A recent Bowker study on Trends in Consumer Book Buying has been visualized by the folks at Random House. Note that for the printed book crowd the bookstore is still the number one place to discover new books.
Living with and sharing 35,000 books
The Johnson family has been collecting and accumulating books since the late 19th century. In 1899 the first family library was built by Thomas Moore Johnson (1851-1919) to house his 8,000 books. It is little wonder that with a library of that size he was known as the “sage of the Osage” (the house and library were built on the Osage River). Now there are two family libraries and 35,000 books.The three generations of Johnsons did it the right way. Collecting “rare books” was never the intention. Collecting books that fell within their diverse areas of interest was the mantra and it...
Booksellers for the Post Office
You've heard all the gibberish regarding the demise of the post office and the need to privatize the service but guess what? In some areas they are doing better than they ever have!Yes, of course, the advent of email and text messaging has decimated the need for a First-Class Mail service and changes will be surely needed to adjust to the changing landscape but check out what is going on with its shipping business:Total Shipping and Packages revenue in the second quarter increased $267 million, or 9.3 percent, compared to the same period last year. For the six months ended March...
On Joyce, ‘Ulysses’ and Hemingway: A few minutes with Sylvia Beach
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDOUcvb2hWs[/youtube] Sylvia Beach, the founder of the seminal Shakespeare & Company Bookshop in Paris and the matriarch of the literary bookshop, was interviewed in the 1950's about the shop and her relationship with James Joyce and publishing 'Ulysses' and her friendship with Ernest Hemingway. Beautiful stuff.
The BookBar is open
Look what just opened in Denver. It's the BookBar! Owner Nicole Sullivan "dreamt of a gathering space for those who love reading and she wanted to create an atmosphere where they would feel at home." The books are new and the food is hors d'oeuvres and desserts. The place is kid friendly and the ingredients are sourced locally. Menu close-up of book counter BookBar website It's a Bar, It's a Bookstore: BookBar Opened - Eater Denver Previously on Book Patrol: A Book Wall in a Food Place