I said I wanted to READ…not BLEED.

Open Letter to the creator of PVC Book Covers/Dust Jackets:

Dear Inventor:

I’m writing on behalf of my injured fingers, three of which sustained grave wounds this weekend as I attempted to read a book with one of those new-fangled plastic-paper covers.  Don’t feign ignorance, you know what I’m talking about!  PVC plastic has no business masquerading as paper, especially when it comes to covers of paperback books.  I thought PVC had something to do with pipes!

I understand that libraries are just trying to preserve their books, but I ask you, at what cost?!  Would they prefer a blood-stained copy of Julie and Julia to a slightly creased copy?  I almost took a scissor to my book to round the edges of doom but was afraid a heavy fine would be levied against me.

I have a $50 deductible at the ER and don’t relish the doctor telling me I need three stitches* in my finger all because of a book.  Isn’t reading supposed to be a safe and relatively inexpensive hobby?

Best (though bloody) wishes,

Natalie

Book, Line, and Sinker

*A bit of hyperbole is being employed here.  I didn’t really need stitches but they added a bit of flair to my story!  Sorry for any confusion.

Comment Editing: Can I get an Amen?

Construction is in full swing on booklineandsinker.com, and things are coming along despite the fact that most of the directions and/or instructions I read appear to be written in Chinese or Sanskrit.  Maybe it’s just me.  I keep a brave smile pasted on my face, my techie friend on speed dial, a bottle of wine nearby, and pretend that everything is going swimmingly.  Fake it ’til you make it is my mantra, and the stakes are high!

My husband and I have a wager riding on the development of my new blog; he’s under the impression that I will outsource the design and technical development before it goes live.  He said that my spotty track record speaks volumes, but in my own defense, I only hired the pastry chef to bake my Christmas cookies ONCE!  Dear old hubby went on to remind me of the year I ordered our Christmas tree from the Williams-Sonoma catalog, which happened to be the same year that I invited my entire extended family to Easter dinner and fed them a catered meal that I attempted to pass off as my own.  The jig was up (and we enjoyed a hearty laugh) after a meddling great-aunt found evidence in my trashcan that brought the deception to light.  But I digress. 

Thus far, the most exciting thing about moving to a self-hosted blog is a little feature that benefits anyone who leaves a comment on my blog.  I hope you will be half as excited as I was to discover this little gem.  (Or maybe you don’t live under a rock with me and already know about it.) 

How many times have you dashed off a witty comment on someone’s blog only to discover, after clicking submit of course, that you made a glaring TYPO?  You frantically hit the back button on your browser in a vain attempt to undo the boo-boo, but it’s always too late.  So, what do you do next?  If you’re anything like me, you leave a second comment begging the blogger to correct your mistake.  Am I alone here?  I didn’t think so!

So, the good news?  On my NEW! website, you will be able to edit your comments for up to 30 minutes after leaving them!  Simply use the same computer (IP address) and you can come back and fix any mistake(s).  I know, I know!  I can almost smell the rose petals that are being tossed at my feet at this very minute.  Now I can only hope that it will work. 

Does anyone have the number for a website developer handy?

New Kids on the ‘Blog’: Promoting New Book Blogs

When I first started my life blog back in 2007, I was posting for almost an entire month before someone left a comment.  My daily stats were in the low single digits and I was discouraged.

I learned, trial by fire, how integral connecting with readers through my writing, tagging posts, and commenting meaningfully on other blogs was to helping grow my blog.  I eventually developed friendships and my stats and comments grew.  Blogging became more fun because of my friends, their feedback, and a sense of community.

When I decided to launch Book, Line, and Sinker in early 2009, I contacted a wonderful book blogger who I’d gotten to know through my life blog.  I asked her for some advice and she went above and beyond, writing an entire post promoting my new venture.  

With her introduction, my neophyte book blog’s stats spiked and I found myself warmly welcomed into the book blogging community.  That introduction made all the difference between my book blog languishing for months without an audience and my book blog finding a niche in such a great community.  While I do think that it’s marginally easier to break into book blogging than life blogging*, starting a new blog can be daunting no matter what your niche. 

Recently, this same blogger tweeted about a new book blog and asked that we pay a visit to welcome the new blogger.  All of these things, and BBAW, got me thinking about building community and engaging new (or under exposed) book bloggers who might not have the encouragement (through comments, chats, tweets, and emails) that others in the community enjoy. 

I’m not sure how (or if) promoting new book bloggers is a viable idea.  While developing Book, Line, and Sinker’s new layout and design, I’m toying with a widget for New Book Blog Promotion.  Here are other things I’m considering:

• Have other book bloggers submit new book blog links to me via email and then host the links in my sidebar for a week
• A monthly or bi-monthly post on my site with links promoting new book blogs 
• A blogroll on my site devoted to new blogs 
• Other bloggers hosting links or adding new blogs to their blogrolls 

As the book blogging community continues to grow, I’d love to give back by offering new bloggers  encouragement and exposure.  If you’d like to be a part of this, please let me know.  Have any ideas or suggestions?  Drop me a comment or email! 

*In my experience, book bloggers are, by nature, avid readers and are more willing to read posts and comment on them. 

Review: The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett

Title: The Man Who Loved Books Too Much

Author: Allison Hoover Bartlett

Genre/Pages: Nonfiction/288

Publication: Riverhead Books; September 17, 2009

Rating: 4 BOOKMARKS

A riveting account of one man’s obsession with rare books, another man’s unrelenting efforts to catch him, and the woman who documented it all.

Persistent lying and stealing.  Check. Superficial charm.  Check. Lack of remorse or inability to care about hurting others.  Check. Narcissism and sense of extreme entitlement.  Check and CHECK.

John Charles Gilkey could be the poster child for Antisocial Personality Disorder and he’s fixated on rare books.  In him, Allison Hoover Bartlett finds an inconsistent and unreliable source who acts as her guide on a literary odyssey through the world of rare books and his obsession with possessing them through acts of fraud and theft.

Spending whole years researching Gilkey and Ken Sanders, the book dealer who made it his personal mission to catch him, Bartlett finds herself, at times, walking the fine line between right and wrong to get her story.  This conflict actually made the work all the more authentic and exciting.  Gilkey confides in her about crimes past and Bartlett wrangles with her conscience–should she report him and risk scaring him off, ending their professional relationship (and her research)?

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much details the world of rare books, making it seem enticing and almost seductive.  Each collector’s hunt for the book, the crowning jewel of his or her collection, keeps the dealers in business.  What used to be a rich, white man’s game is now seeing an influx of younger, more diverse collectors.

With colorful characters, steady pacing, tales of deception and illicit behavior, and dogged efforts to catch a criminal,  The Man Who Loved Books Too Much is an exciting, educational, and thoroughly entertaining read.  If you’re looking for a great nonfiction book for a challenge or just want a change of pace, I would recommend this book without hesitation.  Many thanks to Lydia at Riverhead for this review copy!

Do you collect rare or first edition books?  How about signed editions?  I have a few signed books–Jodi Picoult came to my local library a few years ago and signed two books for me and I went to Megan McCafferty’s book signing a few years ago at B&N.  I don’t have any rare or first edition books–the only old books I have are ones from my childhood that I keep for nostalgic reasons.