Notes From A DVD Geek

by Jeremy Lassen

Hey everyone. I’m going to totally put on my film geek hat for this one.

First up, I want to talk about Orson Welles. Most might not think of him when they think of SF and fantasy, but Welles was all about the SF and fantasy, and not just in a Shakespearian sort of way. Of course the most famous thing Welles did was his Mecury Theater War of the Worlds broadcast. I’m sure most of you have heard it, or have heard bits sampled from it. It’s quite the awesome piece of writing and radio production and well worth checking out.

August Bestsellers

Hardcover:
1. LITTLE BROTHER by Cory Doctorow
2. BY SCHISM RENT ASUNDER by David Weber
3. THE CITY AT THE END OF TIME by Greg Bear
4. TOLL THE HOUNDS by Steven Erikson
5. ZOE'S TALE by John Scalzi
6. PIRATE SUN by Karl Schroeder
7. VICTORY OF EAGLES by Naomi Novik
8. IMPLIED SPACES by Walter John Williams
9. JHEGAALA by Steven Brust
10. BREAKING DAWN by Stephanie Meyer
tie with
THE LAST CENTURION by John Ringo

Mass Market:
1. PLAGUE WAR by Jeff Carlson
2. THE LAST COLONY by John Scalzi
3. RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES by Scott Lynch
4. ALTERED CARBON by Richard Morgan
5. THE ACCIDENTAL TIME MACHINE by Joe Haldeman
6. COMPANION TO WOLVES by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette
7. CRY WOLF by Patricia Briggs
8. THE GOOD FAIRIES OF NEW YORK by Martin Millar
9. THE CITY, NOT LONG AFTER by Pat Murphy
10. GALE FORCE - WEATHER WARDEN VOL. 5 by Rachel Caine
tie with
MAINSPRING by Jay lake

Trade Paperback:
1. HEROES ARISE by Laurel Anne Hill
2. BARREN WORLDS edited by Eric T. Reynolds, Adam Nakama, and Rob Darnell
3. LAST ARGUMENT OF KINGS by Joe Abercrombie
4. CROOKED LITTLE VEIN by Warren Ellis
tie with
MIRRORED HEAVENS by David J. Williams
5. THE LIVING DEAD edited by John Joesph Adams

How We Love and How We Hate

by Alan Beatts

Ten Things that Customers Do that We Love
and
Five Things We Hate

We love it when a customer --

Tells us how much they like the store.

Lets us know when we suggested a book that they loved.

Brings their family and out of town visitors to see the store.

Writes nice things about us on Yelp .

Comes up the the counter and says, "Can you help me find a book? I don't remember the author or the title but it was about . . . ."

Makes sure we hear about a new author or book that we should have in stock but don't.

Suggests books to another customer and gets mistaken for someone who works here.

Warns us about bad movies.

Brings in their pets and / or children for us to meet.

Sits on the couch in back for hours, petting Ripley and reading.


We hate it when a customer --

Asks us to check the price of a book on Amazon.

Walks in and, without so much as a "How are you doing?", asks peremptorily, "Where's the cat!" (At this point we often explain that Ripley is a cat, not a geyser, and doesn't appear on a schedule).

Takes a bunch of books off the shelves, reads them while sitting on the couch, and then _leaves them on the floor_. (We're happy to re-shelve books but it's really nice when they're brought up to the counter and not hidden under the couch).

Brings in books to sell that a) are a mixture of all sorts of stuff, mostly _not_ SF, fantasy or horror and / or b) are covered with so much cat hair, dust or other matter that we have to vacuum them before buying them.

Comes in the shop -- past two signs listing our specialty, past two big displays of books -- stops at the counter -- in front of another sign which mentions our specialty -- and asks, "Where are your cookbooks?" And then is shocked and slightly offended when we tell them we don't have any.

Overheard at The World Science Fiction Convention

This is a feature that appears periodically, as we attend conventions and overhear things. The tradition of keeping track of anonymous overheard bits and bobs started for us at the 2002 ConJose in San Jose, where trying (or trying not to) fill in the blanks on overheard conversations made us laugh so much that we made it a tradition. In this issue we share the newest "overheards" from the World Science Fiction Convention in Denver. Thanks to Rina Weisman for her help in collecting quotes.

"Don't you even put that ass out; don't you even offer it to me!"

"Now when I smell hot dogs I think. . . . feminists."

"Wow, that's a BIG Jawa."

"I'm going to fire you if you ever say 'gerbil nookie' again."

"Connie Willis signed your banana?!"

"Tornadoes? In Denver?"

"It's kind of heavy on the donkey and light on the Pez."

"[Name omitted], what nice tentacles you have!"

"The last time I fit into those jeans was when I had the tapeworm."

Con attendee, as the lights in the bar come on for last call: "Is it morning?"

July Bestsellers

Hardcover:
1. Toll the Hounds by Steven Erikson
2. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3. Victory of Eagles by Naomi Novik
4. Saturn's Children by Charles Stross
5. Implied Spaces by Walter John Williams
6. Escapement by Jay Lake
7. Jhegaala by Steven Brust
8. The Man With the Iron Heart by Harry Turtledove
9. The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
10. Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

Mass Market:
1. The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
2. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
3. The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
4. Ha'Penny by Jo Walton
5. Snake Agent by Liz Williams
6. Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
7. Mainspring by Jay Lake
8. Shadows Return by Lynn Flewelling
9. Valiant: The Lost Fleet by Jack Campbell
10. Sun of Suns by Karl Schroeder tie with
The Margarets by Sheri S. Tepper

Trade Paperback:
1. Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams
2. Thirteen by Richard K. Morgan
3. Spook Country by William Gibson
4. Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
5. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie tie with
The Word of God by Thomas Disch

Ebooks, the Coda

by Alan Beatts

I thought this month was going to be easy. I'd been working really hard putting the past few articles together and I figured I was done. This month I was going to write about something simple -- maybe my favorite ten novels or the _real_ story of what happens to socks when they vanish in the dryer. But two things happened. First, there were several pieces of news about eBooks that came to my attention and second, (and most notably) a lot of people wrote me emails about the last article. I had no idea that so many of you were interested in eBooks and their possible effects. I also wasn't expecting so many cogent, thoughtful comments on the topic. Not that I don't think that Borderlands customers are smart (our customers are _very_ smart, believe me) but I figured that you had more important things to do than write me.

So, welcome to _the last_ (I swear) article about the state of books according to yours truly. At least for a while. Here are some headlines to start off with.

Notes From A DVD Geek

by Jeremy Lassen

Hey everyone. Some great new titles and stuff hitting DVD for the first time.

First up is Stuart Gordon’s "From Beyond". Made on the heels of Gordon’s classic "Reanimator," this movie is the legendary Lovecraftian S&M bondage movie, and should not be missed. Previously only available on VHS and Laserdisk, this one is finally making its way to DVD. Actually, it made its way to DVD several months ago, but somehow I missed it. Sorry, everyone. This disk looks to be a tricked-out, remastered edition, with alternate scenes, interviews with Gordon, and other cool stuff.

June Bestsellers

Hardcovers
1. Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey
2. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3. Futuristic Tales of the Here and Now by Cory Doctorow
4. The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy
5. Line War by Neal Asher
6. The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds
7. Matter by Iain M. Banks
8. Maps and Legends by Michael Chabon
9. Implied Spaces by Walter John Williams
10. House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
2. Galactic North by Alastair Reynolds
3. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
4. The Man With the Golden Torc by Simon R. Green
5. Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
6. The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
7. Snake Agent by Liz Williams
8. Kushiel's Justice by Jacqueline Carey
9. Axis by Robert Charles Wilson
10. Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

Trade Paperbacks
1. Spook Country by William Gibson
2. World War Z by Max Brooks
3. Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie tie with
    Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams
4. Steampunk edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer
5. Thirteen (Th1rt3en) by Richard Morgan

Bookstores Are Going to Close

At some point in the future, electronic books are going to put almost all bookstores out of business.

Period.

I don't like it. Even if I wasn't a bookseller, I wouldn't like it. But it's going to happen unless something really, really extraordinary happens. And I mean extraordinary on the level of World War III, a super flu that wipes out 50% of the world's population or perhaps an extinction-level asteroid strike.

The big question is how soon.

Welcome to my last article in a series of four on current trends in the book business. Last month I warned you this was going to be a gloomy set of predictions. Well, here we go.

May Bestsellers

Hardcovers
1) Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
2) House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds
3) Line War by Neal Asher
4) The Golden Cord by Paul Genesee
5) Passage: The Sharing Knife by Lois McMaster Bujold
tie with The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton
6) Matter by Iain M. Banks
7) The Starry Rift edited by Johnathan Strahan
8) Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton
9) Lavinia by Ursula K. LeGuin
10) Maps and Legends by Michael Chabon

Paperbacks
1) Cruel Zinc Melodies by Glen Cook
2) Kushiel's Justice by Jacqueline Carey
3) Galactic North by Alastair Reynolds
4) Snake Agent by Liz Williams
5) One Foot in the Grave by Jeaniene Frost
6) KOP by Warren Hammond
7) Mainspring by Jay Lake
8) Axis by Robert Charles Wilson
9) Natural Ordermage by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
10) Legacy: The Sharng Knife by Lois McMaster Bujold

Trade Paperback
1) Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow tie with
Steampunk edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer
2) Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams
3) World War Z by Max Brooks
4) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
5) Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie