Stephen Harper and Canada, 2006-“ by Paul Wells. The jury said “This no-holds barred romp into the inner sanctum of the “Harper government” is sometimes hilariously irreverent, but always astute and based on meticulously accumulated details.

The RBC Taylor Prize: “The Inconvenient Indian” by Thomas King

The TD Children’s Literature Award: “The Man with the Violin” by Kathy Stinton and Dusan Petrocic.     

Our December hours are the same as usual except that we close at 3.00p.m. on Christmas Eve December 24 and re-open on December 27th. Similarly we close at 3.00p.m. on New Year’s Eve and are closed on New Year’s Day.     

On behalf of our staff, I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a Holiday Season full of joy and good books.

Peter

1. “Dispatches from the Front”     David Halton                                      Biography
2. “Who We Are”                                 Elizabeth May                                   Biography
3. “Two days in June…”                Andrew Cohen                                 Biography
4. “Us Conductors”                    Sean Michaels                                   Fiction
5. “None so Blind ”                    Barbara Fradkin                                    Mystery
6. “You Are Here…”                   Chris Hatfield                                     Sci&Nature
7. “The Snow Walker”              Farley Mowat                                    Biography
8. “Tell”                                       Frances Itani                                     Fiction
9. “The longer I’m Prime Minister”       Paul Wells                              Politics
10. “The Morning After”           Chantal Hebert                                 History
11. “Party of One”                    Michael Harris                                   Politics
12. “Diary of a Wimpy Kid ”        Jeff Kinney                                         Youth
13. “Common Ground”                 Justin Trudeau                                  Biography
14. “Irresponsible Government”   Rathgeber/Coyne                            Politics
15. “Drive All Night”                      Jamie Anderson                               Biography

October was a very good month for the bookstore. There were many special events such as author visits and book signings and those are reflected in our list of October best-sellers. The Titles@Table 40 dinner event, featuring Tim Cook and his book “The Necessary War”,was sold-out and was very successful. November’s Titles@Table40 event on November 23 involves dinner and discussion with Elizabeth May and is already almost sold out. Elizabeth came to the store on November 1 for a book sgning (her book is “Who we are”) and the demand was such that we ran out of copies. Elizabeth has offerred to sign more copies when the new shipment arrives so if you missed out on November 1, we can reserve you a copy later.

The store is just about filled to the brim with new books, ready for the pre-Christmas rush. Books make a great gift -even for yourself! We also carry an increased stock of cards, calendars, jig-saw puzzles and games. The ever popular UNICEF Christmas cards are in stock and selling fast.

We are offering a free Christmas gift wrapping service (but only for items purchased at the store!). It will usually be done on the spot but it depends on how busy the store is at the time and also who happens to be on staff at the time. (Some of us are less gifted in the art of gift wrapping than others and are best not involved). Sometimes it will be a service for pick-up later. We won’t be able to do this in the last few hectic days before Christmas.

We have copies of a short Christmas catalog available at the store. Members of our staff will be providing their own gift suggestions in the next edition of the New Edinburgh News. Look out for a copy or get one at the store.

We have had a special selection of books on display related to the upcoming Remembrance Day. Note that on November 11, the store will be open starting at 1.00p.m. until 6.00p.m.

Peter

 

 

1. “None so blind”        Barbara Fradkin                                                       Mystery
2. “Party of One”                 Michael Harris                                                   Politics
3. “Time such as there never was before”     Alan Bowker             History
4. “I know why the caged bird sings”    Maya Angelou                   Biography
5. “Worth Dying for”          Terry Gould                                              Politics
6. “Man in the Shadows”       Gordon Henderson                                        Fiction
7. “On Sober Second Thought”            Barbra Bond                     Fiction
8. “Girls will be Girls”       Deak/Barker                                          Parenting
9. “Happy City”            Charles Montgomery                                     Politics
10. “The Necessary War”            Tim Cook                                             History
11. “Heroes of Olympus; Book V”        Rick Riordan                                     Youth
12. “Tell”                                     Frances Itani                                      Fiction
13. “It’s not the Ships”            Frederick Sherwood                       Biography
14. “Roses for a Diva”           Rick Blechta                                        Mystery
15. “Common Ground”                 Justin Trudeau                                  Biography

.

September Events:

Wednesday Sept. 10: 7.30p.m.Book Club

Saturday Sept 13: One day celebration sale. 20% off on all in-stock items-books, cards, calendars, games, toys

Saturday: Sept.20:11.00-1.00p.m. Meet the Author: Valerie Buko “Ella learns English”

Saturday: Sept. 20: 1.00-3.00p.m. Meet the Author: J. William Galbraith “John Buchan”

Wednesday Sept.24: 7.00p.m. Book Club

Saturday Sept.27: 1.00-3.00p.m,. Book signing. Mike Young “Kirk’s Landing” Sunday: Sept. 28th: 6.00p.m.Titles@Table40. Dine with Frances Itani. hear about her new book “Tell” and enjoy the gourmet food from Fraser’s Cafe. Advance ticket purchase necessary.

Tuesday: Sept.30 6.30-8.30 at the D’Arcy McGee Pub. Gordon Henderson “Man in the Shadows”

Saturday Oct. 4: 12.00-2.00p.m. : Book signing; Ross Dumoulin “Celebration of Fatherhood”

Sunday Oct.5th: 12.00-2.00p.m.Book Signing: Philip Sherwood “It’s not the Ships”

Monday Oct. 6th: 4.40p.m. Book Signing :Elizabeth May “Who we are”

August was a very good month for sales at the bookstore (after quite a poor July) and we’re poised for a busy fall. There are some notable authors visiting including J. William Galbraith and Elizabeth May. (See the list above for details)

Our big event is the celebration of the 20 years since the founding of the store which we are marking on September 13th. This is a tribute to the original founders of the store -Jean Barton and Mary Mahoney- but also to the many staff and volunteers who have contributed to the success of the store during that time. Come in and join us. We are marking the event with a one day 20% reduction on everything that is in stock -books, cards, calendars, games etc (everything except the Globe & Mail!). The sale is for in stock items only and does not cover special orders. Take your opportunity to celebrate too! There are some great 2015 calendars that recently arrived.

The Titles@Table40 opening event of the season is on September 28 starting at 6.00p.m. Frances Itani will discuss the background and inspiration for her latest book “Tell” set in the post First World War period. Of course, you also get the famous Fraser Cafe cuisine -a three course meal served family style at harvest tables and you’ll get to meet some of your fellow book-lovers. The cost is $40 and places must be reserved in advance with a $20 deposit. The event is currently sold out. Watch for next month’s announcement.

Some of our staff are involved in a fun project in co-operation with the New Edinburgh News. They are busy reviewing classics- mostly visiting some classics which we all should have read but many didn’t. It is quite a challenge to review such well known works. Watch for the results in the NE News shortly. There is a growing trend to re-read the classics. The store has a special section near the back for those interested.

Our two book clubs resume this month. You are welcome to participate

1. “Thinking in Numbers”            Daniel Tammet                  Science
2.”The Inconvenient Indian”       Thomas King                       History
3.”How we Lead”                          Joe Clark                              Politics
4. “The War on Science”             Chris Turner                         Politics
6.”Shopping for votes”                Susan Delacourt                 Politics
7. “The Dogs are eating…..”           Graeme Smith                  History
8. “Canada in the Great Power..” Gwynne Dyer                     History
9. “Love in the time of Cholera”    G. G. Marquez                   Fiction
10. “A Spy among Friends”           Ben Macintyre                   History
11. “The Long Way Home”            Louise Penny                     Fiction
12. “Tell”                                          Frances Itani                        Fiction
13″ The Luminaries”                     Eleanor Catton                   Fiction
14. “An Event in Autumn”            Henning Mankell                Fiction
15. “How the light gets in ”           Louise Penny                     Fiction
16. “The Awakening of Miss Prim” N.S. Fenollera                  Fiction
17. “Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki”       H. Marakami                    Fiction

The Man Booker Prize Long-list was just released. Joshua Ferris “To Rise Again at a Decent Hour” In Store;R. Flanagan “The Narrow Road to the Deep North” Release Aug 12; K.J. Fowler “We are all Completely Beside Ourselves” In Store; Siri Hustvedt “The Blazing World” In Store ;Howard Jacobson “J” Releases Sept 30; Paul Kingsnorth “The Wake” ?Crowd Published; David Mitchell “The Bone Clocks” Releases Sept 2; Neel Mukherjee “The Lives of Others” To Order ;David Nicholls “Us” Releases Oct 28; Joseph O’Neill “The Dog” Releases Sept 9; Richard Powers “Orfeo” To Order; Ali Smith “How to be Both” Releases Sept 9; Niall Williams “History of the Rain” In Store.

 

Thank you to those customers who re-affirmed their interest in receiving our monthly newsletters by e-mail. For those that would like to add their name to our e-mail list, the website has an opt-in link on the right-hand side. August is a quiet time for booksellers except for the inflow of new books for the fall and holiday seasons. You can see some of the new books to be published soon by going to our webstore and using the search feature. Forthcoming titles can be seen by scrolling down the boxes at each side of the page. There is also a list feature where you can create your own list of books for later reference. Of course you can advance order the new books -or existing stock -on line. We also accept telephone orders -just phone the bookstore. You might also want to look up details of the Man Booker long list nominees given above. This year American novels were eligible for the first time. There are four on the long list. My favorite entry so far is “History of the Rain”. It is witty and profound and uses the English language in a way that it seems only the Irish can master. Our two book clubs resume in September on the second and last Wednesdays of the month. Click on Book Club for full details. The theme for the fall sessions is the commemoration of authors recently lost to us featuring “Love in the Time of Cholera” by Gabriel Gracia Marquez, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou and “The Snow Walker” by Farley Mowat. We sell the books at a discount each month. One future event to take note of is our celebration of the 20th anniversary of the founding of the bookstore on Beechwood which will occur on September 13th. Yes. 20 years ago, two intrepid women started the bookstore; Jean Barton and Mary Mahoney. Quite an adventure! Their legacy lives on in the spirit of the neighbourhood bookstore that continues today. We’ll have some details of the celebration to announce later but please plan to drop by and help us celebrate. Another September event is the renewal of the “Titles at Table Forty” series- the opportunity to meet an author over dinner and hear about the creation of their latest book. We’ll announce the full details shortly.