We'll drink to this story.
"Iowa City's literati are pouring bottles of reds and whites while settling in to listen to a reading or cracking open a new novel" at the new wine bar at Prairie Lights, the Iowa City Press Citizen wrote.
Earlier this year, the store remodeled its cafe and acquired a liquor license. Prairie Lights is also offering a few craft beers.
"Certainly some of the best books were written over a bottle of wine or a beer," employee Andy Osterhaus said. "We just want to provide a relaxed atmosphere where people can enjoy a good glass of wine, coffee, a conversation with friends or a good book."
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On Penguin's website, more than 40 Penguin Group authors are sharing the books they want to give and receive as gifts this season. In this second annual "What to Give & What to Get" promotion, for example, Elizabeth Gilbert said she is planning a "19th-century literature bender" next year and titles by George Eliot and Anthony Trollope top her wish list, while Sue Monk Kidd would like to receive The Help by Kathryn Stockett and plans to give David Benioff's City of Thieves.
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Barnes & Noble update: According to a note on the company's Unbound blog, B&N expects to begin accepting gift cards for e-book purchases by mid-December. "We were able to accelerate this change due in part to the customer feedback," the company said.
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"I think people are looking to stay a little closer to home.
They value local businesses," Arlene Lynes, owner of Read Between the
Lynes, Woodstock, Ill., told the Northwest Herald.
"But you have to be able to offer your community a service. We work
with the schools, and we offer story time. We work with the other local
businesses. If you are able to partner with another business, it makes
both of them stronger."
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How are changes in the publishing industry affecting the book market in Lincoln, Neb.? The Journal Star examined the topic from a number of angles, including indie survival in the age of book price wars.
Kate
Janulewicz of Indigo Bridge Books said the pricing issue "could have
the potential to be devastating for the industry. It could affect the
independents in that we may not be able to stay afloat. But it may not
affect us directly because we offer titles that aren't bestsellers....
You can try to fight against something that's not worth fighting
against because you stand no chance, or you can continue to do what you
do and do it well."
The devaluing of book values has had an
impact on used bookshops like Bluestem Books, which has "become more
selective in what books they buy," the Journal Star wrote.
"There
are a lot of books we don't carry now because they're available for
pennies on the Internet," said owner Scott Wendt, who observed that the
new book price wars won't have an impact on his business because
"they're losing $8 to $10 per book, and that's wonderful. They can
fight the battle out on the best-seller stuff. That has nothing to do
with us, and we hope they all lose millions of dollars.... The titans
are fighting in the clouds, and we're down with our lemonade stands
just taking nickels."