Slog - Comments on My First Day on the Job http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job Aw, thanks, guys. I'm now The Stranger's Books Editor, which is, frankly, kind of a weird place to be. There were a whole bunch of layoffs in the newspaper book review business last year, this one especially, and it's conceivable that I may be the only books editor hired by an alternative weekly in all of 2008. In many ways, becoming books editor in 2008 is the equivalent of opening a typewriter repair shop, or getting into the high-stakes world of cutting-edge cathode ray tube development. Does the Seattle Weekly even have a books section, anymore? Does anyone care that... Copyright 2008 Wed, 13 Feb 2008 11:07:29 -0800 Wed, 13 Feb 2008 15:41:04 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Chalupa Be careful of the urinals and water fountains there.

]]> Chalupa http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936425 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936425 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 11:53:27 -0800 Comment by NIpper SHOW US YOUR TITS!

]]> NIpper http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936426 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936426 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 11:54:04 -0800 Comment by Cath Congrats, Paul!

Just a note--I worked for Borders back in the day when they were still owned by the Borders brothers and a champion independent bookseller. We clerks were given a book allowance (based on salary) to spend each month plus a discount. It's a wonder I ever made $ there. Ours was only the second Borders (Novi, MI), and had a vaulted ceiling painted in a cloudscape. When the then current CEO retired (who I believe was a former philosophy prof), our new CEO--recently of Pepperidge Farm--looked at the our tranquil ceiling and said, "That has got to go." And so began the end...

]]> Cath http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936468 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936468 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:00:47 -0800 Comment by palamedes Could have been worse. Could have been a Kaypro...

]]> palamedes http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936484 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936484 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:04:08 -0800 Comment by --MC Good on ya!

]]> --MC http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936630 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936630 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:34:51 -0800 Comment by Gurldoggie Congrats. I've had fun reading your book reviews over the past months, and I think this could be fun. Although I have to say I've noticed a disturbing habit you've got of discussing second- and third- rate writing (ie. your reviews of Whitley Stieber and Harold Robbins, among others.) Do us literary types a favor and follow your own advice via Zadie Smith: try to ignore the abundance of crap writing out there, and focus on the few jewels.

]]> Gurldoggie http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936669 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936669 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:48:43 -0800 Comment by Davida Aw, you're so cute!

]]> Davida http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936768 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936768 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 13:19:26 -0800 Comment by lostboy Wow.  I remember looking at C64's with envy--the high resolution video, blazing fast floppy drives, and the whopping 64 kilobytes of RAM.

My computer was a Commodore Vic 20.

]]> lostboy http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936814 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936814 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 13:34:42 -0800 Comment by Emily i'm with nipper. show us your goddamned tits!

p.s. happy v-day!

]]> Emily http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936857 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936857 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 13:47:24 -0800 Comment by Greg Four boxes of tea? Bitch please, I've got at least six on hand at all times.

]]> Greg http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936949 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936949 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:17:32 -0800 Comment by Ramdu I disagree with Gurldoggie at @6. Please do write about second- and third-rate writers, and about zines and love notes found on the ground and typewriter manuals and the backs of cereal boxes. They probably tell us more about the state of the world than Great Literature, especially because they are more ephemeral.

]]> Ramdu http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936954 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c936954 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:19:01 -0800 Comment by lostboy I forgot to say, congratulations!

Also, I agree with Ramdu @11.  And Cath's story @3 is really heartbreaking.

]]> lostboy http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937068 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937068 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:55:11 -0800 Comment by Bauhaus Congrats, PC.

Books (and reading) are on their way to becoming an elitist activity like opera and Broadway with new hardback fiction/non-fiction starting at $35. One starts to see the allure of chain and online stores.

And I really like hardbacks. Paperbacks just don't stand the test of time. They're cheaper if you have patience, but they eventually fall apart leaving you with nothing but a memory.

So, I limit myself to the used stores now and the library.

]]> Bauhaus http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937232 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937232 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 15:29:52 -0800 Comment by Katelyn Please don't do book reviews on love notes and other shitty ephemera you find on the bus, Paul, unless you're reviewing a published book featuring that shitty ephemera. I beg of you -- review actual books!! BE THAT GUY!! CHALLENGE THE TIDES OF MEDIOCRITY! etc

I'm excited for your work -- how cool of the Stranger to hire a book editor. Really.

]]> Katelyn http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937282 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/my_first_day_on_the_job#c937282 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 15:41:04 -0800