Thursday, March 26, 2015

Ye Olde Partners Page

*A Collection of Antiquarian Curios & Relics*
"Here we are, one magical moment, such is the stuff
From where dreams are woven . . ."
                                             --David Bowie, Station to Station

1)  WHAT IN THE WORLD . . .  This breaking news just in -- Author Chinua Achebe is still dead!  This past week the Twitterverse was all a-twitter that Mr. Achebe had passed away in his native Nigeria.  Unfortunately, Mr. Achebe, author of the seminal high school classic Things Fall Apart (9780385474542) 11.95 actually passed away more than two years ago.  The most obvious culprit was U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice who posted on March 23: "Despite the promise of the future, today is a somber day in Nigeria, as Chinua Achebe was laid to rest in his native village."  You would have thought that technological innovations like the internet, Twitter, YouTube, etc. would have made us smarter, but it appears to be making us even dumber.  [I'm looking at you Kim Karadashian, author of the upcoming and most appropriately titled Selfish (9780789329202) 19.95.]  I hope this helps to clarify the confusion.  As of press time, Abe Vigoda was unavailable for comment . . .

 

2)  WORD ON A WING . . .  As I've mentioned before, Midwesterners, and especially Minnesotans, are fascinated with loons.  No, I'm not talking about your typical bookstore customer, but the large aquatic bird with its well-known haunting call.  As if that isn't a good enough selling point for most birders, we have a new title featuring an adorable baby loon called Loon Chick's First Flight (9781933272511) 17.95 by Gene Klco.  (That's not a typo.  It is pronounced 'Kelso' like the character played by Ashton Kutcher on That 70's Show.)  The story is cute, but the photographs are absolutely stunning.  For this upcoming spring and summer, his book is going to move faster than a freshly greased T-34/76 Russian tank during Operation Bagration.  (If you are a fan of 'purple prose' and the preceding metaphor is dangerously close to that, you should check out www.bulwer-lytton.com .  It will provide you with hours of enjoyment.)


3)  GOLDEN YEARS . . .  Speaking of spring, the first indication that it has arrived is usually the sighting of a robin, but here in our business, it's the first release of a new book on Mackinac Island.  We have received a new children's hardcover The Colors of Mackinac Island (9781933272498) 10.95 by Jennifer Powell.  From the indigo of the ferry boat's hull to the green of Marquette Park, all of the colors of the rainbow are dutifully represented in a book that will become a classic.  It is also a perfect companion piece to Jennifer Powell's other book, What I Saw on Mackinac: A Counting Book (9781933272368) 10.95.  Another rite of spring is the yearly release of a new edition of Know Your Ships 2015 (978189849206) 18.95 by Roger Lelievre. Every major Great Lakes vessel is tenderly and loving pictured in this guide.  It's spring in spades.

 


Odds & Sods

Update:  Laura Ingalls Wilders' annotated Pioneer Girl (9780984504176) 39.95 is being reprinted.  We hope to have more stock at the end of April . . .


I was a little skeptical when I saw that the author's name for What The Dog Knows (9781451667325) 16.00 is Cat Williams.  In fact, I thought it might be a satire from The Oatmeal or another book of doggie poetry, but it's legit.  It explores the psychology of our best friend . . .



Another one to keep an eye on is Becoming Steve Jobs (9780385347402) 30.00.  Senior Apple Executive Eddy Cues said, "Well done and the first to get it right."  He is obviously taking a shot at Walter Isaacson's bio. 


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