Two locally owned, independent stores dedicated to providing our customers with an interesting, eclectic selection of books and the finest coffee available. |
Wow! What a great summer! From an early start in June to the festive atmosphere of Fourth of July the whole way to now when we're starting to wind down, it was a terrific year. And we're looking to forward to a wonderful Fall with music festivals, triathlons, marathons, and more..
we hope your summer was as good as ours and that you are holding your breath along with us now that the peak of you-know-what season has arrived! |
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Between the Lines
 My MUST READ this month is Blackwood by Gwenda Bond. Technically, it comes out on September 4, but we were fortunate to host Gwenda for a pre-release signing earlier this month! Blackwood is a YA title that will have appeal to the adult market as well. The entire book is set on present day Roanoke Island where 114 people disappear over night. If that number sounds familiar, its because it is the same number of people who vanished as part of the Lost Colony and the modern day mystery ties in to the historical one nicely. A pair of teens whose families both trace their descendents back to 1587 connect to try and figure out what is going on, before everything they know is lost. Two thumbs up!
Popular hardback titles right now are The Light Between the Oceans (M.I. Stedman), The Dog Stars (Peter Heller), and Gone Girl (still). Also had a lot of requests for Monkey Mind, Daniel Smith's 'Memoir of Anxiety'. I'd like to find time for The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce about a recently retired man who decides to walk 600 miles to deliver a final message to a dying friend. Sensing a Major Pettigrew factor here, but maybe that's the jacket quote by Helen Simonson.
Highly recommend Mason's Retreat by Christopher Tilghman. This 1996 novel takes place on the Eastern Shore of Maryland just before WW2. Edward Mason has come limping back from England, where he's made a mess of things again, with his wife and two children to the dilapidated ancestral estate he lucked into inheriting. He's looking for redemption, his wife just wants to be happy. Both Paige and I liked this as did Manteo bookworm Wayne Gray. Reminded me a lot of Sinclair Lewis. Tilghman's 'prequel' hardback The Right Hand Shore is on my night stand right now.
A few more titles experiencing a resurgence are David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas (Tom Hanks stars in the film version of this coming in October), Catching Fire and Mockingjay are hot again after the movie Hunger Games came out on DVD last week, also author John Hart's novels- Iron House, The Last Child and Down River are proving hard to keep in stock. Nicholas Spark's North Carolina set title Safe Haven is back in demand as the movie version just began filming down in Southport; additionally, his latest title The Best of Me just came out in paperback. Also enjoyed Maxine Swann's latest, The Foreigners, an interesting study of ex-pats in Buenos Aires.
UNC Press has just published North Carolina author Bland Simpson's latest- Two Captains from Carolina: Moses Grandy, John Newland Maffitt, and the Coming of the Civil War. Two disparate watermen- one a slave, one a slave owner. Simpson 'brings to vivid life the saga of race and maritime culture in the antebellum and Civil war era South'. I overheard at author Marjorie Hudson's recent visit and signing that her short story collection, Accidental Birds of the Carolinas, was a great selection for book clubs. (The Duck's Cottage group is currently working on The House at Tyneford). A title requested by a good customer in Williamsburg was USS Monitor: A Historic Ship Completes Its Final Voyage by archaeologist John D. Broadwater. The tome covers the Civil War ironclad Monitor's excavation and recovery- full of photographs and illustrations, a great book for any maritime history buff.
Several items on my Foodie wish list are Plenty: Vibrant Recipes from London's Ottolenghi. Dana Cowin of Food & Wine magazine proclaimed this one of her favorite cookbooks of 2012. Lots of great vegetarian recipes with fresh flavors and ethnic spins. I've spent a lot of time drooling over this one but every time I get ready to pull the trigger and take it home, it sells out! New from UNC Press is Fred Thompson's Southern Sides. I got an advance of this one and LOVE it! '250 Dishes that Really Make the Plate' in sections like All Praise to the Bitter Greens (wanna try Brazilian style Collards!), Appeasing Beans & Peas (haricots verts with basalmic onions, yum), Rootin' Around (turnips anyone?) and Midsummer Night's Veggie Dreams featuring Corn, Okra & Squash. Trust me, you NEED this title for your cookbook collection. Just out in paperback is Adam Gopnik's latest food oriented memoir, The Table Comes First: Family, France and the Meaning of Food. There's nothing so comforting as food writing and I can't wait to crack it open.
A new chapter book series to take note of is Kurtis Scaletta's Topps League Stories: my nephew Hank read the first in this baseball series, Jinxed, in two days! (He just started third grade.) The second book is Steal that Base with books three and four (Zip it! and The 823rd Hit coming Sept. 1). These books are a good bet for sports minded boys who may not be as reading minded. Another line to look for is Tom Angleberger's Origami Yoda books that revolve around Dwight- a weird kid who gets great advice from his origami finger puppet of Yoda. Titles include Darth Paper Strikes Back, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda and The Secret of the Fortune Wookie. My household is looking forward to getting caught up with the Lorien Legacies- The Power of Six is out in paper and The Rise of Nine is brand new in hardback. (First book was I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore aka James Frey of the Oprah Million Little Pieces debacle). A recent special order from my 14 year old was Purity (Jackson Pearce) about a teenage girl trying to honor all the promises demanded by adults while staying true to herself. I plan on reading it as well.
Last month I raved about The Last Policeman- the pre-apocalyptic novel about the meteor headed for earth? Been hand selling it a lot, here's a link to the cool book trailer.
 | | Trailer for The Last Policeman |
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Flotsam & Jetsam
Whew! What a summer! From start to finish it kept us on our toes! With Labor Day right around the weekend, here are some things we're putting on our Fall calendars:
 First and foremost, the Sixth Annual Town of Duck Jazz Festival is Sunday, October 7, 2012. Always a fantastic day of hot music and fun friends. More details can be found at duckjazz.com.
October 13/14 are the dates for the Mustang Music Festival in Corolla, a benefit for the Corolla Wild Horse Fund featuring music, art, craft beer and fine wine. Check it out at mustangmusicfestival.com.
The Outer Banks Triathlon weekend is Sept. 22/23- swim, run bike! On its heels is the Outer Banks Half and Full Marathons on November 10/11.
Over in Manteo, things kick up October 5 - 7 with the first annual Outer Banks Bluegrass Festival. A full line-up of recognized bluegrass acts will be taking place Friday and Saturday at Roanoke Island Festival Park with a closing concert Sunday on the beach. For more info go to bluegrassisland.com.
Guy Fieri had the OBX in quite a stir last month; the spiky haired Food Network host of Diners, Drive-In's and Dives was on the Outer Banks for almost a week filming for an upcoming fall episode. Rumours were flying and everybody had a different list of where he was 'definitely going', but in the end Guy hit Tortugaz, Outer Banks Brewing Station, the Brine and Bottle and the Weeping Radish in Currituck, Coastal Cravings and our neighbors in Manteo, Ortegaz! Reports from all the restauranteurs fortunate enough to have hosted Fieri confirm that filming for a TV show is long, hard work! Twelve hours to get about fifteen minutes of film was one chef's estimate. We can't wait to see all these OB denizens this fall broadcasting their secrets and specialties coast to coast!
And finally a friendly reminder that registration for the 17th Annual Advice Five Cents 5k Turkey Trot (held bright and early Thanksgiving Morning) will open at 6am, Tuesday September 4th. If you want to run (or walk) don't wait- last year this event filled up in less than 24 hours!! |
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FIRST FRIDAY: September 7th
 Downtown Manteo is still the place to be on First Fridays! Next week, we are honoring all school teachers with a special Dare County Educator's Appreciation night! From 4:30pm to 7:30pm we will be offering a 25% discount to all Dare County teachers and staff (pre-school teachers and COA faculty, too!) on purchases and special orders placed that night. We'll have classroom oriented catalogs on hand for browsing, advance reading copies to give away, some great door prizes, publisher giveaways and more for some important people- the ones teaching our children!
If you are one of these very special persons, please come down and take advantage of our Educator's Appreciation Night- browse our pre-K, elementary, middle and high school sections, let us introduce ourselves and our services, enjoy live music and the other special offerings around town! It will be a wonderful way to unwind after getting the first two weeks of the school year under your belt!
For more information, please call us at 252-473-1056.
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Heroes wanted!
The Dare Literacy Council (DLC) offers free tutoring services for adults wishing to learn to read, to improve their reading or math skills, to learn English as a Second Language (ESL) or to prepare for their GED (high school equivalency). All tutoring is provided by volunteer tutors and the Council is in need of GED and ESL tutors. No teaching experience or second language skills are necessary.
The DLC recently redesigned the tutor training in order to better meet the needs of its tutors. The training is now more concise and targeted to the important topics tutors need to get off to a successsful start with their students. The next FREE Tutor Training Orientation will take place on Saturday, September 22 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon at the Pitts Center in Southern Shores. Presenters will explain the various tutoring options, what is required of literacy tutors, how the Dare Literacy Council supports its tutors, and other volunteer opportunities that are available aside from tutoring.
Please register as soon as possible by calling 252-216-7773 or sending an email to dareliteracy@gmail.com Walk-ins are welcome at the orientation. |
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