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Skylight Books Newsletter

Los Angeles / March 2010                     www.skylightbooks.com
In This Issue - Events and News
Write Girl Teens Read from "Silhouette"
CalArts MFA Students
Robert S. Levinson
Lisa Lutz
DC Pierson
Robbie Conal
Jeff Garlin
Denise Hamilton, Gary Phillips, Susan Straight, Robert S. Levinson, Robert Ward, Jervey Tervalon, and Naomi Hirahara
Molly Wizenberg
Arthur Phillips
Skylight's Blog: Multimedia!
Book Groups: Graphic Novels
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Skylight Around Town: Join us for these Offsite events

These are just a few of the events we are selling books at this month
Tues, March 2 at 7:30pm
Writers
Bloc Presents

best selling author/NY Times columnist JUDITH WARNER in conversation with columnist CAITLIN FLANAGAN 

$20.  In Beverly Hills; for info/reservations: www.writersblocpresents
com

 

Fri, March 5 at 7:30pm

Zocalo Public Square presents author JOHN A. RICH discussing The Psychological Wounds of Urban Violence

 lfvbid holiday festival

FREE!  MOCA downtown

Info/reservations: www.zocalopublicsquare.org

 
Mon, March 15 at 7:30pm
Zocalo Public Square presents
TED CONOVER discussing How Roads Shape Our Lives at The Actors Gang in Culver City.
Info/reservations:
 
 

Thurs, March 18 at 6:45pm

Los Feliz Library presents its Architecture and Beyond series:

Landscape architect PATRICIA L. SMITH will discuss urban design and streetscape improvements.  Some of her recent projects include The Vermont Triangle Boulevard Garden, the Downtown South Pasadena Streetscape Improvements, and the Archive Landscape, Academy of Motion Pictures. 

FREE!   1874 Hillhurst (corner of Franklin). 

Info:   (323) 913-4710

Skylight Books January 2010 Bestsellers

Store Bestsellers

1. McSweeney's Issue 33 (The Panorama)
2. Just Kids by Patti Smith
3. Wild Child by T.C. Boyle
4. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
5. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
6. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris
7. A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
8. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
9. Point Omega by Don DeLillo
10. Game Change by John Heilemann

Event Bestsellers

1. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi Durrow
2. Life in the USA by Planaria Price and Euphronia Awakuni
3. The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris
4. This Time Tomorrow by Michael Jaime-Becerra
5. A Common Pornography by Kevin Sampsell
6. The Black Automaton by Douglas Kearney


Services
Shop Indie! Go to
IndieBound.org for some other indie bookstores and businesses
 
We Accept AmEx, MasterCard, Visa and Discover
 
Special Orders Welcome!
 
10% off all book purchases on your birthday
 
Senior Discount Tues before 4pm 
 
Frequent Buyer Program--ask us for details
 
Free Gift Wrapping
 
Gift Cards
 ____________________

March Events at Skylight Books  
 Kerry's View from the Skylight
 
We're on TV
With the goal of reaching new customers in these challenging times, Skylight Books has just created a TV Commercial!!  It's part of a test market program Time Warner Cable is doing with a number of small businesses.  The commercial itself was created by young filmmaker and 'friend of the store', Jamieson Fry and his crack production team, and it will air (starting this month) on numerous cable channels in the Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Echo Park, Eagle Rock, Highland Park, East L.A. and Hollywood Hills areas.  As this is a new adventure for us, I'd love to hear if you see it and any feedback you can give us.  We'll also put it on our website sometime this month so everyone can see it. 
 
Save the Library!
While we understand the City of L.A. is in a financial crisis and has to make a number of cuts, you may not realize the extent of the massive cuts planned for our local library system, which will lead to many fewer hours and services, and the likely closing of some branches.  For more information, and suggestions about what you can do: 
 
Have you visited IMIX bookstore in Eagle Rock recently? 
It's a unique, small neighborhood bookstore that can use a little extra hand right now.  Imix carries contemporary works of fiction and non-fiction from all over the Americas, bi-lingual children's books, special learning tools - as well as one-of-a-kind 'chucherias' from LA artists/artisans.  www.imixbooks.com

WRITE GIRL TEENS READ FROM 'SILHOUETTE'

Saturday, March 6 at 5:00 p.m.

Silhouette (Write Girl Publications)

lfvbid holiday festivalTeen girls from the Write Girl program will read from Silhouette, the new anthology of their work!

WriteGirl is a creative writing and mentoring non-profit for teen girls. Hear the authors read their original works. From tumultuous relationships to accordions to Hindu mythology, Silhouette covers a wide range of themes and genres, all told through the unique voices and perspectives of this diverse group. Join us. Get inspired!

CAL ARTS MFA STUDENTS
Saturday, March 13 at 5:00 p.m.

Kate Coltun, Nikki Darling, Sara Gerot, Tiffany Promise, Analisa Raya-Flores, and Sam Cohen, who are students in the CalArts MFA writing program, will read from their work.

more info...

ROBERT S. LEVINSON
Robert S. LevinsonTuesday, March 16 at 7:30 p.m.

The Traitor in Us All (Five Star)

A launch party for the latest book from Los Angeles crime fiction author Robert Levinson.

The cover art of this new book is a detail from an oil painting by James Strombotne, whose work hangs in major museums and private collections. The author and artist will be signing "limited edition" reproductions of the cover suitable for framing, with complimentary copies offered to the first 12 who attend and purchase the book at the event.

more info...
LISA LUTZ
Wednesday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m.

The Spellmans Strike Again (Simon & Schuster)

Lisa LutzNew York Times-bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author Lisa Lutz will be here to read from and sign her fourth and final installment in the uproarious and kooky Spellmans mystery series.

Lisa Lutz is the author of The Spellman Files, Curse of the Spellmans, and Revenge of the Spellmans. Although she attended UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, the University of Leeds in England, and San Francisco State University, she still does not have a bachelor's degree. Lisa spent most of the 1990s hopping through a string of low-paying odd jobs while writing and rewriting the screenplay Plan B, a mob comedy. After the film was made in 2000, she vowed she would never write another screenplay. A motion picture adaptation of The Spellman Files is in development with Paramount Pictures.

more info...
DC PIERSON
Saturday, March 20 at 5:00 p.m.

The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To (Simon & Schuster)

D C PiersonA launch party for the debut novel from DC Pierson, about the typical high school experience: the homework, the awkwardness, and the mutant creatures from another galaxy.

DC Pierson was born and raised in Phoenix, AZ.  He graduated from NYU's Dramatic Writing Department in 2007 with a degree in writing for television. His comedy group DERRICK made a feature film called "Mystery Team."  He publishes short stories and unsolicited opinions on his website, dcpierson.com.  This is his first novel.

more info...
ROBBIE CONAL
Sunday, March 21 at 5:00 p.m.

Not Your Typical Political Animal (Art Attack Press)

Robbie ConalPolitical artist Robbie Conal will be here to present Not Your Typical Political Animal, a humorous and soulful collection of 20 years worth of writings, drawings, and paintings featuring his political animal muses.

Robbie Conal has gained national prominence as the country's premiere street poster artist. Conal's work has been featured on CBS This Morning, Charlie Rose, and in Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, People Magazine, Interview, and scores of daily newspapers around the country. His books include Art Attack: The Midnight Politics of a Guerrilla Poster Artist (HarperCollins, 1992), Artburn (Akashic Books, 2003), and Not Your Typical Political Animal (Art Attack Press, 2010). He continues to teach drawing, work on new posters and paintings, and live in Los Angeles with his wife and their two cats, Smilla and Bodhi.


more info...
JEFF GARLIN
Thursday, March 25 at 7:30 p.m.

My Footprint: Carrying the Weight of the World (Simon Spotlight)

Jeff GarlinActor Jeff Garlin (Curb Your Enthusiasm) will be here to present his new book, in which he chronicles his year-long journey to reduce both his physical footprint (losing weight) and his carbon footprint (going green) in his laugh-out-loud self-experimental memoir.

Jeff Garlin is best known for his work on Curb Your Enthusiasm.  He also spent three seasons on NBC's Mad About You and has appeared on Arrested Development, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Late Show with David Letterman, The Daily Show with John Stewart, and WALL-E.

more info...
DENISE HAMILTON, GARY PHILLIPS,
SUSAN STRAIGHT,
ROBERT S. LEVINSON, ROBERT WARD,
JERVEY TERVALON, and NAOMI HIRAHARA
Saturday, March 27 at 5:00 p.m.

Los Angeles Noir 2: The Classics and Orange County Noir (Akashic)
Los Angeles Noir 2Orange County NoirSeven wonderful mystery writers will be here to present two new entrants in the very popular Akashic Noir anthology series: Los Angeles Noir 2 and Orange County Noir.  Editors Denise Hamilton and Gary Phillips and contributors Susan Straight, Robert S. Levinson, Robert Ward, Jervey Tervalon, and Naomi Hirahara will read from their work.

more info...
MOLLY WIZENBERG
Tuesday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m.

A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table (Simon & Schuster)

Molly WizenbergCreator of the popular and award-winning food blog Orangette, Molly Wizenberg will be here to discuss her new book, A Homemade Life.

"Molly Wizenberg writes with wit, style, and heart. Her delicious recipes are a special gift to every reader -- and home cook." --Barbara Fairchild, Editor-in-Chief, Bon Appetit Magazine

Molly Wizenberg is a freelance food writer and the creator of Orangette. She writes the monthly column "Cooking Life" in Bon Appetit, and her writing has also been featured in Modern Bride, Town & Country, and on NPR.org. She has degrees in human biology, French, and cultural anthropology, but in 2005, she left the world of academia to write full time.

more info...
ARTHUR PHILLIPS
Wednesday, March 31 at 7:30 p.m.

The Song Is You (Random House)

Arthur PhillipsWe're thrilled to have Arthur Phillips here to read from and sign the new-in-paperback novel The Song Is You, one of our Staff Favorites from 2009!

"One of the best writers in America." --Washington Post Book World

"Enthralling . . . brilliant . . . triumphant." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

Arthur Phillips is the internationally bestselling author of The Song is You, The Egyptologist, and Prague, which was a New York Times Notable Book and winner of the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction. He lives in New York with his wife and two sons.

more info...
Skylight's Blog:
MULTIMEDIA!
Find us at www.skylightbooks.blogspot.com

It's like a meeting of the AV Club on our blog!  We posted a book trailer for T.C. Boyle's new short story collection Wild Child (created by Jamieson Fry, who also filmed our store commercial, soon to be aired on Time Warner cable!). We posted photos from our Patti Smith event that were taken by customer Renee Faia. And we featured some recent podcasts from our author readings:

lfvbid holiday festivalSaturday, February 20, 2010
Meet Patti Smith, Joshua Ferris, Audrey Niffenegger, and others

We know that it's hard being you. You've got places to go, people to see, treasures to hunt down. Who has time to go see a reading nowadays, right?! Well friends, fret no longer. Thanks to the Skylight Books Author Reading Series podcasts you can now catch up with all of your favorite authors who have read at Skylight. Were you out of town when Patti Smith rocked the house? Go to http://www.skylightbooks.com/and look for our podcast on the right hand side of the page. Were you tending to your sick cat on the day that Joshua Ferris read so elegantly from his new novel, The Unnamed? Then hop over to the Itunes music store and look for Skylight Books. We should pop right up like a wonderful literary present. You can also go to our podcast page at http://skylightbooks.podbean.com/ to see who is who, and what they've done.

Read the rest of this post here, check on our blog regularly here, and join the discussion on Twitter by following skylightbooks!  We're on Facebook as skylightbooks, too.
BOOK GROUPS:
GRAPHIC NOVELS
 
Most book groups (at least the ones registered with our store) read prose novels.  And most of the books recommended in this space are same.  But we thought we'd change it up this time, and encourage all you book clubbers to try out a graphic novel this month. We've chosen three that are acclaimed, staff-endorsed, and full of things to discuss at your meeting.  Here are three picks:

LogicomixLogicomix written by Apostolos Doxindis and Christos H. Papadimitriou, art by Alecos Papadatos and Annie Di Donna

A particularly "thinky" selection. Logicomix is about the spiritual odyssey of Bertrand Russell and his quest for mathematical truth. "Reading Logicomix is like stumbling upon the best college class you never expected and settling down for enlightenment." --Boston Globe

Fun HomeFun Home by Alison Bechdel
In this graphic memoir, the author examines her relationship with her distant and exacting father. "A masterpiece about two people who live in the same house but different worlds, and their mysterious debts to each other." --Time, Ten Best Books of 2006

Asterios PolypAsterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli
Recently nominated for a 2009 Los Angeles Times Book Award, this gorgeously drawn book is the story of an architect who leaves New York City for a small town in the heartland. "It's a remarkable, bravura achievement--funny, harrowing and thought-provoking." --San Francisco Chronicle

If you have a book group but you're not registered with the store, remember that book groups that do register get 15% off their pick each month. E-mail Emily at [email protected] now to find out how to register your book group! You can check out our registered book groups here.
Skylight Books
1818 N Vermont Ave (between Hollywood Blvd and Franklin)
Los Angeles, CA 90027
323 660-1175
 
Next door to the Los Feliz Cinema and across the street from the Post Office (where you can park after 6pm)
 
metroWe are about 4 blocks north of the Vermont/Sunset subway stop and directly on many bus routes, including the Hollywood DASH.  Bicycle racks in front of the store.