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Open for Shipping, Delivery, & Curbside Pickup!
Our physical store is closed, but you can still shop online!
DUE TO THE HIGH VOLUME OF SALES & THE LIMITED NUMBER OF BOOKSELLERS THAT CAN SAFELY BE IN THE STORE WE ARE RUNNING SEVERAL DAYS BEHIND IN PROCESSING ONLINE ORDERS.
This is a wonderful problem to have and we are so thankful for your support. Please see the website for more details.
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“
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
”
―
Plato, or J.M. Barrie, or Ian MacLaren, depending on who you ask
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In my house, the above quotation was often cited. I remember creating a collage as a high schooler for my mother's birthday present - shiny gold lipstick cases cut from glossy magazines, images of dusty relics pulled from old issues of Nat Geo, and carefully lettered calligraphy including some of our favorite song lyrics, inside jokes, and - this saying.
Some attribute this saying to Plato; some point to J. M. Barrie; others claim originally it was Ian MacLaren, who actually wrote "Be pitiful, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." (Pitiful here meaning full of pity - it's not a call to join the ranks of the despondent.) Very likely, the truth is that all of these writers may have said or written something approximating this phrase. After all, it's not a groundbreaking statement; the meaning is akin to many aphorisms we share daily, like "Do unto others..." Its power isn't in the turn of the phrase, but in the simple truth of it.
Of course, we don't know what kind of day our neighbor has had when we have a casual interaction on the street. A colleague who you're perfectly friendly with might have something totally unknown to you happening in their personal life. Even our own loved ones may not instantly be ready to share problems they're working through. An extra, deliberate touch of kindness in every single interaction? It may seem like additional work, but if you can contribute to making someone's day better, why not? The beauty of kindness is that it replenishes itself - keep it flowing, and you will never run out.
Right now, there are many battles taking place all around us, some loud, some quiet. We can't always share in each other's battles or fight each other's fights. What we can do is make space for each other - to say, I recognize that I cannot fully know what you're feeling or how - and that I am not entitled to that knowledge - but I respect it. And honestly? Sometimes that's enough to keep someone fighting another day.
In this particular day and age, all of us are making choices on how to live our lives as safely and as fully as possible. It's so easy to want to interrogate these decisions - to ask
why are you doing this, or not doing that, to squint at people's decisions to stay in all the time or to go out every day. Right now, I think we need to extend an extra kindness to each other - that we don't understand the full picture of everyone's situations, and really, we don't need to know. We're all figuring this out at exactly the same rate. All we can do is respect our own and others choices... that, and wear masks in public spaces.
With kindness, Leila
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Join our next virtual event!
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Damien Echols
Angels and Archangels,
Tuesday, July 14th at 7PM
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Join us for a talk with Damien Echols, hosted on Crowdcast! This event is free and open to all.
“Angels do not belong to any one single religion, system, or dogma,” teaches Damien Echols. “They are almost pure energy—the very substance the cosmos is made of. They’re also incredibly willing to work with us if asked.”
With
Angels and Archangels,
this bestselling author presents an essential resource for understanding what angels are, how they make themselves available, and magickal practices to invoke their power to transform your life. In this lucid and information-packed guide, Damien shares his unique understanding and experience of magickal practices refined in the crucible of his wrongful death row imprisonment.
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J. Courtney Sullivan with Joanna Rakoff
Friends and Strangers,
Thursday, July 16th at 7PM
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Porter Square Books is delighted to welcome J. Courtney Sullivan in conversation with Joanna Rakoff for
Friends and Strangers!
Hosted on Crowdcast, this event is free and open to all.
An insightful, hilarious, and compulsively readable novel about a complicated friendship between two women who are at two very different stages in life, from the best-selling author of
Maine
and
Saints for All Occasions
(named one of the
Washington Post
's Ten Best Books of the Year and a
New York Times
Critics' Pick). A masterful exploration of motherhood, power dynamics, and privilege in its many forms,
Friends and Strangers
reveals how a single year can shape the course of a life.
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New:
Mini Illustration Giveaway!
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The wonderful authors/illustrators
Ruth Chan
and
Elisha Cooper
organized #kidlitartsurprise. Through their efforts, we have received gorgeous mini illustrations (originals) by several illustrators who wanted to help support indie bookstores right now.
For every order with a hardcover kids picture book, you will receive one mini illustration (chosen at random - they're all lovely!). You can get an original by one of the following awesome creators:
You don't have to get a book illustrated by one of the contributors, though they'd surely appreciate it (several have new books! Each name above is linked to the illustrator's work on our website). Check out some of the awesome illustrations below:
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Want to show your love of Porter Square Books? Available for 2 weeks only, order your very own Porter Square Books T-shirt!
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Porter Square Books is proud to partner with the
Prison Book Program to help provide access to books to people in prison. Order any title off this wish list and select the "Curbside Pick Up" shipping option and we'll give to the Prison Book Program to distribute.
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Miss getting great recommendations from your favorite booksellers? Never quite got the hang of the whole online orders thing? Now you can sign up for a time slot to chat with a bookseller! Currently available on Saturday and Sunday between 10-4 pm.
Up this weekend: Meaghan on Saturday and Stacey on Sunday!
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Antiracism Books: A Place to Start
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Digital Audio Books:
A terrific way to support local indies!
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Want book recommendations, personalized
just for you?
Fill out our form with your likes and dislikes, genres and favorites, and we'll crowdsource a bunch of great picks for you with our crack team of
real life
booksellers. Give it a whirl!
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Visit your friends at Cafe Zing!
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Did you know our beloved Cafe Zing is open for customers? Now you know!
Open Wednesday-Saturday, 8am - 2pm!
See you and your extra-shot, biggest-size-you-have iced latte at the cafe.
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A Silent Fury: The El Bordo Mine Fire
By
Yuri Herrera
, translated by
Lisa Dillman
What we remember is an act of power. Not remembering that modern American policing grew out of slave patrols, or, in the case of Boston, efforts to violently oppress the labor movement, is an act of power that helps sustain our racist systems. Not remembering that most monuments to the Confederacy were built in the context of Jim Crow era assaults on the civil rights of African Americans is an act of power that helps sustain our racist systems.
In one of those odd convergences that sometimes happens, Yuri Herrera’s latest work of genius,
A Silent Fury
, also starts with a moment of sorts and directly unspools the act of power embedded in what and how that monument tries to remember a tragedy. From the plaque to a press release, to a mislabeled photograph, like a paleontologist drawing a beast from a jaw bone, Herrera tells a story greed, imperialism, and complicity from a few fragments of information.
The El Bordo Mine Fire is just one almost forgotten tragedy but, like Rukeyser's
Book of the Dead
, the bright, poetic light Herrera shines on it with
A Silent Fury
, casts a shadow on our biggest questions.
--Josh
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A Burning
by Megha Majumdar, featuring a cast of readers
For readers of Tommy Orange, Yaa Gyasi, and Jhumpa Lahiri, an electrifying debut novel about three unforgettable characters who seek to rise--to the middle class, to political power, to fame in the movies--and find their lives entangled in the wake of a catastrophe in contemporary India.
“Majumdar’s suspenseful narrative holds a mirror up to society at large, reflecting the lies people tell themselves to rationalize sacrificing morality for personal gain. Unintended consequences from an impulsive social media post explode against a backdrop of deep economic insecurities and centuries-old prejudices. A searing debut, this novel is timely and timeless. It packs a punch way above its weight. Brilliant.”
--
Lisa Johnson, Penguin Bookshop
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Our 'get 3 paperbacks' bundle options have expanded to include Caleb, Meaghan, and Shana! Get 3 paperbacks handpicked by the bookseller that fit in with their theme. You can find all bundles.
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EXPANDED OPTIONS:
Journals, Stationery & Crafts
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Sometimes a new notebook is what it takes to get the juices flowing!
We have now made a much wider variety of notebooks, journals, and even calendars available for order from our website,
like this classic Moleskin
. Now, along with items with an inventory status of "On Our Shelves Now," you can order journals, notebooks, diaries, calendars, planners, and more with an inventory status of "Available at Warehouses."
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Face Masks
Face coverings are going to be with us for a while, so
we’re now offering non-medical grade cloth masks (including kid size) from a variety of makers. Right now quantities are limited, but additional styles are on the way. We’ll keep you posted!
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Book Bundle Offerings
Make your shopping easy by buying bundles, handpicked by our expert booksellers!
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Summer camp might be canceled but you can still play camp games! If you’re looking for some different summertime activities, try these out.
The slippery watermelon is great if you have a pool, water access at the beach or a lake, and
especially
if you’re lucky enough to have a boat and you’re teaching kids how to sail! Grease up a watermelon with sunscreen, and try to catch it like you would with capture-the-flag. It’ll get away from you faster than you think! Plus when you’re done, you have a tasty snack.
Scavenger hunts are easy to do no matter where you are: your house, your neighborhood, your garden, the beach. You can make these themed, educational, or totally random, and have fun little prizes like pencils or candy at the end!
A talent show is the ultimate event for campers of any age! Have everyone in your unit prepare a musical performance, some stand-up comedy, or a skit, and then perform it for family and friends via zoom or socially-distanced in person.
Ever played the horse race board game? I’ll never forget the rainy weekend at my grandparent’s lake house where my grandmother made her own horse race board, complete with paper horse heads for pieces. While you can find nice wooden boards online, you can also make your own board and pieces with poster paper and markers (look, a craft!)
You can find the rules for play here.
--
Heather
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The cool thing about virtual readings is that they can cross vast distances and connect far-flung people. For example ... here's
If I Were an Astronaut, read by astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor -- from
space. Actual space!!
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Support Cafe Zing Baristas!
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Although Cafe Zing is its own business separate from ours, we really don't see it that way: Zing workers are part of the Porter Square Books family. They keep us well supplied - very well supplied - with caffeine, kindness, and some great tunes. Sometimes they give us staff picks; sometimes we give them exact change because we've bought the same, perfect, comforting, delicious beverage twice a day five days a week for how long, now?
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They're here! Check out our bookseller's favorite books this month, and enjoy that sweet, sweet discount.
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I get a lot of requests for drawing books...and it’s not just because I’m an art professor! Full of cartooning exercises, this book is great if you’re looking for a summertime activity, or know a kid who’s into comics.
-Marika
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There is a lot of African American history and culture packed in this cookbook and one of my favourite parts is the stories behind each recipe. Learning about cultures that provide us with our favourite foods today is necessary. The history and recipes are there, but it's up to us to put in the work. Recipes I recommend (so far): Baked Macaroni & Cheese, Hibiscus & Ginger Sweet Tea, and Sweet Potato Pie! --
Sinny
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We want to hear from you!
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How many books have you read/listened to during quarantine?
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None ... I haven't had the mojo! (We still love you!)
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See you next time here at Shelf Stable!
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Did you miss an installment, or want to share with a friend? The Shelf Stable Archive has all our past issues!
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And don't forget to subscribe to our Events Newsletter for the full line up of events coming up, and our Kids Newsletter for
all the latest on events, new books, reviews, and more for young and young-at-heart readers.
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Looking for other ways to keep up with us? Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube:
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25 White St. Cambridge, MA 02140
617-491-2220
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