In a long, thoughtful story, the Independent Weekly celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Regulator Bookshop, Durham, N.C.
Here's one gem. Co-owner Tom Campbell told the paper, "I think we're in the
curiosity business. If people are curious about the world, they're
going to read books, because you really can't dig into something any
other way. I think a lot of people are afraid to be curious these days.
Like they're afraid of what they're going to find out: 'The world's
becoming a darker place, I don't want to know about it.' I think we've
gone through a time where people felt like that, but now I think that
people are starting to get curious again. I think that as long as
people are curious, we'll be O.K."
The Regulator is holding an anniversary party this Saturday from 8 p.m.
to midnight that will feature authors, food, drink, jazz and birthday
cake. Go the Regulator's Web site
for information on the party and the store's history, including a range
of amusing stories about such things as the arrival of the Secret
Service for a Jimmy Carter appearance and Peter Mayle's non-snobbish
approach to eating and drinking--which was a relief to the staff.
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Pubnet, the e-commerce
exchange, has introduced a new ordering program called Instant Response
that allows booksellers to receive instant purchase order
acknowledgements from Hachette, HarperCollins, Holtzbrinck, Penguin
Group, Random House and S&S. The program, which begins December 12,
offers retailers an alternative to direct electronic order dial-up
ordering systems offered by many POS vendors, Pubnet says. Many of these systems
will be discontinued with the introduction of ISBN-13 in January and
may no longer be supported by publishers.
"Booksellers will know immediately if a publisher can fulfill their
order or whether they should order from another source," Pubnet general
manager Charles Halpin said in a statement. "Publishers who join
Instant Response can offer a dramatically enhanced level of service to
their booksellers, who no longer have to wait on hold with customer
service to verify an order; or wait for a publisher to pick up their
online orders once a day for processing."
For more information, requirements and early-adoption discounts, go to Pubnet's Web site or contact Bruce Miller, U.S. sales executive, at 908-219-0053 or bruce.miller@bowker.com.
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Carl Lennertz, famous for touting books by other publishers, wonders on his blog whether Sister Bernadette's Barking Dog by Kitty Burns Florey (Melville House) "could be the next Eats, Shoots and Leaves? Subtitle: The Quirky History and Lost Art of Diagramming Sentences."
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Olsson's
Books and the American
Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression are joining with the
National Press Club, the MLRC Institute and the Newseum in presenting a
discussion on the impact and implications of using confidential
sources in journalism. The panel will be held at the National Press
Club in Washington, D.C., from 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, December 7, and is
free and open to the public.
Called "The Future of the Free Press: Should Journalists Be Able to Use
Confidential Sources and Seek Secret Information?" the panel includes
journalists, lawyers and legal scholars. The organizers note that
"though efforts to enact a federal shield law have stalled in Congress,
49 states recognize some form of 'reporter's privilege' to protect
confidential sources. Without reliance on confidential sources,
Watergate, the Pentagon Papers, Iran-Contra, and Abu Ghraib would have
gone unreported. However, should there be legal ramifications for
journalists who use information deemed sensitive to national security?"
To reserve a seat, call the National Press Club at 202-662-7501.