|
|
|
|
The week of August 15, 2023 Fall in love with a good book. Read more romance.
Indulge in a whirlwind romance (read) this weekend! This Saturday, August 19th, is Bookstore Romance Day — created by a group of romance writers and romancing-loving booksellers to celebrate the love of, well, a good love story! Bookstore Romance Day has spread coast to coast, and there are dozens of store in the South that will be taking part (see a map of participating stores). Romance is wonderfully varied genre that includes everything from literary fiction to foodie stories with recipes. On the BRD Bookshop page readers can find all sorts of romance flavors: Romance-y Fantasy ("Romantasy"), love stories centered around older protagonists, queer romance stories, romances devoted to happy endings. Romance is also the most popular genre at SBR, passing even "fantasy" and "young adult." Fall in love with a good book: Read more romance! Read This Now | Read This Next | Book Buzz | The Bookseller Directory |
|
|
|
Read This Now! Recommended by Southern indies… |
|
|
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride Adult Fiction, African American & Black, Fiction, Historical, Literary  An August 2023 Read This Next! Title In Pottstown, PA in 1972 a skeleton is found at the bottom of a old well. McBride takes us back more than four decades to tell the story of a community of Black and Jewish characters in the Chicken Hill neighborhood, along with the white characters who run the town (and march in the annual KKK parades.) It’s hard to think of a more compassionate writer than McBride. This story is captivating, funny, exciting and absolutely wonderful. Reviewed by Christine Lavigna, Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, North Carolina |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bookseller Buzz |
 |
|
Spotlight on: Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa 
“From late summer to early spring the next year, I lived at the Morisaki Bookshop. I spent that period of my life in the spare room on the second floor of the store, trying to bury myself in books. The cramped room barely got any light, and everything felt damp. It smelled constantly of musty old books. But I will always remember the days I spent there. Because that’s where my real life began. And I know, without a doubt, that if not for those days, the rest of my life would have been bland, monotonous, and lonely. The Morisaki Bookshop is precious to me. It’s a place I know I’ll never forget. When I close my eyes, the memories still come back to me so vividly. It all began like a bolt of lightning out of the clear blue sky. No, what happened was more shocking than that, more shocking even than seeing frogs raining from the sky in a downpour.” ― Excerpt, Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, translated by Eric Ozawa What booksellers are saying about Days at the Morisaki Bookshop 
About Satoshi Yagisawa Satoshi Yagisawa was born in Chiba, Japan, in 1977. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, his debut novel, was originally published in 2009 and won the Chiyoda Literature Prize. |
 |
|
|
The Road to the City by Natalia Ginzburg Adult Fiction, Family Life, Marriage & Divorce Like all of Natalia Ginzburg’s excellent works, The Road to the City feels like something so fresh, tender, and intimate, you can barely breathe until it’s done and can barely believe it could ever be over. Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Quickening by Elizabeth Rush Adult Nonfiction, Global Warming & Climate Change, Science A beautifully written, immediately engaging book about exploring a new area of the Antarctic, experiencing climate change on a vast yet immediate scale, and still deciding to bring a child into the world. The author pulls from her experiences as an observer on an exploration vessel to chart a path into the future. Excerpts from her interviews with others aboard the ship – scientists, but also the crew and even the ship’s cooks – bring multiple perspectives into her musings on everything from the breaking ice to birth stories. While the themes of the book are urgent, the messages are hopeful: while there is work for everyone, together, we can accomplish more; and when we mess up, which we all do, own the error and don’t make the same mistake again. Reviewed by Ginger Kautz, Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, North Carolina |
|
|
Tilly in Technicolor by Mazey Eddings Romance, Romantic Comedy, Young Adult Fiction Tilly and Oliver first meet on an international flight, and their first impression is not great on either side. So it seems like the worst luck when Oliver shows up at Tilly’s sister’s place to start work as an intern with Tilly…and they’ll be spending the summer traveling together. Working together. Staying in hotel rooms together. Tilly struggles with her ADHD, as always, but Oliver’s autism allows him to understand her in ways no one else has, and the two grow close. Readers of Eddings’s adult romances will adore this story about Tilly growing into herself, and her relationships that grow with her, and Oliver’s enthusiasm for colors and for Tilly. Eddings has obviously put a lot of herself into this book, and it’s paid off. Reviewed by Melissa Oates, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina |
|
|
The Truth About Dragons by Julie Leung Animals, Children, Dragons, Juvenile Fiction, Unicorns & Mythical I picked up this book based purely on the gorgeous cover. The lyrical story told by the mother to the child at bedtime is just so sweet, and each page is full of beautiful detail. I really loved how the differences between the two dragons are celebrated, but their similarities are also highlighted. An enriching celebration of multicultural identity. Reviewed by Chelsea Stringfield, Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee |
|
|
Ghost Book by Remy Lai Comics & Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Juvenile Fiction Remy Lai continues to be one of the best and most thoughtful creators working in children’s literature today. In her graphic novel Ghost Book, Lai gives us the loveable characters of July Chen who can see ghosts all around her and William, a boy whose not quite dead. Filled with vibrant images, mythology, and heart – Ghost Book proves once again that no one can weave together fun and deep emotion like Remy Lai! Reviewed by Caleb Masters, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
|
Decide for Yourself Books that appear on PEN America’s list of challenged books. |
|
|
How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue Adult Fiction, African American & Black, Banned Books, Family Life, Literary Fiction What a good book! Beautifully written and so forcefully told this is a story of the power of corporations over people and governments. And the setting! So alien from what we’re used too but at the same time recognizable from our own small town battles with corporate malfeasance. A very thought provoking book that will be great for book clubs and one that reminded me of how I reacted to Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar. Reviewed by Pete Mock, McIntyre’s Books in Pittsboro, North Carolina |
|
Southern Bestsellers What’s popular this week with Southern Readers. |
[ See the full list ] |
|
Parting Thought “Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you.” |
|
Publisher:
The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance /
siba@sibaweb.com |
SIBA | 51 Pleasant Ridge Drive | Asheville, NC 28805
You have received this email because you are currently subscribed to receive The Southern Bookseller Review.
Please click @@unsubscribe_url@@ if you no longer wish to receive these communications.