Browsers' Bookstore

Past Newsletters

Please note: there is at least a one-month lag time between a newsletter being mailed, and being posted to this website. Email us today to sign up!

Back to Newsletter Archives

Browsers' Bookstore Newsletter for January, 2006

STORE NEWS

Thank you to everybody who purchased a star off of our Christmas tree last month to buy a book for local schools. We are happy to match your donations, and donated 40 books to the Dixie school and almost 50 to Waypoint!

And now for the bad news... due to increased shoplifting, we have moved graphic novels and role-playing game books into the glass case and behind the counter, respectively. They will be available upon request, or you can search our listings online.

SECRET SALE - 25% OFF FOR NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS ONLY!

During the week of January 12-19 (the next seven days), get 25% off all pocket fiction! Science fiction, fantasy, mystery, suspense, romance, horror, westerns, general fiction, and - why not? - true crime, too. This applies only to the pocket books, also known as mass market paperbacks. Just mention that you're a newsletter subscriber to save!

THIS MONTH'S HIGHLIGHTS

This month, we have quite a number of fun books, but first let's get to the large collections:

1. Another huge lot of science fiction hardcovers, including several uncommon books by popular authors.

2. A large collection of books about the Maya. The majority of these are scholarly dealing with the archaeology and language.

And here are some individual titles that stand out for one reason or another...

3. Oriental Magic: Tricks You Can Do, an Unusual Collection of Magic Tricks with Simple Home-Made Apparatus. No author. A wonderful paperbound booklet (48 pages) from 1934. There's nothing Oriental about these tricks, but it does have great red & black illustrations of an "Oriental" boy and girl performing them. This is a great period piece, and a cute addition to any collection of magic. $5.99

4. The Book of Fans. Nancy Armstrong. A wonderfully illustrated book with full-page or two-page photos of antique fans. The text covers the history, their construction, and the collecting of fans. Good book, good price. $7.50

5. What I Have Done with Birds. Gene Stratton-Porter. I know we had a G.S.-P. bird book last month, but this one is equally cool. Check out her response to an editor who says that photographing birds is not for women: "In its hardships, in wading, swimming, climbing, in hidden dangers suddenly to be confronted, in abrupt changes from heat to cold, and from light to dark, field photography is not a woman's work; but in the matter of finesse in approaching the birds, in limitless patience in awaiting the exact moment for the best exposure, in the tedious and delicate processes of the dark room, in the art of winning bird babies and parents, it is not a man's work. No man has had the patience to remain with a bird until he secured a real character study of it . . . This is the basis of all my field work -- a mute contract between woman and bird." Her patience pays off with some excellent photography, and over 250 pages of text. 1907, good condition, $125.

6. The Feynman Lectures on Physics. The three-volume trade paperback edition. Still in print for $132 (don't ask me why it's so high-priced), our set is $20.

7. Rockwell Kent's Greenland Journal. Although Kent was better known for his art, he did manage to write several books during his long -- and interesting -- life. This book had a smaller printing, possibly due to his fall from fame at the time (it was published in 1962, his 80th year. His Communist-friendly attitude had cost him dearly during the 1950s, and the State Department actually revoked his passport. His art was, you can imagine, extremely popular in the USSR at this time.) At any rate, his travelogue is complete with small illustrations by the man who will probably be best remembered as a printmaker. $50

8. Lincoln: Passages from His Speeches and Letters. Edited by Richard Watson Gilder, published by the Century Co. This is a small (only 5" tall) book fully bound in highly decorated leather, marbled endpapers, and gilt fore edges. A perfect example of "they don't make them like they used to." $20

9. Sign after the X. Marina Roy. This is an awesome book on the letter 'x': its history, cultural significance, artistic influence, mathematical meanings, you name it. Very cool, and sure to increase in value. $9.50

And collectible copies of books you might love:

10. Dakota: A Spiritual Geography. Kathleen Norris. 1st edition, very good condition. $19.95.

11. The Diamond Age, or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer. Neal Stephenson. A book club hardcover in good condition. $19.99.

12. Empire Falls. Richard Russo. First edition, very good condition. $19.99

NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES

Can't remember the name of that book in our last newsletter? Past newsletters are now archived on our website at http://www.browsersbookstore.com/newsletter.html.

BOOK QUOTES OF THE MONTH

Autumn usually puts me in a morose mood for a week or so, but sometimes I feel a little gloomy mid-winter, as well. In that spirit, let's have some famous last words...

Anton Chekhov is of course a famous writer and playwright, and is usually shelved in classics in bookstores and libraries. His last words were: "It's been a long time since I've had champagne."

Brendan Behan is one of Ireland's most famous playwrights. His last words to the nun who was nursing him on his deathbed: "Thank you, sister. May you be the mother of a bishop."

Theodore Dreiser actually planned what his last words were going to be: "Shakespeare, I come."

And, last but not least, J. M. Barrie of "Peter Pan" fame spoke his last words just moments before death: "I can't sleep."

There's just something about that Behan quote that cracks me up. See you next month, and keep up the reading!

Scott Givens

Back to Newsletter Archives