February Newsletter 
Greetings,
I am just back from Winter Institute, a gathering of independent booksellers, authors and publishers from across the globe. It was a vibrant and poignant few days. Besides the camaraderie and commiseration and cooperation that marks these occasions, lately there has been a lively discussion of race - race in publishing, race in bookselling and race in our books.

It has been a healthy, albeit uncomfortable, conversation. The most powerful moment of Winter Institute, for me, was the speech given by Junot Diaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and a forthcoming picture book, Islandborn . The Pulitzer Prize Winner talked about the whiteness of books when he was growing up in the 70s and 80s, "What really killed was the erasure. God almighty, the complete and utter erasure. How thoroughly kids like me did not exist in our books," he said. "What kid does not want to see themselves represented in what they're reading? At that age, I might not have had the language to talk about representation or equity but, Dios mío, how I longed just once to find a book where someone like me appeared, where someone like me took part in an amazing adventure, where someone like me was a hero."

"The more I read these super-white books, the more troubled I became," he said. "Out in the world people were saying I was ugly, I smelled, I was an alien, I was a criminal, I was unwanted, I didn't belong, my face was wrong, my skin was wrong, my hair was wrong, my food was wrong, my name was wrong, and the super-white books I was reading were saying that, too. Perhaps not as crudely - sotto voce - but they were."

Diaz was kind in his praise, saying, "If it hadn't been for the kind of curatorial devotion of independent booksellers, my art would have perished and so the debt is serious." But he was also unflinching in holding us accountable. Thankfully, there are many more children's books these days with people of color as main characters. But, clearly, there is a long way to go...

Be well,
Chris Morrow
 
FEATURED REVIEW


A child makes it her life's mission to hunt down the panther that killed her mother and scarred her for life, enlisting her reluctant older half brother, Benjamin, in the quest. The entire narrative is told in a series of letters to a frontier judge in which Benjamin also recounts his witnessing of the aftermaths of a brutal mass hanging. This is a rousing adventure story in the tradition of 
True Grit,   News of the World , and even a smidgen of   Moby Dick .
- Alden Graves

NEW RELEASES


A heart wrenching story of a child forced to lose his innocence. Set in the Australian outback in the years of settlement, Only Killers And Thieves is a brutal filleting of frontier life, race relations, and the ambition of men. The characters are unforgettable and the writing is effortless yet juicy. Such a great read. - Chris Morrow




If Vermont's Northeast Kingdom had a literary king, it was Howard Frank Mosher. His final book is a collection of linked short stories all taking place in that lovely landscape near the Canadian border. Spanning the centuries, these stories touch on universal themes like love, race, home and death but with exquisite attention to the details of his characters and their natural surroundings. We lost Howard a year ago this month but his words are very much alive. Long live the king. - Stan Hynds




O ne of the most anticipated novels of 2018 according to 
Entertainment Weekly,
Esquire,  Goodreads,
Elle,  Cosmopolitan,  BBC,
Huffington Post,  Bustle,  Southern Living,  Newsday,  Bookish,
Nylon, & iBooks Store.

The author of  Silver Sparrow  returns with a stunning novel about race, loyalty, and love that endures.




I AM
I AM
I AM
by Maggie O'Farrell

This book left me breathless and heart sore with sympathy. The episodes are told as though each distinct part of her body had it's own voice and wanted my sole attention. Even the years between each event are full of meaning and nuance. This one of the most mesmerizing memoirs I have ever read. The breadth and scope of Maggie's 17 brushes with death are told in a strong, indelible voice that cautions the reader that life is to be treasured, but not treated too delicately. - Maeve Noonan



An American in Poland loses everyone he loves in a car accident. An unremarkable petty criminal is responsible but never caught. How do these two strangers go on with their lives--one consumed by grief, the other by guilt. This is page-turning literary fiction. Excellently crafted characters, propulsive narrative (plus a generous dose of suspense), sparkling prose. In a word--superb. - Stan Hynds


Escape Artist
by William A. Noguera

Escape Artist is a gripping, sad, inspirational and amazing story of being on death row in America's worst prison and, more interestingly, the emotional journey that got Mr. Noguera into prison and how he evolved into a world-class artist and rehabilitated human being. This book is fascinating on many levels. - Chris Morrow



Each month Northshire Bookstore's award-winning booksellers will select the perfect book and send it to your friend, loved one or yourself!

Each book will arrive beautifully wrapped with a gift card.

 

Gift Giving Made Easy

Gift Card

Consider purchasing a Northshire Bookstore Gift Card , and take the guess work out of shopping!
Used Books
We have hundreds of great books in stock in our Manchester store and not enough room to display them all. Please ask a bookseller if there is one you are looking for or browse the section for one you did not know you wanted!     

For more information on any of the used and rare books in our store, send an email 
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Do you want to receive weekly event reminders for our Saratoga Springs or Manchester store, including author events, children's events, and store promos? 

Featured February Events Below
For a Complete Calendar Click Here



In time for the one-year anniversary of the Trump Inauguration and the Women's March, this provocative, unprecedented anthology features original short stories from thirty bestselling and award-winning authors, grappling with the fundamental ideals of a free, just, and compassionate democracy--through fiction. This anthology is a beautiful, enduring collection that will resonate with anyone concerned with the contest for our American soul.




Wizards and muggles alike are invited to join in Northshire's fourth annual celebration of Harry Potter Book Night.
Join us for (mostly spoiler-free) activities inspired by the fourth book in the Harry Potter series,  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.



In this book  James Crews explores familial bonds, memory, and grief through a beautifully written collection of poems. This Cowles Poetry Prize winning manuscript is a risky, bold, and elegant exploration of coming of age against a backdrop of profound loss.



From a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian comes a riveting history of New York's iconic public hospital that charts the turbulent rise of American medicine.
Bellevue Hospital, on New York City's East Side, occupies a colorful and horrifying place in the public imagination: a den of mangled crime victims, vicious psychopaths, assorted derelicts, lunatics, and exotic-disease sufferers. In its two and a half centuries of service, there was hardly an epidemic or social catastrophe--or groundbreaking scientific advance--that did not touch Bellevue.



The beloved memoirist and bestselling author of 
Population: 485  reflects on the lessons he's learned from his unlikely alter ego, French Renaissance philosopher Michel de Montaigne.



Back by popular demand! Fans of
The Moth; True Stories Told Live , you'll love this event! Join us for an evening of storytelling presented by The Rumpus! and Northshire Bookstore as some of our areas best storytellers come together for a night of entertainment.

This event is free but space may be limited and reservations are appreciated.
Please email tdavies@northshire.com to reserve your space.

CHILDREN'S BOOKS

The Hazel Wood

Welcome to Melissa Albert's The Hazel Wood-- the fiercely stunning contemporary fantasy with six starred reviews everyone is raving about:

"Thoroughly, creepily captivating." --Kristin Cashore, author of  Graceling and  Jane, Unlimited

"Will be your next obsession." --Stephanie Garber, author of  Caraval

"Destined to be a classic." --Kami Garcia, author of  The Lovely Reckless 

"Breathtaking. --Seanan McGuire, author of  Every Heart a Doorway

"Mesmerizing." --Karen McManus, author of  One of Us Is Lying

"One of the best books I've read in years." --Jennifer Niven, author of  All the Bright Places


With a dash of Lemony Snicket, a dollop of the Addams Family, and a hearty dose of adventure, 
New York Times 
bestselling author Natalie Lloyd introduces a new series about seven strange and adventurous siblings who tackle problems together--
even when their new neighbors try to tear them apart.

 

F rom the acclaimed author/artist of   Beyond the Pond  and 
Rulers of the Playground
comes a breathtaking new book with a powerful message about the environment, perfect for fans of Peter Brown'sThe Curious Garden and Kadir Nelson's  If You Plant a Seed.


Independently Published 
at Northshire Bookstore  by ShiresPress. 


The Parting is a collection of one dozen prose poems and short fictions previously published and anthologized.  These compressed, lyrical, and narrative works conjure quiet dream worlds of partings, transformations, and transmigrations. 

"Like a porcelain bowl filled with river stones, The Parting presents a series of intimate, lapidary, water-worn worlds that will haunt the reader long after they have closed the book." -Campbell McGrath

Manchester Reading Groups 
this month at the Northshire, click here to see what we're reading, then join us!
Northshire Classic Mystery
Northshire History Reading Group
Northshire Mystery and Thriller
Northshire Women Read
Northshire Cookbook Reading Group
The Dark Side Reading Group
Northshire Poetry Reading 

Saratoga Reading Groups. 

To see what we are reading click here

Email ReadingGroupsNY@northshire.com 

if you're interested in any of the following groups: 

Truth and Tales Reading Group

Knit Wits Reading Group

Parent Child Reading Group

Thank you for Supporting Independent Bookselling!

Northshire Bookstore

Northshire Manchester
Open Daily at 10 am 
Sunday - Thursday until 7 pm 
Friday - Saturday until 9 pm
4869 Main Street
Junction of Routes 7A & 11/30 
Manchester Center, VT 05255
VT 800-437-3700 
VT 802-362-2200
 
Northire Saratoga
Open Daily at 10 am 
Sunday - Thursday until 7 pm 
Friday - Saturday until 9 pm
424 Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866