Dear Reader
Every month, Roxanne's Dear Reader talks about the books she is most excited about, authors coming to the store who she can't wait to meet, and anything else that is on her mind.
April 2012
Dear Reader,
Spending time with our customers, talking books, catching up, and connecting continues to be my happiest time in the store. Last week was a bonanza for all of this, since it was our spring sale and so many of you were in the store. Certainly there was lots of talk about books, but many of you wanted to know what was going on with the sale of the store. So, I will use this newsletter to update you. Of course, we will also talk books.
More than twenty people have expressed interest in the store. Some didn't realize how many members on staff we have, how many moving parts there are, and the kind of time and resources it would take to successfully operate a bookstore. However, a dozen hardy souls are undaunted and equipped, and have advanced through several steps of the purchasing process. I am in the process of meeting with each of them. We are naturally looking for someone who has vision, skills, and resources. Happily, it looks like we will have a number of people who understand the endeavor of running a bookstore, realizing that we are a hub of traffic, business, ideas, and people...all of it in constant motion. It is incredibly exciting to hear potential owners' enthusiasm and eagerness to preserve what is great about RJ Julia, as well as all the ways in which it can evolve.
Hopefully, this helps to provide an update for you, but also...do you remember the game telephone when we were kids? As each of us whispered the info along, the accuracy of the info became skewed. That is what has happened with the news about the transition of the store, resulting in some people thinking we are closing. As you know, the plan is to find the right buyer. Until that time comes, the staff here at RJ Julia and I are doing what we have always done...running the best damn bookstore we can! If you would be willing to be our ambassadors and share the real facts, all of us at RJ Julia would be much appreciative. Thanks.
We have a packed April and May events schedule. Some events I hope you will not miss include our April 10th conversation with Delia Ephron--another powerhouse Ephron sister--that is sure to be such fun and a great girls' night out! Also, returning to RJ Julia are Alice Hoffman on April 12th, and Marilu Henner on April 26th. Both are certain to pack the house as we welcome each of them back again.
Recently, I picked up Crossing the Borders of Time by Leslie Maitland. It turns out she lived on the same little street as me--Cooper Street off 207th Street in NYC in the '50s. I didn't know her (she probably didn't play stickball!). Anyway, her book is stunning. Her mother, caught in the net of WWII Europe is separated from her fiancé, becomes a refugee traveling from France to Casablanca to Cuba and finally to the US. Here, her mother starts a new life, marries, and has children. Yet she always yearned for that lost fiancé, and Leslie, a journalist, pursues the haunting question of what happened to this handsome Frenchman. I was swept away by the mystery, the love, and the journey. An incredible and utterly engrossing story!
While we love the lines of people that wind around the block, drawn to RJ Julia by big-name authors, we are also just as fiercely committed to our talented debut authors. Madeline Miller is just the kind of writer we're talking about, and she will be here tomorrow night at 7pm. Her first novel, The Song of Achilles, stands a beautifully written retelling of the story of the Trojan War that is just as epic as the classics of Homer. RJ Julia, just like many independent bookstores, prides itself in helping these new authors gain momentum. If you remember a few years back, before many knew of him, Frank McCourt made RJ Julia one of his first stops as a debut author. As you all know, he went on to win the Pulitzer Prize. This is your chance to come meet our next possible Pulitzer Prize winner!
Two of the most renowned writers in America today, Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and Nathan Englander, author of What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, have teamed up to take a stab at one of the oldest stories. The result is the New American Haggadah, and it is superbly done! So well done, in fact, that it may convince your seder guests to read through the entire story timeline. Whether during Passover or after the holiday, this new twist on the oldest of tales is worth reading, with commentary from Lemony Snicket, Jeffrey Goldberg, Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, and Nathaniel Deutsch.
The RJ Café and Bistro remains an integral part of the RJ Julia experience. RJ Café owner, Kym Campbell, will be renovating the café this coming week. The café will be closed this Sunday through Thursday April 12th as it undergoes a transformation providing a more inviting and intimate atmosphere for its patrons, as well as making for a more efficient floor plan for better customer service. Kym notes that with the change in appearance, there will also be a few minor changes in the menu, both of which we are all sure to love!
Lastly, I was in NYC last week and met with Peter Mayer, the legendary publisher who now brilliantly heads Overlook Press, publishing a range of international books that are beautiful, or smart, or just amusing. He shared a copy of Milton Glaser's (the graphic designer who created the I Love NY logo) In Search of the Miraculous: Or, One Thing Leads to Another. I read it (little text and mostly design) early this past morning and it reminded me that as Benjamin Zander says, "Art, after all, is about rearranging us, creating surprising juxtapositions, emotional openings, startling presences, flight paths to the eternal." This is the way I hope each of us can start every day. Enjoy.
See you in the store,
Roxanne
P.S.: We like to think that in our community, there is not a single person who goes without a meal. However, hunger is a real concern in every community and the CT shoreline is not immune. The Community Dining Room is holding its 9th Annual Shoreline Walkathon on April 21st on the Branford Green. I encourage everyone to give what they can to make a difference and help fight hunger. Thank you.
