Outside of bookstores, I’m not much of a shopper. The kids know that Dad is the one who takes them to the mall to wander around shopping and I take them only for one specific item, barking “we’re in a hurry, try this on, meet me at the cash register.” The exception is when we are on vacation. The first year the kids were old enough to realize this vacation transformation, they were shocked as I stopped in every little store on a twisted alley in Santorini trying on clothes and bargaining for art. My son said “Mom’s lost her mind.” Read the rest of this entry »
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When my daughter was born, we knew what we wanted to name her–and I knew what the spelling had to be: Anne with an “e.” I didn’t even know why I felt so certain that the ”e” had to be there–and then this year I reread Anne of Green Gables and it all came back to me. I loved that book, read it a ton of times as a kid, and of course Anne insists that her name is ugly without the “e” at the end.
Because of Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author of Anne of Green Gables, my daughter spells her name a certain way. That’s power.
I loved the atmosphere of The Book Works the moment I rounded the corner and looked in the door; it immediately felt cozy and warm. My eyes darted all over, to the dark bookcases and tables full of books, the old wooden carousel horse hanging from the ceiling, the framed pictures, the colorful pottery, and the painted wood items scattered throughout the store. It is a cross between a store and a reader’s home. Read the rest of this entry »
We spend a week each year on Balboa Island in Newport Beach and over the years we’ve developed a few traditions–reading or sleeping until noon, eating a Balboa Bar (a vanilla ice cream bar which is dipped in chocolate, then dipped in a topping, I always choose peanuts) every night, visiting the arcade every afternoon (I take a book and give the kids $5 each a day to play video games), and dropping by Martha’s Bookstore. Read the rest of this entry »
If a bookstore offers recommendations throughout the store, I may skip talking to the clerk. While I’ll wander from one recommendation slip to another looking for something special, if something doesn’t strike me, I’ll look to see if one of my all-time favorite books, Atonement by Ian McEwen, is recommended. Read the rest of this entry »
Claire
Kim
