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 Boswell Book Company 2559 North Downer Avenue at Webster Place Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211 (414) 332-1181, www.facebook.com/boswellbooks Our Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10 am to 9 pm, Sunday, 10 am to 6 pm and we're always open at boswellbooks.com! |
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Boswell Book Company Newsletter Day 1061 Wed., February 29, 2012 |
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Greetings!
What a wonderful, and yes, sometimes eclectic assortment of events we have for you in March. I wish I were a bit more creative about laying it out, but I'm a bit overwhelmed with just getting it out to you in time, so my apologies in advance if I note that we're repurposing copy here. My fear is that if I waited for inspiration to strike, this email would release on March 20!
 First I should remind folks that due to a death in the family, we regret to announce that our event with Eleanor Henderson, author of the novel Ten Thousand Saints, scheduled for tonight, February 29, has been cancelled. Our sympathies to Ms. Henderson on her loss. At this time, we do not know if this event will be rescheduled, as her visit was in conjunction with the AWP conference in Chicago. Our preview talk with proprietor Daniel Goldin will be rescheduled to another upcoming event.
Regarding Ten Thousand Saints, I will be recommending Henderson's wonderful novel for the foreseeable future. You say you don't like punk music and you don't even know what straight edge is? Don't be afraid! You didn't know much about Ethiopia before reading Cutting for Stone, did you? I can't think of a better setting for a novel about families traditional and alternative, rebellion, transgression, and repentance. It's a classically structured novel, simply and beautifully told. No complicated shenanigans here (not that I hate shenanigans, I love shenanigans), just a few flawed characters waiting for your love."
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Yale University Press Publisher John Donatich Offers Insight into the Publishing Process, Presents His Own Novel, on Saturday, March 3, 2 pm.
As a publisher and a writer, John Donatich is in a unique position to give insight into two parts of the creative processes that bring a book to life.
As the publisher of Yale University Press, Donatich's roster includes the works of Christopher Hitchens, Steven Pinker, and Alan Dershowitz. Now, in his own debut novel, The Variations, he explores two ancient institutions--the Catholic Church and classical music - as each grapples for a place in the modern world.
In an honest and raw portrayal of a priest struggling with variations of faith, Donatich introduces us to Father Dominic, who has lost his church, his mentor, and, most upsetting, his ability to pray. As Dom struggles to find a place for the Catholic Church in his own life and in the modern world, he records his musings on a blog that catches the eye of Andrea, a sophisticated New York editor, attracted at first to Dom's controversial blog, and then to the man himself.
 Dom negotiates his spiritual crisis and his journey from the cloth to the secular world, exploring the ties between virtue and virtuosity, and how faith is something that can never fully be known or perfect--just practiced to the best of one's ability. In The Variations, Donatich, a former altar boy, explores issues relevant to the modern Catholic Church, classical music, and the deeply personal struggle to find faith.
From our friend John, who represents Yale University Press, but is not the rep for The Variations: "In addition to a straight-up, beautifully told story with engaging characters, the book is a nuanced meditation: on the power of music, intricately observed (each Eastern European ethnic musician has a different way of sitting at the piano); on the slow demise of the urban church; and on the tricky relationship between public visibility and invisibility--when you ignore a homeless person on the street, who is really the invisible one?"
Thanks John, and hope to see some of you on Saturday! |
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Jodee Blanco on the Consequences of School Bullying, Tuesday, March 6, 7 pm, at Greenfield High School for a Free and Open to the Public Event.
 Jodee Blanco, the inspirational author of the bestselling memoir Please Stop Laughing at Me, Please Stop Laughing at Us, and the brand new Please Stop Laughing at Me Journal, will be making a special stop at Greenfield High School Performing Arts Center on Tuesday, March 6, 7 pm, to talk about the consequences of bullying and what teachers, parents, and even students, can do about it. Greenfield High School is located at 4800 South 60th Street.
 Please Stop Laughing at Me chronicled how Jodee was shunned -- and sometimes physically abused--by her classmates from elementary school through high school. It is an unflinching look at what it means to be the outcast, how even the most loving parents can get it all wrong, why schools are often unable to prevent disaster, and how bullying has been misunderstood and mishandled by the mental health community.
In her new book, Please Stop Laughing at Us, Jodee responds to the demand for more information from teens, parents, educators, and other adult survivors, like herself, who have come to know and trust her as the champion of their cause.
Boswell Book Company will be on hand with copies of Blanco's books for purchase. This event is free and open to the public. |
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Wisconsin Public Radio and Ono Kine Grindz Present Sarah Vowell at Boswell on Friday, March 9, 7 pm. Tickets are Selling Briskly!
 Tickets for Sarah Vowell's event are $15 and include a copy of her new paperback release, Unfamiliar Fishes. Yes, that's less than the cost of the book itself. We expect this event to sell out. You can purchase tickets here. And I should note here that we'll be closing the book store at 6 pm to the general public. Seats are not guaranteed (we've got about 225 of them) so get here early or you'll be standing.
 Here' a little more about Unfamiliar Fishes. From the arrival of New England missionaries in 1820, their goal to Christianize the local heathen, to the coup d'état of the missionaries' sons in 1893, which overthrew the Hawaiian queen, the events leading up to American annexation of Hawaii feature a cast of beguiling, and often appealing or tragic, characters: whalers who fired cannons at the Bible-thumpers denying them their God-given right to whores, an incestuous princess pulled between her new god and her brother-husband, sugar barons, lepers, con men, Theodore Roosevelt, and the last Hawaiian queen, a songwriter whose sentimental ode "Aloha 'Oe" serenaded the first Hawaiian president of the United States during his 2009 inaugural parade.
 Vowell explores this interesting transition in American history through her usual chatty, humorous voice. While writing about history, she never claims to be a historian, though readers are bound to learn more about Hawaii than they knew before acquainting themselves with Unfamiliar Fishes.
Ono Kine Grindz is a delicious and authentic Hawaiian grocery and restaurant at 72nd and North Avenue. We'll have a sampling of treats at our event. |
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What's More Exciting Than Reading The 39 Clues Series? Why That's Meeting One of the Authors--Peter Lerangis at Bay View Library on Tuesday, March 13, 6:30 pm.
 The 39 Clues is an interactive and multi-platform adventure series combining books, collectible cards, and an online game where readers become a part of the story. Since its launch in September 2008, every installment of this multi-author series has appeared on national bestseller lists. Each book is written by a popular children's author, including Rick Riordan, Gordan Korman, Linda Sue Park, Patrick Carman, and Margaret Peterson Haddix. And yes, even David Baldacci is writing one of the installments.
We're pleased to co-host Peter Lerangis, author of not one but three books in the 39 Clues series, most recently 39 Clues: Cahills vs Vespers Book 3: The Dead of Night. Lerangis will be appearing at the Bay View branch of Milwaukee Public Library, 2566 South Kinnickinnic Avenue. You can reach the library by taking the Hoan Bridge to Russell to KK, or you can also exit 43/94 at Lincoln and head east.
 The Cahills are the most powerful family the world has ever known. Grace Cahill, the matriarch of the family, left a challenge in her will for her surviving relatives. They can either take one million dollars or the first in a series of Clues that will reveal the source of the family's power. It's Cahill vs. Cahill in a race to beat the competition and be the first to assemble all 39 Clues.
Cahills vs. Vespers, a new story arc of the phenomenally popular series, launched in fall 2011. Amy and Dan were devastated when the Vespers kidnapped seven Cahills around the world, holding them hostage until Amy and Dan delivered an impossible ransom. Now, in Book 3: Dead of Night, the Vespers have gone too far. They've kidnapped Atticus, an innocent 11-year-old boy and Dan's only friend. Yikes!
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Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with Irish Thrills at an Irish Pub--Kevin Fox at County Clare on Wednesday, March 14, 7 pm.
 We're so pleased that Kevin Fox, a producer and writer for the Fox television series Lie to Me, and screenwriter of The Negotiator, is coming to Milwaukee for his new novel, Until the Next Time. And what better place to host Fox than County Clare on 1234 North Astor Street, just north of downtown?
Until the Next Time is a romance cloaked in mystery and suspense that takes readers inside the rich heritage of Irish history and faith. It's a remarkable story about time and memory and the way ancient myths affect everything from what we believe to whom we love.
 For Sean Corrigan the past is simply what happened yesterday, until his twenty-first birthday, when he is given a journal left him by his father's brother Michael, a man he had not known existed. The journal, kept after his uncle fled from New York City to Ireland to escape prosecution for a murder he did not commit, draws Sean into a hunt for the truth about Michael's fate.
Sean too leaves New York for Ireland, where he is caught up in the lives of people who not only know all about Michael Corrigan but have a score to settle. As his connection to his uncle grows stronger, he realizes that within the tattered journal he carries lies the story of his "own" life his past as well as his future and the key to finding the one woman he is fated to love forever.
Can't make our event? You can also hook up with Fox on Thursday, March 15, for Books & Company's dinner at The Pub in Oconomowoc. Tickets and more information here. |
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Head to the Franklin Library for Canine Capers with Beloved Children's Author Doreen Cronin, Thursday, March 15, 6:30 pm.
 Join New York Times bestselling author of Rescue Bunnies, Click Clack Moo, and the Diary Of series at Franklin Library, 9151 West Loomis Road, on Thursday, March 15, 6:30 pm. Doreen Cronin is coming to talk about her delightful J. J. Tully series for early readers, which now includes The Trouble with Chickens and the new release, The Legend of Diamond Lil.
 After his last run-in with Vince the Funnel and the mystery of the missing chicks, J.J. the search-and-rescue dog is ready for some much-needed R & R. But just when he thinks he has everything under control, there's a new problem to worry about: Diamond Lil, a shiny new dog who's taken up residence next door. Suddenly Moosh and her chicks are spending an awful lot of time with their fancy friend, talking about weird things like fluffy feathers and good posture. And Lil's not the only new kid cramping J.J.'s style. There's a possum loose, and it's up to J.J. to keep everyone safe. But the questions keep piling up. Is Lil all that she seems? And how does the possum keep finding her way to the chicken coop?
Franklin Public Library is located at 9151 West Loomis Road, just off Drexel Avenue, a short hop from Highway 100. If you're a fan traveling far, you can take 894 to Loomis or 94 to the Rawson exit, and Drexel is the next major street south. |
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Jungian Psychoanalyst Dennis Merritt Contemplates Jung and Ecopsychology at Boswell on Monday, March 19, 7 pm.
 In The Dairy Farmer's Guide to the Universe, Vol. 1: Jung and Ecopsychology, Dennis Merritt develops the framework and principles of Jungian ecopsychology and describes how how they can be applied to our educational system and in the practice of psychotherapy.
Carl Jung believed there had to be a major paradigm shift in Western culture if we were to avert many of the apocalyptic conditions described in the Book of Revelation. He coined the terms 'New Age' and 'Age of Aquarius' to describe a change in consciousness that would honor the feminine, our bodies, sexuality, the earth, animals, and indigenous cultures. Jung deplored the fast pace of modern life with its empty consumerism and the lack of a spiritual dimension.
 The Dairy Farmer's Guide to the Universe offers a response to Jung's challenge to unite our cultured side with the 'two million-year-old man within' thereby opening a bridge to the remaining indigenous cultures. Dreamwork, individuation, synchronicity, and the experience of the numinous are important elements in this conceptual system.
Dennis Merritt, Ph.D., is a Jungian psychoanalyst and ecopsychologist in private practice in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A diplomate of the C.G. Jung Institute, Zurich, he credits his world view in part to over 25 years of participation in Lakota Sioux ceremonies. Read more on his blog. |
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Mysterious Goings On for Local Author Jane Gillette (Bednarek) at Boswell on Tuesday, March 20, 7 pm.
 In the new novel, No Miracles Required, Mystery writer Iris Woolsey enters the dark side of the art world after making a facetious remark about a dead body on television. Soon after, a corpse with a gold key hanging from his neck turns up in Star Lake, only to be overshadowed by another victim found dead and missing a finger on a French Island beach. Meanwhile, art lovers worldwide are astonished by the theft of three celebrated American paintings from a local, prestigious auction house.
 While Iris gives an old romance another chance, she joins genial Chief Inspector Freddy Donovan of the Belmont police in a search for answers in this complex tale of big money and dirty tricks. Once again, the primordial landscape of the great Mississippi valley lends itself well to basic emotions run amok in this contemporary regional mystery series.
We're pleased to welcome former journalist and longtime Milwaukee-area resident Gillette (Bednarek) to her first reading, and congratulate her on her fourth published mystery, following, The Last Limerick, and The Crow on the Roof. Look for the release of Be Mindful of Your Ghosts this summer. |
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John Elder Robison Encourages Those with Aspergers in His Appearance at Boswell, Thursday, March 22, 7 pm, a Fundraiser for Autism Speaks.
 In his bestselling memoir*, Look Me in the Eye, John Elder Robison (buy tickets here) described growing up with Asperger's syndrome at a time when the diagnosis didn't exist. He was intelligent but socially isolated; his talents won him jobs with toy makers and rock bands but did little to endear him to authority figures and classmates, who were put off by his inclination to blurt out non sequiturs and avoid eye contact.
 By the time he was diagnosed at age forty, John had already developed a myriad of coping strategies that helped him achieve a seemingly normal, even highly successful, life. In Be Different, Robison shares a new batch of endearing stories about his childhood, adolescence, and young adult years, giving the reader a rare window into the Aspergian mind.
In each story, he offers practical advice--for Aspergians and indeed for anyone who feels "different"--on how to improve the weak communication and social skills that keep so many people from taking full advantage of their often remarkable gifts. Every person, Aspergian or not, has something unique to offer the world, and every person has the capacity to create strong, loving bonds with their friends and family. Be Different will help readers and those they love find their path to success.
Tickets to this event on Thursday, March 22, 7 pm, at Boswell are five dollars,with all ticket proceeds going to Autism Speaks. We'll have an information table at the event, with information about how you can help by participating in Walk Now for Autism Speaks on Saturday, April 28. Oh, and if you aren't familiar with Robison, here's a wonderful piece about him, his son, and his son's girlfriend, in The New York Times. |
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Musican Mike Doughty of Soul Coughing Fame to Appear for New Memoir at Boswell on Sunday, March 25, 4 pm.
 Rock and roll lore is full of stories about artists getting sucked into the drug-fueled, sex-crazed underworld of stardom, and musician Mike Doughty is no exception. His memoir, The Book of Drugs, chronicles his struggle to survive his own lifestyle and offers insight into the world of addiction.
With snapshots of his family life and the development of his love of music, including his time at The New School in NYC, where he had class with renowned folk singer Ani DiFranco, Doughty recalls playing to empty clubs, getting high with Jeff Buckley, and forming his own band. As Doughty and Soul Coughing, his '90s alternative rock group, rose in popularity and fame, his drug use spiraled out of control as he abused marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and acid.
 Eventually, he quit the band and set out to make a name for himself as a solo performer, building a fan base by driving across the country, performing, and selling CDs after shows. The realization that he'd also become addicted to alcohol, which he used to fill lulls between heroin binges, did what countless close calls and an overdose didn't: motivated him to seek out twelve-step meetings and begin the struggle to stay sober. Being a drug addict was one thing; being an alcoholic like his grandfather was something else entirely.
Now sober for more than eleven years, Mike Doughty has made new fans with his solo work. He continues to recruit bandmates, tour, and record albums. Doughty will be appearing in concert later the same day at Shank Hall. Buy your tickets here. |
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A Novel That Follows the Long-Term Aftermath of One Fatal Crash, From Acclaimed Writer Carol Anshaw, Featured on Tuesday, March 27.
Boswell is hosting Chicago-area writer Carol Anshaw for her new novel, Carry the One, on Tuesday, March 27, 7 pm. Anshaw has been winning raves from writers and booksellers alike for this breakout literary novel. In fact, it's the #1 Indie Next Pick for March. Here's Dean Stonehouse's quote from Sunriver Books in Oregon:
"Carmen and Matt's wedding was festive, full of dancing, drinking, and celebrating the joining of two lives. But for Carmen and Matt their wedding night would not be remembered solely with joy, but rather as the night a car full of their relatives and close friends headed out into the dark and accidentally killed a young girl on a lonely stretch of road. The occupants of that car and the wedding couple would be shackled by the guilt of that night for years to come. Carry the One examines the subtle shades of change this tragic accident causes in their lives. It is a compelling story of friendship, loss, betrayal, and life at its most real."
 Fans of Room will welcome this recommendation from Emma Donoghue: "Here's passion and addiction, guilt and damage, all the beautiful mess of family life. Carry the One will lift readers off their feet and bear them along on its eloquent tide."
Carol Anshaw is the author of Aquamarine, Seven Moves, and Lucky in the Corner. She has received the Ferro-Grumley Award, the Carl Sandburg Literary Arts Award for Fiction, and a National Book Critics Circle Citation for Excellence in Reviewing. Hope to see you there. |
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A Memoir Told Through the Elements, by Writer and Filmmaker Benjamin Busch, Coming Wednesday, March 28, 7 pm, and Featuring Opening Reader Christi Clancy.
Dust to Dust is an extraordinary memoir about ordinary things: life and death, war and peace, the explorations of childhood and revelations of adulthood. Benjamin Busch-a decorated U.S. Marine officer who served two combat tours in Iraq, acclaimed actor on The Wire, and son of celebrated novelist Frederick Busch-has crafted his own The Things They Carried for our time.
In chapters themed around elemental things-water, metal, bone, blood-Busch weaves together a vivid record of a pastoral childhood in rural New York, brutal Marine training in North Carolina and California, and the worst of the war in Iraq, seen first-hand. But this is much more than a war memoir: Busch writes with great poignancy and enormous emotional power about a boyhood spent melting down crayons to form pretend bullets, sinking his own collection of model battleships, and playing soldier in the woods. Most of all, Busch writes movingly about moments of danger and death, real and imagined: in a helicopter, going down; wounded by shrapnel in Ramadi; playing a dead man on television; dealing with the sudden death of friends in combat and of parents back home.
 Benjamin Busch was born in Manhattan in 1968 and grew up in rural New York State. He in an actor, photographer, film director, and a United States Marine Corps Infantry Officer who served two tours of combat duty in Iraq. He played the role of Officer Anthony Colicchio on the HBO series The Wire, and has appeared on Homicide, The West Wing, and Generation Kill. His writing has appeared in Harper's, has been twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and he has been a guest commentator on NPR's All Things Considered. He lives on a farm in Michigan with his wife and two daughters.
Opening this event is Christi Clancy, a PhD student in UWM's creative writing program now teaching at Beloit College, reading from a piece recently published in The New York Times. |
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Poet Chase Twitchell is This Year's Boudreaux Reading, at the UWM Hefter Center, Thursday, March 29, 7:30 pm.
 This year's Boudreaux Reader will be Chase Twichell. Chase is the author of seven books of poetry. Her seventh book, Horses Where the Answers Should Have Been: New and Selected Poems, won the 2011 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Award. Her work has been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the Artists Foundation. She is a recipient of an Award in Literature from the Academy of Arts and Letters, the Alice Fay Di Castagnola Award from the Poetry Society of America, and the Hygh Ogden Poetry Prize from Trinity College.
 She also co-edited, with Robin Behn, The Practice of Poetry: Writing Exercises from Poets who Teach Poetry and was editor of Ausable Press for ten years. Robert Hass wrote in The Washington Post that her poems "are full of sharp observation, both of the world and herself, unsentimental poems with a sinewy intellectual toughness, and ... a stark, sometimes bewildered clarity." Publisher's Weekly calls her "a major voice in contemporary poetry."
Boswell will have Twitchell's most recent collection on hand with a selection of backlist. The Hefter Center is located at 3271 North Lake Drive at Hartford. The event is free and open to the public. |
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Whether You are Writing, Cooking, Leading, or Greening, There's a Conference for You in March (and Boswell Will be There).
March 7-10 is the Green Energy Summit at the Frontier Airlines Center. The Green Energy Summit and Exposition recognizes unprecedented opportunities and encourages investment and development in the green sector. We highlight Education, Energy Efficiency, Financing, Green Agriculture, Green Building, Green Business & Manufacturing, Green Careers, Innovation, Recycling, Renewables, Social Responsibility, Sustainability, Transportation and Water. Featured Authors include Ed Begley Jr. Boswell will be selling books on March 7 and 8. Register here--students can attend free!
March 9-11 is the UWM Spring Writers Festival. Celebrate 10 years with the Spring Writers Festival! If you have been here before, come back to see how much progress our authors have made and how we have grown. If you have never been to the Festival, you are in for a treat. It's your chance to improve your craft, connect with fellow wordsmiths, meet in-the-know editors and agents and learn how to get your work published-all while enjoying an invigorating weekend. You will leave with the inspiration and know-how to pursue your writing projects. Featured authors include Ayad Akhtar, Margot Peters, and Ben Ryder Howe. Registration is $269 for the complete program, including panels, workshops, and networking time.
You can all see Ben Ryder Howe, former senior editor of The Paris Review and author of My Korean Deli: Risking it All for a Convenience Store, on Sunday, March 11, 12:30 for the cost of $15, which includes lunch. Howe's memoir is one of my favorites of last year, the story of a true professional amateur, only instead of tackling football or boxing a la George Plimpton, he's playing at shopkeeper for his Korean mother-in-law. Things do not go swimmingly. Spots must be reserved in advance. For more information, contact Anne O'Meara.
On March 12-14, we'll be at the Wisconsin Restaurant Expo at the Frontier Center, the largest and most inclusive show in the state, bringing together all of foodservice and hospitality. The Expo is where foodservice professionals turn for new trends and product releases, tips for increasing productivity and profits, and solutions to the challenges of today's marketplace. It's the ideal place to comparison shop and meet with suppliers who'll answer your questions. It's the place to inspire creativity and revitalize business, while strengthening relationships and business contacts. It's where anyone in the industry can find great ideas to stay on the cutting edge and stay ahead of changing consumer demands. Featured author is Duff Goldman of The Ace of Cakes Fame. Tickets are $25 in advance, $35 at the door. Register here.
And finally, on Friday, March 30, we'll be at the Pfister Hotel for the Women's Leadership Conference for a day of speakers, workshops, panels, and networking. Keynote speaker is Gloria Steinem. Registration is $289, and there are group discounts available. More information here. |
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There's More to Milwaukee-Area Author Events Than Just Boswell.
 Jodi Picoult is back in town for her newest novel, Lone Wolf, just on sale. It's the story of a young man confronted with a moral crisis--his father and sister have been gravely injured, and he wants to turn off life support on his father to get the organs for his sister. It's a classic Picoult dilemma with no easy answers.
Picoult is appearing at Kettle Moraine High School Theater in Wales, on Saturday, March 10, at 1 pm. Tickets are $28 including a copy of Lone Wolf, or $30 for a book and two tickets. Oconomowoc's Books and Company are hosting this event. Visit their website for details and ticket purchase.
Over at Next Chapter, they're hosting Passport to Adventure, the Magic Tree House celebration bus tour, featuring Jack and Annie in a musical that will delight readers of this beloved series. The newest book in the series is Abe Lincoln at Last, and the event is Friday, March 16, at 4 pm. Next Chapter is located at 10976 North Port Washington Road. Visit their website for details.
Note that we are hosting Jack and Annie for a school visit. Want to be on our contact list? Your school does not need to be close to Boswell to participate. The events are free and only involve a commitment of talking up the event and facilitating book sales. Contact me for more information.
And stay tuned to our newsletter, Facebook page, and event website for lots more events coming up in April, including Christopher Moore on April 11, Trenton Lee Stewart on April 12 (both free, and at Boswell) and Kate DiCamillo on April 17 at the Milwaukee Public Library's Centennial Hall. All are at 7 pm. |
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 Bookselling means saying a lot of hellos and goodbyes, and we offer another farewell in this week's newsletter. Boswellian Mark has moved on to a new position in Wausau, facilitating customer service for a major corporation. We wish him well in his future endeavors and look forward to a return visit.
Thanks for Your Patronage, Daniel Goldin, with Amie, Anne, Beverly, Conrad, Greg, Halley, Jason, Mel, Nick, Pam, Shane, Sharon, and Stacie. |
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