December 22, 2011

Christmas preparations are stressful. The choices are overwhelming. The pressure to choose wisely is immense. And the potential for remorse haunts you at night as you lie awake in bed. Was it a good choice? Will everyone still like me? Was this the right color to dye my hair.... Wait, that has nothing to do with holiday cheer. I’m injecting random personal crises into my writing.

To be clear: I’m not even talking about gift giving. That process is pure joy as long as the credit card has done the appropriate training in the preceding weeks. I am talking about the preparation that takes weeks: choosing those special books that will get read during the oh-so-precious work-free days lying ahead. 

One of the reasons I’m always anxious to clock that final hour of work for the year and get home to the pants with elastic waistbands is the opportunity to sit and read. Read with a cup of tea in my comfy chair. Read with a glass of wine by the tree. And yes, sprinkle my book with errant crumbs from those wonderful Christmas cookies that I love (see comment re: elastic waistbands).

This year my choices were more difficult to make than usual. It has been a crazy couple of months and my time to read has been limited. So, I want to use my time wisely. In the end, I’ve made five choices with great hopes:

1. To catch up on my juvenile, guilty-pleasure reading: John Grisham’s “Theodore Boone: The Abduction”
2. To pacify my addiction to all things Elizabeth Bennet: P.D. James’ “Death Comes to Pemberley”  (yes, thanks to 2010’s reading challenge 10-10-10, I’ve evolved to a woman that chooses mysteries intentionally. Insert applause here.)
3. To prepare for wonderful book club conversation: Paula McLain’s “The Paris Wife”
4. To be a better me at work: “The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working” by Tony Schwartz
5. To finally read a book that I should have read years ago: “The Poisonwood Bible” by Barbara Kingsolver

I’m ready to go! One issue remains: what if Santa brings me a reading selection that I cannot wait to read? I guess that’s what a fresh batch of vacation days are for, right? Dear Boss, I will be back to work in March. Forward my mail to.... Wait. Just keep my mail; it’s not on my reading list.

As a part of my 2011 "Read My Shelf" challenge, there were two books in particular that had languished on said shelf for Too Long, Much Too Long, and it was officially time to tackle them. Mid-August vacation with my husband's family was coming up, and I knew that I would have plenty of reading time (when I wasn't trying to fend off my mother-in-law's insistence that I play board games and cards, which to my dismay I discovered I had run out of excuses for four vacations ago.) I blew the dust off of JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL by Susanna Clarke, a book that had several huge blinking "Melissa, you will LOVE ME" signs attached to it, including:

1. It was a 2005 Hugo Award winner.
2. It was about England. 
3. It was long-listed for the Man Booker.
4. It had supernatural stuff without being too weird.
5. It spent time on the NYT list. 
6. It was about England.
7. It was long, almost 900 pages. 
8. It was about England. 

After several hundred rounds of "Mommy, I just need ONE more thing before I go to sleep"--I hunkered down with a glass of chardonnay one evening in Nisswa, Minnesota, to tackle the very large book in front of me. I proceeded to plod through the first 30 pages or so. I wasn't concerned--it was a long book, and there had to be a tremendous amount of setup, right? I decided to get at least 75 pages knocked out before bed, thinking that things would start progressing more quickly. It didn't. I woke up the next day, and thinking the fresh perspective of a new day would allow me to really get into this AWARD-WINNING, CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED, SUPER POPULAR 8 YEARS AGO EVERYONE LOVED IT WHY DID IT TAKE YOU SO LONG TO READ IT! book. 

Reader, she couldn't get into it.

I felt like a failure. It must be me, right? What is wrong with ME that I don't love this acclaimed book? Am I a bad reader? Am I destined to a future of just rereading the Twilight series from front to back and front again because I'm not mature enough to read books judged by the literary community to be good?

At page 146 of my reading slog-slash-identity crisis, I turned to Twitter. I said, "Need the Twitterati opinion: do I continue with JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR NORRELL? on page 146 and not in love." The response was immediate and overwhelming: PUT IT DOWN.  There was but one lone voice in the wilderness that told me to stick with it. Most people (a nice cross section of the literary community, from casual readers to professional book reviewers) said their limit was 50-100 pages to make a decision to catch or release. Several of the people cited this particular book as one that they themselves couldn't finish. One person told me she picked it up three separate times trying to love it, and eventually abandoning it.

I told myself this year that I would NOT read something I wasn't truly enjoying, but I often find I revert to my past practice of "once you start it, you finish it." This validation from other people that I should not continue the slog was helpful to me. I do feel liberated now that I've officially abandoned it. Now I may put it on the donation pile and wipe the dust off my fingers and move on to something truly amazing. (No, not BREAKING DAWN.)

When I was in college and a little after, I used to go to the beach each year in June with some family friends (hi, McKells! I miss you guys!) During this two weeks, I used to read and read and read and read--and then take a dinner break and read some more. As I remember it, the entirety of my reading was comprised of mystery/thriller page turners. 

My reading life has changed (as has my free time--I miss those beach trips desperately) and I find myself reading more literary fiction with a small side dish of non-fiction almost all the time now. However, a switch flips in me when the weather turns warm--I immediately want the literary equivalent of comfort food, which for me are more "fun" books--mysteries, thrillers, popular 1-book-a-year-authors, etc. These are books that will likely never appear on end of year best lists, but I am enormously appreciative of them and the role they play in my reading life. 

An example...I have been on a major kick of late on the Charlaine Harris series of Sookie Stackhouse books. I never would have picked up these books if not for the exceptionally good HBO series--but now I'm hooked on the books (I have plowed through six of them in 2011.) They're not award winners, but I am with millions of other readers in my enjoyment of the series, which includes all manner of supernatural creatures and entertaining storylines.

These Sookie books (come on, HBO True Blood fans--you just said it like Bill Compton does, didn't you? "Sooookihhhhe....") have kept me occupied this year, but in general, summer is time for me to crave all kinds of mysteries. Kathy Reichs and Karin Slaughter are two that I look for each summer, but I love to read ALL MANNER of murder mysteries in the hot weather. These remind me viscerally of those old beach days--page turners are what I crave in the summer. 

I know there is a lot of judgment applied to people's reading choices, particularly now that we have so many social media outlets that make our reading lists public--but I'm more than happy to admit that my reading runs the gamut from very heady to pure fun. And this summer, I am really just a girl looking to have fun. Judge away. 

This may lead to the need for marital counseling (or a couples retreat ala Vince Vaughn), but I simply must make a confession: I do not like to study history. Never did; never will. Why does this suggest an issue in our relationship? Simply put: my husband loves history like Kardashian girls love NBA players. John was a history education major in college, has a masters in education, and defaults to the history channel and Shelby Foote for a good time.

All joking aside, John knew when he married me that history was not my forte. We’d find other things to talk about, right? Sure thing; and we have for a decade. But, as many of you know from reading my 2011 Reading Challenge post earlier this year, I made a commitment to read books that would open new doors for conversation with my mate. My initial attempts -- non-fiction history titles by some authors of notoriety in the genre -- were a failure. I just could not get through them. But then, I stumbled into some historical fiction. And guess what...

I’ve found that I simply adore history! While I never appreciated the presentation of the topic in high school or choose it as a non-fiction read or TV choice, the realm of historical fiction has opened up new worlds for me. If I were a smarter woman, I may have realized this potential existed in me during college when I devoured two books in a Modern Civilization class: The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman made World War I come alive for me and Modern Times by Paul Johnson helped me soar through the 20th Century in total. I simply loved those books and for the first time took absolute delight in a history course. While they are not historical fiction, they revealed history to me in a narrative form that was engaging and read like a great novel.

Since those days, reflection on some more recent favorite reads reveals a pattern I’ve never acknowledged. Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth captivated me once Oprah told me to read it (yes, I’m acknowledging that I followed her direction; bandwagon jumper, party of one please!) -- and I learned about the medieval time period and crusades in a new way. A classic -- The Great Gatsby -- made studying the 1920’s more enjoyable. I’ve even learned about the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD and ancient Rome through the works of Francine Rivers in her Mark of the Lion series.

More recently, I’ve enjoyed three books in the genre. The first is a work by James Street, Tap Roots, written in 1963 and set at the outbreak of the Civil War. Our book club read this title around New Years, and I found myself doing research to add to what the book was teaching me. Crazy stuff here, folks! The second book, more recently, is a new release by Kate Kerrigan entitled Ellis Island. This paperback original from Harper was a delight that I couldn’t wait to review (click here for the full review). And third, a return to Follett was a favorite read of all times -- Fall of Giants (as reviewed in September 2010). In fact, reflecting through my reading notes from the last two years, I consistently offer five stars to these books and my husband will attest to the excitement I share with him when a book entertains me and gives me a new perspective on history. The details these talented authors weave into their stories and the painstaking research they put into the accuracy of their books is beyond commendable.

Given my newfound devotion to historical fiction, I need recommendations from our readers on what to pick up next! And, to add to the fun, let’s have a CONTEST. In 350 words or less, tell me about your favorite work of historical fiction. We will select three recommendations to post on a historical fiction round-up in late August and the winners will each receive a paperback copy of Fall of Giants (printed on beautiful Glatfelter paper). All entries must be dated by midnight EST on August 15. Please send your recommendations to permanencematters@gmail.com or leave a comment with your e-mail address with this post.

I’m having trouble stopping my rave of the historical fiction genre. Please send help! In the meantime, this is my attempt at a closing note: I’m hoping to convince the folks at Harper Perennial to lend me an opportunity to interview Kate Kerrigan on this blog. I’ve always been fascinated by Ellis Island and enjoyed visiting when John and I lived in New Jersey. Her book gave me a new perspective into the immigration experience. Check back on my progress at getting to Ms. Kerrigan. And please, send in your recommendations for our historical fiction round-up. 

Really... I’m going to stop now. Mostly because I’m pretty sure you have already stopped reading anyway. But also because this post has gotten so long that you could call the opening paragraph a historical work at this point. Moving right along...

Post by Melissa---because Laura is totally not down for any of the scary offerings in this post!

Right now in my Facebook feed, I have no fewer than half a dozen friends with status updates about how excited they are for the start of the 4th season of True Blood on HBO tonight. (P.S., I share their excitement.)

This morning, I was catching up on my Entertainment Weekly issues, and there was a short interview with Charlaine Harris, author of the Sookie Stackhouse series on which the show is based, where she suggests that the proof of fans of the show flocking to her books is "in my bank account." Conversely, I was reminded of a conversation I had at Book Expo with someone in the book industry who didn't know that the Showtime series Dexter is based on the series of books by Jeff Lindsay. 

I had not read the Sookie books before I started watching the True Blood series on HBO, but after I got hooked on the show (should I say I got "fanged" on the show instead of hooked?) I decided to try the books--I just finished the seventh book last night. With Dexter, I had loved Jeff Lindsay's writing from his very first book, DARKLY DREAMING DEXTER, back in the mid-2000s. A standard phrase of book lovers that "The book is ALWAYS better than the movie." In the case of True Blood and Dexter, what I love is that the books and the TV series are so different that it's easy to enjoy both of them for different reasons. 

For me, the Sookie books are remarkably less creepy than the show; although plenty of scary things happen in the books, they are never, evahhh as spine tingling as when they are on my TV screen in high definition--the dark black nights, the spooky music in the background, the vivid color of the blood--all of these are . I also feel that the books gloss over scary things--perhaps it is the speed at which I read, but sometimes there is a major (and usually violent and bloody--they're VAMPIRES, people!) event in the book and I feel like it was treated as any other scene. Similarly, I find the Dexter book series less dark than the TV series; Dexter in Jeff Lindsay's writing is extremely witty and wry, which comes out markedly muted in Michael C. Hall's fantastic portrayal, where Dexter is usually quite serious, even in his lighter family moments. The books and the TV series are similar in their portrayal of scary events--I don't have the same divergence that I experience in the Sookie books vs. the show. 

A bonus of being a fan of both the books and the TV shows in both of these cases is that their storylines do not track exactly--while their first seasons generally coincide with the first books in the series, after that they diverge. I LOVE THIS. There are characters that die in the books that don't on the shows; there are different plots and story arcs--it's almost like double the fun that I get to read one story in the book and see something entirely different (but still great) on the show. 

If you're a fan of the shows, but have never tried the books, or vice versa--GO--try the other. I hope, like me, that you find it a bonus. 

My husband is nearing the end of a twelve day trip to Rwanda. During his time away, my mom and I have been home with the children, spending our days caring for my three children and my nephew, whose parents are also on the other side of the globe. 

This time of intense, sleep deprived child rearing has been littered with some not so lovely moments in time. Nose bleeds and vomit have occurred, furniture is broken and toilets have overflowed. More importantly, the time has also been infused with a great deal of reading. I could lament that I’ve not completed a book in two weeks time, but I can actually smile to think of all the books I’ve had time to read to my children, watch the kids look at themselves in those rare moments of quiet, or the classics that have lent themselves to discussion with my eldest. With this in mind, I’d like to thank a few authors and publishers for their works that have made our time tolerable -- wait -- I mean, enjoyable.

MULE SCHOOL By Julia Rawlinson and Lynne Chapman (Good Books, 2008) This story brings great delight to my four year old son. Could that be because he is a bit of a mule? He is strong willed and stubborn at times, but in the end he lights up our lives. This delightful story is a crowd pleaser and reminds us that being different is good.

PENNY and PUP by Linda Jennings (ill Jane Chapman) / HAVE YOU GOT MY PURR by Judy West (ill Tim Warnes) These books and a stack of others are brought to us by the publisher Little Tiger Press. This publisher makes it their mission to “create books that our readers will love...helping them develop a passion for books that offer laughter, comfort, learning or exhilarating flights of the imagination.” We are consistently pleased with the quality of these books, the messages they send and the children love them. I’d encourage any parent or childcare provider to seek out books this publishers puts into print. And to the aspiring author/illustrator, consider this small publishing house that consistently seeks new talent for your manuscript. 

HUNGRY, HUNGRY SHARKS by Joanna Cole (Random House, 1986) Random House provides us with the wonderful “Step Into Reading” books that give our children the opportunity to grow into competent, happy readers. This particular book, a favorite of my son, is filled with incredible facts about sharks. While it is a bit uncomfortable for Mommy to read (Where is the man of the house when you need him? I can handle toilets, but this...), it educates and entertains for reading, after reading, after reading, after reading...

FIRST LOOK and FIND: CARS (Publications International, 2008) If you have not discovered the “Look and Find” books yet: go, seek and purchase! These books stand the test of time and entertain the children for hours. I have joked via Facebook and Twitter throughout the week that my entire “stay-cation” was sponsored by Cars, and this was no exception. The best part -- my 2 year old nephew, 3 year old daughter and 4 year old son all could enjoy this book.

SPAGHETTI in a HOT DOG BUN by Maria Dismondy (Fern Press, 2008) My seven year old, while watching me type this post, felt it very important that I tell my friends about this one. In her words this book “tells you to be the person you are supposed to be.” Another great lesson told in a unique, entertaining setting complete with adorable illustrations by Kimberly Shaw-Peterson.

ANNE of GREEN GABLES and ALICE in WONDERLAND (Classic Start Series) Sterling Publishing has successfully taken numerous classic novels and created abridged versions that allow young readers to capture the magic of the stories of great heroins like Anne Shirley without losing the integrity of the original work. Our Liza Jane reads at an advanced level for a seven year old and at times it is difficult to find her the perfect book. These delightful looks at the classics have provided an antidote! And I have loved being able to talk to her about some of my favorite literary characters. We’ll continue to read all of the books Sterling makes available in this format.

TOP TEN WAYS YOU KNOW YOU'RE READING A GOOD BOOK

1. You find yourself talking to the main characters because they “get you” more than anyone else in your life.
2. You receive a restraining order as a result of Twitter-stalking the author. Why wouldn’t they want to know you, their biggest fan?
3. You’ve decided to move your family to a rural town or glamorous city in order to live out the story you are reading. In fact, you have already contracted the realtor and given notice at work.
4. You forget that it is pay day and you should be storming the doors of Target in search of the Dollar Spot treasure you never knew you needed.
5. You’ve placed an order for the sequel or other works by that author before you even get to Chapter 3. If nothing is available, see #2.
6. You’ve chosen the book over chocolate, the reality TV you love but do not publicly acknowledge watching or drinks with friends.
7. You have publicly laughed, cried, snorted and/or blushed without realizing that you look like a crazy person on a park bench.
8. Your children have had time to form a pseudo-government that requires ice cream for every meal while you have been hiding in the bathroom reading.
9. You are faking an illness not only to miss work, but to also go into hiding away from friends and family. Who needs dialogue with real people anyway?
10. You have set out to purchase a wardrobe to match the one worn by your beloved protagonist. Note: if the setting of this book is Colonial America, you may end up with a sewing machine and need new friends.

Book quality is a topic that you’ve come to expect the Gutenberg Girls to dwell upon. Today, we tell a tale of two cities -- or rather, a tale of two book quality choices.

We begin with an un-solicited guest rant from a dear friend and reader, sharing her thoughts from her Hawaii home. Melissa is bilingual, an amazing mom, a fabulous friend and an avid reader. Her thoughts on the quality of a book are striking because 1.) she has no bias and 2.) she is a Nook owner -- so, when she buys a print book, the industry should cheer and know her expectations. With that introduction, I give you Melissa’s words:

I love reading. I love it so much, that I will read at a detriment to other things. I have skipped a shower, stayed up way too late, even made myself motion sick just to finish something. I read all kinds of medium as well: magazine, newspaper, hardback, paperback, whatever I can get my hands on as long as it interests me. The longer the read, however, the better I expect the physical product to be. It is totally my own fault if I choose to read something whose content is not interesting to me and I choose to put it down. Even that choice happens rarely. I usually choose to plow through it in hopes it will reveal some kind of goodness to me, but I digress. My real beef here is with poor quality materials. I recently purchased a book, that once I started reading it, I really enjoyed. I read the first 100 of about 700 pages, but haven’t touched it in over a week. Why, do you ask? It is a paperback with such a thin cover and binding and Bible-like paper that it takes away from the great story the author created. It is a tragedy. Skimping on product to make more profit, I am sure, seemed a good idea to all involved. Is it really, though, if no one wants it because it’s quality is so bad? I feel like every time I pick the book up I will rip a page turning it or when I get to the half way point in the book it will completely tear in half. I am now going to pay closer attention to the quality of product and not buy anything that seems so terribly flimsy. That is a shame. I will probably miss out on some great literature and many authors will miss out on readers because their publisher chose to be “cost efficient”. That will roll down hill, as they say, as well. That means less books for me to recommend and lend and create a following for that author. And all over some bad, bad, cheap paper. I guess I will carefully sit down now and lose time slowly turning pages so I can read the reverse side, if I can find the patience.

Point well made, right? Quality matters. In a contrasting story, I was struck by the high quality production of some books during the celebration of my daughter’s recent birthday. Our eldest, who shares that reading bug that brings us all together, has an affinity for the American Girl books. Her favorite is Addy, the young girl who brings my daughter the story of slavery and the American Civil War. Not only are we impressed by the content of the American Girl books, but the production value makes me absolutely ecstatic. High quality paper, solid binding, well appointed covers -- the entire package. This company takes their brand seriously, and extends the experience right to their books. Because of this, our Liza Jane will be able to pass those books on to her sister, her daughters (if her daddy ever lets her date, let alone marry), and on and on. I have no doubt the books will stand the test of time and commend their publisher for making high quality choices in production. In fact, I fully intend to stop by their booth at Book Expo America this year just to say “thank you”. Isn’t this the experience we, as consumers, should have with our books? And guess what? We will buy, without hesitations, many more American Girl books and products in the years to come! Their choice will pay dividends in future sales.

The experience in my house was “the best of times” (minus the cost of the accompanying American Girl doll on the credit card, but that is another story). Melissa’s story is “the worst of times.” In the end, I hope that anyone reading this who has a chance to speak up for the quality of the printed word feels compelled to do so. Let’s build a book we all want to hold, share and the will endear future generations to the printed word. Let’s chart a new course in publishing: one that will make books and readers that last.

Post by Melissa

Go ahead, judge me: I was one of "those people" who woke up at the crack of dawn (OK, dawn wouldn't crack until 2 hours after I had been awake with the TV on) this past Friday to watch the royal wedding. I have distinct memories of watching Charles and Diana's wedding with my mom when I was little, and being a huge fan of A) spectacle B) insane millinery, it was the perfect event for me. 

I'M NOT DONE CONFESSING THE CRAZY. The wedding was actually a culmination of my week-long binge of historical reading. As a part of my "Read My Shelf" reading challenge, I had several British history books that had been on my TBR pile for some time, and I decided this was the perfect time to crack the spines. In the past week, I read three books by British historian Alison Weir: THE LADY ELIZABETH, a novel about the young life of Elizabeth I from the time of the death of her mother Anne Boleyn until she became Queen; THE CAPTIVE QUEEN, a novel about the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine; MISTRESS OF THE MONARCHY, a biography of Katherine Swynford, a mistress of the Duke of Lancaster in the fourteenth century who became the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty. So as to not be a one-trick pony, I added a twist of France in the middle and read the novel MADAME TUSSAUD by Michelle Moran, the story of the French Revolution-era origin of the now ubiquitous wax model builder. 

I have long been a fan of Alison Weir's work, both her scholarly historical & biographical work as well as her more recent turn into historical fiction. I enjoyed Phillippa Gregory's THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL a few years ago, but her more recent books have been incredibly disappointing to me (shoddy storytelling and weak, cliche-riddled writing); I was concerned that Alison Weir would head down that same path, but I've been extremely engaged in her historical fiction work. It's well-written (with the exception of a few segments I found over the top in THE CAPTIVE QUEEN) and clearly informed by her impressive background as a scholar. Her books THE WIVES OF HENRY VIII and the follow-up THE CHILDREN OF HENRY VIII were amazing histories of Tudor-era England--the history you don't see on Showtime's version of events. In her historical fiction (the two books I read last week plus THE INNOCENT TRAITOR, a story of Lady Jane Grey, the 9 day queen of England) she is able to explore some alternative theories of events which would not be a part of a biographical work (one example: the idea that Elizabeth I was pregnant in her teen years.)   

MADAME TUSSAUD was engaging because it was a story of which I had absolutely no knowledge--the kitschy London & Times Square wax museums actually have roots in the French Revolution, where a talented wax modeler is forced to make death masks of the executed aristocrats. I am not well-educated in the French Revolution, so this book was a fascinating look at an extraordinarily volatile time in history. Similarly to Sofia Coppola's movie MARIE ANTOINETTE a few years ago, this book offers an extremely sympathetic view of the French royal family as not the "Let them eat cake" caricatures but rather as people caught up in a tornado of events beyond their control. 

I think I've gotten my Anglophilia out of my system, now that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have helicoptered out of the public eye--but if your British fever hasn't been quenched, I strongly urge you to check out the extensive work of Alison Weir, either fiction or non-fiction. If the French Revolution is more your speed, MADAME TUSSAUD is newly published and ready for purchase. 

It is because of the wonders of the internet that I found myself driving a winding country road in Vermont recently, filled with warm, gooey good feelings after one of the best weekends in the last few years. 

Two and a half years ago, I discovered the fantastic podcast/blog community Books on the Nightstand. I soon befriended the podcasters, Ann Kingman and Michael Kindness, and have been fortunate by virtue of the intersection of our day jobs (Ann and Michael at Random House, myself at Glatfelter which provides paper for many Random House titles) to be able to see them a few times a year at industry events. I'm not exaggerating when I say 90% of my book purchases are built from recommendations from the two of them, so much so that I've often thought about creating a household finance tab called "It's Books on the Nightstand's Fault".

Last fall, Ann and Michael got an idea to do a spring reading retreat in Vermont. I remember Ann saying that it would be nice if a few people came, perhaps as a stretch goal enough to fill the Inn at Manchester, a delightful bed & breakfast with a dozen rooms. I think they imagined a quiet little weekend where people sat on the green rocking chairs on the porch of the inn, reading books and occasionally stopping for a chat about what they were reading.

That idea was left in the dust when I stared out at the sea of faces mingling around the foyer of the Inn at Manchester on the first night of the retreat. Ann and Michael stood on the stairs to welcome almost 100 people from TWO continents (Hope from Australia was treated like a deity all weekend, rightfully so, as she is fantastic) to the first Books on the Nightstand Retreat. I was there with three friends from my own book club--the other Gutenberg Girl Laura, our co-worker Cara and the wife of one of our papermakers, Deana (photo at left.) Friday night was a welcome reception; Saturday featured a day's worth of author sessions--I attended sessions with Matthew Dicks, Susan Gregg Gilmore (photo, right, she is FANTASTIC, I wanted to put her in my pocket and carry her home with me!) and Chris Bohjalian--and Northshire Books store tours; and Sunday featured a fascinating panel with authors and industry professionals on the future of books and publishing.

There were enough highlights of the weekend to fill a book, so I won't exhaustively chronicle them here, but rather discuss some of the high points. 

• I was ready to chuck it all and move to Vermont. What a fabulous state. I imagined a day job making artisinal cheese and a weekend job at Northshire Bookstore. I'm still dreaming.
• I am thankful to Books on the Nightstand for introducing me to several new authors, most of whom I wouldn't have known of before this weekend. When you think that over a quarter-million books are traditionally-published in the US each year, it's sad to imagine of all the amazing work that we might never discover. This retreat allowed me to read authors that I might not have taken a chance on otherwise, by virtue of wanting to discuss their books with them live. Now that I've discovered great work by new voices, I'll seek those authors out in the future. (We will be featuring posts on some of them on the blog in the future.) I particularly fell in love with the books of Matthew and Susan and they will be on my new book watchlist from here onward.
• As Matthew Dicks said more eloquently than I could, "The authenticity of an inexperienced speaker will almost always overshadow the poise and polish of an experienced one." I watched first time authors, one not out until June, speak beautifully and with great humor about their books and their life. 
• There are few things more glee-inducing than an amazing bookstore. Northshire Books was our host for many events over the weekend. I have been fortunate to visit Northshire one other time, and it is a singularly fantastic bookstore. I urge you check them out if you're ever in the area, and if not--check out their fantastic website and buy a couple of books from them online. (They're also great to follow on Facebook.)
• I was reminded all weekend that, in the midst of publishing industry angst about what will happen with e-books vs. print books/traditional publishing vs. self-publishing/ ourselves that there are still people of all stripes, all over the world, who are dedicated to reading. The people at the retreat represented the pantheon of the current publishing community consumer--from their geography to genre preferences to reading media preference. I am grateful that we have a publishing community that discovers new authors and publishes their books.  

Saturday night's "Celebration of Authors" speeches were taped, and Ann and Michael are posting two of these each week on their podcast. Currently up are Matthew Dicks, Ellen Meeropool, Jon Clinch and Elizabeth Stuckey-French. I urge you to take a listen--there were some really moving and funny speeches of all manner of topics. 

Here are some notable links if you're interested in more information. I can't wait to do it again!! (ANN AND MICHAEL, THIS IS NOT EVEN A CAREFULLY VEILED HINT. IT'S OUTRIGHT. SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!)

• A list of the authors who attended the retreat--all of which are worth a look.
• The retreat spawned a book! "Two Books We Can't Wait For You To Read" is available from Northshire Bookstore's Espresso Book Machine. A great $12 investment. 
• BOTNS post with a photo of all the authors.
• Matthew Dicks' quite hilarious recap of the things he learned from the retreat. 
• A Shelf Awareness recap of the weekend from someone equally happy with the experience as I was.