 The BookMark
220 First Street
Neptune Beach, FL 32266
(904) 241-9026
Website: bookmarkbeach.com
Hours: Mon.-Wed.: 10 am- 7pm
Your Independent Bookstore by the Sea |
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Greetings!
It's hard to believe it's May! So much is happening, the time goes by quickly. We've hosted some amazing authors, and there are more coming. Some favorites, including Charles Martin (Unwritten), Steve Berry (The King's Deception), and Karen White (The Time Between) are returning. There are also new soon to be favorites, such as bestselling mystery author John Lescroart (The Ophelia Cut), David Gillham (City of Women), Will Schwalbe (The End of Your Life Book Club), and Anton DiSclafani (The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls). Some of these books may sound familiar--they're now out in paperback and just waiting to be read on vacation or in your book clubs.
In addition to this busy schedule in the store, we've also been busy selling books at events around the city. Some of you have seen us out and about, and it's always nice to see familiar, friendly faces.
The book clubs continue to flourish, and we're always reading some books we're eager to share with you.
May and June are the months for Mother's and Father's Day and for graduation. We'd love to help you find the perfect gift (and card) for these special occasions. Remember, we gift wrap as well.
Rona |
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Upcoming Events
Charles Martin, "Unwritten" (Center Street), Tuesday, May 7 at 7 pm
Fans of Charles Martin know that he has an incredible gift for characterization and writing that tugs at the emotions without being overly melodramatic. In this latest,  Sunday leads a solitary existence, spending most of his time reading and fishing on his boat, hidden among the Ten Thousand Islands off the Florida coast. It has been years since he has spoken with anyone outside of his priest and confidant, Steady. Because Steady once saved his life, Sunday can't refuse when he asks him to save another. Katie Quinn, a world-famous actress, has been driven by a secret and the pressures of her fame to end her life. Sunday provides an alternate escape, a way to write herself a new life by helping her to fake her death. But Katie still must confront her past before she can find peace, and she'll need Sunday to leave his secluded home and travel to the French countryside to help her.
John Lescroart, "The Ophelia Cut" (Atria), Thursday, May 9 at 7 pm
 Attorney Dismas Hardy returns to defend his brother-in-law against murder charges in New York Times bestselling author John Lescroart's most suspenseful and intricately plotted novel to date. As the overwhelming evidence against Hardy's client piles up, this skilled attorney focuses on planting doubt in the minds of the jurors--until, in a feat of legal ingenuity that is staggering in both its implications and its simplicity, Hardy sees a new way forward that might just save them all. But at what price? Lescroart is touted as "the master of the legal thriller."
David R. Gillham, "City of Women" (paperback/Berkley) Wednesday, May 22 at 7 pm
What a fascinating way to contemplate 1940's Berlin by asking what the women were doing while the men were fighting the war. Their activities and beliefs were as diverse as the men's. Author David Gillham's telescopic focus on just a few of them not only clarifies the issues confronting all German citizens at the time but the humanity and inhumanity of the decisions they made. He then adds a large dose of mystery forcing the reader to wonder what each character truly believes and who to trust. I was not surprised to discover at the end that Gillham wrote screenplays-the dialogue is perfectly pitched. One of Rona's recommendations on NPR, now in paperback and a perfect book club selection!
Will Schwalbe, "The End of Your Life Book Club" (paperback/Vintage) Friday, June 14 at 7 pm
D espite the title, this oddly is not a depressing book. Rather it's an homage to the power of the book and the love of reading. In fact, it is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother who start a "book club" (with only two members) that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the course of two years, mother and son carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn't the opposite of doing: it's the opposite of dying. One of Rona's recommendations, now in paperback and a perfect book club selection!
Aton DiSclafani, "The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for GIlrs" (Riverhead Books) Wednesday, June 19 at 7 pm
It is 1930, the midst of the Great Depression. After her mysterious role in a family tragedy, passionate, strong-willed Thea Atwell, age fifteen, has been cast out of her Florida home, exiled to an equistrienne boarding school for Southern debutantes. As Thea grapples with her responsibility for the events of the past year that led her here, she finds herself enmeshed in a new order, one that will change her sense of what is possible for herself, her family, her country. One reviewer wrote "I fell completely under the spell of Anton DiSclafani's amazing first novel and was gripped by its lush and dreamy evocations of Southern decorum, family secrets, and boarding school rituals."
Steve Berry, "The King's Deception" (Ballantine), Monday June 24 at 7 pm
When Cotton Malone's fifteen-year-old son, Gary, is kidnapped in London, Malone  stumbles into a high-stakes diplomatic showdown fueled by Tudor secrets. At its heart is the Libyan terrorist convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103, who is set to be released by Scottish authorities. The only hope to stop this is "Operation King's Deception" which calls into question the legitimacy of Queen Elizabeth I's reign. "New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling author Steve Berry returns with another Cotton Malone thrill ride, which takes readers to the heart of England, uncovering a secret that threatens to rock Great Britain to its royal foundations." |
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Recent Events
 Most people think of sword fishing or "the Perfect Storm" when they think of Linda Greenlaw. In her new book Lifesavng Lessons, she explains how she became an "accidental" mother. Her fans were mesmerized by her tales of parenthood--it seems when a 15-year-old girl needed a place to stay, she was the one with the extra room in her house that day. That "accident" translated into becoming the guardian of an abused teen. Many of Greenlaw's tales resonated with parents of teenagers in the room.
Jacksonville author and cook Jeffrey Spear helped us celebrate the 500th anniversary of the landing of Ponce de Leon with treats from his First Coast Cookbook and tales of what foods were introduced when. It seems much of what we take for granted (like oranges and citrus) were not indigenous to Florida. People interested in cooking and in history enjoyed the event and the food and peach wine.
Andrew Gross returned with his latest mystery No Way Out.  Although he was on time, much like last year, he had trouble getting to Jacksonville from New York. Again, the plane he was waiting to board had mechanical problems. It turns out it was also the wrong plane. It was heading to Jacksonville, North Carolina. None of this kept him from entertaining mystery readers with stories of how he writes and why he writes about women. The evening was enhanced by the presence of BookMark and Gross friends Steve and Elizabeth Berry.
 | | Smith signs copies of her new novel. |
Old friends and new readers greeted St. Augustine author Laura Smith and were entranced by her discussion of Heart of Palms. She is a thoughtful author who knows how to tell a story. She admitted that while most of her characters are not based on any one person, there is one not nice character who is. Her co-workers remember the guy who kicked someone's chair during a meeting. This rude behavior inspired the nasty character in the book.
 Caryn Rosenthal tried to add some levity to what is otherwise a difficult time for many--being dumped. Her book Dumped offers advice and humor for women trying to recover and get over an ex. Those who came to meet the author found solace in her words and in each other's stories.
Joshua Henkin totally engaged those who came to hear him talk about his novel The World Without You. Not only did he read from the book, but in answering questions  he revealed quite a bit about his writing process. His stories are character driven, and to get to know these people, he constructs complete biographies for them, including where they're from, their family ties, and more. Not to do this would be only knowing the tip of the iceberg without understanding the majority of it that rests quietly below the surface. Although he writes five days a week, his books take years to complete, and he discards thousands of pages to get to the final novel. Happily, he's working on his next book.
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Staff Picks
Rona recommends ...
The Other Typist, by Suzanne Rindell (Amy Einhorn Books)
I was enjoying the story of a young woman who was a typist in a New York City  police precinct in the 1920's. It was clear from the outset that she was an unreliable narrator and that she was "disturbed" or at least her "routine" was disrupted by the arrival of a new typist. It was when I got about one-quarter into the book that the effect of this "disruption" became tantalizingly clear. At that point, my eyes opened wider and my focus sharpened. From here, the downward slide was inevitable. The trajectory and ultimate landing were impossible to imagine or fathom. What a ride!
Equilateral, by Ken Kalfus (Bloomsbury)
I admit I was drawn to this book by the diagrams of triangles throughout. It  reminded me that math can be orderly and in that way soothing. Here, it's more about how math (geometry in this case) might be the universal language, understood by all...even those living on Mars. Yes, this is a bit quirky, but it's also intriguing. A British astronomer in the late 1800's manages to get the funding and labor to construct a perfect triangle so huge that it is visible from Mars. What an advanced idea and one worth pondering...
Constance, by Patrick McGrath (Bloomsbury)
Patrick McGrath knows how to write about the psychological dilemmas of individuals. (He is the author of two earlier favorites, Asylum and Martha Peake). Constance is tormented by her past which, not surprisingly intrudes on her present and her marriage. In fact, what she thought was a tortured childhood holds secrets she is just discovering. The question is, can she recover from the truth?
Buford recommends ...
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena, by Anthony Marra (Hogarth/Crown Books)
Be among the first to read what is sure to be one of the most talked about books of 2013. A Constellation of Vital Phenomena was first "informally" recommended as  one of the favorites among the publisher's sales force, but their praise was an understatement. This is an exceptional novel. It offers a setting (war torn Chechnya in 2004) and an unforgettable cast of characters trying to survive while hiding a young girl from the authorities. Marra does not gloss over the harsh realities of war for perpetrators and victims, and at times you wish he would. But he also intersperses dark humor and insights into our better nature that will remind you of the vast range of human potential (both good and bad). In Marra's masterful hands, a discussion about Ronald McDonald provides some needed comic relief in the middle of this riveting mixture of war, love, and mystery that you won't forget.
A Man Without Breath, by Phillip Kerr (G. P. Putnam's Sons)
Bernie Gunther, the peripatetic Berlin detective called upon to help the German Army  solve various crimes during WW II is back. Kerr brings his best noire voice to describe how Gunther feels about the various German military and political leaders he has to appease. This time, our favorite Berlin gumshoe finds himself in the middle of the officer's plot to assassinate Hitler on the one hand, while trying to be sure that the Russians are blamed for the massacre of Polish officers in the Katyn forest on the other. As if this were not enough, throw in a few more murders, a visiting international circus of forensic specialists and a blond, and enjoy one of Kerr's best creations.
An nette recommends ...
Sorted Books, by Nina Katchadourian (Chronicle Books) 
This books invites us to exercise our imagination. The staff at The BookMark has been creating "spine poems" from books in the store, and Annette has composed one daily during National Poetry Mont h (April). Here are just a few to whet your  appetitie and to inspire you.
As you can see from these examples, this is fun for all ages.
DO try this at home!
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Inside the Book Business
The BookMark takes its books on the road.....
While many of you are aware of what happens at The BookMark, some of you may not know about the events we participate in outside the store. This often involves authors appearing throughout the city and always involves travelling with boxes and boxes of books.
 | | Bourdain's fans waiting in line to get books signed. |
Recently, we've been involed in some fun ones. Celebrity chef and TV star Anthony Bourdain appeared at the Times-Union Center, and we were there selling his books. It turns out that there are 13 books that are either written by him or include contributions from him. Fans got a chance to hear his one-man show and then purchase a book. He graciously signed over 200 books prior to the show to make them available to attendees, and signed additional copies for those at the VIP reception.
A number of elementary schools throughout Jacksonville featured a visiting children's author/illustrator, Kevin O'Malley. He has even more titles than Bourdain! Children were treated to a talk and the opportunity to get their books signed. O'Malley also asked each child about his/her favorite animal and included a drawing as well.
The BookMark is happy to support these events. And these are just a few examples of how we do that throughout the year, and another example of the importance of locally owned independent businesses to the community. |
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Book Club Discussions
Book Club Notes
 The morning fiction book club met in April to discuss Janis Owens' American Ghost. Most members loved this book and thought the writing was exquisite. The discussion was lively and considered a number of critical elements of the story including race relations, religion, family, and love. The fictional Floridal panhandle town of Hendrix is a perfect representation of any small Southern town--it's full of secrets, and everyone must pariticpate to protect it from prying outsiders. This is a book that the readers would definitely recommend to their friends.
The evening fiction book club found many nuances, suggestions, and question s to discuss after reading Howard Norman's What is Left the Daughter. The book touched on the importance of parental influences and parental abandonment, zenophobia, and how people react in situations that threaten life, love, and their understanding of who they are in the world. Most readers felt that Norman did a skillful job of keeping us engaged with the story of the quirky and sometimes tragic events in the lives of these odd but fascinating characters. Ultimately, we appreciated the warmth of Norman's writing in his story about a father's enduring love for a daughter.
The evening non-fictiion book club discussed The Operators: The Wild and Terri fying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan, by Michael Hastings. This book provided plenty of fodder for a wide ranging discussion of the role of the military, civilian oversight, and journalism in society and the world today. Hasting's discussion about his role as an embedded journalist and subsequent outing of General McCrystal and his staff's shared views about our current civilian leadership (which led to the General's resignation) was at times so breezy that one reader thought it reminded him of an essay about "what I did during my summer vacation." Nonetheless, the group agreed that the book was well worth the effort, and gave it a rating of 4.75 out of 5.
Future Book Club Selections
 The morning fiction group chose The World Without You by Joshua Henkin (Vintage) for May. Since the author was at The BookMark prior to the meeting, members had the chance to get some inside information about the book and the author. This should not only enlighten the discussion but will make it more fun. Rona recommended this book when it came out in hardcover. Now that it's available in paperback, it's a perfect book club selection. It's July 4, 2005, and the Frankel family is descending upon their beloved summer home in the Berkshires. They have gathered to memorialize Leo, the youngest of four siblings and an intrepid journalist killed on that day in 2004 while on assignment in Iraq. But Leo's parents are adrift in a grief that's tearing apart their forty-year marriage, his sisters are struggling with their own difficulties, and his widow is bearing a secret. Over the course of three days, the family contends with sibling rivalries and marital feuds, with volatile women and silent men--and, ultimately, with the true meaning of family.
The evening fiction book club chose Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Harper Perennial) for May. This book is set in Barcelona in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books. It is part of  what the author terms "a cycle of novels" that also includes The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game. Although this is the third book in the "series", the author explains "each individual installment... can be read in any order, enabling the reader to explore the labyrinth of stories along different paths which, when woven together, lead into the heart of the narrative." Sounds like a fun trip.
The group selected The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe for June. Again, this will allow them to talk to the author when he visits The BookMark in June (due out in paperback).
The fiction groups meet on the last Wednesday of each month. The next meetings are Wednesday, May 29 at 10:30 am and 7 pm.
The non-fiction book club chose Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain (Broadway Paperbacks). At least one-third of  the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking, who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion, who favor working on their own over working in teams. Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and how much we lose by doing so. We owe many of the great contributions to society to introverts. This book has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and how they see themselves.
The group selected Gossip: The Untrivial Pursuit by Joseph Epstein for June.
The non-ficition book club meets each month on the second Wednesday. Their next meeting is Wednesday, May 8 at 7 pm.
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Unable to attend any of these events? Call us at 241-9026 and we will reserve a copy for you.
Did you know...For every $100 spent in an independent business, $73 stays in the community, compared to only $43 for a national chain. None of the money spent online stays in the community. Shopping locally makes good sense for you and good cents for your local economy. |
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