January 01, 2007

Notes from a DVD Geek

by Jeremy Lassen

Happy New Year, movie buffs.  I hope you all spent a happy holiday season watching the creepy horror film known as IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE.  Okay, maybe I’m the only one who thinks this “holiday classic” is really creepy.  In any event, I hope you got to spend a lot of time with your family watching your favorite films.  I’ve got some interesting recommendations for you this month.

First up is hands-down the best horror movie of the last year or so – THE DESCENT.  Those of you who saw the Variety/Borderlands screening of this contemporary British masterpiece last April know what I’m talking about.  For those of you who missed it in the theaters, it's now out on DVD.  Even if you’re not normally a fan of horror movies, THIS is one you need to see.

Origin of the Bookstore, Part the Third - Ripley

For the next ten months we'll be doing a special feature each month in honor of Borderlands' upcoming 10th Anniversary (November 3rd, 2007).  We'll share some stories about what Borderlands is and how it got that way.

by Jude Feldman

Possibly San Francisco's most famous cat, Ripley joined the Borderlands family in December of 2002.  She was a gangly six month old Sphynx catling, selected for her winning personality, semi-hypo-allergenic-ness, and complete and utter lack of "show-cat" cred.  Almost everyone knows Ripley, but few know the story of how Alan and I managed to misplace her on her very first night in the bookstore.

Flashback to that misty December eve not so long ago.  Alan and I had driven out to fetch Ripley from the East Bay after spending the afternoon shopping for cat food bowls, litter, litter box, small feathered doo-dads, and all the other assorted stuff that you don't realize you need until you decide to get a cat.

December Bestsellers

Hardcovers
1. Polity Agent by Neal Asher
2. Jennifer Morgue by Charles Stross
3. A Cruel Wind by Glen Cook
4.  The Android's Dream by John Scalzi
5. Teatro Grottesco by Thomas Ligotti
6. Soldier of Sidon by Gene Wolfe
7. Fugitives of Chaos by John C. Wright
      tied with
   The Sky People by S.M. Stirling
8. Odyssey by Jack McDevitt
9. 1824: The Arkansas War by Eric Flint
10. Sung in Blood by Glen Cook
        tied with
     Empire by Orson Scott Card

Paperbacks
1. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
2. Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan
3. Carnival by Elizabeth Bear
4. Draco Tavern by Larry Niven
5. Talyn by Holly Lisle
6. Dead Letters by Tom Piccirilli
      tied with
    Cell by Stephen King
7. 1812: The Rivers of War by Eric Flint
8. Orphans of Chaos by John C. Wright
9. Midshipwizard Halcyon Blithe by James M. Ward
10. Tyranny of the Night by Glen Cook

Trade Paperbacks
1. Hardwired by Walter John Williams
2. Voyage of the Sable Keech by Neal Asher
3. Nova Swing by M. John Harrison
4. Benighted by Kit Whitfield
5. Spears of God by Howard V. Hendrix

Happy New Year

by Alan Beatts

Happy New Year, everyone!  I hope that 2007 has been treating you all very well thus far.

First off, I want to thank you, our customers, as well as the authors and publishers who have supported us through 2006.  It was a good year for Borderlands (despite all the cafe delays).  Probably the best proof of that is the following -

According to Shelf Awareness (Friday, Jan. 5th), a bookselling industry newsletter --

"Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million Have a Flat Holiday"

"Sales during the holiday period at both Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million were below expectations.

At B&N, sales during the nine weeks between October 29 and December 30 were $1.1 billion, up 2.6%, but sales at stores open at least a year were down 0.1%, lower than the company's prediction of a "flat to low single digit increase." By contrast, sales at B&N.com during the same period were up 2.7% to $108.5 million.