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Wellesley Books Newsletter
July 19th, 2017
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On this date in 1799, a black basalt slab was discovered north of Alexandria near the town of Rosetta during Napoleon's campaign into Egypt. This stone contained fragments of an identical script written in three different languages -- ancient Greek, Egyptian demotic, and Egyptian hieroglyphics -- and it became known as The Rosetta Stone. This artifact became essential to the understanding of the lost language of Egyptian hieroglyphics, opening up the ability to understand the writings on the pyramids and helping us to learn about a lost culture. We still enjoy learning about different cultures and people, and one of the best ways to learn about other people and other ideas is to open a book and read about them. Whole worlds, past, present, and future, are captured within the pages of books, both fiction and non-fiction. In this turbulent modern world, we still strive to understand other people and other cultures, perhaps more urgently than ever. This summer, may we suggest you take some time from your beach reads (as fabulous as they may be) to read a book about another country or culture? Learn about Afghanistan through Khaled Hosseini or China through the writings of Ha Jin; explore a South African childhood with Trevor Noah or roam Naples with Elena Ferrante. The world is a gigantic place, filled with people who are vastly different, yet innately similar, and nothing can bring us closer than understanding, and nothing facilitates understanding like the knowledge and empathy attained from books.
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Bill's Book Group For Guys
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by Denis Johnson
This National Book Award-winner scathingly riffs on the Vietnam War, disinformation programs, disillusion and atonement, and the many personalities of Americans as seen through the eyes of one CIA operative. It is brilliant and epic in scope.
Join Bill's Book Group for Guys for a relaxed evening in the store discussing a specially-chosen book while enjoying a beer, glass of wine, or select single-malt whiskey. $25 buys the book and a ticket to the event.
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Betty's Lunchtime Book Group
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by Nathan Hill
Betty Sudarsky, unparalleled bookseller and experienced book club leader, chooses each book carefully and leads the discussion. Bring your own lunch if you like; Betty supplies snacks, drinks, and insight. No need to sign up; drop-ins are welcome.
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Bookseller Recommendations
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William Recommends:
The Rise And Fall Of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson & Nicole Galland
Neal Stephenson is known for his long, scientifically meticulous fiction, but his co-writer, Nicole Galland, brings a whimsical sense to this story of modern-day scientists attempting to bring magic back to the world. Along the way, you get quantum physics, witches, Vikings attacking and plundering a Cambridge WalMart, time travel, Christopher Marlowe's sexual proclivities, and a whole lot more. This is a perfect summer read, full of sheer, unadulterated joy. This is the most fun I've had reading in a very long time.
Lorna Recommends:
Chemistry by Weike Wang
This wonderful debut novel follows a graduate student in chemistry as she tries to cope with the growing pressures from three different relationships in her life -- with her parents, her boyfriend, and her advisor. At turns funny and heart-beaking, I loved the writing, never certain where this woman and her clever mind would take me.
Phyllis Recommends:
The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy
Roy uses fascinating characters, including a transgender person and a liberal architect, to give us a glimpse of the devastation plaguing India over the last fifty years. The many stories encapsulated in this epic novel center on the plight of the invisible, the poor, and the forgotten, with a strong focus on the Muslim-Hindu strife and the conflict in Kashmir, the Union Carbide disaster in Bhopal, the caste system, and ongoing government corruption. Roy's passion in writing about the violence and inequity in her native India renders this novel as much a political statement as a fine work of literature.
Sally Recommends
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The Heirs
by Susan Rieger
This is a witty, smart and engrossing story of a wealthy New York family which has been fractured by the surprise appearance of an unknown woman claiming paternity of two sons after the patriarch has died. Told from the perspectives of the widow, her five sons, and other characters, the story reveals the way they deal with this news, each other and the lives that lie ahead of them. A great read!
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Pond
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Claire-Louise Bennett |
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New Books For Young Adults
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Did you know that we trade and sell used books? We trade books every Saturday from 12pm to 3pm (please do not drop off books, these will not be considered). We take adult and children's fiction and non-fiction. We are interested in paperback editions, but not hardcovers (although we may make an exception for a current bestseller). In order to be fair to all trade-in customers, we will review no more than about sixty books at most per family per Saturday. This is about the size of one small box or two grocery bags. Head down the flight of stairs next to the Children's desk to check out the selection!
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SUMMER CAMP CARE PACKAGES
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Sending a child to camp or want to send a fun-filled care package to an over-night camper? Wellesley Books has camp journals, stationery, and greeting cards to make keeping in touch easy. We also have a great selection of easy-to-pack games and puzzles for bunk time fun, including
travel sized games, Table Topics, Thinking Putty, and brain twisting puzzles.
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What We're Reading Now...
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Oscar
Oscar is a one year-old long-hair miniature Dachshund who visited us recently with his owners as they bought their summer reading. He was named after the Oscar Meyer hot dogs, because, well, he resembles one! He enjoys giving kisses and chasing the family cat, Layla. Welcome to Wellesley Books, Oscar.
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Introducing Libro.fm Memberships
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Do you love listening to your favorite books on the go? More and more people do -- and Libro.fm offers the best way to listen, with superior audio quality audiobooks (2x industry standard) -- and more than 70,000 to choose from!. The folks at Libro.fm are indies, just like us, and a portion of every sale goes to your favorite independent bookstore. It's the best way to "shop local" for digital audiobooks. Plus, Libro.fm now offers monthly memberships! For just $14.99 each month, choose one free audiobook, and get 30% off all additional purchases. To celebrate the launch, your first month's membership is just 99¢! All Libro.fm audiobooks are DRM-free -- you buy it, you own it -- and unused credits never expire. You'll get a great listening experience at a discounted price, along with a huge selection, and the satisfaction of supporting your local business. Visit
libro.fm/wellesleybooks
to start your membership and get your first month for just 99¢! (Have unused Audible credits? Come see us in the store -- we can help you convert up to two Audible credits over to Libro.fm!)
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"It is pleasanter to eat one's own peas out of one's own garden, than to buy them by the peck at Covent Garden; and a book reads the better, which is our own, and has been so long known to us, that we know the topography of its blots and dog's-ears, and can trace the dirt in it to having read it at tea with buttered muffins, or over a pipe."
-- Charles Lamb
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Thank you for supporting your community
independent bookstore!
Sincerely,
William D. Carl
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