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by Mo What garish, ghoulish, droolish, schoolgirlish little words of love sputter forth from the mouth of a longtime fan of Stephin Merritt? I could tell you about my first encounter with his music, circa 1996, and how Mr. Merritt, alongside his best gal Claudia and a host of similarly-minded accomplices, made spun-sugar pop and … Continue reading Stephin Merritt’s 101 Two-Letter Words
"You can't talk about the Pacific Northwest without talking about trees." Garth Stein, author of the acclaimed novel The Art of Racing in the Rain, is back with a new novel called A Sudden Light, which he characterizes as a "Pacific Northwest family saga non-traditional ghost story." We at BookPeople are excited to see Stein's … Continue reading Explore the Pacific Northwest With Garth Stein’s A Sudden Light
We’re happy to announce that the Statesman Selects pick for October is Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle. Darnielle is the singer-songwriter behind indie-rock favorite The Mountain Goats and is considered to be one of our greatest modern lyricists. (One BookPeople staffer's personal favorite MG lyric: "I was having visions of sugar pastry cooked … Continue reading Statesman Selects: Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle
by Mo Fact: children's books are illustrated. Always illustrated with gorgeous, resplendent drawings of overzealous butterfly larva, daughters of wealthy but absent parents allowed to maraud luxury hotels, and still rooms painted in primary colors. Children's books are ALWAYS ILLUSTRATED. FALSE. Enter B.J. Novak to take that patent assumption away from the book-loving … Continue reading B.J. Novak says NO to Pictures!
BEN White Girls by Hilton Als "Wonderful collection of essays from this year. Als explores identity within society and self. Intellectual, poetic, and Junot Diaz's must-read for the year." CAROLYN The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Ehrlich "Fantastic! This book was given to me by a friend. It is composed of diary entries that … Continue reading What We’re Reading This Week
by Mo* Anyone with literary inclinations awaits the announcements of the MacArthur Genius Awards each year with much excitement and a little envy. Who, in a moment of assessing one's own "genius," hasn't mentally paid off their student loans and bought new shoes and a modest three-bedroom home with their imaginary MacArthur grant? I was … Continue reading For Alison, With Love and Genius
The National Book Awards announced their poetry longlist this week. We at BookPeople are excited to promote poetry to our customers. Poetry is good for the soul, and here are six poets who are doing really well in the soul-goodness department. We highly encourage you to know, love, and cherish their work. This Blue … Continue reading The BookPeople Guide to the National Book Awards Poetry Longlist
Once every month, the sphere of reality that encompasses the cafe at BookPeople fragments and novas before collapsing in on itself and, to all but the most practiced eyes, seeming to return to normal. If you can read this message, though, you know that appearances can be deceiving, that time is sometimes more malleable than … Continue reading Tuesday night: Nightmare Factory Book Club reads 77 Shadow Street by Dean Koontz
JOHN G. Space Case by Stuart Gibbs "Space Case is the story of a boy who is among the first people to live on a colony on the moon. It turns out that moon living is not all it's cracked up to be. The food is horrible, there's only one bathroom for everyone, none … Continue reading What We’re Reading This Week
This is the final month in a series of author guest posts about diversity in children’s literature and the BookPeople Modern First Library initiative. We’ve enjoyed many posts by local Austin authors and now look forward to sharing guest posts written by national authors. For more about BookPeople’s Modern First Library initiative, and for more recommendations of wonderful … Continue reading Elizabeth Bluemle – Curiosity, Open Minds, Lively Interest
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