Search

Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & Nightlife

« Currently Hanging | Maybe It's a Conical Hanukkah Bush? »

Friday, November 28, 2008

Books Reading Tonight

Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Nov 28, 2008 at 10:25 AM

There are no readings tonight. Everyone is in a bookselling sort of mood, not a book reading sort of mood.

This seems like as good a place as any to remind you to shop locally this Christmas, if you're going to shop at all. There are a lot of local independent booksellers* who could use your cash this season, and I suggest you do so. We could survive if Borders went under, but I don't want to see any more local independent bookshops close down.

Here is an annoying man with several points about shopping at bookstores.

This annoying man doesn't work in any Seattle bookstore that I know of, so you can feel free to shop without fear of running into him.

Full readings calendar, including the next week or so, is here.

*And, as a side note for clarification: when I wrote my piece about book shoplifting, I received an e-mail from a jackass who claimed to take the moral high ground because he stole books from "the big chains," which he described as Borders and Barnes and Noble and the University Book Store. First of all, if you're a grown man boasting about stealing books from anywhere, you're pathetic. Second of all, the University Book Store is a local, independent bookstore. A lot of people don't seem to realize that. We're lucky to have a college bookstore that's not a shadow Barnes and Noble operation like almost every other college bookstore.

Share via

Comments (10) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

Thanks, Paul.

Posted by the shelver on November 28, 2008 at 10:29 AM

just wanted to second your remarks about UBS. not *just* excellent buyers and selection, but also wonderful readings.

the only thing we are missing in this town is a place like Powells, but otherwise, we got it covered.

i'm buying a lot of Kay Ryan poetry for people for christmas this year.

Posted by rtm on November 28, 2008 at 10:41 AM

BWAHAHAHAHAHA.

I work in a bookstore that doesn't allow cell phones (but spent years at one that did), but everything else YES.

This will be a fun season. I wish the video was less irritating, or I would send it to everyone in the universe. It is pretty funny.

Posted by bibliogrrl on November 28, 2008 at 10:57 AM

Wow. I'm having flash backs from working at Borders for several years. Everything he said is true.

Oh, and the book your looking for is The Rainbow Fish.

Posted by Hal on November 28, 2008 at 11:05 AM

Amazon is local... A couple thousand local employees. Is that what you meant? I suspect not.

Posted by Simac on November 28, 2008 at 11:09 AM

Is constantly looking up and to the right a sign that you're lying or that you're trying to remember something? It's one or the other, I can't remember. I need to compare this bloke with some Palin videos.

Posted by Yawn. on November 28, 2008 at 12:09 PM

If independent bookstore employees didn't feel like it's beneath them to help our a customer every once in a while maybe more people would shop there? If you don't want to help people out then get the hell out of retail.

Posted by elysian on November 28, 2008 at 3:17 PM

#7. You are right. If you don't want to help people get the hell out of retail.

Luckily, every indie that I've ever shopped in in this city (and that does not including corporate behemoth Amazon - which by any stretch of the imagination cannot be called a bookstore) has been helpful, well-read and damn fine looking.

Lucky, lucky Seattle.

Posted by Michael Wells on November 28, 2008 at 3:36 PM

I have intentionally gone into local booksellers: Twice Sold Tales, Lamplight books, to look for Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis. Has anyone actually seen a copy of Lucky Jim for sale in a local (as in within Seattle) independent bookshop? Antiquarian first editions do not count, but secondhand copies do.

Posted by My Name Here on November 28, 2008 at 3:42 PM

#9 some local bookstores will do phone searches to save you some gas $ if they don't have it. try calling a few half price books locations.

Posted by fnord on November 28, 2008 at 3:52 PM