"They checked out the data on all their lists1) THE REMAINS OF OUR LOVE . . . Detroit is hot. Let me rephrase that: Books about Detroit are hot. Mark Binelli's Detroit City is the Place to Be: The Afterlife of an American Metropolis (9780805092295) 28.00 was one of Publisher Weekly's top ten best books of 2012. He reimagines a Detroit that has fallen down so far that the only place it can go is up. Or as Timbuk 3 might say, "The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades." On the flip side, Pulitzer Prize winner Charlie LeDuff's Detroit: An American Autopsy (9781594205347) 27.95 paints a grimmer picture. Mr. LeDuff, who remains a mainstay on the local Fox-TV affiliate is searching for answers among the ruin and rubble of his hometown. I actually shared several classes in middle school with his sister, who later died from a drug overdose. Speaking from my own experience, I can see he has nailed the feelings of hopelessness and futility that engulfs Detroit like a shabby over-sized cloak on a homeless man . . .
And then the alien anthropologists admitted they were still perplexed
But on eliminating every reason for our sad demise
They logged the explanation left
This species has amused itself to death . . ."
--Roger Waters, Amused to Death
2) THE MOMENT OF CLARITY . . . There is probably not a professional sports team that is more emblematic of its city than the Detroit Lions. They have not won a championship in 55 years. The Curse of Bobby Layne, indeed. However, we have had the Detroit Red Wings to pin our hopes and dreams on. Thankfully, the hockey strike has been resolved. Now our Hockeytown HeroesTM are back in action, so maybe we can sell a few books. Rob Simpson's The Winged Wheel (9781118144282) 34.95 was a good seller throughout the holiday season and hopefully, we'll see another bump in sales. Also, Dr. John Finley's Hockeytown Doc: A Half-Century of Red Wings Stories from Howe to Yzerman (9781600787713) 24.95 is back in stock. As Kid Rock might say, "I'm in it to win it like Yzerman." As of this past Friday, the post Nicklas Lindstrom era has begun and I'm really, really scared. Please hold me . . .
3) LATE HOME TONIGHT . . . Since Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot was on at the same time, I missed the Golden Globes this year. It appears that one of the big winners was The Silver Linings Playbook, which was based on the book of the same name. This title sold out on the following Monday, but we have more copies of Silver Linings Playbook (9780374533571) 15.00 in stock . . .
On this day in Byzantine History (January 19)
In 840, the future Emperor Michael III (the Drunkard) was born.
Odds & Sods
Robert Scott's new true crime title The Girl in the Leaves (9780425258828) 9.99, which chronicles the story of the only survivor of a mass murder in Apple Valley, Ohio, has sold out in one day. It should be back in stock early next week. By the way, the author should not be confused with Robert Falcon Scott, who was immortalized in the Monty Python sketch, Scott of the Antarctic . . .
Keep an eye on Caroline Myss' Archetypes: Who Are You? (9781401941086) 24.95, it has been flying out of here at a pretty good clip. "Ooo ooo, ooo ooo, I really wanta know! Whooo are you?"
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