Finding the Missing Pieces

I have always loved puzzles. I like jigsaws, crosswords, acrostics, and wordfinds. I think this love of puzzles explains my love of mystery books. I like all kinds of mysteries, from Agatha Christie to James Lee Burke. I like the cozy mysteries and police procedurals and legal thrillers and historical mysteries and even those crazy cat mysteries. (You would be amazed how many cat mysteries are out in the world!). I am working on a project for my job at the library that involves a compilation of mystery titles for summer reading and I thought I would tell you about some of my favorite mysteries.

Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers - Harriet Vane and Lord Peter Wimsey have to be the most elegant detectives on earth.

Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz - Izzy Spellman and her dysfunctional family will keep you laughing while trying to solve the mystery.

A Tan and Sandy Silence by John D. MacDonald - Before Magnum P.I. , there was Travis McGee. McGee is cooler than can be imagined as he solves mysteries from his Florida houseboat, "The Busted Flush".

Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters - I love the Amelia Peabody series. You can learn a little about archaeology's early days and enjoy the exotic locales. Amelia is stubborn and funny and destined to find trouble.

Bookman's Wake by John Dunning - Cliff Janeway, the detective turned rare book dealer, goes in search of a rare volume of Poe's The Raven.

In addition, anything written by Lee Child, John Lescroart, Jason Pinter, Janet Evanovich, Robert Crais, Elizabeth George, P.D. James, Dennis Lehane, Harlan Coben and Donna Leon will lead you into hours of intrigue and mystery.

I just started reading Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. Both Elizabeth and Beth from the library said that I would not be able to put it down. Lehane writes really well and captures the gritty, dangerous world that his characters inhabit.

And if you are intrigued by puzzles, I think that this movie, created by Christian Nilsson, an Open Book employee and aspiring filmaker, is something you will really like.

Some Books You Should Know

"Every book, every volume you see here, has a soul. The soul of the person who wrote it and of those who read it and lived and dreamed with it. Every time a book changes hands, every time someone runs his eye down its pages, its spirit grows and strengthens. . . . Every book you see here has been somebody's best friend." Carlos Ruiz Zafon in Shadow of the Wind


Have you read Shadow of the Wind yet? It is an eerie, beautiful, dark, romantic book. There are parallel love stories and a Cemetery of Forgotten Books and a mysterious author. All of this takes place in the almost Gothic city of Barcelona in the years following World War II.


One of my greatest pleasures as both a bookseller and a librarian is to introduce readers to authors and books that I know they will love. Connecting readers with books sometimes requires a bit of detective work. What do you like to read? What do you love about that character? Why did you hate that book? Simple or complicated? Funny or sad? Scary or sweet? Whatever your answers, there is a book for you. Here are some books you may not have read yet, but I hope you will give them a try:


The Henry Parker series by Jason Pinter. The Mark and The Guilty are available now. The Stolen is due in August. This series of books involves a young protagonist who gets involved in a variety of situations which leave your heart racing. I like the details of Henry's life and the fact that he is a young, fallible man who tries to do the right thing.


The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. This novel is funny and touching and contains a bit of mystery. I like that it is written as a series of letters. I did not know anything about the occupation of Guernsey during World War II and the hardships endured by the residents and this novel fills in my historical blanks about that subject. The very unusual book club that is formed during this time consists of characters that are so well drawn that you feel that you know them.


A Monk Jumped Over a Wall by Jay Nussbaum. What at first seems to be a legal thriller quickly heads in another direction, as the hero falls victim to his own compassion. This novel makes you think about the consequences of living up to other's expectations. J.J. Spencer takes a journey that leads to a rethinking of his life and values. The story moves quickly and the turns it takes will surprise you.


Norma Ever After by Nancy Baxter. OK, this really is a bit of a "girly" book. But who can resist a love story that takes place on the Orkney Islands and includes puffins? If you are in the mood for Atlas Shrugged, this is not going to satisfy you, but if you want a lovely little read....this is it.

I Love Libraries

When I was a little girl, going to the library was an adventure. There were all those books with the crackling plastic covers and the stories hidden inside of them. Sometimes you could tell from the picture on the front what the story would be about. Sometimes, you had to wait and be surprised. I wanted to read every book in the library by the time I grew up. It was an exquisite torture to have to pick just six books.

In college, the top floor of the UCSB library was a quiet sanctuary to read and study and nap. When I could not study for one more minute, I would explore the stacks, pulling out oddly titled books. From my scarred wooden carel, I would look out the window and watch the sun setting.

I may be one of the very few people who, when living in Aspen, spent her days off in the Aspen Library. It was comfortable and almost suburban. It was as far away as you might get from the tourists in their fur coats and cowboy hats. The books were often outdated and a little worn, but it was cozy and familiar, in the way that libraries are. You could not mistake the purpose of that building, no matter where it was situated. In every place that I have lived (California, Colorado, Iowa, Boston, Nantucket, or New York....it is a long list), I have sought out the public library, grand or small, and made it a place that was somehow my own.

And now I am a librarian. Although I still sell books, I also lend them as well. I help people with research and talk to them about great books to read. I help with computers and copiers and microfilm. I find that I am fitting happily into this new role. It may be because a library, any library, feels like home to me and I have finally settled in as a resident.

Books You Should Read

Have you ever read a book that you loved so much that you want to stop people on the street and tell them that they have to drop everything they are doing and go read this book? When you spend as much time around books as I do, you might think I come across those "you just have to read this" books all the time. Unfortunately, the magical books are few and far between. There are plenty of good reads and interesting novels and exciting stories....but the ones that make you sit all day reading when you have a million other things to do are rare.

So, here, in no particular order, is a list of books that took me away:

Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Erlich
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
White Oleander by Janet Fitch
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo
Once Upon a Day by Lisa Tucker
Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
How to Be Lost by Amanda Eyre Ward

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

These books are real treasures. They wrapped me in deftly written phrases and beautifully crafted stories. I remember these books because while I was reading them, the rest of the world just disappeared.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the bookmamas. Mothers Day makes me think about all of my children: the two great girls that I gave birth to and the many "adopted children" that have come to me through The Open Book. When I opened the bookstore, I imagined ordering books and talking to customers and selling and stocking shelves. I barely gave a thought to the people who would come to work with me. What an amazing surprise it has been to find so many people that have loved the store and become part of my extended family.



I find that the people who want to work at the bookstore tend to be creative and hungry for life. Whether they are writers or actors or students or filmakers or artists, they pursue their dreams and find joy in the daily world. The people who have worked with me in the past and those who work with me now have entertained and enlightened me. I have laughed so hard while working that I have literally had to sit down on the floor to catch my breath. From the Open Bookies I have received empathy, concern, friendship, moments of complete silliness and love.


So, on this Mother's Day, this Bookmama is grateful for the inestimable joy given to her by her daughters and for the unexpected happiness brought to her by her bookstore kids.

Sometimes when you can't come up with the right thing to say, you have to turn to others for the right words. On my dining room wall we have written our favorite quotes in multicolored Sharpies. You do not have to go quite that far, you can always turn to the old standby, Bartlett's Familiar Quotations for quotations for your speech or wedding toast. But, if you would like some beautiful photography with your wisdom, find a copy of The Turning Point by Victor Gagliardi. This is one of my very favorite books. I can turn to any page and find something that makes me smile or makes me think or touches my heart.

Welcome to Bookmama's world. I am the owner of a small independent bookstore and a part-time reference librarian. I am completing my degree in library science. My world revolves, for the most part, around books: studying books, reading books, recommending books, ordering books, selling books. I am also the proud "Mama" of two daughters (who are almost too old to call me "Mama" anymore). Thus, the title of this blog.

I read all kinds of books and am looking forward to sharing some of my favorites with you. I am interested in what is going on the world of libraries and bookselling and will pass items of interest on these subjects to you. I will occasionally go off on a bit of a rant about censorship, rudeness, the price of gas, etc. You have been warned.

Hope you enjoy my world. I would love to hear from you.