We prefer to keep this about books, the book business, and local issues, but let's face it. This election season is toxic to business and localities everywhere, and it isn't doing much for books either.
This is not an endorsement. This is not an opinion about particular politicians, any of them. It's a request. It's because we're frustrated too, and we don't like living in Frustrated!America any more than you do, and we want change, and we believe this is a way to get it.
#VoteDownticket.
Many of you don't like the presidential choices we have. Some of you are passionate about not voting for them. Some of you are passionate about not voting.
Here's the thing though. If anything will be different one, or two, or four years from now, your fellow citizens need you to vote this November for local officials, Representatives, and Senators to enact better laws and to push for systemic change. Your local vote matters. Your neighbors are counting on you to help them replace cronyism and corruption throughout our government with vision and hard work. That is why we need you to vote anyway, even if you only vote "downticket" - for national congress members and for state and local leaders.
Here in Iowa, we have one incumbent who has been criticized for slowing the confirmation process for a Supreme Court nominee. You should look for more information about this situation, and about some other judicial appointment delays under this committee chairship. Look at the candidate's other stances and values. Weigh them. Make a decision, and vote. It will affect the courts, and it will affect many, many other things in our nation and state. A lot depends on your vote in this non-Presidential race.
A Representative from this state has gained international notoriety for some comments on issues of race, women's health issues, funding measures, and more. Check his record on voting and think about whether this person will make the changes you want to see.
Citizens who want change, citizens who have insight and information about a variety of issues, and citizens who have strong leadership skills deserve a chance to run for office against our incumbents. Supporting their desire to represent you starts when you #VoteDownticket.
It's at the state and local levels that decisions get made about adequate education funding to ensure, among many other things, that our youth to learn how to turn community concerns into a "platform" during a "caucus" or "convention" - terms that mean everything to the functionality of the system we have, tools that are our current best option to create the country we want. Choosing state and local officials means that you need to know who is running, what they believe and who backs them, and then go to the polls and #VoteDownticket.
Do not discourage civic involvement by teaching all who want to participate in civic discourse that all politicians must be crooks. Instead, repeat the wise words of former leaders. Repeat your values. Repeat what you loved about a past candidate. Repeat the importance of responsibility. Don't repeat slander and slogans. Check your facts. Check your language. Don't advertise for any candidate you don't support. Don't adopt that candidate's strategies or terminology. Don't name what is wrong for the sake of being right about it. Say what is right for the sake of making right possible.
Repeat your hopes. Repeat your demands. Repeat your truth. Tell it until it seems possible, then do it until it is done. #VoteDownticket.
It's the internet. You want clicks; you want presence. That's fine. Start necessary conversations. Skip the shock and cut straight to learning and sharing your beliefs.
Why is this campaign so ugly? Some leaders made bad decisions, yes. But we must change the tone. Don't repeat the negatives. Don't use your voice, your audience to run a negative campaign. Don't let yourself be crowdsourced to speak for what you don't believe.
Say what you do believe. Say what we can do. Research, then share, options, links, ideas, emails, petitions. Research what is right when others share options with you. If you're angry because you believe this is no longer our election for our president, meet your representatives and say what we need to change.
Repeat ideas and solutions. Repeat ethics and demands. Repeat what you hope for America. Repeat who deserves your vote Nov. 8. #VoteDownticket.
"We hold these truths...." "Shall not perish from this earth...." "We have nothing to fear...." "I have a dream...." "Ask not what your country can do...." You know every one of these phrases. Each one means something to you. Maybe they mean different things to different people, but they are the words to which we turn when we think about our nation. What is America? Our words. We must choose them wisely. We must choose hope if we can find it, joy when we have it, truth when we need it, vision so that we can share it.
Choose to speak the nation in which we deserve to live.
#VoteDownticket.
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Monday, July 11, 2016
An Interview About Entrepreneurship
The Iowa Secretary of State's office has been interviewing small
business owners to demonstrate the range, success, and experience of
Iowan entrepreneurs. We were recently contacted by Erin Bunce, the
business services and social media intern with the office, who asked
some challenging and interesting questions about the store as a business. The owner,
Nialle Sylvan, responded, and since some the questions are ones that
business students and other young entrepreneurs have asked us as well, we
thought we'd share the full text of the interview.
Q: What does the word “entrepreneur” mean to you?
A: I know that literally, it means "to undertake a risk for a benefit", and I'm also acutely aware of the necessity of continuing to take risks to improve benefit. This means making investments - by taking out loans or spending what's in the operations account - in capital that I think I can resell at a profit, but to me, it also means thinking constantly about what value I add to the capital (books) and whether my capital is good for my community. I'm not interested in selling products or services that are used up and thrown away. I want people to feel that the value they get from my products and services are not just worth the price in dollars, but worth their time and effort and worth continuing to use or circulate. It may not rocket me to the top of the Forbes 500, but it's - well - sustainable. A mutual relationship of trust and value.
Q: Why did you buy this business?
A: Some people know they want to be teachers. Some people feel a calling to religious leadership. I saw a movie when I was a kid in which there was a beautiful old used-book store, and though I was sure I'd never have a chance to own one or even work in one, somehow everything I learned during my haphazard education and work experience contributed to my ability to buy and run a bookstore when I got the chance. Nobody who knew me was surprised by my choice, but everybody was sure I would fail. Maybe I will. Still doing pretty well after twelve years though.
Q: What is the ultimate goal for your business?
A: To have my youngest customers bring their children and grandchildren back to my retail bookstore because they still want my products - and because they want to share the experience of being here with the next generation.
Q: What is/was your greatest fear about getting into this industry?
A: At the beginning, my biggest fear was debt. Now, my biggest fear is debt. That's why I restructured my company as an LLC rather than a sole proprietorship and intend to find an "apprentice" or young partner who can build up at least 50% ownership before I retire. I'll beat the debt, and I won't pass it along.
Q: What is the biggest obstacle you faced in the beginning?
A: Nobody wanted to loan $45,000 to some 26-year-old office clerk to buy a used bookstore in the days of newspapers reporting 10% or worse failure rates per year for bookstores. I didn't blame them then and I don't now. Fortunately my grandfather knew I was smart enough and stubborn enough to succeed, so he loaned me the money. All I have today, I owe to his trust in me.
Q: How will your business support your community in five years? In 20 years?
A: My business' primary mission is to circulate books. That will never change. How we do it, what the experience of shopping in this retail bookstore is like, what other products and services we offer, to what degree we partner with neighboring businesses to facilitate a walkable shopping district and with local charities to decrease inequalities in our community - all these will change. In five years, we will probably not change the layout of the store, the types of books or sideline items, quality measures, or civic and charitable activity very much, but we're at the beginning of a shift in how we acquire inventory, and the challenge of the next five years will be to figure out how to continue to source our inventory from the local community, so that our acquisitions money continues to return directly to consumers in our area. Twenty years from now? I'd like to see us working not just to mentor my replacement as owner, but to help young people acquire the three things they need most to build a lasting business: affordable premises and overhead, mentorship and peer support networks, and investors like my grandfather.
Q: What do you think will be the most challenging obstacle you will have to overcome as The Haunted Bookshop continues to thrive?
A: Same one booksellers have been facing since bookselling: convincing people that they do have time to read, that it is valuable to do so, that they can afford and make space for books, and that the community of book owners and readers is one that would welcome them to their benefit. The special challenge of my century (unlike those of previous times, when church or government censorship, ethnic and religious conflict, poor public emergency services, etc. were big threats) will be the declining production quality of print books, which are seldom made to be reused now, and the declining variety of published work. My business, by its very nature, keeps better quality books in circulation, but we'll have to find charitable and possibly additional entrepreneurial methods to improve the physical book and to get innovative and diverse writers into print.
Q: What words of encouragement would you give someone who is on the fence about starting a business?
A: Be precise and realistic as you compute the cost of starting your enterprise, running it, and changing it, and get a thorough knowledge of the clientele you want and how much they would spend, how often, for products and services like yours. Then ask yourself how much you believe that what you offer has value and how good you are at sharing your belief. You're filling a niche and can explain the reason? Make sure your cost and income projections show a strong profit within six months. You have a passion, you have relevant experience, and you’ve already gotten other people excited about what you love? Double the projected earnings and file your business name, because the worst thing that can happen to you is that your first run won't work out, but you'll have learned how to make the second time better.
Q: If it is a family business, how is your family involved in the business now/in the future?
A. My family are not allowed to work within my business except in really peripheral ways, like mowing the grass outside the building. I will "adopt" people to "inherit" the business. That worked for Julius Caesar and the Five Good Emperors of Rome as well as nearly every successful bookstore I've seen or learned about, and it also keeps business out of my house, which makes my house more comfortable and keeps my household income sources diverse.
Q: What is the most rewarding part about owning your own business?
A: The look on people's faces when they smell the books, see the tidy rows of well-made wooden cases, hear the cat's greeting meow, and notice the comfortable chairs, lack of muzak, and occasional goofy touches like the little Poe doll next to a book with an ominous title, a silly cartoon taped to the shelves, an employee using a puppet to show children around the kids' room. Outside my door, almost every person I see is worried or tired, but - even if it's only for a moment when they first walk in - people show me their sense of wonder. My entrepreneurship was to take a loan and make a return on it. My job is to do the things that bring in the returns, from identifying the language and printing place of old immigrants' books to prioritizing building improvements. My life is helping people to feel that sense of wonder again, a little more often, a little more strongly, in the most loving way I can.
Q: What does the word “entrepreneur” mean to you?
A: I know that literally, it means "to undertake a risk for a benefit", and I'm also acutely aware of the necessity of continuing to take risks to improve benefit. This means making investments - by taking out loans or spending what's in the operations account - in capital that I think I can resell at a profit, but to me, it also means thinking constantly about what value I add to the capital (books) and whether my capital is good for my community. I'm not interested in selling products or services that are used up and thrown away. I want people to feel that the value they get from my products and services are not just worth the price in dollars, but worth their time and effort and worth continuing to use or circulate. It may not rocket me to the top of the Forbes 500, but it's - well - sustainable. A mutual relationship of trust and value.
Q: Why did you buy this business?
A: Some people know they want to be teachers. Some people feel a calling to religious leadership. I saw a movie when I was a kid in which there was a beautiful old used-book store, and though I was sure I'd never have a chance to own one or even work in one, somehow everything I learned during my haphazard education and work experience contributed to my ability to buy and run a bookstore when I got the chance. Nobody who knew me was surprised by my choice, but everybody was sure I would fail. Maybe I will. Still doing pretty well after twelve years though.
Q: What is the ultimate goal for your business?
A: To have my youngest customers bring their children and grandchildren back to my retail bookstore because they still want my products - and because they want to share the experience of being here with the next generation.
Q: What is/was your greatest fear about getting into this industry?
A: At the beginning, my biggest fear was debt. Now, my biggest fear is debt. That's why I restructured my company as an LLC rather than a sole proprietorship and intend to find an "apprentice" or young partner who can build up at least 50% ownership before I retire. I'll beat the debt, and I won't pass it along.
Q: What is the biggest obstacle you faced in the beginning?
A: Nobody wanted to loan $45,000 to some 26-year-old office clerk to buy a used bookstore in the days of newspapers reporting 10% or worse failure rates per year for bookstores. I didn't blame them then and I don't now. Fortunately my grandfather knew I was smart enough and stubborn enough to succeed, so he loaned me the money. All I have today, I owe to his trust in me.
Q: How will your business support your community in five years? In 20 years?
A: My business' primary mission is to circulate books. That will never change. How we do it, what the experience of shopping in this retail bookstore is like, what other products and services we offer, to what degree we partner with neighboring businesses to facilitate a walkable shopping district and with local charities to decrease inequalities in our community - all these will change. In five years, we will probably not change the layout of the store, the types of books or sideline items, quality measures, or civic and charitable activity very much, but we're at the beginning of a shift in how we acquire inventory, and the challenge of the next five years will be to figure out how to continue to source our inventory from the local community, so that our acquisitions money continues to return directly to consumers in our area. Twenty years from now? I'd like to see us working not just to mentor my replacement as owner, but to help young people acquire the three things they need most to build a lasting business: affordable premises and overhead, mentorship and peer support networks, and investors like my grandfather.
Q: What do you think will be the most challenging obstacle you will have to overcome as The Haunted Bookshop continues to thrive?
A: Same one booksellers have been facing since bookselling: convincing people that they do have time to read, that it is valuable to do so, that they can afford and make space for books, and that the community of book owners and readers is one that would welcome them to their benefit. The special challenge of my century (unlike those of previous times, when church or government censorship, ethnic and religious conflict, poor public emergency services, etc. were big threats) will be the declining production quality of print books, which are seldom made to be reused now, and the declining variety of published work. My business, by its very nature, keeps better quality books in circulation, but we'll have to find charitable and possibly additional entrepreneurial methods to improve the physical book and to get innovative and diverse writers into print.
Q: What words of encouragement would you give someone who is on the fence about starting a business?
A: Be precise and realistic as you compute the cost of starting your enterprise, running it, and changing it, and get a thorough knowledge of the clientele you want and how much they would spend, how often, for products and services like yours. Then ask yourself how much you believe that what you offer has value and how good you are at sharing your belief. You're filling a niche and can explain the reason? Make sure your cost and income projections show a strong profit within six months. You have a passion, you have relevant experience, and you’ve already gotten other people excited about what you love? Double the projected earnings and file your business name, because the worst thing that can happen to you is that your first run won't work out, but you'll have learned how to make the second time better.
Q: If it is a family business, how is your family involved in the business now/in the future?
A. My family are not allowed to work within my business except in really peripheral ways, like mowing the grass outside the building. I will "adopt" people to "inherit" the business. That worked for Julius Caesar and the Five Good Emperors of Rome as well as nearly every successful bookstore I've seen or learned about, and it also keeps business out of my house, which makes my house more comfortable and keeps my household income sources diverse.
Q: What is the most rewarding part about owning your own business?
A: The look on people's faces when they smell the books, see the tidy rows of well-made wooden cases, hear the cat's greeting meow, and notice the comfortable chairs, lack of muzak, and occasional goofy touches like the little Poe doll next to a book with an ominous title, a silly cartoon taped to the shelves, an employee using a puppet to show children around the kids' room. Outside my door, almost every person I see is worried or tired, but - even if it's only for a moment when they first walk in - people show me their sense of wonder. My entrepreneurship was to take a loan and make a return on it. My job is to do the things that bring in the returns, from identifying the language and printing place of old immigrants' books to prioritizing building improvements. My life is helping people to feel that sense of wonder again, a little more often, a little more strongly, in the most loving way I can.
Monday, September 7, 2015
The List of Never Giving Up, dedicated to Patrick Ness and his awesome friends and fans
People who write, make, read, and love books have done something really amazing since Thursday morning: Raising a MILLION dollars to help Syrian refugee children!
Well. Well, it's very nearly a million. See, we want to help raise the last $61,919.43. We're pledging $770 (because that's the same as £500), and we're trying to get 19 more bookshops to do the same, and then we'll match your $10,000, and then we'll be a third of the rest of the way so
Join the donation campaign here.
Meanwhile, let's celebrate the authors who have matched donations, raised money, and raised awareness! Here is a reading list of the authors who have made matching donations to help@Patrick_Ness and @savechildrenuk raise money for the Syrian refugees so far:
Patrick Ness – The Rest of Us Just Live Here – coming Oct. 6, 2015 – and the Chaos Walking series
Well. Well, it's very nearly a million. See, we want to help raise the last $61,919.43. We're pledging $770 (because that's the same as £500), and we're trying to get 19 more bookshops to do the same, and then we'll match your $10,000, and then we'll be a third of the rest of the way so
Join the donation campaign here.
Meanwhile, let's celebrate the authors who have matched donations, raised money, and raised awareness! Here is a reading list of the authors who have made matching donations to help
Patrick Ness – The Rest of Us Just Live Here – coming Oct. 6, 2015 – and the Chaos Walking series
John Green – The Fault in Our Stars, An Abundance of Katherines, Looking for Alaska
Derek Landy – The
Skulduggery Pleasant series
Jojo Moyes – One Plus One; After You (coming Sept. 29)
Hank Green – (VlogBrothers)
Rainbow Rowell – Attachments,
Eleanor & Park @rainbowrowell
Brendan Reichs – The Virals series
Ally Carter – The Gallagher Girls series, All Fall Down
Margaret Stohl – The Icons series
Jenny Han – P.S. I Still Love You, Shug
Shannon Hale – The Princess Academy series; the Books of Bayern series
Siobhan Vivian – The List, The Last Boy and Girl in the World
Richelle Mead – The Bloodlines series, Soundless (coming Nov. 10)
Gayle Forman – I Was Here, If I Stay
Ransom Riggs – Miss Peregrine’s Home
for Peculiar Children series
Allyson Noel – The Immortals series
Holly Black – The Modern Faerie Tale series, The Spiderwick Chronicles
Tahereh Mafi –
Shatter Me, Unravel Me, and Ignite Me
Marie Lu – The
Legend Trilogy and The Young Elites series
Melissa de la Cruz
– The Descendants series among many others
Sabaa Tahir – An
Ember in the Ashes series
Leigh Bardugo – The
Grisha Trilogy
Lauren DeStefano – A Curious Tale of the In-between
Pseudonymous Bosch
– These book titles are secret, duh.
David Levithan – Another Day, Boy Meets Boy
Libba Bray – Lair of Dreams
Lauren Oliver – Curiosity House: The Shrunken Head
Jacqueline Woodson
– Brown Girl Dreaming (Newbery Honor
Book)
Alexandra Bracken –
The Darkest Minds Series
IW Gregorio – None of the Above
Stacey Lee – Under a Painted Sky
Rachel Cohn – The Steps
Maureen Johnson –
The Shades of London series
Rosamund Lupton – The Quality of Silence
David Nicholls – Us: A Novel
Louisa Young – The Heroes’ Welcome
Andersen Press – Hippospotamus, Elephants Can’t Jump, Cat
& Dog, and more
Marian Keyes – The Woman Who Stole My Life
Francesca Simon –
The Horrid Henry series
Jill Mansell – Falling for You
Anita Anand – Swing in the House and Other Stories
Jessie Burton – The Miniaturist
Cressida Cowell –
The How to Train Your Dragon series
Anthony Horowitz –
The Alex Rider series; Moriarty
Philip Pullman –
His Dark Materials
John Dougherty –
the Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face books
Paula Hawkins – The Girl on the Train
Suzanne Collins – The
Hunger Games trilogy
Egmont Press – The
Ant & Bee books
Garth Nix – The Abhorsen Trilogy, The Keys to the Kingdom, Shade's Children
Latest news update comes from Publishers' Weekly, Sep. 8, but don't read the last paragraph if you haven't finished Ness' Chaos Walking series yet, because it contains a big spoiler. (For shame, PW! ;) )
Don't forget to update us if we've missed someone! Authors and publishers, we'd be happy to change or update your links or to list a different title or series. Readers, OF COURSE you can discuss the books in the comments. Please do!
Garth Nix – The Abhorsen Trilogy, The Keys to the Kingdom, Shade's Children
Latest news update comes from Publishers' Weekly, Sep. 8, but don't read the last paragraph if you haven't finished Ness' Chaos Walking series yet, because it contains a big spoiler. (For shame, PW! ;) )
Don't forget to update us if we've missed someone! Authors and publishers, we'd be happy to change or update your links or to list a different title or series. Readers, OF COURSE you can discuss the books in the comments. Please do!
The Authors, Publishers, and Readers Changing #SyrianRefugees Lives
Author Patrick Ness (The Knife of Never Letting Go, The Rest of Us Just Live Here) was watching the news as people, cities, and governments turned away Syrian refugees. He wanted to do something about it.
Huthaifa Shqeirat "To understand the sheer scale of the Syrian refugee situation, here's a picture of a Syrian refugee camp in Jordan."
So Patrick Ness decided to do something. He started a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for Save the Children, a respected charity, and promised to match whatever his fans and friends could raise, up to £10,000. Click here to see what happened.
The Syrian refugees and Patrick Ness had more friends than they
knew. Within hours, Ness had three more authors, then Hank Green of
Vlogbrothers, and then authors' organizations, publishers, bookshops,
and more contributing or offering to match contributions. We gave what
we could. We encouraged others. But most of all, we want you to know
what a staggering difference people who create and love books can make.
As I write this, over 5700 donors have raised over £500,000.00.
UK donors can ask that their government add in Gift Aid, which is kind
of like a British national donation-matching program, and there are more
pledges from authors, publishers, bookshops, and others to contribute
matching gifts or to donate the proceeds of fundraisers they're hosting.
The net in USA dollars? $954,217. Ness started this
campaign Thursday, September 3. Readers like you, authors like you,
concerned world people like you raised a million dollars in five days.
There's more to do. Look at that camp above. Those people need
water, food, blankets, waste disposal, clothes, legal aid, jobs, new
homes. It may seem like you can't possibly do enough. But you can do
something. You can click here and contribute. From the child who gave her £3 in pocket money to author Philip Pullman
matching £10,000 and drawing £5,000 more from his Bellacqua Charitable
Trust, people are helping. Let's make it a movement. Let's show the
Syrians that readers and writers and publishers and illustrators and
bookshops and libraries are people and places of compassion, and that we
will do what we can to see them to safety and maybe, even, real hope.
Click and pass it on: This is the link to this charitable campaign.
Click and pass it on: This is the link to this charitable campaign.
Meanwhile, you can do one more thing. If you're in the Iowa City area, you can call here or Uptown Bill's or Prairie Lights or check at Iowa City Public Library - or if you're elsewhere, at your local library or on IndieBound.org or Biblio.com
- great places to find books from independent bookshops - and look for
books by these authors, each of whom have joined this project, and each
of whom we admire and recommend....
The List of Authors Helping Patrick Ness Raise Money for Syrians - and Their Books!
(We're sure there will be more, and we'll be happy to expand this list. If we missed an author or publisher, or if you would like for us to add a link to your author or publisher homepage or recommend a particular title of yours, just drop us an email!)
The List of Authors Helping Patrick Ness Raise Money for Syrians - and Their Books!
(We're sure there will be more, and we'll be happy to expand this list. If we missed an author or publisher, or if you would like for us to add a link to your author or publisher homepage or recommend a particular title of yours, just drop us an email!)
Read these books. Read because when we read, we discover we
are not alone. Read because when we read, we learn about other people,
and we learn how to imagine their lives and homes. Read because reading
teaches personal stories, useful information, important ideas, and
compassion. Read because we all need to look at the world from a
different angle - or another world from another angle - sometimes. Read
these authors because they are showing us how to be good people in a
hard time, and that makes them really special.
With thanks, love, and our best wishes and efforts to the refugees,
The Haunted Bookshop
With thanks, love, and our best wishes and efforts to the refugees,
The Haunted Bookshop
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Selling Tips for July
July has arrived, and with it the busiest season for the book buying team at the Haunted. Here are a few reminders and tips about selling your books to save you time and maximize your return:
______________________________________________________
1. The buying team is available from 11am-4pm, Monday-Saturday. (Shopping? Don't worry, the store is still open 10-8 Mon-Sat and 11-7 on Sunday.)
2. If you're on a tight schedule, please consider calling ahead (319-337-2996) to check wait times in case there is a line. We do not allow you to leave your books here if you need to be elsewhere. We will look at your books and offer a price while you wait.
3. When calling ahead or setting an appointment during buying hours, please be accurate about your number of boxes/bags. Be aware that we can't make a firm estimate for your books over the phone - we need to see the books to calculate our offer. We can give you guidelines about what we are and are not accepting and whether they are the kind of thing for which we pay at a higher rate, but not dollar figures.
4. To save yourself and other patrons time and effort, please pre-sort your books.
6. Yes, we do sometimes visit collections offsite. At this time, most appointment slots for July have been filled, and we would like to save the remaining ones for those of our patrons who have mobility concerns and/or large collections (more than 700 books, which is between 20-30 shelves or paper-sized/cubic-foot boxes).
7. Rudeness to other patrons, blocking access at the back of the building, foul language, or inappropriate treatment of staff will not be tolerated. We understand that pressure happens, but we expect you to offer your best to others while we are doing our best for you.
Let's all be helpful to one another during this busy season so that you can get through as smoothly as possible and so that we can serve as many patrons as possible. We sincerely appreciate your taking the time to read this, and double bonus hero points and thanks to those of you who are helping others sort, box, carry, drive, and keep cool this July.
DON'T FORGET: WE'RE AT 219 N GILBERT STREET. That's halfway between Market and Bloomington.
______________________________________________________
1. The buying team is available from 11am-4pm, Monday-Saturday. (Shopping? Don't worry, the store is still open 10-8 Mon-Sat and 11-7 on Sunday.)
2. If you're on a tight schedule, please consider calling ahead (319-337-2996) to check wait times in case there is a line. We do not allow you to leave your books here if you need to be elsewhere. We will look at your books and offer a price while you wait.
3. When calling ahead or setting an appointment during buying hours, please be accurate about your number of boxes/bags. Be aware that we can't make a firm estimate for your books over the phone - we need to see the books to calculate our offer. We can give you guidelines about what we are and are not accepting and whether they are the kind of thing for which we pay at a higher rate, but not dollar figures.
4. To save yourself and other patrons time and effort, please pre-sort your books.
- We never accept former library books, books with mold, mildew, water, or other liquid damage, highlighted books, or any general-market books with missing dustjackets or damaged binding.
- We do buy some books that are used as textbooks, especially in the humanities (literature, philosophy, religion, history, cultural studies, languages, etc.), but we do not buy textbooks like "Chemistry 7th Edition" or "Archaeology Annual 2010."
- We are not buying westerns, romance novels, or book club editions, and we are not buying very many bestsellers in hardcover at this time.
- We do not buy encyclopedias, magazines, journals, CDs, LPs, or DVDs (unless a CD or DVD is supposed to come with a book).
6. Yes, we do sometimes visit collections offsite. At this time, most appointment slots for July have been filled, and we would like to save the remaining ones for those of our patrons who have mobility concerns and/or large collections (more than 700 books, which is between 20-30 shelves or paper-sized/cubic-foot boxes).
7. Rudeness to other patrons, blocking access at the back of the building, foul language, or inappropriate treatment of staff will not be tolerated. We understand that pressure happens, but we expect you to offer your best to others while we are doing our best for you.
Let's all be helpful to one another during this busy season so that you can get through as smoothly as possible and so that we can serve as many patrons as possible. We sincerely appreciate your taking the time to read this, and double bonus hero points and thanks to those of you who are helping others sort, box, carry, drive, and keep cool this July.
DON'T FORGET: WE'RE AT 219 N GILBERT STREET. That's halfway between Market and Bloomington.
Saturday, October 25, 2014
New Apartment: A Silly Allegory
CAVEAT: As (we hope) most of you are aware, we carry physical books and not e-books, but this is neither because we're Luddites or because we're counterrevolutionaries. In fact, we don't feel the need to doomsay one medium or the other, because - they're different media. They're great for different things. We do have concerns about a certain monopsony involved in both physical and e-books, but that's different, and it's not something we're weepy and flaily about - it's something to reason out for policy purposes.
Meanwhile, we have every reason to believe that our medium, the physical book, is wonderful and practical, and we're also not adverse to poking fun at the monopsony and its product, which as we all know has room for improvement. This is a joke one person here wrote for a friend. Laugh or don't, but let's not argue. Thanks.
Meanwhile, we have every reason to believe that our medium, the physical book, is wonderful and practical, and we're also not adverse to poking fun at the monopsony and its product, which as we all know has room for improvement. This is a joke one person here wrote for a friend. Laugh or don't, but let's not argue. Thanks.
So glad I'm switching to Kindle Apartment - elevator is just $185 and rooms $9.95 each - as long as I don't enter them more than 10 times.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Elevator also has to be replaced every 18mos. because upgrades for my personal data safety. Conveniently for me as consumer, however,
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Kindle tracks how much time I spend in elevator, how many trips to my apartment, time spent in each room, and can recommend new rooms for me.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Got rid of my big, clumsy house. Can replace all my rooms for a fraction of the price. What could possibly go wrong? Kindle Apartment!
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Well, now I have to buy Elevator 4.3 if I want Enhanced Data Protection, $280, hope it doesn't rain or that I can get it insured cheaply.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
I can buy an anti-subscription to Elevator Music, the company that supplies the ads I have to watch before I can leave the elevator. $5/mo.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
We have to watch ads for room-themed products to get the doorknobs to turn now, and rooms sometimes go dark so walls can play ads randomly.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Laundry Room is no longer available because it wasn't popular with men aged 18-24, so ads show us where to buy cheap new clothes every week.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
We can get Kitchen 2.2 for better antibacterial function but the problem is that appliances are sold separately, same price as the room. WTF
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
We don't even want Kitchen 2.2 but Kitchen 2.1 will no longer be supported after Elevator 4.3. Then it rained on our Elevator. $280, and
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
because we got a new Elevator 4.4, we have to get Kitchen 2.2, $9.95, and anti-subscription to Elevator Music is nontransferrable, $5 more!
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
At least Coffee Table 3.6 (not sold with Living Room) doubles as a phone for just $60/mo and we can bundle it with cable/internet for $100
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
We can only buy food for Kitchen 2.2 from the company that makes Kindle Apartment. And they don't offer wheat bagels because they aren't
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
popular with women aged 24-45, but "print" wheat bagels can't be brought in through Elevator 4.3. We can only eat them outside. Except the
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
bakery is out of business. When did that happen? And leaving feedback about not being able to get competitors' e-bagels didn't do anything.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
It's like they're all, if you can't stand the bagels, get out of Kindle Kitchen. BUT I CAN'T. Because I can't afford to buy all new Nook
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Apartment and Nook Rooms and Nook Anti-Ads and Nook Personal Security and Nook Appliances. Anyway who has Nook Apartment? Or Kobo! Wevs!
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
I just did the math. Getting a whole new Kindle Apartment with the stuff that came with my original = $78,000. WHAT. I can't even
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
get $100 for my Kindle Elevator on eBay anymore now that Elevator 4.5 is out. And I don't even have the $71,000 for a Nook Apartment.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Because I lost my job as an independent interior decorator because everyone switched to Kindle. </allegory>
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
SPECIAL PREVIEW of sequel to "Kindle Apartment Allegory": "The Smartest Guys and My Rooms"....
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
"Why didn't anyone read the quarterly reports? Why didn't my stock broker tell me the company was undercapitalized? I have to liquidate
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
my portfolio so I can buy a new place to live, but nobody can get Kindle Anything now that the company is in Chapter 11, and anyone who
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
actually needs a place to live is driving up prices for Real Rent and Real Houses, which are all owned by the same company now...."
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
But seriously. "Kindle Odyssey" will really take the company out of its element; should've been "Kindle Inferno." #epicjokes #sorrynotsorry
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) October 25, 2014
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Afternoon movie: This #Bookshop, starring The Cat as The Cat's Stunt Double. Some say nap ending is too artsy, but chase scene=worth ticket.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) August 13, 2014
Saturday, June 7, 2014
What do you mean "Can libraries stay relevant"?!
RT @DMRegister "Can public libraries stay relevant in the digital age?" Devices, ebooks aren't free. Without libraries, we aren't either.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Libraries that provide access to books and other media are essential in times of underfunded schools, unverified 'facts.' #educationforall
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Libraries can serve as homes for books not lucrative at the moment, but needed for the future #books #education #curators #stewardship
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Librarians are cultural #historians, #educators, #mentors, curators, researchers, good #neighbors, fellow readers - people we need to know.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Libraries relevant? Do you want uninformed people #voting for the greater evil next #election? No? Help your library serve your #Community
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Libraries relevant? Do you think everyone should have access to all the #information? Great. Keep libraries open. With #books in them.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
#Libraries relevant? Do you think your town's small-print-run 1860 #history is on Nook? You don't care? Somebody does. Keep it at a library.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
Only when all data are free, on free bandwidth, on free devices, for everyone, will physical #libraries be less than vital to civilization.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
PS, how about funding #libraries based on population served, rather than circulation numbers. So they can afford to provide what's RELEVANT.
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
...Though live it may be
there is no fruit on it.
Therefore chop it down
and use the wood
against this biting cold.
-WilliamCarlosWilliams
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
Don't know why "The Bare Tree" by Williams is relevant to these tweets about #libraries? Ask a #poet, a #teacher, or try your local #library
— The Haunted Bookshop (@BookshopGhost) June 7, 2014
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