The DC Chronicles: Dave's Book and Broken Ankle Sagas

[michaelflanagansf]

I have posted this question over in the book club thread, but I should probably ask here too: would anyone be interested in doing a book club for the book 'Columbine'?

[dejavu]

And just an update:  quite a few people have said (just today) on the book club thread that they are interested, so I hope maybe others will join in.

[michaelflanagansf]

And just an update:  quite a few people have said (just today) on the book club thread that they are interested, so I hope maybe others will join in.

As do I.  We're planning on starting in mid-June - details to follow.

[Dave Cullen]

thanks for the interest in the book club--and to mf for organizing it. i'm pretty excited.

and thanks for the review, mf. very nice.

montezumae, i'm not sure what i'm writing next. i'm working on one thing a bit at the moment when i have time, but i'm not sure whether it will blossom or not, so i'm keeping quiet about it for awhile. god knows how many more things i may try out before i settle. i think it's best to wait until i have something firmly in hand.

[Dave Cullen]

Good news: the book is moving back up on The List: #8 next week on NYT, up from 10.

[killersmom]

That is great Dave. Hope it keeps moving back up again!

[jack]

as a former bookseller (and purchaser), i came to take a dim view of the NYT list as it was skewed towards pre pub purchases by big chains, therefore not relevant to what actual book stores were moving.  COLUMBINE is number 12 on both booksense and publisher's weekly, both much better barometer's of what is happening on the ground.  taken together these numbers speak well for the book and for its staying power.   

[michaelflanagansf]

as a former bookseller (and purchaser), i came to take a dim view of the NYT list as it was skewed towards pre pub purchases by big chains, therefore not relevant to what actual book stores were moving.  COLUMBINE is number 12 on both booksense and publisher's weekly, both much better barometer's of what is happening on the ground.  taken together these numbers speak well for the book and for its staying power.   

As I librarian for the last 10 years I can tell you that the NYT bestseller's list is one of the lists of record.  Readers are aware of the pre publication purchasing that you refer to , but are generally interested in the book because it has drawn exactly that kind of attention.  Patrons who read a lot pay close attention to the NYT bestseller's list (much as they pay attention to books that are nominated for national book awards) and will often ask to look at the list to see what is currently 'hot' or to get ideas about what they might like to read.  Books that make it to the NYT bestseller's list invariably have heavy circulation in our library, and doing things like being on the CSPAN book channel (which Dave has done as well) also helps a lot with circulation.

Currently in our system 'Columbine' has 24 holds on 20 copies - which means more people are waiting for it than are currently reading it.

[jack]

first off, i was in no way demeaning the status of being on NYT list, in case i gave that impression.  secondly, i am surprised to hear that libraries are currently more than marginally respectful of that list, since in the days i was heavily involved, both PW and ingram's lists were the go to for what was quality and what was moving.  the PW reviews were also relied upon heavily for purchase decisions.

[Dave Cullen]

as a former bookseller (and purchaser), i came to take a dim view of the NYT list as it was skewed towards pre pub purchases by big chains, therefore not relevant to what actual book stores were moving. 

jack, how long ago was that? the times has radically overhauled their process the past few years. it now mostly reflects actual sales, via bookscan which captures (70-80?)% of actual retail sales.

[Dave Cullen]

As I librarian for the last 10 years I can tell you that the NYT bestseller's list is one of the lists of record.  Readers are aware of the pre publication purchasing that you refer to , but are generally interested in the book because it has drawn exactly that kind of attention.  Patrons who read a lot pay close attention to the NYT bestseller's list (much as they pay attention to books that are nominated for national book awards) and will often ask to look at the list to see what is currently 'hot' or to get ideas about what they might like to read.  Books that make it to the NYT bestseller's list invariably have heavy circulation in our library, and doing things like being on the CSPAN book channel (which Dave has done as well) also helps a lot with circulation.

exactly. there are also lots of stores that feature only "NY Times bestsellers," as well as periodicals, and just regular people. there are stores that post copies of the Times list for people to peruse. millions of people download and view it on the web. amazon posts it.

for whatever reasons, good or bad, many readers look to the list for ideas, and it's overwhelmingly that list, not the others.

while i'm happy to be on all the different lists, the one i care about far and away is the Times list, so that's the one i'm following closely, and reporting about here.

[Dave Cullen]

I'm back on CSPAN2 (BookTV) today at 7:15 EDT / 4:15 PDT.

It's a repeat of the LA Times book festival interview.

[michaelflanagansf]

first off, i was in no way demeaning the status of being on NYT list, in case i gave that impression.  secondly, i am surprised to hear that libraries are currently more than marginally respectful of that list, since in the days i was heavily involved, both PW and ingram's lists were the go to for what was quality and what was moving.  the PW reviews were also relied upon heavily for purchase decisions.

It doesn't have to do with respect, Jack, it has to do with utility.  I was referring to patrons - it's the source that is most frequently ask for at the reference desk, and we have a link to it on our catalog:

http://plsinfo.org/recommend/reading_lists.htm

PW doesn't play nearly as large of a role as Kirkus or Library Journal for purchasing books in our library.  Ingram (and Baker and Taylor) are looked on as secondary sources because, after all, it's their business to SELL you something.  But that is for people who purchase the books, Jack.  Getting someone to sit down and read reviews is often like pulling teeth, sadly.  Reviews are most often used by people gathering information for book groups these days (at least that's when we are most often asked for them at the reference desk).  We even provide links to reviews on our web pages - and I rarely see them being used.

At this stage of the game, Jack, getting anyone to use anything to inform their reading is what we aim for - and getting them to read, regardless of the source they use to find it, is the goal:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-08-21-reading_N.htm

http://www.nea.gov/news/news04/ReadingAtRisk.Html

Sadly I fear there has been a sea change in the reading public since you were selling books.  Do you find that you are reading as many books per year as you used to when you were selling them?  If so I'd encourage you to share in the book threads...we can use all the input we can get over there.

Good news on CSPAN Dave.  Among the people who do read, there is a significant minority who watch that - as well as listen to NPR.

[Dave Cullen]

i did driving tours to sign stock again friday and saturday. i signed 149 copies in 8 stores yesterday. friday it was about the same number of stores, but fewer copies.

i hope this helps.

[michaelflanagansf]

For those interested in viewing the CSPAN show, it's here:

http://www.booktv.org/watch.aspx?ProgramId=HI-10513