Have you seen our Fall 2013 catalog yet? Scroll through below!
Friday, June 28, 2013
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Stars That Guide Us: Kate Barnes, 1932-2013
By Christina Freitas
Everyone leaves traces of themselves, ideas and actions, impressions carved into the ever-expanding portrait that we call life. Across histories and continents, there have always been those whose stamp reflects upon those words that they bestow upon the world, cornerstones of a life spent connecting humanity, a population more alike than it may recognize in our troubled times. If anyone has accomplished this monumental task, the late Kate Barnes is one such individual, whose poetic lines strike straight to the core of all that makes us human, fears, dreams, and all.
Born in 1932, Kate Barnes, daughter of Henry Beston and Elizabeth Coatsworth, was perhaps destined to become a writer, with both parents practicing the art themselves. Her poetry had already begun appearing in literary magazines in her early twenties, sparking what would become a life of treasured literary works.
She was named Maine’s first poet laureate in the 1980s and, over her long career, could claim four published poetry collections for her own – Talking in Your Sleep (1985) and Crossing the Field (1992), published by Blackberry Books, as well as two titles published by Godine, Where the Deer Were (1994) and Kneeling Orion (2004). Barnes passed away earlier this month and with her, an irreplaceable artistic force has been lost. Yet her words live on and with them, an echo of herself.
Just perusing her most recent poetry collection, Kneeling Orion, I am both struck and humbled by the effortless grace with which she connects phrases and creates simple images, embracing nature and twining its beauty together with the daily routines, and struggles, of herself, her family, and ultimately all of mankind. Her pen serves as the vessel, the tool, through which we can dip our toe into her world and find ourselves immersed, awed, and hopelessly, though never needlessly, in love.
Every image, no matter how simple, appears as the prettiest wildflower on the page, from the broad mountains to the simple picture of a dog greeting its master, or a child playing in the kitchen. In each poem we encounter love, family, the simultaneous fear and awe of time. They are happening to others, mothers and fathers and daughters, and yet they are our fears, our hopes, and our dreams exposed on the page all the same.
As poet and master of the page, Barnes weaves together threads of our own collective consciousness, to remind us that we are, and always will be, creatures linked not only to one another, but also to nature, the spirit that provides for us all. It is her command of the seemingly simplistic, her ability to expand this idea into a universal truth, a common human bond through compassion, or fear, or loss, which is a gift often unique to poets, and certainly unique to Barnes herself.
Like those individuals scripted into her literary creations, Barnes is forever present in her works, a gentle guide and a kindred spirit. Though her imaginative, intelligent spark will be missed, her life and work remains as much a blessing as ever before, an eternal reminder of the power of words, and art, to unite the human experience. And we thank her for the literary gifts she has graced us with.
You can purchase both of Kate Barnes’ collections with Godine, Where the Deer Were and Kneeling Orion, on our website. To learn more about Barnes or to hear audio excerpts from readings and interviews, you can visit her page on the Poetry in Maine website.
Everyone leaves traces of themselves, ideas and actions, impressions carved into the ever-expanding portrait that we call life. Across histories and continents, there have always been those whose stamp reflects upon those words that they bestow upon the world, cornerstones of a life spent connecting humanity, a population more alike than it may recognize in our troubled times. If anyone has accomplished this monumental task, the late Kate Barnes is one such individual, whose poetic lines strike straight to the core of all that makes us human, fears, dreams, and all.
Born in 1932, Kate Barnes, daughter of Henry Beston and Elizabeth Coatsworth, was perhaps destined to become a writer, with both parents practicing the art themselves. Her poetry had already begun appearing in literary magazines in her early twenties, sparking what would become a life of treasured literary works.
 |
| Where The Deer Were |
 |
| Kneeling Orion |
Every image, no matter how simple, appears as the prettiest wildflower on the page, from the broad mountains to the simple picture of a dog greeting its master, or a child playing in the kitchen. In each poem we encounter love, family, the simultaneous fear and awe of time. They are happening to others, mothers and fathers and daughters, and yet they are our fears, our hopes, and our dreams exposed on the page all the same.
As poet and master of the page, Barnes weaves together threads of our own collective consciousness, to remind us that we are, and always will be, creatures linked not only to one another, but also to nature, the spirit that provides for us all. It is her command of the seemingly simplistic, her ability to expand this idea into a universal truth, a common human bond through compassion, or fear, or loss, which is a gift often unique to poets, and certainly unique to Barnes herself.
Like those individuals scripted into her literary creations, Barnes is forever present in her works, a gentle guide and a kindred spirit. Though her imaginative, intelligent spark will be missed, her life and work remains as much a blessing as ever before, an eternal reminder of the power of words, and art, to unite the human experience. And we thank her for the literary gifts she has graced us with.
You can purchase both of Kate Barnes’ collections with Godine, Where the Deer Were and Kneeling Orion, on our website. To learn more about Barnes or to hear audio excerpts from readings and interviews, you can visit her page on the Poetry in Maine website.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Superior Person's Tuesday!
Oubliette n. A dungeon, often in the form of a deep and narrow well,
designed for the permanent incarceration of those whom it is desired to forget.
Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a
Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the
volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of
the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Oubliette appears in the First.
 |
| At least this prisoner gets electric lighting in his oubliette. Wi-Fi? Not so much. |
Monday, June 24, 2013
Rosemary Verey: Available as an ebook!
We're excited to announce that Rosemary Verey: The Life & Lessons of a Legendary Gardener
is now available as an ebook! When you purchase through our partner Ganxy with the link below, you will receive both a mobi file (compatible with the Kindle) and an epub file (compatible with all other e-readers) for the price of one! Know someone else who might like the ebook? Gift them a copy!
"Rosemary Verey: The Life & Lessons of a Legendary Gardener " by Barbara Paul Robinson on Ganxy
"Rosemary Verey: The Life & Lessons of a Legendary Gardener " by Barbara Paul Robinson on Ganxy
Friday, June 21, 2013
A Universal Language: The Power and Mystique of Translated Texts, and Why We Need Them
By Christina Freitas
Ever wanted to read a novel written from a different cultural perspective, and found your path blocked by a language barrier? The answer is probably yes. And it is at this moment that we all say in unison, thank goodness for translated texts! Our most recent translation, The African by J.M.G. Le Clézio (on sale now!), is an inspirational memoir, originally scripted in French, which chronicles the journeys of Noble Prize winner J.M.G. Le Clézio, particularly his relationship with his father. And without the wonders of the translated text, we might never have experienced this masterful read for ourselves.
Just two semesters ago, I was enrolled in a history course at my university circulating around the life of Vladimir Ilych Lenin, the man responsible for the birth of the USSR. For our final assignment, we were tasked with a twenty-page research paper on a topic of our choice. We visited the library’s Russian stacks for inspiration, but met with a slight dilemma. While many of the texts were written in English, many more had been published in Russian, or even French, limiting which books we could feasibly use for our papers. Our professor noted our dismay and said something that strikes me even as I write this post: when you can’t speak or read any language except your own, entire worlds are closed to you, whole tracts of ideas and experiences that you might never taste for yourself.
But we shouldn’t despair. Because even with this truth in hand, there are plenty of literary ventures penned hundreds of miles away, in foreign, unfamiliar tongues, which have been translated for the benefit of readers worldwide. It is a reality that we should be thankful for every day, one that enables us to peel back the blinds of geographic separation and immerse ourselves in worlds quite unlike our own. It’s pure magic.
Throughout my three years in college as an English major, I have encountered several incredible literary worlds, some of which would have remained closed to me without the aid of translators. For example, I am perhaps overly fond of Russian literature. Let me be clear: I do not speak Russian. I speak some French and Italian, but beyond dasvidanya (goodbye), I'm lost. Without translated texts, I never would have fallen in love with Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment and later, in college, the monumental works of authors such as Leo Tolstoy, Anton Chekhov, and – my favorite –Vladimir Nabokov.
Of course, there are those individuals who argue that translated works can do as much harm as good. Certainly a poor translation can result in the meaning of a particular passage being totally lost, and mistranslated words can make entire lines, particularly in poetry, nearly undecipherable to a nonnative audience. Regardless, I think most people can agree that translated works are as necessary to the literary world as the authors who supply their tales. There’s something to be said for reading a novel written by someone who has actually experienced such a diverse or unique reality – say, Dostoevsky’s time spent in a Siberian labor camp – versus an author writing about the same situation from a removed, rather distanced perspective. Not to mention the valuable insight you can receive from the works of authors who may hail from an entirely different social and cultural background than you are accustomed to.
Here at Godine, we offer a number of translated works for the benefit of our readers, introducing them to tales whose spirit, imagination, and artistic genius is truly unique. I’ll list a few below but please check out our website, as well for further suggestions!
The African by J.M.G. Le Clézio (translated from French)
Badenheim 1939 by Aharon Applefeld (translated from Hebrew)
Gypsies and Other Narrative Poems by Alexander Pushkin (translated from Russian)
What about you, wonderful readers? Ever experienced a truly remarkable translated text, one that opened your eyes to experiences you might not have heard about otherwise? What are your thoughts on the benefits (or hazards) of translated texts? Share your comments here or join us @GodinePub on Twitter! For more information about any of these texts, and more from our Verba Mundi collection, please visit our website!
Ever wanted to read a novel written from a different cultural perspective, and found your path blocked by a language barrier? The answer is probably yes. And it is at this moment that we all say in unison, thank goodness for translated texts! Our most recent translation, The African by J.M.G. Le Clézio (on sale now!), is an inspirational memoir, originally scripted in French, which chronicles the journeys of Noble Prize winner J.M.G. Le Clézio, particularly his relationship with his father. And without the wonders of the translated text, we might never have experienced this masterful read for ourselves.
Just two semesters ago, I was enrolled in a history course at my university circulating around the life of Vladimir Ilych Lenin, the man responsible for the birth of the USSR. For our final assignment, we were tasked with a twenty-page research paper on a topic of our choice. We visited the library’s Russian stacks for inspiration, but met with a slight dilemma. While many of the texts were written in English, many more had been published in Russian, or even French, limiting which books we could feasibly use for our papers. Our professor noted our dismay and said something that strikes me even as I write this post: when you can’t speak or read any language except your own, entire worlds are closed to you, whole tracts of ideas and experiences that you might never taste for yourself.
 |
| Anyone speak Russian? |
But we shouldn’t despair. Because even with this truth in hand, there are plenty of literary ventures penned hundreds of miles away, in foreign, unfamiliar tongues, which have been translated for the benefit of readers worldwide. It is a reality that we should be thankful for every day, one that enables us to peel back the blinds of geographic separation and immerse ourselves in worlds quite unlike our own. It’s pure magic.
Throughout my three years in college as an English major, I have encountered several incredible literary worlds, some of which would have remained closed to me without the aid of translators. For example, I am perhaps overly fond of Russian literature. Let me be clear: I do not speak Russian. I speak some French and Italian, but beyond dasvidanya (goodbye), I'm lost. Without translated texts, I never would have fallen in love with Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment and later, in college, the monumental works of authors such as Leo Tolstoy, Anton Chekhov, and – my favorite –Vladimir Nabokov.
Of course, there are those individuals who argue that translated works can do as much harm as good. Certainly a poor translation can result in the meaning of a particular passage being totally lost, and mistranslated words can make entire lines, particularly in poetry, nearly undecipherable to a nonnative audience. Regardless, I think most people can agree that translated works are as necessary to the literary world as the authors who supply their tales. There’s something to be said for reading a novel written by someone who has actually experienced such a diverse or unique reality – say, Dostoevsky’s time spent in a Siberian labor camp – versus an author writing about the same situation from a removed, rather distanced perspective. Not to mention the valuable insight you can receive from the works of authors who may hail from an entirely different social and cultural background than you are accustomed to.
Here at Godine, we offer a number of translated works for the benefit of our readers, introducing them to tales whose spirit, imagination, and artistic genius is truly unique. I’ll list a few below but please check out our website, as well for further suggestions!
The African by J.M.G. Le Clézio (translated from French)
. . . In Le Clézio's characteristically intimate, poetic voice, the narrative relates both the dazzled enthusiasm the child feels at discovering newfound freedom in the African savannah and his torment at discovering the rigid authoritarian nature of his father. The power and beauty of the book reside in the fact that both discoveries occur simultaneously. While primarily a memoir of the author's boyhood, The African is also Le Clézio's attempt to pay a belated homage to the man he met for the first time in Africa at age eight. . . .
Badenheim 1939 by Aharon Applefeld (translated from Hebrew)
. . . The vacationers arrive as they always have, a sampling of Jewish middle-class life: the impresario Dr. Pappenheim, his musicians, and their conductor; the gay Frau Tsauberblit; the historian, Dr. Fussholdt, and his much younger wife; the "readers," twins whose passion for Rilke is featured on their program; a child prodigy; a commercial traveler; a rabbi. The list waxes as the summer wanes. To receive them in the town are the pharmacist and his worried wife, the hotelier and his large staff, the pastry shop owner and his irritable baker, Sally and Gertie (two quite respectable prostitutes), and, mysteriously, the bland inspectors from the "Sanitation Department." . . .
Gypsies and Other Narrative Poems by Alexander Pushkin (translated from Russian)
. . . In this selection of five of his finest narrative poems, all his essential qualities are on display – his ironic poise, his stylistic variety, his confounding of expectations, his creation of poetry out of everyday language. "The Gypsies" is modern Russian literature's first masterpiece. Telling the anti-Romantic tale of an effete city-dweller whose search for "unspoiled" values among a band of gypsies ends in tragedy. . . .
What about you, wonderful readers? Ever experienced a truly remarkable translated text, one that opened your eyes to experiences you might not have heard about otherwise? What are your thoughts on the benefits (or hazards) of translated texts? Share your comments here or join us @GodinePub on Twitter! For more information about any of these texts, and more from our Verba Mundi collection, please visit our website!
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Pack Your Bags: Camp NaNoWriMo is in Session!
by David Field
If you’re a creative writer like me, you probably go through plenty of phases where you find it impossible to get any words on the page. I tend to make excuses for myself: “I had a stressful day, I’ll write tomorrow,” or “I’ll get some writing done when I have more free time,” or “I guess the writing juices aren’t flowing today.” In the end, though, it basically boils down to plain old writer’s block. The funny thing is, I have no shortage of ideas. I usually just wind up staring at a blinking cursor or an empty sheet of paper, too freaked out by the vast realm of possibilities to know where I could possibly begin.
If you’re like me, never fear – there’s a surefire solution
to those blank-page blues. Every November, creative writers from around the world come together to participate in National Novel Writing Month, a 30-day frenzy of nonstop literary goodness. The
goal? To write 50,000 words in one month. It may seem like a daunting task, but
the NaNo team has plenty of great tools to help you as you work your way
towards the finish line. There are forums to talk over plot ideas with your
fellow writers, pep talks from published authors with lots of great tips about
the writing and revision process, and a handy-dandy graph that lets you keep
track of your progress on a day-to-day basis.
The program has become so popular that in recent years, the NaNo team has offered two more opportunities to participate in the summer months, a program they’ve affectionately dubbed Camp NaNoWriMo. The challenge itself doesn’t change, but the website now sports a fun camping theme, where you can choose “cabin-mates” who share your creative interests and join the program directors for pep talks around the metaphoric campfire. The website banner perfectly sums up the spirit of Camp NaNoWriMo: “an idyllic writer’s retreat, smack-dab in the middle of your crazy life.”
What’s great about the summer program is that participants
who might have found November too hectic can now take advantage of all the
glorious free time that comes with summer vacation (when they’re not swimming
or going to cookouts or, you know, actually camping). This year the April
challenge has come and gone, but it’s not too late to prepare for July! You can
head to the Camp NaNoWriMo website right now to choose a cabin,
post a blurb for your novel, and chat with other campers. As soon as the clock
strikes midnight on July 1st, you can start pounding out those
50,000 words.
To finish the challenge on time, you have to write an average of 1,667 words a day. It’s important to remember that this is an exercise in quality, not quantity – the goal is just to churn out as many words as you possibly can. After all, sloppy writing can always be revised, and it’s much easier to work on a second draft than to fill up that first blank page (at least in my opinion). So have fun with it! Find a comfortable spot to write in. Stock up on snacks you can munch on while you’re working. And encourage your friends to participate too. In my experience, there’s nothing more productive than writing dangerously with a group of fellow WriMos.
When the month is over, you’ll have an actual finished
novel. How cool is that? You can print out
a fancy certificate to hang on your fridge or the wall of your dorm room to
boast to your friends that you’re officially a novelist. Plus, what you do with
that novel is up to you. Ever heard of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern or Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen? Both started out as NaNo projects,
and now they’re mainstream bestsellers. One was already adapted for the big
screen and the other is in development as we speak. So just think – that could
be you one day.
Have you ever tried NaNoWriMo for yourself? If so, did you meet your goals? And what kind of projects are you hoping to tackle this year? If you have any great NaNo stories, share them in the comments section, or join us @GodinePub on Twitter!
If you’re a creative writer like me, you probably go through plenty of phases where you find it impossible to get any words on the page. I tend to make excuses for myself: “I had a stressful day, I’ll write tomorrow,” or “I’ll get some writing done when I have more free time,” or “I guess the writing juices aren’t flowing today.” In the end, though, it basically boils down to plain old writer’s block. The funny thing is, I have no shortage of ideas. I usually just wind up staring at a blinking cursor or an empty sheet of paper, too freaked out by the vast realm of possibilities to know where I could possibly begin.
 |
| The tools of a successful WriMo. |
The program has become so popular that in recent years, the NaNo team has offered two more opportunities to participate in the summer months, a program they’ve affectionately dubbed Camp NaNoWriMo. The challenge itself doesn’t change, but the website now sports a fun camping theme, where you can choose “cabin-mates” who share your creative interests and join the program directors for pep talks around the metaphoric campfire. The website banner perfectly sums up the spirit of Camp NaNoWriMo: “an idyllic writer’s retreat, smack-dab in the middle of your crazy life.”
What’s great about the summer program is that participants
who might have found November too hectic can now take advantage of all the
glorious free time that comes with summer vacation (when they’re not swimming
or going to cookouts or, you know, actually camping). This year the April
challenge has come and gone, but it’s not too late to prepare for July! You can
head to the Camp NaNoWriMo website right now to choose a cabin,
post a blurb for your novel, and chat with other campers. As soon as the clock
strikes midnight on July 1st, you can start pounding out those
50,000 words.To finish the challenge on time, you have to write an average of 1,667 words a day. It’s important to remember that this is an exercise in quality, not quantity – the goal is just to churn out as many words as you possibly can. After all, sloppy writing can always be revised, and it’s much easier to work on a second draft than to fill up that first blank page (at least in my opinion). So have fun with it! Find a comfortable spot to write in. Stock up on snacks you can munch on while you’re working. And encourage your friends to participate too. In my experience, there’s nothing more productive than writing dangerously with a group of fellow WriMos.
 |
| A NaNo success story. |
Have you ever tried NaNoWriMo for yourself? If so, did you meet your goals? And what kind of projects are you hoping to tackle this year? If you have any great NaNo stories, share them in the comments section, or join us @GodinePub on Twitter!
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Superior Person's Tuesday!
Galericulate adj. Covered by a hat.
Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Galericulate appears in the Third.
 |
| This guy takes "galericulate" to a whole new level. |
Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Galericulate appears in the Third.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Superior Person's Tuesday!
Kakorrhaphiophobia n. The morbid fear of failure.
Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a
Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the
volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of
the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Kakorrhaphiophobia appears in the Second.
 |
| The worst part about having
kakorrhaphiophobia? Always being afraid you’ll pronounce it wrong. |
Monday, June 10, 2013
Books: The Healthiest Addiction
By Christina Freitas
You know the old phrase, getting lost in a good book? Chances are you’ve lived it once or twice in your lifetime. In fact, it’s probably the most cost-effective cruise you’ll ever take without packing a single suitcase. You come as you are and you leave armed with stunning ideas and images, revelations about the past, the future, or a remarkable sense of how much man can accomplish in a few hundred pages. Our world is flawed, imperfect and full of maddening, often unsolved riddles. Books provide another option, a tide that swells inwards, muddied with the debris of daily troubles, yet retreats clear from the tangled webs of fear and uncertainty.
In The Open Door: When Writers First Learned to Read, edited by Steven Gilbar, readers encounter narratives
from storied authors such as W. B. Yeats and Charles Dickens, as they divulge
their first forays into a life of reading and, ultimately, of writing that
would impact generations to come. This collection includes autobiographical
pieces from writers and public figures as they discuss the
individuals who first introduced them to reading. Each author chronicles their
growing love for books and explores how this artistic
sphere, full of hope and unity among men, taught them to see the world in new, imaginative ways, and to share their experiences with others on the page.
Ever since I was little, I have loved reading. My mother always read to me as a child, determined to foster in me a love for this magnificent art. She had little trouble striking a match there. Back when summer was actually liberated from schoolwork and other labors, I would spend hours splayed out on the sofa, or my bed, or even the kitchen floor, just reading. Those adventures inspired me to create my own stories, coated with characters who have evolved from pure imitations of the heroes and heroines that I admired so much as a child into dynamic, complex characters who reflect my own fears and desires.
Tucked away in a small wooden chest are notebooks now several years old, scripted with the looping, bubbly script of a preteen writer. They’re stories you have heard before, because back then, I couldn’t shake the weighty influence of those tales that I had come to admire. I can admit it with pride. I was hooked. I knew that no matter where life’s footpaths led me, I would always, always, always write.
Two novels in particular truly inspired me to write as a
child. One was The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine. This fantasy novel follows Princess Addie, a
timid and unlikely heroine, as she embarks on a quest for the cure to a deadly
sickness that has stricken her kingdom as well as her sister, Meryl. Even though I haven’t touched the book in years, I still remember the opening lines, a poem dedicated to the kingdom's mightiest hero, and its message of courage
against all odds, even time itself, still impacts my work today.
Similarly, I've always taken inspiration from The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Here, I was struck most by the unbreakable bonds of brotherhood between Ponyboy, his family and his friends. One of my first written works, if we can call them such, consists of a tale very similar to this one, where family is paramount and defies every challenge the world can lob its way. Indeed, my favorite series to this day, an urban fantasy line from Rob Thurman, centers around two brothers whose love for each other is immovable, rising and holding fast against dangers natural and otherwise.
Like the authors profiled in Steven Gilbar's collection, I found inspiration in the world of books. Reading gave me the push I needed to become a writer and a dreamer, to believe that nothing is ever impossible. To know that with a little luck and a lot of hope, maybe we can change this world for the better, one dream at a time.
What are some books that you’ve read throughout the years that have inspired you? Books that made you love reading or writing? What made these books and others that you’ve enjoyed so memorable? Or more generally, what do you love about reading - period? Share your comments with us here or join us @GodinePub on Twitter! If you're looking for some inspiration of your own, you can pick up a copy of The Open Door on our website.
You know the old phrase, getting lost in a good book? Chances are you’ve lived it once or twice in your lifetime. In fact, it’s probably the most cost-effective cruise you’ll ever take without packing a single suitcase. You come as you are and you leave armed with stunning ideas and images, revelations about the past, the future, or a remarkable sense of how much man can accomplish in a few hundred pages. Our world is flawed, imperfect and full of maddening, often unsolved riddles. Books provide another option, a tide that swells inwards, muddied with the debris of daily troubles, yet retreats clear from the tangled webs of fear and uncertainty.
 |
| Everyone has to start somewhere, right? |
Ever since I was little, I have loved reading. My mother always read to me as a child, determined to foster in me a love for this magnificent art. She had little trouble striking a match there. Back when summer was actually liberated from schoolwork and other labors, I would spend hours splayed out on the sofa, or my bed, or even the kitchen floor, just reading. Those adventures inspired me to create my own stories, coated with characters who have evolved from pure imitations of the heroes and heroines that I admired so much as a child into dynamic, complex characters who reflect my own fears and desires.
Tucked away in a small wooden chest are notebooks now several years old, scripted with the looping, bubbly script of a preteen writer. They’re stories you have heard before, because back then, I couldn’t shake the weighty influence of those tales that I had come to admire. I can admit it with pride. I was hooked. I knew that no matter where life’s footpaths led me, I would always, always, always write.
 |
| Dragons, plagues, and fairies, with a dollop of courage on the side. |
 |
| "Stay gold, Ponyboy." Famous last words. |
Similarly, I've always taken inspiration from The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Here, I was struck most by the unbreakable bonds of brotherhood between Ponyboy, his family and his friends. One of my first written works, if we can call them such, consists of a tale very similar to this one, where family is paramount and defies every challenge the world can lob its way. Indeed, my favorite series to this day, an urban fantasy line from Rob Thurman, centers around two brothers whose love for each other is immovable, rising and holding fast against dangers natural and otherwise.
Like the authors profiled in Steven Gilbar's collection, I found inspiration in the world of books. Reading gave me the push I needed to become a writer and a dreamer, to believe that nothing is ever impossible. To know that with a little luck and a lot of hope, maybe we can change this world for the better, one dream at a time.
What are some books that you’ve read throughout the years that have inspired you? Books that made you love reading or writing? What made these books and others that you’ve enjoyed so memorable? Or more generally, what do you love about reading - period? Share your comments with us here or join us @GodinePub on Twitter! If you're looking for some inspiration of your own, you can pick up a copy of The Open Door on our website.
Friday, June 7, 2013
May News and Review Round Up
Here at David R. Godine, Publisher, we strive to produce high quality
books above all else. So, when our books and authors are praised, we
hope you'll forgive us for acting like proud parents. Please join us in
celebrating the recent success of a few of our talented authors.
First, we are pleased to announce Stuart M. Frank's Ingenious Contrivances, Curiously Carved: Scrimshaw in the New Bedford Whaling Museum as the winner of the Pictorial category for the Bookbuilders of Boston New England Book Show for 2013!
Congratulations to Stuart M. Frank and designer Sara Eisenman! You can purchase a copy of Ingenious Contrivances, Curiously Carved: Scrimshaw in the New Bedford Whaling Museum on our website.
Joe McKendry was also honored this month as one of the winners of the 2013 New York City Book Awards for One Times Square: A Century of Change at the Crossroads of the World. David, Joe, and designer Carl Scarbrough went into the city for the awards ceremony.
This past month, several Godine titles also received positive reviews. Publishers Weekly applauded both the stunning, lurid photographs and the insightful prose of The Arctic Regions by William Bradford:
Publishers Weekly also praised the playful and intelligent discourse with familiar classical texts in Black Sparrow title Taking What I Like: Stories by Linda Bamber:
As always, be sure to check our homepage for more information about upcoming and current Godine titles!
First, we are pleased to announce Stuart M. Frank's Ingenious Contrivances, Curiously Carved: Scrimshaw in the New Bedford Whaling Museum as the winner of the Pictorial category for the Bookbuilders of Boston New England Book Show for 2013!
 |
| Kristin Brodeur and Jennifer Delaney (Godine's Production team) with the book at the New England Book Show. |
Congratulations to Stuart M. Frank and designer Sara Eisenman! You can purchase a copy of Ingenious Contrivances, Curiously Carved: Scrimshaw in the New Bedford Whaling Museum on our website.
Joe McKendry was also honored this month as one of the winners of the 2013 New York City Book Awards for One Times Square: A Century of Change at the Crossroads of the World. David, Joe, and designer Carl Scarbrough went into the city for the awards ceremony. |
| David Godine, Joe McKendry, and Carl Scarbrough at the New York City Book Awards Ceremony. |
Congratulations, Joe! For more information about One Times Square, visit our website.
This past month, several Godine titles also received positive reviews. Publishers Weekly applauded both the stunning, lurid photographs and the insightful prose of The Arctic Regions by William Bradford:
Whether readers choose to focus on Bradford’s text or the book’s remarkable images, they’re sure to quickly become immersed in the trio’s journey north. . . . Though best known for his portraits of ships and the Arctic scenes that inspired him on this trip, Bradford’s crisp Victorian prose is endearing, and he makes for a curious, often enthusiastic guide, frequently taking time to marvel at his surroundings. When combined with the sharp images, the result is a remarkable book that deserves a much wider audience than it originally received.
You can find the full text of the review here. Be among the first to purchase a copy of The Arctic Regions (it just arrived in our warehouse this week!) on our website.
Publishers Weekly also praised the playful and intelligent discourse with familiar classical texts in Black Sparrow title Taking What I Like: Stories by Linda Bamber:
You can find the full review here. You can find out more information about Taking What I Like - and download the first story in the collection - on our website.. . . Bamber’s imaginative tales draw the reader in by virtue of their seeming shagginess, combined with a somewhat confessional tone that feels a bit like memoir or creative nonfiction. In “Time To Teach Jane Eyre Again,” she uses a professor’s academic dilemma as a jumping-off point for a consideration of the love life of the heroine, her friends, and some of the students in the upcoming class, through the lens of the Brontë novel. . . . fans of theatre or lit-crit should be exhilarated by her circuitous flights of intellectual fancy.
As always, be sure to check our homepage for more information about upcoming and current Godine titles!
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
BookExpo America 2013: A Novice's Perspective
by Marissa Litak
This past week, from May 29 to June 1, BookExpo America (BEA) was held in New York City. And who, you may ask, was lucky enough to go this year with the excellent staff at Godine? This intern! Needless to say, I was thrilled. As a major industry event, I had heard of BEA before (though, I must admit, I was initially a bit lost when people starting throwing the abbreviation around). BEA is a publishing trade show, where everyone gathers together and checks out each other’s work. Publishers get together with booksellers to make sales, and in the last couple of years the public has been permitted to attend on the last day. (For more information on BEA in general, visit bookexpoamerica.com.)
I joined the staff on Saturday, June 1, for my first taste of BEA. Getting a little lost in NYC and struggling to figure out the subway system were, apparently, included in the package. After finding my way to the convention center with only a modicum of trouble, I picked up my badge and entered the huge glass building with feelings of awe and a little trepidation that quickly faded to excitement. Booths,
banners, and bustling people met my eye, a sea of them surrounding me in every direction. It was overwhelming: where to begin? I hitched my tote bag (I had come prepared) up onto my shoulder, took a deep breath, and set out.
I explored booth by booth, stopping to talk to people, look at displays, and
collect the many freebies being handed out. Seeing the way that “publishing
people” interacted with one another was fascinating, and underscored how small
of an industry this really is, in that everyone knows everyone else. Forget six
degrees of separation; in publishing, it’s more like one or two. Everyone’s
booths were set up to display their best titles and projects, and books were
everywhere. Stacks of books, shelves of books, books on the floor in both
intricate designs and haphazard piles.
I felt a sense of kinship with my fellow literary people, many of whom wore book-related t-shirts such as “Stay Calm and Love Books,” or the Lemony Snicket tee that someone was handing out. Almost all of them, including me, were carting around huge stacks of books. You see, everyone at BEA gives you books. Sure, there are other give-aways, like pins, stickers, pens, t-shirts, the ever-useful tote bag, and even a lunar calendar, but books are the meat and potatoes. Many publishers hand out free galleys, or unpolished copies of books before they’re published. They often say, “Uncorrected Proof, Not for Sale” in big red letters on the cover, and have an outline of the marketing plan on the back. These are the books that get sent out to reviewers, and these are the books that are handed out en masse at BEA.
It feels amazing to get to read something before it’s released, and even
more so when you’re able to get your galley signed by the author. One of the
coolest parts of BEA was all of the authors hanging out around their
publisher’s booth or the autographing area. I got a few of my galleys signed, one of which I’m particularly excited about. Never Fade, Alexandra Bracken’s sequel to The
Darkest Minds, isn’t due
out until October. Not only am I reading it early, but I also met Alexandra
Bracken. How great is that? I’m also eagerly looking forward to reading Thomas
Keneally’s The Daughters of Mars,
and Artis Henderson’s memoir Un-Remarried Widow, among the dozen others I acquired at
BEA. I even picked up a little something for my parents: When Will My
Grown-Up Kid Grow Up? Loving and Understanding Your Emerging Adult, by Jeffrey Jensen Arnett and Elizabeth
Fishel. Overall, my first BEA experience was incredible, and I can only hope
that I’ll be able to go again in the future.
What authors would you love to meet? Are there any book releases you’re anxiously counting down towards? Leave a comment telling us which Godine books you would want to check out at our BEA booth, or send a tweet @GodinePub on Twitter!
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| Morgan, our sales manager, at the Godine booth |
This past week, from May 29 to June 1, BookExpo America (BEA) was held in New York City. And who, you may ask, was lucky enough to go this year with the excellent staff at Godine? This intern! Needless to say, I was thrilled. As a major industry event, I had heard of BEA before (though, I must admit, I was initially a bit lost when people starting throwing the abbreviation around). BEA is a publishing trade show, where everyone gathers together and checks out each other’s work. Publishers get together with booksellers to make sales, and in the last couple of years the public has been permitted to attend on the last day. (For more information on BEA in general, visit bookexpoamerica.com.)
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| Inside the Javits Convention Center |
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| Sight upon BEA entry |
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| The Godine booth (complete with David sitting in the corner) |
I felt a sense of kinship with my fellow literary people, many of whom wore book-related t-shirts such as “Stay Calm and Love Books,” or the Lemony Snicket tee that someone was handing out. Almost all of them, including me, were carting around huge stacks of books. You see, everyone at BEA gives you books. Sure, there are other give-aways, like pins, stickers, pens, t-shirts, the ever-useful tote bag, and even a lunar calendar, but books are the meat and potatoes. Many publishers hand out free galleys, or unpolished copies of books before they’re published. They often say, “Uncorrected Proof, Not for Sale” in big red letters on the cover, and have an outline of the marketing plan on the back. These are the books that get sent out to reviewers, and these are the books that are handed out en masse at BEA.
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| Morgan and Katie, an intern, enjoy some pizza to celebrate our new book Pizza in Pienza |
What authors would you love to meet? Are there any book releases you’re anxiously counting down towards? Leave a comment telling us which Godine books you would want to check out at our BEA booth, or send a tweet @GodinePub on Twitter!
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Superior Person's Tuesday!
Psittacism n. A string of meaningless, repetitive words. Literally “parrot talk.”
Each Tuesday, we’ll offer up a Superior Word for the edification of our Superior Readers, via the volumes of the inimitable Peter Bowler. You can purchase all or any of the four Superior Person’s Books of Words from the Godine website. Psittacism appears in the Third.
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| “Now let’s talk about the state of the economy.” The audience groaned at yet another psittacism. |
Monday, June 3, 2013
An Ode to the BPL
by Jodi Bosin
The architect's firm McKim, Mead, and White completed their masterpiece one hundred and eighteen years ago. The Boston Public Library, better known as the BPL, had been located first in a former schoolhouse on Mason Street (shown on the right) and then in a building on Boylston Street. Both of these locations were much too small to contain the first large free municipal library in the United States, even in its younger days. In 1854 when the library first opened the collection had about 16,000 volumes; it now holds almost nine million. Indeed, a palace seems the only structure suitable for an urban cave of wonders such as this.
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| The front of the Boston Public Library |
A palace for the people, Charles McKim called it.
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| The Boston Public Library on Mason Street, its location from 1854-1858. Image from bpl.org. |
Upon approaching the library, I navigate the streams of pedestrians passing through Copley Square and ascend the thin sheets of steps that surround it. The giant stone building stands majestically before me; skyscrapers rise up behind it but their shining surfaces seem to be made of something less eternal. I step in one of the gaping oval entryways and into a sudden quiet, sheltered from the bustling square beyond. A marble staircase leads upward, under the protective gaze of two sculpted lions and past murals by Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, Edwin Austin Abbey, and John Singer Sargent.
I then enter Bates Hall, my favorite public space in the city of Boston. The ceiling stretches 50 feet high, lined with fifteen large windows and magnificent barrel vault arches. The hall is bordered by bookshelves around its edges and features two long rows of wooden tables with the sort of green lamps remeniscent of a musty grandfather's study. The room exudes comfort and calm, and I have often found it the perfect refuge to study, read, or write surrounded by others doing the same.
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| The front stairs |
I then enter Bates Hall, my favorite public space in the city of Boston. The ceiling stretches 50 feet high, lined with fifteen large windows and magnificent barrel vault arches. The hall is bordered by bookshelves around its edges and features two long rows of wooden tables with the sort of green lamps remeniscent of a musty grandfather's study. The room exudes comfort and calm, and I have often found it the perfect refuge to study, read, or write surrounded by others doing the same.
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| Bates Hall |
I am proud to count myself among the three million or so that visit the BPL each year. With a wide range of programs, manuscripts, maps, prints, and books, as well as 25 other branch libraries, the BPL is a veritable beating heart. "Boston Pubic Library is a community gathering place, a place for lifelong learning, a place to seek knowledge, solace, and renewal," wrote President Amy E. Ryan in a letter announcing the BPL's reopening following the Boston Marathon events. Charles McKim would be glad to hear it, and thousands of Boston residents would readily agree. We are glad to have it back.
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