librarians

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Happy Thanksgiving – It’s Time for Loved Ones, Turkey, and Book Club!

 

A warm welcome goes out to Chris Connolly, the new addition to the Library Love Fest team, as we talk about great book club picks for November.  Now let’s get to the books!

Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash: “Combining suspense with acute observations and flashing insights, Rash tells a seductive and disquieting tale about our intrinsic attachment to and disastrous abuse of the land and our betrayal of our best selves.” —Booklist starred review

The Uninvited by Cat Winters: “The Uninvited is an affecting novel, dark in fiction and in fact. Set in 1918 against the parallel epidemics of the Spanish influenza and an equally terrifying strain of “superpatriotism,” Cat Winters’ latest offers resonant characters, a stunning twist, and an emotional, satisfying conclusion.” —Michelle Gable, international bestselling author of A Paris Apartment

If you’ve read these titles and love them as much as we do, let us know!  If you haven’t yet read them but would like to find out more…let us know again! Give us a shout at librarylovefest@harpercollins.com. 

–The LLF Team

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Guest Review: Russian Winter

Is there anything better than recommending a book you adore, and finding out you've made a great match? Doubtful! This year, I've been book-talking Daphne Kalotay's luminous debut Russian Winter, and nothing makes me happier than hearing back from excited librarians afterwards.  Check out this guest blog from Juliann M. Janovicz, Head of Adult Services at the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library District.  Juli writes:

9780061962165_0_Cover I managed to miss the prepublication publicity for this novel and the advanced reading copy from Baker & Taylor.  I was unaware of the book until the @harperlibrary reps talked about the title at an Early Word galley chat (*ewgc) on Twitter.  I’m happy I stopped in to chat because they sent me a copy of Russian Winter and tipped me off to a great title to recommend for the fall.  I couldn’t put it down.

Russian Winter provides a view of the life of the intellectual elite in the Soviet Union under Stalin.  Focusing on the life of a prima ballerina in the Bolshoi Ballet, Kalotay offers a glimpse into the privileged world of the dancers, poets and musicians who created art within the Soviet regime despite fear of punishment for straying outside of the prescribed code of political behavior.  The author makes this historical period come alive by weaving this past into the present.

Kalotay’s main character is retired ballerina Nina Revskaya who fled Soviet Russia and settled in the United States. Nearing eighty and living in Boston, Nina has decided to auction her substantial jewelry collection with the proceeds benefiting the Boston Ballet Foundation. The auction catalog descriptions for each piece of jewelry set off chapters in the book. The catalog descriptions are catalysts, taking the reader and Nina further into the past. As the auction date nears, Nina is forced to confront memories and secrets that are intertwined with the jewels.

Russian Winter defies categorization.  It is a literary novel that is part mystery and part historical.  It has the ingredients that pull readers in: love, passion, betrayal, jealousy, loss and redemption. Daphne Kalotay has written a book that I look forward to recommending for a long time to come.

Juli Janovicz is the Head of Adult Services at Winnetka–Northfield Public Library District in Winnetka, IL. She is also the Coordinator of One Book Two Villages www.onebooktwovillages.org.  She can be reached at julij@winnetkalibrary.org or www.twitter.com/@libraryj

-Kayleigh

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The Word Made Flesh: Follow Up

Last week we got a stellar assortment of librarian tattoos, from old and new friends alike.  Why all the interest in your tats? We're a curious bunch, but more importantly, we're celebrating the release of The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos from Bookworms Worldwide.   Enough talk: on to the tattoos.  Here's the second batch!

First up: S. Brady Shuman, of Buswell Library in Saint Louis.

Brady tat

Sweet Briar College Library's Julie Kane has this one.

Tattoo

And last, but not least, Amelia Klem Osterud, academic librarian (and author) from Wisconsin.

IMG_1064

Thanks to everyone who sent in pictures!

-Kayleigh

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The Word Made Flesh: Your Submissions

Wow, in less than a day, we got a fabulous batch of tattoos from our librarian pals, particularly those on Twitter.  We're still taking your photos in exchange for copies of The Word Made Flesh, so keep 'em coming! To kick us off, we've got a tattoo that was featured in the book itself, from one of our all-time favorite Library Marketers, Ben Rubinstein (@benrubinstein).  Seriously, Ben is the coolest and kind of has the best taste in genre fiction, poetry, and music.  Just sayin'.  Here's his tat:

Ben Rubinstein
 
 Next up, we've got Kristi (@booksnyarn)…

Autumnlady
 
Reference Librarian Carol (@Oleanpublibrary) sent us this one, inked in honor of her late Father…

PA150030
 Holly's most recent tat (@hollychrome)…

Photo
And two tats from Reference Librarian Jen, also from the Olean PL!

Phoenix
 
Quill_tat
Lastly (for now), JustinLibrarian sent us a link to his website's Flickr page, which has several photos of "branded" librarians.  Librarians, I salute you.  You are bad-ass and erudite: a lethal combination. 

Cheers,

Kayleigh  
 
 

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Fair Trade: A book for a tattoo!

9780062042538 Librarians are no strangers to tattoos, so with that in mind, here’s a book you might want to know about.  The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos from Bookworms Worldwide is a full-color, beautifully packaged collection of literary tattoos and short personal essays in the vein of confessional books such as PostSecret and Not Quite What I Was Planning.

Got a tattoo you’d like to show us?  Send a picture of your permanent ink (which we’ll post here) and we’ll send copy of THE WORD MADE FLESH to you!  Deal?

-Virginia
Librarylovefest AT harpercollins DOT com 

Ebooks, Librarians, Libraries, Library Journal

Library Journal’s Ebook Summit: What I Learned

LJI am the resident 20something, and coincidentally, the youngest member of the Library Marketing team here at Harper.  I worked in a library in high school, and from youth, I’ve been a devotee of stacks, musty books, microfiche, book carts…the classic trappings of the library world.  But there’s so much more to it nowadays.  I’ve been back to my old hometown library, Patchogue Medford Library, and after a mere 7 years, it’s barely recognizable.   

With the increasing digitization of our world, the way we read is changing on a fundamental level.  And it’s left many of us—myself included—with mixed feelings. Kevin Kelly, of Wired Magazine, spoke glowingly of a shift from ownership to access, of sharing increasing the value of the books we love.  Eli Neiburger put a different spin on it, succinctly stating, “Libraries are screwed.”
 
It’s overwhelming sometimes, trying to gain perspective on concrete things, as well as the more ephemeral implications of ebooks, like the way a “read” changes when the format is electronic.   In a wonderful panel on Readers Advisory, Neal Wyatt, Duncan Smith, and Katie Dunneback discussed the changing “appeal” of a book in digital form.  The perks to reading on an ereader  are, when reversed, also its detractions.  For instance, if you interrupt your reading to click on a live link in the text, aren’t you disrupting a pace that was previously determined by the author? Does the experience become less “private,” less “personal,” as it becomes more interactive?  I have a lot of questions, and I know you do too. 

My biggest question: what can we, as publishers, do better when it comes to ebooks and libraries? Where do you stand in the digital divide?

At the end of the day, information matters—in any form, whether it’s an ebook or print.  Suffice it to say, Library Journal’s Ebook Summit was helpful on many levels.  We’d love to hear what you think in the comments.

-Kayleigh

Books, Collection Development, Libraries, Marilyn Johnson, The Desk Set, This Book is Overdue!

This Book is Overdue!

ThisBookIsOverdue hc c The buzz continues to grow for This Book is Overdue: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson.   Due out in February, this book explores the role of librarians today and focuses on the increasing demands to keep up with the onslaught of new technology.  This book is an homage to librarians everywhere – and it is long overdue! Check out this interesting Q&A the author did with The Desk Set, a site written by ‘a group of New York City area librarians, archivists, bibliophiles and other bookish types,’ and be sure to read the first chapter here.  
 
-Virginia

Books, Katie Pearl, Nancy Pearl

Nancy Pearl Benefit Brunch

Nancy pearl Nancy Pearl, everyone’s favorite librarian action figure and all-around amazing booktalker is going to be the guest of honor at a fundraising brunch in Brooklyn, NY! The event is a benefit for a new show entitled Terrible Things which is about Nancy’s pre-action figure life!  The show is written by and starring her daughter, Katie Pearl. See below for more info on the benefit and the show!

You are invited to Brunch with
Nancy Pearl
Librarian, Action Figure, and Book Recommender to the World!

Saturday November 21st 11-1:30pm
   At the Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn Heights, NY

   To benefit the upcoming production of
TERRIBLE THINGS
   A new performance by Katie Pearl and Lisa D’Amour
   Premiering 12/4-12/20 at Performance Space 122, NYC
  

When you join us, you will:
Feast on local eats, coffee and cocktails
Indulge in book lust and conversation with Nancy Pearl
Luxuriate in the Cathedral-esque wonderland of the historic Packer School
SNEAK-A-PEAK at Nancy's OBIE Award-winning daughter's new performance, featuring stories from Nancy's pre-action figure life!

TO GET YOUR TICKETS TO THE BENEFIT BRUNCH WITH NANCY, CLICK HERE:
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/87806
 
Ticket Information:
$35 – one ticket to the benefit ($20 rate available for students, artists, and the unemployed)
$50 – one ticket to the benefit, PLUS a ticket to opening weekend of TERRIBLE THINGS
$85 (15% off!) – two tickets to the benefit, PLUS two tickets to opening weekend of TERRIBLE THINGS
$250 – two tickets to the benefit, two tickets to any night of TERRIBLE THINGS, plus a one-on-one get together with Nancy!
   

The OBIE-Award winning team of PearlDamour turns PS122 into a low-rent IMAX in their newest dance theater piece TERRIBLE THINGS. Let them take you on a T-R-I-P inside the quarks, molecules, and memories of  Katie Pearl and her Action Figure Mom.  CLICK HERE for more info on the show, or visit us at PearlDarmour.com.

Hope to see you there!
-Virginia

Blog Talk Radio, Books, Cooking, Katherine Hall Page, Libraries, The Body in the Sleigh

The Body in the Sleigh

9780061474255 The Body in the Sleigh, Katherine Hall Page’s 18th book in the Faith Fairchild mystery series goes on sale today.

This is a terrific page-turner that’ll keep you in your seat. Aside from the terrific plot, beautiful setting, wonderful characters and yummy easy-to-make recipes, the book has one more thing going for it:

It’s dedicated to librarians.

Read Katherine’s love letter to librarians which appears at the back of The Body in the Sleigh as well as on her website.  It’s heartfelt and beautiful.

If you’d like to write a review of this book, send us an email at librarylovefest dot harpercollins dot com and we’ll send you a copy.  I’ll be speaking with the author later today (Tuesday, October 27th at 3:00pm EST) on  Blog Talk Radio.  Write or call in with a question for Katherine, and be sure to register before the show starts.

Hope you can listen in. Thanks!

-Virginia

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