March 2009

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Who’s Watching the Watchers Watching Watchmen?

March 24, 2009 in classics, film, graphic novels by Claire | 2 comments

When books become movies

I finally saw “Watchmen.”  The original plan was for me to run out and see the very first matinee on the very first day it opened–and by “plan,” of course I mean “fantasy.”  I didn’t even come close.  It had been out for a couple of weeks by the time Rob and I actually made it to the cinema. 

I was dying to see “Watchmen” because I read the book this year and was blown away by it.  I wanted to roll around inside that book forever–it was that kind of feeling.  I like reading graphic novels in general, but Watchmen is to its genre what “The Simpsons” is to prime time cartoons: it inverts and subverts convention and defies expectations and yet somehow stays true to its identity.   If you haven’t read Watchmen, I can’t explain it to you–just go read it.  (And, by the way, according to one of my husband’s colleagues, I haven’t actually read Watchmen, because I’ve only read it once.  For legions of fans, you only really get to say you’ve read the book if you’ve gone through it at least half a dozen times.  And it is true that I probably missed tons the first time around–I look forward to rereading it one day.)

So I went off to the movie with a fair amount of anticipation.   Almost three hours later, I walked out with a fair amount of a shrugging sort of  ”well, that was kind of fun.”  Was it faithful to the original?  It was.  Did it transcend the original?  No.  Was it as good as the book?  Not really.  Was the adaptation flawed?  I’m not sure.   Would I have liked it if I hadn’t read the book?  I doubt it. Read the rest of this entry »

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More than Books

March 23, 2009 in bookstore, Literary Event by Kim | 1 comment

Expand your Audience or Die

In an article about the closing of Second Street Book Shop, Peter Applebome of the New York Times noted that successful bookstores “are increasingly in the business of book events and real-world social networking as much as walk-in sales.”  I’ve noticed the same trend, in fact I’ve kept track of the different activities occurring in bookstores around the country over the last several weeks. 

A New Take on Activities

Bookstores forming partnerships in new ways in order to broaden their appeal.  Here are some examples:

  • Readers can order a signed copy of John Grogan’s Marley and Me books through Moravian Book Shop at any time, and with a little patience, even receive a personalized copy
  • Frank Talk Art Bistro & Books combines art, conversation and books including “Mix & Mingle Fridays,” an opportunity for wine, cheese, food and good conversation
  • My personal favorite:  Jayne Ramage moved a bed into The Watermill Bookshop and had a “bed in” for 24 hours, eating tea and biscuits and reading.  Annapolis Bookstore followed suit with its own bed-a-thon by placing a bed in the front window and inviting customers to curl up and read
  • Bookbeat converted a wall to cubicles that local artisans rent to display their wares, it also added a stage and provides music in the evening and many mornings
  • Sherlock’s Books and Cafe offers a stack of board games for customers and a music night where locals play for tips

Social Networking

As for social networking, it makes a difference, in just our little blog world, the number of hits increases when we review a store that is on Facebook or Twitters or sends out e-mails with links.  These stores use Internet methods to connect with customers and from our vantage point, people respond.  In fact, there is such a marked difference when our post is “twittered” that I started (follow me, I’m BookstoreK). 

At the regional ABA conferences around the country, booksellers are meeting to trade insight over social networking and learning the nuts and bolts of blogs, Facebook, My Space and Twitter.  Bookseller Blog has several articles on the why and how of bookstore technology.  Amazon doesn’t have to be the only bookseller to dominate internet ordering and buzz, handselling can be done over the Internet.

One good example is Booksmith.  Not only is it tech-savvy (I look forward to finding their updates on Facebook) but it helps that their customers are also “those who attend events sometimes record parts of the discussion and post it on blogs. Or . . . they Twitter that “I am at Booksmith and just found the greatest book.”

The New York Times article also stated that successful bookstores are those that integrate in their community.  I’ll be posting on that topic later.  Stay tuned.

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Beautiful Business Correspondence

March 21, 2009 in book review, bookstore, classics by Kim | 12 comments

Earlier this month, I highlighted a few Cleveland bookstores written about in The Plain Dealer.  I noted that one of the stores, Loganberry Books, started a book club for unsung books.  Loganberry picked 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff as the first book.  Whenever a bookstore appears on the blog, I forward the link to the store.  Harriett of Loganberry and I started a mini-correspondence, she recommended that I read the Hanff book because it is a series of letters between Helene Hanff and Frank Doel, the buyer for Marks & Co, a used bookstore in London.  I ordered the book from her.

I am so glad I did!  84, Charing Cross Road is twenty years of correspondence between Helene and primarily Frank, but also his family, neighbor and employees of the store.  Although they never meet, they grow to care deeply for one another through an epistolary relationship that starts with a request for books.  Helene earns the love of all of the employees by Read the rest of this entry »

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Once Upon a Story, Long Beach, CA

March 20, 2009 in bookstore, childrens, young adult by Kim | No comments

We recently had a free afternoon in Long Beach and while we could have gone to the Queen Mary, we chose to poke around some bookstores.  One gem we found was Once Upon a Story, a sweet children’s bookstore.  Once Upon a Story has a nice selection of books for every age.  The front two sections concentrate on picture books while the back third is overflowing with YA books.   The store offers lots of reading activities for the kids from three story hours a week, to book groups for a variety of ages, a YA Galley Book Group (what a treat to read the ARCs before all of your friends) and a Mother Daughter Book Group. We would love to have those options close to home!

But best of all, there is a special treat for the adults on Sundays when a massuase works on you for free.  The store is located by the Coffee Cup Cafe and benefits from people stopping by after breakfast, the perfect duo!

At the cash register, I found the greatest invention for kids going through a fear phase, Monsters Go Away Spray.  It’s a small spray can that easily fits into a child’s hand.  Monsters in the closet?  Under the bed?  In a dark corner?  Then spray these organic oils to make them disappear.  I wish I had this when I was a child and feared spiders crawling in my bed. Read the rest of this entry »

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Growing Up on the Spectrum Is Officially Published

March 19, 2009 in autism by Claire | No comments

Growing Up on the Spectrum: A Guide to Life, Love, and Learning for Teens and Young Adults with Autism and Asperger’s is the second book that Dr. Lynn Kern Koegel and I have written together.  Our first was Overcoming Autism: Finding the Answers, Strategies, and Hope That Can Transform a Child’s Life, and we’re incredibly proud of how many people have told us the book has been a source of information and comfort to them.

My oldest son was diagnosed with autism when he was two and a half and at some point along the way, a friend suggested I go see Dr. Koegel who was running a clinic at the University of Santa Barbara with her husband Dr. Robert Koegel.  (That clinic has since been named after them: it’s now the Koegel Autism Center.)  The story of our first meeting is described in Overcoming Autism: basically my husband and I were blown away by Lynn’s personal brilliance and by the effectiveness of their pivotal response teaching behavioral approach. 

Thanks to her guidance (and the hard work of many other wonderful professionals), our son is doing great today.  He’s an amazing kid and a fully mainstreamed high school junior who’s currently trying to figure out which colleges to apply to.

Back when he was still young, Lynn discovered that I was a writer (a rather unfulfilled writer at the time) and asked if I could help them rewrite their clinic brochure.  I did.  A year or so later, she asked me if I’d have any interested in co-authoring an entire book with her.  I did.  Together we wrote Overcoming Autism.  The expertise in the book is all hers, but I was able to add some personal experiences as the mother of a kid on the spectrum and help with the general writing and presentation.  Read the rest of this entry »

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