Let's travel! First stop: all of the world's most beautiful bookstores. I think a world tour is in order!
Thanks to Daisy for the link.
Publisher Barney Rosset died this week at age 89. His obituary is truly amazing: he published titles like Lady Chatterley's Lover in the US and defied censors to do so.
He defied censors in the 1960s by publishing D. H. Lawrence’s “Lady Chatterley’s Lover” and Henry Miller’s “Tropic of Cancer,” ultimately winning legal victories that opened the door to sexually provocative language and subject matter in literature published in the United States. He did the same thing on movie screens by importing the sexually frank Swedish film “I Am Curious (Yellow).”
Mr. Rosset called Grove “a breach in the dam of American Puritanism.”
Beyond being sued scores of times, he received death threats. Grove’s office in Greenwich Village was bombed.
In 2008 the National Book Foundation honored him as “a tenacious champion for writers who were struggling to be read in America.”
Other mentions were less lofty. Life magazine in 1969 titled an article about him “The Old Smut Peddler.” That same year a cover illustration for The Saturday Evening Post showed him climbing out of a sewer.
Graceful curtsey to Tablet magazine for the link to the obit.
MORE STATS. NetGalley's Follow the Reader blog has the results of the NetGalley survey of over 1200 librarians and their adoption of digital reading devices.
The results indicate that 59% of the librarians surveyed use NetGalley to find titles to order in their libraries, and to find books for patrons. They find titles from trade publications and word of mouth, with direct publisher outreach coming in 3rd and publisher catalogs 4th.
Meanwhile, four out of five dentists still agree, but I'm not sure what they agree on.
From Brittney – a restaurant to visit! At The Village Anchor in Louisville KY, they bring your check inside a romance novel! Have a look:
That is awesome – we must all go for dinner. Together. All at once.
This is perfect – we'll stop there on our tour of all the beautiful bookstores in the world.
And finally: stuff on sale!
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Making Waves by Tawna Fenske * $1.79 * A | BN | K | S (SB Review: B)
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Her Husband's Harlot by Grace Callaway * 14.08 Pre-order * A | BN | K | S
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Flat Out Sexy by Erin McCarthy * $3.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Marked by PC Cast and Kristin Cast * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Cheri on Top by Susan Donovan * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Midnight Sins by Lora Leigh * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Smooth Talking Stranger by Lisa Kleypas * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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I'll Be Slaying You by Cynthia Eden * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews * $4.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill * $4.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman * $2.99 * A | BN | K | S
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The Sweethearts' Knitting Club by Lori Wilde * $0.99 * A | BN | K | S
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My Fair Mistress by Tracy Anne Warren * $4.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Her Only Desire by Gaelen Foley * $4.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Perfect Timing by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Millie's Fling by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Take a Chance on Me by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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An Offer You Can't Refuse by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Staying at Daisy's by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Miranda's Big Mistake by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Rumor Has it by Jill Mansel * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Reno's Chance by Lora Leigh * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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Tropical Heat by Cherry Adair * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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A Night to Remember by Celeste Bradley and Susan Donovan * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S
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The Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry * $4.88 * A | BN | K | S
- Dark Swan Bundle: Storm Born, Thorn Queen, Iron Crowned & Shadow Heir by Richelle Mead * $9.99 * A | BN | K | S
And coupons!
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Kobobooks.com
Coupon code thankyou2012 should work for 35% off and c4auto40 should work for 40%, exp. 2/25/12.
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A Carina Press coupon: get 15% off your order with code EX15CPB. Exp 2/29/12.
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Amazon one-click buy bundle: eight Harlequin Presents novels from November 2008 for $4.10.
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Amazon one-click buy bundle: six Harlequin Blaze novels from December 2008 for $3.70, and six Harlequin Blaze novels from Dec. 2009 for $3.70 as well.
I will give you a personal tour of the Amsterdam store. Its sister store in The Hague is VERY romance friendly: large romance section, and at the end of Nora Roberts’ row of books they have a sign “Thus Endeth the Nora.” When I bought some Georgette Heyer the cashier gave me a discount just ‘cause she loves Heyer so much.
After Amsterdam, we must hie ourselves to Porto, Portugal, pronto!
THUS ENDETH THE NORA?! That’s fantastic. Utterly freaking fantastic.
I’m starting with a Jim Beam Black and Cast Iron Scallops. Followed by the Short Ribs and then, oh yes, the Cookies and Milk. Then it’s off to Mexico City!
Since I know someone in Louisville, this may be a meal in my future.
I’m not going to lie—the prospect of doing lunch with the entire SBTB fills me with extreme levels of squee. This is unquestionably the best online community in which I participate, and certainly the only one whose members I would be interested in meeting in person.
Also, I’m so going to do the full tour of all twenty bookstores, and I’m going to end in Santorini, where I will wear cute sundresses and ignore the threat of bankruptcy and wander around aimlessly until I end up in Atlantis Books and stay until they make me leave.
Shot gun!!!
Ya know, Sarah, that’s not an altogether terrible idea…a “meeting” of your faithful followers. Just a thought.
For me, the Dominican Church in Holland and the Movie Palace in Argentina were the most visually stunning bookstores, but the one I’d most like to get lost in is Shakespeare & Company in Paris (great name, btw). It looks so cozy and warm. And could you imagine the smell? Mmmm. I think I just had a bookgasm.
I do want to also mention on the “deals” front that Amazon Lily by Theresa Weir is free if you have an Amazon Prime membership, $3.99 if not (that’s ebook pricing). I stumbled across it today and it sounds fun, an old re-issue from 1988! Here’s the link if anyone’s interested:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0042…
I think we need a customized bus with a fine cafe and wifi. Probably several cats.
Oh, those nooks. The trees. The doors made of books that seem to be granting entry to a hidden passageway. That fantasy staircase in Portugal. And yes, how could we not visit a place where the booksellers still have personality? Thus Ended the Nora: Must Meet These People.
It would be great fun to meet up with the Bitchery. Is there a con that many people attend?
A BitchesCon! How awesome would that be?
Receipt in a romance book—I love it!
It must be made so!
Santorini, sundresses, books. I’ll raise your squee and see you an OMGOMGOMG. Dinner with the Bitchery? Priceless.
Santorini for me, if we’re talking fantasy, but I’m just down the road from Louisville, so dinner there would actually be doable.
God, yes.
I went to Shakespeare and Company and bought a romance novel! It was my special birthday trip to London and Paris many years ago and I made a point to go there. It was lovely and I wished I could have stayed all day. I also wished I spoke French. I visited another bookstore in Paris but I can’t remember its name right now. It was my first experience seeing American romance novels in foreign editions with the “wrong” covers—that is, I would recognize a cover but could tell it wasn’t being used on the same book as in the U.S. I love Paris but some of those other bookstores in Europe look wonderful also. Wish I could afford another trip!
I’ll meet you guys anytime, any place!
Did anyone else check out the Village Anchor link? I don’t drink but I have to have respect for anyplace that has a bourbon list. Is that a common thing in Kentucky, or is Village Anchor just especially badass?
It’s not common to every restaurant, but it’s not uncommon. Here in Lexington, we’ve got deSha’s (http://deshas.com/lexington/me… and metropol (http://www.metropolfinedining…., just to name two, that are noted for their extensive bourbon selection. I’d imagine you’d find that to be the case in most upscale dining in the state, since we’re the home of bourbon. (We even have a Bourbon county!)
Thanks for those discount links! I’ve promised myself not to start any new series in paper, and I’ve been thinking about trying the Kate Daniels books. Just purchased “Magic Bites” for the nook, and I know what I’ll be reading tomorrow.
By the way, I’m totally down for a BitchesCon.
Not sure why Her Husband’s Harlot is listed as 14.08 and a pre-order? It’s been out for a while I think (loved it!) and at 3.99 currently…
Oh my! BitchesCon is something I would not want to miss. That said, I would LOVE to go to the restaurant with the receipts. It would give me to much pleasure to snap a photo of that for my expense reports!
The Dominican Church – OMG…literally!