NEIBA News
November 20, 2019
‌
Hotel Rooms for NEIBA's 2020 Spring Forum
NEIBA is panning a Spring Forum for April 2020 in Portland, ME! This event will be 2 days of authors, networking events, and educational sessions (including a bookseller bootcamp). We hope to reserve a block of hotel rooms for overnight guests and want to be sure there are enough for our attendees. The poll below allows us to estimate how many rooms we will need. Thank you!
Would you book a hotel room to attend NEIBA's 2020 Spring Forum?
Yes
No
‌
‌
Notes from the Advisory Council

Stuff Our Customers Say
By Kelsy April, Savoy Bookshop & Cafe (Westerly, RI)
Who remembers that book Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores ? It was published back in 2012 by ABRAMS, and went to paperback a few years later in 2016. Since then, Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores have been making us booksellers chuckle and shake our heads in complete understanding and “I can relate” moments. 

Inspired by this book, my coworkers at Savoy Bookshop & Cafe and I have created our own version of this book via Google Docs. Yes, that’s right, New England Booksellers, Savoy has its own customer version of weird things our customers have said in our bookstore in a Google Doc. Some of it is book-related, much of it is not. Is it shareable with the NEIBA listserv? Perhaps, perhaps not. This document contains (100% anonymous) things we’ve overheard customers say to one another, to no one in particular, or directly to us, so we keep it between us to protect our customers privacy.

But that doesn’t mean we can collect these beautiful, hilarious, WTF moments, and giggle amongst ourselves at the ridiculousness of it all. Comradery among coworkers is essential to maintaining a cohesive work environment, and what is better at establishing comradery than laughter? 

This Google Doc, conspicuously named Real Things Overheard in Bookstores (Savoy) is a place where staff can have fun, but also allows them space to vent about a customer interaction without talking about it outloud so that everyone can hear it. We all have those customers that drive us bonkers, and we want to relay to our coworkers what just happened...but alas, that is not always appropriate. And thus began the Google Doc. 

Here are some of the entries that make me laugh the hardest:

“I just looked into that dog’s eyes, and he just looked like a wizard. Like a druid.”

Wow, I wish I had met this dog. 

“I find it funny making fun of children’s art work, just telling them they’re stupid and bad.”

I wish this person had seen the “snake mug” I made for my mom when I was in 5th grade. 

“I’ll let you know how the bears are. Or if I have to kill any.” 

I just...am not sure why this was a thing someone said?

“Instinctively, humans don’t trust left-handed people. That’s why my hair is parted this way.”

The need for more information on this one is real.

And now, the tidbit that had me rolling for days:

Old white man: “Want to hear a joke?”

Me, immediately apprehensive: “Sure?”

OWM: “I’m politically conservative...but *looks around furtively*...do you know what the difference is between a Zeppelin and Donald Trump? Well, one is a giant Nazi gas bag, and the other is just a blimp.”

Me: *dies*

Thanks for reading, y’all! I hope this provided some midday hump-day chuckles.
‌
Holiday Catalog Resources
Did you miss (or misplace) this week's e-mail with Holiday Catalog resources?
‌
A Letter from Andy Hunter, CEO of Bookshop.org
Dear Booksellers,

Many of you have heard about Bookshop ( https://bookshop.org ), our new bookselling platform with a mission to financially support independent bookstores like yours. We’re about three months from when we hope to launch (after Winter Institute, 2020) and I wanted to let you know more about who we are, our plans, and our goals.

I am a book publisher, of Catapult, Counterpoint, and Soft Skull press. I am also a web publisher, of Literary Hub, CrimeReads, and Book Marks, and before that, I founded Electric Literature. I am thoroughly invested in the culture around books, and I understand how important bookstores are to to that culture...

‌
Food for Thought
A round-up of pieces across publications.



More small strides were made in 2018 in addressing issues of pay disparity and diversification of the workforce


The writers’ conference is changing its aid offerings
after attendees raised concerns ranging from sexual
harassment to racism to the work cutting into the
seminars they came for in the first place.


"The Binc Foundation Announces the Results of the 2019 Survey"(Binc)

‌
Sign up for Children's Book Week 2020
May 4 - May 10, 2020
2019 was the 100th anniversary of Children's Book Week! Get a head start on the Spring celebration by registering your bookstore or library for the festivities. This year's theme is "Read. Dream. Share." For more information, read the coverage by Publishers Weekly.
‌
"Ask Alexis"
A message from our friends at Midtown Reader
‌
Promotions for Holiday/Re-Stock Orders
Wondering which publishers/wholesalers have special
promotions for holiday and re-stock orders?


To receive this grid by e-mail every Monday,
e-mail NAIBA   the names and emails of those who would like to receive it.
‌
Social Media Spotlight
Trident Booksellers & Cafe
@tridentbooks: The weather insists on staying terrible,
so it’s time to break out some classics.
Want to be featured? Use #NEIBA in social media posts 
(or tag @neibabooks) so we can see & share your photos!
‌
‌

NEIBA 
Best Sellers   
for the week ended
Sunday November 17, 2019

Based on reporting from the independent booksellers of
NEIBA and IndieBound  

HARDCOVER FICTION
1. Olive, Again
Elizabeth Strout, Random House, $27, 9780812996548
2. The Starless Sea
Erin Morgenstern, Doubleday, $28.95, 9780385541213
3. The Dutch House
Ann Patchett, Harper, $27.99, 9780062963673
4. Agent Running in the Field
John le Carré, Viking, $29, 9781984878878
5. Nothing to See Here
Kevin Wilson, Ecco, $26.99, 9780062913463
6. Where the Crawdads Sing
Delia Owens, Putnam, $26, 9780735219090
7. The Testaments
Margaret Atwood, Nan A. Talese, $28.95, 9780385543781
8. The Water Dancer
Ta-Nehisi Coates, One World, $28, 9780399590597
9. Blue Moon
Lee Child, Delacorte Press, $28.99, 9780399593543
10. The Giver of Stars
Jojo Moyes, Pamela Dorman Books, $28, 9780399562488
11. The Guardians
John Grisham, Doubleday, $29.95, 9780385544184
12. On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
Ocean Vuong, Penguin Press, $26, 9780525562023
13. Red at the Bone
Jacqueline Woodson, Riverhead Books, $26, 9780525535270
14. Find Me New!
André Aciman, FSG, $27, 9780374155018
15. The Night Fire
Michael Connelly, Little Brown, $29, 9780316485616

HARDCOVER NONFICTION
1. The Body
Bill Bryson, Doubleday, $30, 9780385539302
2. Talking to Strangers
Malcolm Gladwell, Little Brown, $30, 9780316478526
3. Catch and Kill
Ronan Farrow, Little Brown, $30, 9780316486637
4. Blowout
Rachel Maddow, Crown, $30, 9780525575474
5. Dumpty: The Age of Trump in Verse
John Lithgow, Chronicle Prism, $19.95, 9781452182759
6. Finding Chika
Mitch Albom, Harper, $24.99, 9780062952394
7. The Education of an Idealist New!
Samantha Power, Dey Street Books, $29.99, 9780062820693
8. The Pioneers New!
David McCullough, S&S, $30, 9781501168680
9. Educated
Tara Westover, Random House, $28, 9780399590504
10. How To New!
Randall Munroe, Riverhead Books, $28, 9780525537090
11. Nothing Fancy New!
Alison Roman, Clarkson Potter, $32.5, 9780451497017
12. Little Weirds
Jenny Slate, Little Brown, $27, 9780316485340
13. Edison
Edmund Morris, Random House, $38, 9780812993110
14. The Book of Gutsy Women
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, S&S, $35, 9781501178412
15. Me
Elton John, Holt, $30, 9781250147608

TRADE PAPERBACK FICTION
1. The Overstory
Richard Powers, Norton, $18.95, 9780393356687
2. A Gentleman in Moscow
Amor Towles, Penguin, $17, 9780143110439
3. Olive Kitteridge
Elizabeth Strout, Random House, $17, 9780812971835
4. Little Fires Everywhere
Celeste Ng, Penguin, $17, 9780735224315
5. The Great Alone
Kristin Hannah, St. Martin's Griffin, $17.99, 9781250229533
6. Unsheltered
Barbara Kingsolver, Harper Perennial, $17.99, 9780062684738
7. The Tattooist of Auschwitz
Heather Morris, Harper, $16.99, 9780062797155
8. The Best American Short Stories 2019
Anthony Doerr, Heidi Pitlor (Eds.), Mariner, $15.99, 9781328484246
9. Girl, Woman, Other New!
Bernardine Evaristo, Grove Press/Black Cat, $17, 9780802156983
10. The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood, Anchor, $15.95, 9780525435006
11. There There
Tommy Orange, Vintage, $16, 9780525436140
12. Nine Perfect Strangers
Liane Moriarty, Flatiron Books, $17.99, 9781250069832
13. Before We Were Yours
Lisa Wingate, Ballantine, $17, 9780425284704
14. A Spark of Light
Jodi Picoult, Ballantine, $17, 9780345545008
15. A Well-Behaved Woman
Therese Anne Fowler, St. Martin's Griffin, $16.99, 9781250095480

TRADE PAPERBACK NONFICTION
1. The Old Farmer's Almanac 2020
Old Farmer's Almanac, $8.95, 9781571988102
2. Upstream: Selected Essays
Mary Oliver, Penguin, $17, 9780143130086
3. The Library Book
Susan Orlean, S&S, $16.99, 9781476740195
4. No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference New!
Greta Thunberg, Penguin, $10, 9780143133568
5. Born a Crime
Trevor Noah, Spiegel & Grau, $18, 9780399588198
6. Calypso
David Sedaris, Back Bay, $17.99, 9780316392426
7. The Spy and the Traitor
Ben Macintyre, Broadway Books, $18, 9781101904213
8. Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari, Harper Perennial, $22.99, 9780062316110
9. White Fragility
Robin DiAngelo, Beacon Press, $16, 9780807047415
10. Classic Krakauer: Essays on Wilderness and Risk
Jon Krakauer, Anchor, $15, 9781984897695
11. The Soul of an Octopus New!
Sy Montgomery, Atria, $16.99, 9781451697728
12. The Game: Harvard, Yale, and America in 1968 New!
George Howe Colt, Scribner, $18, 9781501104794
13. These Truths: A History of the United States
Jill Lepore, Norton, $19.95, 9780393357424
14. Braiding Sweetgrass New!
Robin Wall Kimmerer, Milkweed Editions, $18, 9781571313560
15. The Best American Essays 2019 New!
Rebecca Solnit, Robert Atwan (Eds.), Mariner, $15.99, 9781328465801

MASS MARKET
1. 1984
George Orwell, Signet, $9.99, 9780451524935
2. The Shining
Stephen King, Anchor, $8.99, 9780307743657
3. Good Omens
Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Morrow, $9.99, 9780062836977
4. Elevation New!
Stephen King, Scribner, $9.99, 9781982102326
5. Red Mars
Kim Stanley Robinson, Bantam, $8.99, 9780553560732
6. Women Who Run With the Wolves New!
Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ballantine, $8.99, 9780345409874
7. The Reckoning New!
John Grisham, Dell, $9.99, 9780525620938
8. The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss, DAW, $9.99, 9780756404741
9. The Left Hand of Darkness New!
Ursula K. Le Guin, Ace, $9.99, 9780441478125
10. Animal Farm
George Orwell, Signet, $9.99, 9780451526342

CHILDREN'S ILLUSTRATED
1. The Crayons' Christmas
Drew Daywalt, Oliver Jeffers (Illus.), Penguin Workshop, $19.99, 9780525515746
2. Dasher: How a Brave Little Doe Changed Christmas Forever
Matt Tavares, Candlewick, $17.99, 9781536201376
3. Sisters First New!
Jenna Bush Hager, Barbara Pierce Bush, Ramona Kaulitzki (Illus.), Little Brown (BYR), $18.99, 9780316534789
4. Goodnight Moon
Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd (Illus.), Harper, $8.99, 9780694003617
5. The Tale of the Tiger Slippers
Jan Brett, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780399170744
6. Make Way for Ducklings
Robert McCloskey, Puffin, $7.99, 9780140564341
7. The Shortest Day
Susan Cooper, Carson Ellis (Illus.), Candlewick, $17.99, 9780763686987
8. The Snowy Nap New!
Jan Brett, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780399170737
9. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Robert Frost, Susan Jeffers (Illus.), Dutton, $16.99, 9780525467342
10. Good Night, Little Blue Truck
Alice Schertle, Jill McElmurry (Illus.), HMH Books for Young Readers, $17.99, 9781328852137

CHILDREN'S INTEREST
1. Guts
Raina Telgemeier, Graphix, $12.99, 9780545852500
2. White Bird: A Wonder Story
R.J. Palacio, Knopf Books for Young Readers, $24.99, 9780525645535
3. Best Friends
Shannon Hale, LeUyen Pham (Illus.), First Second, $12.99, 9781250317469
4. A Tale of Magic...
Chris Colfer, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780316523479
5. Drama
Raina Telgemeier, Graphix, $10.99, 9780545326995
6. Scholastic Year in Sports 2020 New!
James Buckley Jr., Scholastic, $9.99, 9781338565508
7. The Wonders of Nature New!
Ben Hoare, DK Children, $19.99, 9781465485366
8. Call Down the Hawk
Maggie Stiefvater, Scholastic Press, $19.99, 9781338188325
9. The Midwinter Witch
Molly Knox Ostertag, Graphix, $12.99, 9781338540550
10. Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation New!
Stuart Gibbs, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $17.99, 9781534424760

CHILDREN'S SERIES TITLES
1. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Wrecking Ball
Jeff Kinney, Amulet Books, $14.99, 9781419739033
2. Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls
Dav Pilkey, Graphix, $12.99, 9781338236590
3. Sofia Valdez, Future Prez (The Questioneers) New!
Andrea Beaty, David Roberts (Illus.), Abrams, $18.99, 9781419737046
4. The Toll (Arc of a Scythe, #3)
Neal Shusterman, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $19.99, 9781481497060
5. Legacy (Keeper of the Lost Cities, #8)
Shannon Messenger, Aladdin, $21.99, 9781534427334
6. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: The Illustrated Edition
J.K. Rowling, Jim Kay (Illus.), Arthur A. Levine Books, $47.99, 9780545791427
7. Boy-Crazy Stacey (Baby-Sitters Club Graphic Novel, #7)
Ann M. Martin, Gale Galligan (Illus.), Graphix, $10.99, 9781338304510
8. Dog Man: Brawl of the Wild New!
Dav Pilkey, Graphix, $9.99, 9781338236576
9. The Secret Commonwealth (Book of Dust, Volume 2)
Philip Pullman, Knopf Books for Young Readers, $22.99, 9780553510669
10. Dog Man Unleashed New!
Dav Pilkey, Graphix, $9.99, 9780545935203
‌
‌