Thursday, March 15, 2012

Thorsday Book Review

Today's book was a Kindle free book, and particularly appropriate given yesterday's announcement by Encyclopedia Brittanica that they're no longer going to publish their volumes in paper! (To me, that's sad. I do actually have an Encyclopedia Brittanica, along with several others, and I love them. You can open any volume and find something interesting to read in a short time. Try doing that with an electronic encyclopedia. I can't even figure out how to use the free dictionary that came with my Kindle.)

THE LAST BOOKSTORE IN AMERICA
by Amy Stewart

Everyone in America has a Gizmo. Your Gizmo is your phone, and your music player, and your internet connection, and your e-reader all in one. Lewis and Emily have Gizmos. When they're going on vacation, they download books to read on the Gizmo, but, like almost everyone, they never get more than a few paragraphs into their books. There's just too much else to see, read, hear and do on the Gizmo. Tomes of 100,000 to 125,000 words are just obsolete! And books printed on paper? They're only decorator items these days, or maybe something you give to Granny as a reminder of "The Good Old Days."

Life in the San Francisco Bay area is just dandy for Lewis and Emily. Oh, Emily would like to move out of their 2 bedroom condo and into a place in the city, even though it would have to be much smaller to fit in their budget, but they both have good jobs, and they have a nice life. Then, one morning, Lewis receives a phone call from a lawyer, informing him that his Uncle Sy has died, and left Lewis The Firebreathing Dragon in Eureka, one of the last 8 bookstores left in America. So, amidst great protest from Emily, they pack for a vacation and drive to Eureka.

Lewis had spent a summer with his Uncle Sy when he was a kid, and has fond memories of Uncle Sy and the bookstore. Sure enough, the bookstore, located in a former carriage and buggy store, looks pretty much the same, although messier; Uncle Sy's house is a big mess. When Lewis finds an accounting ledger indicating that the bookstore made 1.2 million dollars the previous year, he becomes quite determined to continue running it, cleaning up and organizing the store and house over Emily's great protests. There are a few questions that Lewis never bothers to ask, such as, how can this store survive selling the same books over and over, what's Sy's girlfriend doing in her hidden garden on Sy's property, why is an executive from a tobacco company snooping around Eureka and, more specifically, The Firebreathing Dragon, and, ultimately, why does Maxine
Rogers, president of the company that makes The Gizmo, take an interest in the store?

This book was written by a lady who owns a bookstore in Eureka, and her descriptions of the town, its waterfront and scenery are great. It's a fun read, and not all that farfetched. Even though it's no longer free, I think everyone would enjoy this book.

So, Happy Thorsday, everyone, and happy reading!

10 comments:

Diane said...

I am amazed that the Brittanica is going paper free. There must be a number of people who will be sad about it. My computer is so slow here in rural France, by the time I even managed to get into it I would have given up!! Diane

Mary said...

I saw that about the Britannica the other day. It made me sad. My kids wanted their own encyclopedia for a couple of years and I picked one up for a whopping $10 at a used book sale a couple months ago. They now have an authentic thirty year old 20+ volume set and they love it!

Your book sounds like a fun read. I would be incredibly sad if books were ever really done away with. :(

SissySees said...

What are the odds that I downloaded it while it was free? Hold that thought... Nope. But for $2.99, it's worth it.

gMarie said...

Hmmm - that book sounds very interesting. While i like reading on my nook - would I like it on my phone or my computer? one is too small and one's not portable enough.

Anyway - I too heard that about Encylopedia Brittanica. It made national news. End of an era. g

STELLA and RORY from Down Under said...

Happy Thorsday to you too Marjie. The books sounds like a good read. We were sad to hear about the Brittanica not being available anymore. Have a great weekend. No worries, and love, Carol (and Stella and Rory)

Mickle in NZ said...

The Brittanica going paper free made international news - it was even reported down here in NZ!

Pam said...

Love the photo of Thor & your boy.

The book sounds good! I think it's really sad that Brittanica too.

Sue said...

Oh that whole idea makes me so sad. I love books, the feel and the smell and the ideas locked inside. I guess I might read it on your recommendation.
Sue

Lapdog Creations said...

That picture make my heart melt...

Anonymous said...

Ingriguing.