First-time Novelist Wins Florida Literature Award

Artifacts, a novel by Mary Anna Evans, has won the 2004 Patrick D. Smith Florida Literature Award, given by the Florida Historical Society. This award recognizes the valuable contributions made by writers of Florida fiction in stimulating the promotion and study of the state’s history and heritage.

Artifacts features Faye Longchamp, an amateur archaeologist whose hobby turns deadly when she uncovers a dead body. Artifacts has received critical praise from a number of influential publications, including:

Publishers Weekly—“Few corners of Florida remain unmined for crime fiction and now, happily, there’s one less. The shifting little isles along the Florida Panhandle—hurricane-wracked bits of land filled with plenty of human history—serve as the effective backdrop for Evans’s debut, a tale of greed, archaeology, romance and murder.”

Booklist—“First-novelist Evans introduces a strong female sleuth in this extremely promising debut, and she makes excellent use of her archaeological subject matter, weaving past and present together in a multilayered, compelling plot. Let’s hope Faye Longchamp’s home-restoration project is one of those remodeling jobs that never ends.”

Florida Journal—“Richly atmospheric, populated with a colorful cast, and steeped in the local landscape and history of the Gulf Coast region, Artifacts makes a gripping read with a surprising plot twist.”

Ms. Evans is a resident of Gainesville, Florida. She holds degrees in physics and chemical engineering, and her professional background includes stints as an environmental engineer, as a youth choir director, and as a roustabout on a offshore production platform. She is at work on Relics, the sequel to Artifacts.

Artifacts is available in hardcover (Poisoned Pen Press, $24.95, ISBN: 1590580567), large-print paperback (Poisoned Pen Press, $22.95, ISBN: 1590580796), and mass-market paperback (ibooks/Simon&Schuster, $6.99, ISBN: 0743479505).

CBS should say it, S&S share corporate parent
David Folkenflik

March 31, 2004

Since Richard Clarke's March 21 appearance on 60 Minutes to discuss a new book in which he sharply criticizes the White House for its approach to fighting terrorism, some sympathetic to the administration say CBS failed to reveal its ties to his publisher for ideological reasons.

A desire to promote corporate interests seems more plausible. In the past two years, the program has aired segments on six newly published books on topics ranging from the story of a reporter who made up articles to the insider insights of President Bush's first Treasury secretary. Five were published by Simon & Schuster, which, like CBS, is owned by the media conglomerate Viacom. Not once was the connection disclosed, according to a review of transcripts.

The lack of disclosure of the corporate link for Clarke's book was "an oversight," 60 Minutes correspondent Leslie Stahl explained Sunday in response to letters from viewers.

The Clarke segment was aired just days before his testimony to a congressional commission into the 9/11 attacks and the Bush administration response. And, just as CBS undoubtedly had planned, it caused enormous buzz, as Clarke's assertions quickly sparked intense debate.

The "country is very much divided," said Sandy Genelius, a spokeswoman for CBS News. "We are experiencing an overheated partisan atmosphere."

CBS news correspondents often make viewers aware of corporate connections in other stories, she said. "To the people at 60 Minutes, it is worth taking a few extra seconds to defuse the issue," Genelius said. "We have nothing to hide."

Simon & Schuster frequently publishes books of significant public interest. 60 Minutes should be able to cover them, she said. "[Executive producer] Don Hewitt and the folks at 60 Minutes pay no attention to who publishes a particular book," Genelius said. "As Don has said many times over, he is looking for a good story."

Competition for provocative interviews often sparks an intense courtship between source and network. Sometimes major news stars such NBC's Katie Couric, ABC's Diane Sawyer and Barbara Walters personally intervene. As the media world consolidates - Viacom bought CBS in 1999 - so-called "multi-platform" pitches are possible. A CBS News executive's approach last year to former prisoner of war Jessica Lynch included an offer to facilitate programs on MTV and CBS and a book deal with Simon & Schuster.

Leroy Sievers, executive producer of ABC News' Nightline, said he is often challenged by many viewers who believe news decisions are made by corporate owners - in his case, the Walt Disney Co., which controls movie studios, theme parks, ESPN and other cable television outlets. Disclosure may dispel some skepticism, he said.

Local news programs and major news divisions routinely promote their networks' entertainment shows. NBC's primetime news magazine Dateline is preparing to devote significant time to Donald Trump, the star of its new hit "reality" program The Apprentice, and to do stories on the finales of longtime NBC sitcoms Friends and Frasier.

These books formed the core of 60 Minutes stories over the past two years:


Historian Michael Beschloss' Reaching for Glory on the secret tapes kept by President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Bob Woodward's Bush at War, an account of the president's response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Fabulist, former New Republic reporter Stephen Glass' thinly fictionalized account of his own experience fabricating several dozen articles.

Hall of Fame NFL linebacker Lawrence Taylor's memoir LT: Over the Edge, about his cocaine addiction.

Ron Suskind's The Price of Loyalty, about Paul O'Neill's tenure as Bush's first Treasury secretary. O'Neill collaborated extensively on the book.

Clarke's Against All Enemies.
All the books except Taylor's were Simon & Schuster imprints. But the ties were not disclosed by 60 Minutes.

"The problem with this kind of synergy is that it has political overtones," Fox News Channel media critic Eric Burns said on the air Sunday, then alluded to Suskind's book on O'Neill. "A couple of months ago another Simon & Schuster book ... [that was] also critical of the Bush administration got some time on 60 Minutes without a disclaimer." CNN's Lou Dobbs made a similar point.

But it is hard to make an ideological case. Woodward's book was received as a largely laudatory treatment of Bush. LBJ, a Democrat, was portrayed as insecure and power-hungry in Beschloss' rendering. The Suskind and Clarke books were unquestionably newsworthy.

It is the the failure to disclose that allowed critics to ascribe partisan impulses to the CBS interview of Clarke. "You should know that there is some sort of [corporate] relationship," said Nightline's Sievers. But he said he was surprised by the frequency with which Simon & Schuster books popped up on 60 Minutes. "That's a heck of a coincidence - if that's what it is," Sievers said.

Questions? Comments? Story ideas? David Folkenflik can be reached by e-mail at david.folkenflik@baltsun.com or by phone at 410-332-6923.



Copyright © 2004, The Baltimore Sun


baltimoresun.com - CBS should say it, S&S share corporate parent

Salon.com
The confessions of a semi-successful author
I've published several books, won adoring reviews, and even sold a few copies. But I've made almost no money and had my heart broken. Here's everything you don't want to know about how publishing really works.

Editor's note: Although the author's name and some identifying details have been changed, the facts, quotes, e-mails and tragedy depicted in this story are real.

- - - - - - - - - - - -
By Jane Austen Doe

March 22, 2004 | "A midlist author is one whose books are well received but have failed to make a commercial breakthrough; whose work sells solidly but unspectacularly, who's well known within the writing community but the majority of book buyers have never heard his name."


-- David Armstrong, "How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author," 2003

Reader Advisory: By the end of this story I will have broken the most sacred rules of modern authordom. I'll tell you how much my publishers have paid me for the books I've written. I'll tell you how many copies each of those books has sold. I'll share with you some of the secrets, lies and euphemisms told to me by my publishers, editors, publicists and agents in their efforts to comfort, pacify and motivate me, and I'll share some of the salient facts that make those secrets, lies and euphemisms such common industry currency.

If you don't want to hear about the noir underside of publishing -- if you're a writer longing for a literary career, or a reader who's happier not knowing that producing and marketing a book these days involves about as much moral purity as producing and marketing a pair of Nikes -- I suggest you stop reading now.

Still with me? Great. But who, exactly, might I be? I'm not saying. Because although I've published books and articles about things most people won't talk about, let alone publish -- my sex life and marriage counseling, my quirky predilections and unpopular politics, my worst mistakes and no-longer-secret yearnings -- I'm using a pseudonym to write this story, because telling the truth about my life as a writer is one risk I can't afford to take.

Thinking you'll put the clues together, figure out who I am? Give it your best shot. If you could identify me based on the story I'm about to tell you, I wouldn't have it to tell.

Here's a Clue: You might know me by my number: 40,137. That's today's sales ranking of my latest book on Amazon.

Sadly, this is also how I rate myself: Not bad, not nearly good enough.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"Tales of the midlist author: When [my latest book] came out a few weeks ago, it bounced around the Amazon rankings in the 25,000 to 30,000 range, supported there by the radio shows I'm doing and my buddy who runs [a Web] bulletin board. Then last Thursday, I mailed a 450-piece promotion to my personal list, pitching Amazon that's selling the book for 30 percent off list. This morning, [my latest book] is No. 1,665. Now, we all know that the Amazon rankings are a distorted mirror and can't be taken too, too seriously. On the other hand, they're the only instant sales data midlist authors have. So I'm encouraged. My mailing to 750 members of the [organization presumably interested in my latest book] goes out this weekend. Fingers crossed that I see at least one day in three figures."

The Story

Being the author of several critically acclaimed, moderately successful books has given me an extraordinary, exciting, occasionally lucrative, quite public life. It has also broken my heart.

Nothing makes me happier than writing. And, thanks to the rules that govern publishing today, nothing I've ever done for a living -- housecleaning, data entry, creating campaigns for big-name, cutthroat ad agencies, full-time motherhood -- has been as hard on me as being a writer.

Being an author is the culmination of a lifelong dream. And -- because the sales of each book I write determine my ability to remain one -- being an author has ruined many of my greatest lifelong pleasures. Reading a book that's poorly written I pace the floor, beseeching the Muses, God and the editors of Publishers Weekly to explain why trash like this sells so much better than serious books like mine. Reading a book that's well written, I writhe, instead, with envy.

Relax with a glossy magazine on a sun-splashed beach? Not me, not anymore. The magazine doesn't exist that hasn't either published or rejected my work, and there's a trail of tears behind every story. Sunday morning in bed with a steaming cup of French roast, a well-schmeared bagel, the book review section of the New York Times? Sounds great -- if only I could sip, chew and gnash my teeth all at once. Veg out in front of the tube? Impossible. Playboy is nearly the only channel that hasn't scheduled, then cancelled me -- each booking raising hopes of thousands of copies sold; each cancellation a stake driven through the heart of my career.

Never an enthusiastic employee, I quit my job at age 35 to become a full-time writer, to live life on my own terms. After publishing four books -- each of them critically acclaimed, several of them award-winners, none of them big enough sellers to ensure my next book contract, let alone the lifetime of book contracts I crave -- I feel less in control of my finances, my schedule, my priorities and my well-being than I did when I had bosses and employees to answer to.

Acknowledgment Of Good Fortune

Believe me, I know I'm lucky to be published at all. I've read enough talented unpublished writers to realize just how arbitrary that privilege is. I'm more fortunate still to have had publishers who made significant investments in my books, editors who have gone to the mat for me, an agent I admire and trust. For more than a decade I've earned a reasonable living as a writer, raised a child as a writer, had a mostly great time being one.

You know that bumper sticker, "I love humanity -- it's people I can't stand"? Well, I love writing. It's publishing I can't stand.

Statement of the Problem

In the 10 years since I signed my first book contract, the publishing industry has changed in ways that are devastating -- emotionally, financially, professionally, spiritually, and creatively -- to midlist authors like me. You've read about it in your morning paper: Once-genteel "houses" gobbled up by slavering conglomerates; independent bookstores cannibalized by chain and online retailers; book sales sinking as the number of TV channels soars. What once was about literature is now about return on investment. What once was hand-sold one by one by well-read, book-loving booksellers now moves by the pallet-load at Wal-Mart and Borders -- or doesn't move at all.

Interlude: Publishing Today Is a Business

"Publishing today is a business, dominated by stockholders and profit margins, run entirely according to the hard, cold numbers. Investors in the major megacorporations that own nearly all of the New York majors want profit, and lots of it. In a business that traditionally makes maybe 4-6 percent profit in a good year, today's stockholders are demanding 15-18 percent. Gone are the days when a publisher could nurture a writer with potential through several lackluster efforts. Today's editors can't afford a single flop."


-- Jeff Kirvin, "What's Wrong With Publishing," January 2002.

Mine is what editors call "the human story behind the headlines." But it's not just about me; not just about the many wonderful, once-revered writers I know, who -- loving the craft of writing, hating the damage that being a writer has done to them -- aren't writers any more.

It's about the narrowing of the breadth and depth and diversity of our culture: the quieting of all but the blandest voices, the elimination of all but the safest choices. It's about what it will mean to you if the blunt force of commerce succeeds in silencing midlist authors like me.

Interlude: Excerpt From the Unacknowledged, Unpublished Publishing Glossary of Terms

When they say: "Americans read trash, not meaningful books like yours. You'd need to worry if your books were commercially successful."

What that means: "Your next advance -- if there is one -- will be half the size of your last."

When they say: "Your book will have a long life in paperback."

What that means: "We'll be forced to throw good money after bad to recoup our losses on the hardcover."

When they say: "Your career is building slowly but steadily."

What that means: "Time to look for a day job."

As Promised: The Unexpurgated, Possibly Unfinished History of One Midlist Author's Life

Book 1: Contract signed 1994. Book published 1996. Advance: $150,000.

Book takes one year, no research, pure joy to write.

I love my editor; my editor loves me.

Several publishers vying to buy book means book sells at auction for big advance. Big advance means big publicity budget. Big publicity budget means promotion handled by publicity director, which means reviews in top newspapers, excerpts in top magazines, TV and radio appearances, four weeks on two bestseller lists, seven-city tour. Publisher (Mr. Big) sends handwritten note, thanking me for "writing the great book we all knew you had it in you to write."

Question to agent: "Is there a downside to an unknown author getting such a big advance for a first book?"

Agent's answer: "What are you gonna do, turn it down?"

Pitch line: "Welcome a fresh new voice!"

Sales: I don't ask. No one seems to care. Final tally: Hardcover/paperback sales combined are 10,000 copies.

Current status: Out of print. Small but loyal cult following; 10 years later adoring fans still show up at readings, clutching well-worn copies, eager to tell me how book changed their lives.

Conclusion drawn then: Being an author, working with the best editor and the best publisher on earth is a dream come true.

Conclusion drawn now: There is a downside to getting a big advance for a first book.

The Desperate Years: 1996-98

"A small number of major houses account for the lion's share of publishing's annual revenues of about $20 billion ... In 1996 [in the U.S.] an astounding 140,000 new or revised titles were issued."


-- Phil Mattera, vice president, National Writers Union
"Crisis of the Midlist Author in American Book Publishing"
Revue Française d'Études Américaines, October 1998

1997: Agent submits new manuscript to Editor Who Still Loves Me (despite disappointing sales of first book). EWSLM, enthused, takes manuscript to pub board. Sales director rejects new book, citing losses incurred by first one. EWSLM acknowledges to agent: It's not the book being rejected; it's the author.

Question to agent: "Is my career as a writer over?"

Agent's answer: "I'm going to need to try something unheard of to get you back in the game."

Agent offers EWSLM unprecedented deal: If publisher will buy new book, we'll forgo advance to help defray losses from first one. EWSLM gently advises agent to "pursue other avenues." Agent gently advises me to "pursue other genres."

To keep daughter in Nikes while writing short-story collection, I write Web copy for dot-coms, ghostwrite celebrity bio (Book 2). Agent sends out collection; collection rejected by 10 editors. Agent suggests I "take a break." I start pursuing other agents.

Celebrity bio becomes national bestseller. It doesn't go on my permanent record, though, since it doesn't have my name on it.

Question to potential new agent: "Do you think changing agents will help my career?"

New agent's answer (in so many words): "It sure can't hurt."

Conclusion Drawn Then: Even most loyal, powerful editor employed by best publisher on earth can't override power of profit & loss statement.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Even most loyal, powerful editor employed by best publisher on earth can't override power of profit & loss statement.

Interlude: It's Nothing Personal

"Hardcover publishers lose money on most of their titles and depend greatly on a few bestsellers ... the large publishers are increasingly inclined to concentrate their resources on books that have the greatest potential to become bestsellers. Like Hollywood, book publishing has become a business driven by the quest for blockbusters."



-- Phil Mattera, op. cit.

Book 3: Contract signed 1998. Book published 2001. Advance: $10,000.

Book takes two years, intensive research, mostly joy to write.

Book rejected by 10 publishers; lone editor making offer promises to "make up for the modest advance with great publicity on the back end." Desperate to "get back in the game," I accept advance that's less than 10 percent of first one from editor who never returns my calls, continues to misspell my name.

Minuscule advance means no publicity budget. No publicity would mean this Second Chance Book will, instead, be Last Book. I hire freelance publicist at $1,500 per city, $5,000 to pitch to national media. I hand over half of advance, sign contract with publicist acknowledging no guarantee of outcome. Spend six months working full-time on own publicity in key cities; publicist focuses on nationals. Publicist books me on 55 radio shows, some local and B-list national TV.

Book hits local bestseller lists on pub date, stays there six months. Book wins awards. Glowing review in Time magazine nets calls from Hollywood producers. Screenwriter spends weekends at my house "to get inside my head," talks incessantly about her ongoing extramarital affair. One year later, screenwriter tells my agent she's too busy to pursue our project. Now too late to pursue once-interested producers. Neither agent nor I have received compensation for year spent working/negotiating with screenwriter.

Pitch line: None. Whose job was that?

Sales: Publisher announces print run of 20,000; prints 7,000, then four more printings over next year.

Current tally: Hardcover/paperback sales combined are 25,000 copies.

Question to agent: "How can we capitalize on these solid sales?"

Agent's answer: "Write a new book -- quick."

Current status: Three years later book still yields $600 royalty checks (after agent's 15 percent commission) every six months. Total earnings to me, after agent commission and publicist fee, are $21,000.

Conclusion Drawn Then: A $10,000 book advance is only worth taking out of pure desperation.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Sometimes it's worth taking out a loan to write a book. The trick is knowing when.

Interlude: Publishing Used To Be

"Publishing used to be almost a family business. Often a publisher would see talent in a new young writer and support that writer for many years, printing book after book that didn't sell, trusting that eventually the writer would 'break through' and make it big. The publisher was the friend and champion of the writer, willing to risk again and again for a writer [the house] believed in. Those days are long past."


-- Jeff Kirvin, op. cit.

Book 4: Contract signed 2002. Book published 2004. Advance: $80,000

Book takes two years, hellish research, difficult and delightful to write.

Love my editor at third publishing house; editor loves me. Medium-sized advance based on previous bestseller means medium-sized publicity budget. Book assigned to Sharp Young Publicist, so I don't hire freelance publicist. Six months before pub date SYP initiates meetings with major media outlets; tells me to choose between "Good Morning America" and "Today," Redbook and O, advises me to buy "great TV clothes." One month before pub date, publisher ("Mr. Big II") calls with bad news: SYP is MIA.

Mr. Big II assigns Junior Assistant Publicist to "lock down" Major Media Bookings made by SYP. After calling several "confirmed" producers, JAP concludes that SYP fabricated bookings while secretly preparing to "pursue other opportunities."

JAP makes heroic effort, books local media (I wear "Good Morning America" outfit for three-minute interview on local cable news show), is unable to book promised national media. Book wins awards; sales flat, even in areas saturated by local media coverage.

Pitch line: "The much-anticipated new book from the best-selling author of 'Y Marks the Spot'!"

Sales: Based on major media bookings promised by SYP, publisher announces print run of 35,000; based on lack of national media, publisher prints 10,000. Sales figures not in yet; projections not pretty.

Question to agent: "Is my career as a writer over?"

Agent's answer: "Write a new book proposal now, before the bookstores start shipping returns."

Current status: One hardcover copy (or less) available, spine-out, on a shelf hidden deep in the bowels of your local bookstore.

Conclusion Drawn Then: National media undoubtedly would have helped. But -- no matter how painstakingly written, no matter how enthusiastically promoted, no matter how glowingly reviewed, for reasons beyond mortal knowing, some books Just Don't Sell.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Maybe my career as a writer is over.

Just Ask Any Midlist Author -- This Happens All the Time

Stranger on a plane, at a party, on a date: "Wow -- you're a writer! Have I heard of you?"

Midlist Author: "Probably not."

Stranger: "Wow -- you're a writer! Have I read anything you've written?"

Midlist: "Probably not."

Stranger: "Wow -- you're a writer! Will I see your books at Barnes & Noble?"

Midlist: "Only if you look really hard."

Stranger: "I can't wait to tell my wife I met a real author! What's your name again?"

Book 5

New book proposal written overnight, submitted to editor of Book 4. Editor loves idea, pitches to pub board. Pub board loves idea, agrees to make offer. Editor/agent have celebratory lunch: Despite Book 4's lackluster sales, publisher is certain Book 5 will be my Biggest Book Yet. Editor No. 2 Who Still Loves Me (despite dismal sales of Book 4) says, "We want you to be a house author. We believe in you."

Despite eerie echoes of E#1WSLM, my Midlist Author's heart sings. At last I've found what every author wants: loyal publisher for life. Editor leaks terms of forthcoming offer: $80,000, since Book 5 is "so much more commercial" than my previous books.

Editor reassures agent daily that offer is forthcoming. Offer does not forthcome.

Three weeks after celebratory lunch, normally overly optimistic agent calls, sounding near tears. "It's bad, Jane. They're not going to make an offer." Mr. Big III overrode pub board. Citing lackluster sales of Book 4, wants to avoid "throwing good money after bad."

Comment to agent: "My career as a writer is over."

Agent's answer: "They're not the only publisher in town."

Comment to agent: "They're one imprint of the biggest publisher in town, which means we can't sell the book to any of that publisher's other 15 imprints. And I'm already banned from Publisher No. 1 and its 15 imprints. How many publishers does that leave?"

Current status: Rewritten Book 5 rejected by nine editors. Most love book; all say it's "not commercial enough." Three-times-rewritten manuscript currently under consideration by four -- oops, just received rejection e-mail from editor whose boss says it's not commercial enough -- three "interested editors," two in same Manhattan high-rise as editors who have already rejected it.

Conveying news of latest rejection, agent mentions we'll be lucky to get $50,000; explains, "Publishers aren't overpaying anymore. They know they'll just break even if they pay $50,000 and sell 20,000 copies in hardcover, which few books ever do."

I realize if I'm "overpaid" I'll earn $50,000 minus $7,500 agent commission. That's $42,500 for three years' work. Agent, who's now spent five months doing back flips to sell book, will earn $3,000 less than she would have if book had sold to Book 4 publisher as planned.

Despite estimated 20 cents per hour pay earned while in my employ, agent tells me, "Just because publishers define success by the numbers, you don't have to. You write important books. You should feel proud of yourself. And you must keep writing."

Sales: Interested editor tells me during phone interview, "Ten years ago, a book that sold 20,000 copies was considered a dud. Now we pray for that."

Pray, and, apparently, pay accordingly.

Conclusion Drawn Now: When a book "fails to meet expectations," many are candidates for blame. But whether commercial failure results from market conditions, moon in Mercury retrograde, or publisher/editor/publicist/sales force/author malfeasance, the consequences are the same. Those with jobs keep them. Only the author's livelihood is threatened. Only the author is punished.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"'Celeste' [my editor of several previous books] offered a measly rotten $25K again. I countered with $35 plus foreign and it looks like I'll get that. I mean, I didn't earn out even at the pittance I am advanced so I didn't expect much. But, perhaps, perhaps, to keep my morale up, you could hint to [publishing people you know] that I have been offered a ludicrous amount of money? Please? If we could start a rumor like that it would be helpful all around. I am sort of relieved that it will just be a one-book deal this time. Even though that makes me insecure, it also means that when I turn [interesting character] into my next book, I will be free to attempt to actually get six figures."

There Was a Time

"There was a time when writers of serious books not destined to become bestsellers could expect to get contracts from publishers that included decent terms and large enough advances to survive until the next book. Today such expectations are rarely met ... While publishers lavish large sums of money and lots of attention on a few high-profile authors, conditions have grown increasingly bad for those writers known as midlist authors."


-- Phil Mattera, vice president, National Writers Union, op. cit.

There was a time, just a decade ago, when my life as a writer brimmed with hope and promise; when the world of work and words seemed open to endless possibility; when the music my editors and I made together -- the appreciation and, yes, the love they felt for me, the appreciation and love I felt for them -- made my heart sing in my chest and my words sing on the page.

There was a time when my life as a writer overrode my innate cynicism and doubt, moved me to tell my young daughter, cornball as it seemed even then, that dreams do come true, if you really want them to. Because what is a book made of, if not the spun sugar of a writer's wildest dreams?

"Does it ever get better?" I asked Patty, my most successful writer friend, recounting my midlist author's tale of woe.

"Not substantially," she answered. "My books sell well now, but I never stop wondering what'll happen to me when they don't."

"So why do we bother?" I moaned.

"Because this is the thing we do best," she said simply. "What else would we do?"

That question came home to me last week when, for the first time in 15 years, someone offered me a job. Without hesitation -- I'm a writer! -- I turned it down. Then I went home to another editor's rejection e-mail and called my agent, who advised me to take it. Of all the bad news you've given me, I said, this might be the worst. Have you given up on me as a writer?

"You'll always be a writer," she said. "But you won't be able to write if you're as worried about money and feeling as rejected as you've been. Maybe the thing that feels like it would strangle you will actually give you some room to breathe. When we sell the next book you can always quit the job."

My husband, greatest fan on earth of my writing, said the same thing. So did my best friend, and my father, and everyone else I asked. Clearly I hadn't been suffering in as much silence as I'd thought. Clearly, everyone who loves me had been worried about me. "Taking the job would feel like admitting failure," I told my now 19-year-old daughter, the girl I raised to believe that dreams do come true.

"You already succeeded as a writer, Mom," she said. "So what if you didn't make the All-Star team? You made the NBA."

I called my new -- gulp -- employer and accepted the job.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"I'm having the worst publishing experience ever here. Every day it gets worse. It's like some kind of out-of-control nightmare that won't stop until this book has been completely killed and buried. Yesterday, I was debating whether or not to borrow some money to hire an independent publicist, but today I don't know if I can afford to risk it. At this point, it all seems like gambling. The book went on sale Tuesday (well, supposedly -- you can't find it here in [my hometown], even though this was the only place a review ran) -- one of the most depressing launches ever."

I Count Among the Losses

Looking back on my writing career I count among the losses the relationships -- indescribably intimate, more like marriages than friendships -- with the editors I counted on, and spoke to nearly every day for all the years of our contractual agreements, and loved and still love, who love me too but will never publish me again.

I count among the losses my conviction that mixing love and art and business is a risk worth taking, and that doing without any of these things isn't.

I count among the losses the hundreds of thousands of dollars that my books cost the publishers who believed in me enough to treat me respectfully and pay me well, and I count among the losses the profits I continue to generate for the one publisher who didn't.

I count as my greatest loss of all: hope, the most toxic, precious thing any writer has. Without a writer's foolish fantasies -- envisioning Book 5 piled in stacks of 50 in every airport bookstore, its carefully chosen title appearing on the Times bestseller list, my agent calling with breathtakingly, indisputably, non-euphemistically good news -- how can I face the otherwise overwhelming prospect of a book waiting to be written?

If I can't bring myself to hope that I'll have the chance to write Book 5, so my heart can be filled and emptied and broken again; if the privilege of being published hurts too much to be the thing I hope for, what will pull me -- and the multitudes of other midlist authors, who are, after all, the vast majority of published writers in this country -- through the long, unlit tunnel of writing another one?

What will we lose if writers like me stop writing? What are we losing now?

The End?

I ran into Patty the day her ninth book became her first to hit the Times bestseller list. She grabbed me by the shoulders, looked deep into my eyes. "It doesn't change anything," she said grimly. "My mother still doesn't approve of me. I still don't have a boyfriend. I still can't sleep at night. Don't let this be what you're waiting for."

And yet I wait for my agent's call, telling me there's another chance that it could happen for me.

And so I wait. And I wait.


- - - - - - - - - - - -

Salon.com
The confessions of a semi-successful author
I've published several books, won adoring reviews, and even sold a few copies. But I've made almost no money and had my heart broken. Here's everything you don't want to know about how publishing really works.

Editor's note: Although the author's name and some identifying details have been changed, the facts, quotes, e-mails and tragedy depicted in this story are real.

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By Jane Austen Doe

March 22, 2004 | "A midlist author is one whose books are well received but have failed to make a commercial breakthrough; whose work sells solidly but unspectacularly, who's well known within the writing community but the majority of book buyers have never heard his name."


-- David Armstrong, "How Not to Write a Novel: Confessions of a Midlist Author," 2003

Reader Advisory: By the end of this story I will have broken the most sacred rules of modern authordom. I'll tell you how much my publishers have paid me for the books I've written. I'll tell you how many copies each of those books has sold. I'll share with you some of the secrets, lies and euphemisms told to me by my publishers, editors, publicists and agents in their efforts to comfort, pacify and motivate me, and I'll share some of the salient facts that make those secrets, lies and euphemisms such common industry currency.

If you don't want to hear about the noir underside of publishing -- if you're a writer longing for a literary career, or a reader who's happier not knowing that producing and marketing a book these days involves about as much moral purity as producing and marketing a pair of Nikes -- I suggest you stop reading now.

Still with me? Great. But who, exactly, might I be? I'm not saying. Because although I've published books and articles about things most people won't talk about, let alone publish -- my sex life and marriage counseling, my quirky predilections and unpopular politics, my worst mistakes and no-longer-secret yearnings -- I'm using a pseudonym to write this story, because telling the truth about my life as a writer is one risk I can't afford to take.

Thinking you'll put the clues together, figure out who I am? Give it your best shot. If you could identify me based on the story I'm about to tell you, I wouldn't have it to tell.

Here's a Clue: You might know me by my number: 40,137. That's today's sales ranking of my latest book on Amazon.

Sadly, this is also how I rate myself: Not bad, not nearly good enough.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"Tales of the midlist author: When [my latest book] came out a few weeks ago, it bounced around the Amazon rankings in the 25,000 to 30,000 range, supported there by the radio shows I'm doing and my buddy who runs [a Web] bulletin board. Then last Thursday, I mailed a 450-piece promotion to my personal list, pitching Amazon that's selling the book for 30 percent off list. This morning, [my latest book] is No. 1,665. Now, we all know that the Amazon rankings are a distorted mirror and can't be taken too, too seriously. On the other hand, they're the only instant sales data midlist authors have. So I'm encouraged. My mailing to 750 members of the [organization presumably interested in my latest book] goes out this weekend. Fingers crossed that I see at least one day in three figures."

The Story

Being the author of several critically acclaimed, moderately successful books has given me an extraordinary, exciting, occasionally lucrative, quite public life. It has also broken my heart.

Nothing makes me happier than writing. And, thanks to the rules that govern publishing today, nothing I've ever done for a living -- housecleaning, data entry, creating campaigns for big-name, cutthroat ad agencies, full-time motherhood -- has been as hard on me as being a writer.

Being an author is the culmination of a lifelong dream. And -- because the sales of each book I write determine my ability to remain one -- being an author has ruined many of my greatest lifelong pleasures. Reading a book that's poorly written I pace the floor, beseeching the Muses, God and the editors of Publishers Weekly to explain why trash like this sells so much better than serious books like mine. Reading a book that's well written, I writhe, instead, with envy.

Relax with a glossy magazine on a sun-splashed beach? Not me, not anymore. The magazine doesn't exist that hasn't either published or rejected my work, and there's a trail of tears behind every story. Sunday morning in bed with a steaming cup of French roast, a well-schmeared bagel, the book review section of the New York Times? Sounds great -- if only I could sip, chew and gnash my teeth all at once. Veg out in front of the tube? Impossible. Playboy is nearly the only channel that hasn't scheduled, then cancelled me -- each booking raising hopes of thousands of copies sold; each cancellation a stake driven through the heart of my career.

Never an enthusiastic employee, I quit my job at age 35 to become a full-time writer, to live life on my own terms. After publishing four books -- each of them critically acclaimed, several of them award-winners, none of them big enough sellers to ensure my next book contract, let alone the lifetime of book contracts I crave -- I feel less in control of my finances, my schedule, my priorities and my well-being than I did when I had bosses and employees to answer to.

Acknowledgment Of Good Fortune

Believe me, I know I'm lucky to be published at all. I've read enough talented unpublished writers to realize just how arbitrary that privilege is. I'm more fortunate still to have had publishers who made significant investments in my books, editors who have gone to the mat for me, an agent I admire and trust. For more than a decade I've earned a reasonable living as a writer, raised a child as a writer, had a mostly great time being one.

You know that bumper sticker, "I love humanity -- it's people I can't stand"? Well, I love writing. It's publishing I can't stand.

Statement of the Problem

In the 10 years since I signed my first book contract, the publishing industry has changed in ways that are devastating -- emotionally, financially, professionally, spiritually, and creatively -- to midlist authors like me. You've read about it in your morning paper: Once-genteel "houses" gobbled up by slavering conglomerates; independent bookstores cannibalized by chain and online retailers; book sales sinking as the number of TV channels soars. What once was about literature is now about return on investment. What once was hand-sold one by one by well-read, book-loving booksellers now moves by the pallet-load at Wal-Mart and Borders -- or doesn't move at all.

Interlude: Publishing Today Is a Business

"Publishing today is a business, dominated by stockholders and profit margins, run entirely according to the hard, cold numbers. Investors in the major megacorporations that own nearly all of the New York majors want profit, and lots of it. In a business that traditionally makes maybe 4-6 percent profit in a good year, today's stockholders are demanding 15-18 percent. Gone are the days when a publisher could nurture a writer with potential through several lackluster efforts. Today's editors can't afford a single flop."


-- Jeff Kirvin, "What's Wrong With Publishing," January 2002.

Mine is what editors call "the human story behind the headlines." But it's not just about me; not just about the many wonderful, once-revered writers I know, who -- loving the craft of writing, hating the damage that being a writer has done to them -- aren't writers any more.

It's about the narrowing of the breadth and depth and diversity of our culture: the quieting of all but the blandest voices, the elimination of all but the safest choices. It's about what it will mean to you if the blunt force of commerce succeeds in silencing midlist authors like me.

Interlude: Excerpt From the Unacknowledged, Unpublished Publishing Glossary of Terms

When they say: "Americans read trash, not meaningful books like yours. You'd need to worry if your books were commercially successful."

What that means: "Your next advance -- if there is one -- will be half the size of your last."

When they say: "Your book will have a long life in paperback."

What that means: "We'll be forced to throw good money after bad to recoup our losses on the hardcover."

When they say: "Your career is building slowly but steadily."

What that means: "Time to look for a day job."

As Promised: The Unexpurgated, Possibly Unfinished History of One Midlist Author's Life

Book 1: Contract signed 1994. Book published 1996. Advance: $150,000.

Book takes one year, no research, pure joy to write.

I love my editor; my editor loves me.

Several publishers vying to buy book means book sells at auction for big advance. Big advance means big publicity budget. Big publicity budget means promotion handled by publicity director, which means reviews in top newspapers, excerpts in top magazines, TV and radio appearances, four weeks on two bestseller lists, seven-city tour. Publisher (Mr. Big) sends handwritten note, thanking me for "writing the great book we all knew you had it in you to write."

Question to agent: "Is there a downside to an unknown author getting such a big advance for a first book?"

Agent's answer: "What are you gonna do, turn it down?"

Pitch line: "Welcome a fresh new voice!"

Sales: I don't ask. No one seems to care. Final tally: Hardcover/paperback sales combined are 10,000 copies.

Current status: Out of print. Small but loyal cult following; 10 years later adoring fans still show up at readings, clutching well-worn copies, eager to tell me how book changed their lives.

Conclusion drawn then: Being an author, working with the best editor and the best publisher on earth is a dream come true.

Conclusion drawn now: There is a downside to getting a big advance for a first book.

The Desperate Years: 1996-98

"A small number of major houses account for the lion's share of publishing's annual revenues of about $20 billion ... In 1996 [in the U.S.] an astounding 140,000 new or revised titles were issued."


-- Phil Mattera, vice president, National Writers Union
"Crisis of the Midlist Author in American Book Publishing"
Revue Française d'Études Américaines, October 1998

1997: Agent submits new manuscript to Editor Who Still Loves Me (despite disappointing sales of first book). EWSLM, enthused, takes manuscript to pub board. Sales director rejects new book, citing losses incurred by first one. EWSLM acknowledges to agent: It's not the book being rejected; it's the author.

Question to agent: "Is my career as a writer over?"

Agent's answer: "I'm going to need to try something unheard of to get you back in the game."

Agent offers EWSLM unprecedented deal: If publisher will buy new book, we'll forgo advance to help defray losses from first one. EWSLM gently advises agent to "pursue other avenues." Agent gently advises me to "pursue other genres."

To keep daughter in Nikes while writing short-story collection, I write Web copy for dot-coms, ghostwrite celebrity bio (Book 2). Agent sends out collection; collection rejected by 10 editors. Agent suggests I "take a break." I start pursuing other agents.

Celebrity bio becomes national bestseller. It doesn't go on my permanent record, though, since it doesn't have my name on it.

Question to potential new agent: "Do you think changing agents will help my career?"

New agent's answer (in so many words): "It sure can't hurt."

Conclusion Drawn Then: Even most loyal, powerful editor employed by best publisher on earth can't override power of profit & loss statement.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Even most loyal, powerful editor employed by best publisher on earth can't override power of profit & loss statement.

Interlude: It's Nothing Personal

"Hardcover publishers lose money on most of their titles and depend greatly on a few bestsellers ... the large publishers are increasingly inclined to concentrate their resources on books that have the greatest potential to become bestsellers. Like Hollywood, book publishing has become a business driven by the quest for blockbusters."



-- Phil Mattera, op. cit.

Book 3: Contract signed 1998. Book published 2001. Advance: $10,000.

Book takes two years, intensive research, mostly joy to write.

Book rejected by 10 publishers; lone editor making offer promises to "make up for the modest advance with great publicity on the back end." Desperate to "get back in the game," I accept advance that's less than 10 percent of first one from editor who never returns my calls, continues to misspell my name.

Minuscule advance means no publicity budget. No publicity would mean this Second Chance Book will, instead, be Last Book. I hire freelance publicist at $1,500 per city, $5,000 to pitch to national media. I hand over half of advance, sign contract with publicist acknowledging no guarantee of outcome. Spend six months working full-time on own publicity in key cities; publicist focuses on nationals. Publicist books me on 55 radio shows, some local and B-list national TV.

Book hits local bestseller lists on pub date, stays there six months. Book wins awards. Glowing review in Time magazine nets calls from Hollywood producers. Screenwriter spends weekends at my house "to get inside my head," talks incessantly about her ongoing extramarital affair. One year later, screenwriter tells my agent she's too busy to pursue our project. Now too late to pursue once-interested producers. Neither agent nor I have received compensation for year spent working/negotiating with screenwriter.

Pitch line: None. Whose job was that?

Sales: Publisher announces print run of 20,000; prints 7,000, then four more printings over next year.

Current tally: Hardcover/paperback sales combined are 25,000 copies.

Question to agent: "How can we capitalize on these solid sales?"

Agent's answer: "Write a new book -- quick."

Current status: Three years later book still yields $600 royalty checks (after agent's 15 percent commission) every six months. Total earnings to me, after agent commission and publicist fee, are $21,000.

Conclusion Drawn Then: A $10,000 book advance is only worth taking out of pure desperation.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Sometimes it's worth taking out a loan to write a book. The trick is knowing when.

Interlude: Publishing Used To Be

"Publishing used to be almost a family business. Often a publisher would see talent in a new young writer and support that writer for many years, printing book after book that didn't sell, trusting that eventually the writer would 'break through' and make it big. The publisher was the friend and champion of the writer, willing to risk again and again for a writer [the house] believed in. Those days are long past."


-- Jeff Kirvin, op. cit.

Book 4: Contract signed 2002. Book published 2004. Advance: $80,000

Book takes two years, hellish research, difficult and delightful to write.

Love my editor at third publishing house; editor loves me. Medium-sized advance based on previous bestseller means medium-sized publicity budget. Book assigned to Sharp Young Publicist, so I don't hire freelance publicist. Six months before pub date SYP initiates meetings with major media outlets; tells me to choose between "Good Morning America" and "Today," Redbook and O, advises me to buy "great TV clothes." One month before pub date, publisher ("Mr. Big II") calls with bad news: SYP is MIA.

Mr. Big II assigns Junior Assistant Publicist to "lock down" Major Media Bookings made by SYP. After calling several "confirmed" producers, JAP concludes that SYP fabricated bookings while secretly preparing to "pursue other opportunities."

JAP makes heroic effort, books local media (I wear "Good Morning America" outfit for three-minute interview on local cable news show), is unable to book promised national media. Book wins awards; sales flat, even in areas saturated by local media coverage.

Pitch line: "The much-anticipated new book from the best-selling author of 'Y Marks the Spot'!"

Sales: Based on major media bookings promised by SYP, publisher announces print run of 35,000; based on lack of national media, publisher prints 10,000. Sales figures not in yet; projections not pretty.

Question to agent: "Is my career as a writer over?"

Agent's answer: "Write a new book proposal now, before the bookstores start shipping returns."

Current status: One hardcover copy (or less) available, spine-out, on a shelf hidden deep in the bowels of your local bookstore.

Conclusion Drawn Then: National media undoubtedly would have helped. But -- no matter how painstakingly written, no matter how enthusiastically promoted, no matter how glowingly reviewed, for reasons beyond mortal knowing, some books Just Don't Sell.

Conclusion Drawn Now: Maybe my career as a writer is over.

Just Ask Any Midlist Author -- This Happens All the Time

Stranger on a plane, at a party, on a date: "Wow -- you're a writer! Have I heard of you?"

Midlist Author: "Probably not."

Stranger: "Wow -- you're a writer! Have I read anything you've written?"

Midlist: "Probably not."

Stranger: "Wow -- you're a writer! Will I see your books at Barnes & Noble?"

Midlist: "Only if you look really hard."

Stranger: "I can't wait to tell my wife I met a real author! What's your name again?"

Book 5

New book proposal written overnight, submitted to editor of Book 4. Editor loves idea, pitches to pub board. Pub board loves idea, agrees to make offer. Editor/agent have celebratory lunch: Despite Book 4's lackluster sales, publisher is certain Book 5 will be my Biggest Book Yet. Editor No. 2 Who Still Loves Me (despite dismal sales of Book 4) says, "We want you to be a house author. We believe in you."

Despite eerie echoes of E#1WSLM, my Midlist Author's heart sings. At last I've found what every author wants: loyal publisher for life. Editor leaks terms of forthcoming offer: $80,000, since Book 5 is "so much more commercial" than my previous books.

Editor reassures agent daily that offer is forthcoming. Offer does not forthcome.

Three weeks after celebratory lunch, normally overly optimistic agent calls, sounding near tears. "It's bad, Jane. They're not going to make an offer." Mr. Big III overrode pub board. Citing lackluster sales of Book 4, wants to avoid "throwing good money after bad."

Comment to agent: "My career as a writer is over."

Agent's answer: "They're not the only publisher in town."

Comment to agent: "They're one imprint of the biggest publisher in town, which means we can't sell the book to any of that publisher's other 15 imprints. And I'm already banned from Publisher No. 1 and its 15 imprints. How many publishers does that leave?"

Current status: Rewritten Book 5 rejected by nine editors. Most love book; all say it's "not commercial enough." Three-times-rewritten manuscript currently under consideration by four -- oops, just received rejection e-mail from editor whose boss says it's not commercial enough -- three "interested editors," two in same Manhattan high-rise as editors who have already rejected it.

Conveying news of latest rejection, agent mentions we'll be lucky to get $50,000; explains, "Publishers aren't overpaying anymore. They know they'll just break even if they pay $50,000 and sell 20,000 copies in hardcover, which few books ever do."

I realize if I'm "overpaid" I'll earn $50,000 minus $7,500 agent commission. That's $42,500 for three years' work. Agent, who's now spent five months doing back flips to sell book, will earn $3,000 less than she would have if book had sold to Book 4 publisher as planned.

Despite estimated 20 cents per hour pay earned while in my employ, agent tells me, "Just because publishers define success by the numbers, you don't have to. You write important books. You should feel proud of yourself. And you must keep writing."

Sales: Interested editor tells me during phone interview, "Ten years ago, a book that sold 20,000 copies was considered a dud. Now we pray for that."

Pray, and, apparently, pay accordingly.

Conclusion Drawn Now: When a book "fails to meet expectations," many are candidates for blame. But whether commercial failure results from market conditions, moon in Mercury retrograde, or publisher/editor/publicist/sales force/author malfeasance, the consequences are the same. Those with jobs keep them. Only the author's livelihood is threatened. Only the author is punished.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"'Celeste' [my editor of several previous books] offered a measly rotten $25K again. I countered with $35 plus foreign and it looks like I'll get that. I mean, I didn't earn out even at the pittance I am advanced so I didn't expect much. But, perhaps, perhaps, to keep my morale up, you could hint to [publishing people you know] that I have been offered a ludicrous amount of money? Please? If we could start a rumor like that it would be helpful all around. I am sort of relieved that it will just be a one-book deal this time. Even though that makes me insecure, it also means that when I turn [interesting character] into my next book, I will be free to attempt to actually get six figures."

There Was a Time

"There was a time when writers of serious books not destined to become bestsellers could expect to get contracts from publishers that included decent terms and large enough advances to survive until the next book. Today such expectations are rarely met ... While publishers lavish large sums of money and lots of attention on a few high-profile authors, conditions have grown increasingly bad for those writers known as midlist authors."


-- Phil Mattera, vice president, National Writers Union, op. cit.

There was a time, just a decade ago, when my life as a writer brimmed with hope and promise; when the world of work and words seemed open to endless possibility; when the music my editors and I made together -- the appreciation and, yes, the love they felt for me, the appreciation and love I felt for them -- made my heart sing in my chest and my words sing on the page.

There was a time when my life as a writer overrode my innate cynicism and doubt, moved me to tell my young daughter, cornball as it seemed even then, that dreams do come true, if you really want them to. Because what is a book made of, if not the spun sugar of a writer's wildest dreams?

"Does it ever get better?" I asked Patty, my most successful writer friend, recounting my midlist author's tale of woe.

"Not substantially," she answered. "My books sell well now, but I never stop wondering what'll happen to me when they don't."

"So why do we bother?" I moaned.

"Because this is the thing we do best," she said simply. "What else would we do?"

That question came home to me last week when, for the first time in 15 years, someone offered me a job. Without hesitation -- I'm a writer! -- I turned it down. Then I went home to another editor's rejection e-mail and called my agent, who advised me to take it. Of all the bad news you've given me, I said, this might be the worst. Have you given up on me as a writer?

"You'll always be a writer," she said. "But you won't be able to write if you're as worried about money and feeling as rejected as you've been. Maybe the thing that feels like it would strangle you will actually give you some room to breathe. When we sell the next book you can always quit the job."

My husband, greatest fan on earth of my writing, said the same thing. So did my best friend, and my father, and everyone else I asked. Clearly I hadn't been suffering in as much silence as I'd thought. Clearly, everyone who loves me had been worried about me. "Taking the job would feel like admitting failure," I told my now 19-year-old daughter, the girl I raised to believe that dreams do come true.

"You already succeeded as a writer, Mom," she said. "So what if you didn't make the All-Star team? You made the NBA."

I called my new -- gulp -- employer and accepted the job.

Interlude: A Midlist Author Friend Writes

"I'm having the worst publishing experience ever here. Every day it gets worse. It's like some kind of out-of-control nightmare that won't stop until this book has been completely killed and buried. Yesterday, I was debating whether or not to borrow some money to hire an independent publicist, but today I don't know if I can afford to risk it. At this point, it all seems like gambling. The book went on sale Tuesday (well, supposedly -- you can't find it here in [my hometown], even though this was the only place a review ran) -- one of the most depressing launches ever."

I Count Among the Losses

Looking back on my writing career I count among the losses the relationships -- indescribably intimate, more like marriages than friendships -- with the editors I counted on, and spoke to nearly every day for all the years of our contractual agreements, and loved and still love, who love me too but will never publish me again.

I count among the losses my conviction that mixing love and art and business is a risk worth taking, and that doing without any of these things isn't.

I count among the losses the hundreds of thousands of dollars that my books cost the publishers who believed in me enough to treat me respectfully and pay me well, and I count among the losses the profits I continue to generate for the one publisher who didn't.

I count as my greatest loss of all: hope, the most toxic, precious thing any writer has. Without a writer's foolish fantasies -- envisioning Book 5 piled in stacks of 50 in every airport bookstore, its carefully chosen title appearing on the Times bestseller list, my agent calling with breathtakingly, indisputably, non-euphemistically good news -- how can I face the otherwise overwhelming prospect of a book waiting to be written?

If I can't bring myself to hope that I'll have the chance to write Book 5, so my heart can be filled and emptied and broken again; if the privilege of being published hurts too much to be the thing I hope for, what will pull me -- and the multitudes of other midlist authors, who are, after all, the vast majority of published writers in this country -- through the long, unlit tunnel of writing another one?

What will we lose if writers like me stop writing? What are we losing now?

The End?

I ran into Patty the day her ninth book became her first to hit the Times bestseller list. She grabbed me by the shoulders, looked deep into my eyes. "It doesn't change anything," she said grimly. "My mother still doesn't approve of me. I still don't have a boyfriend. I still can't sleep at night. Don't let this be what you're waiting for."

And yet I wait for my agent's call, telling me there's another chance that it could happen for me.

And so I wait. And I wait.


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Mother's debut novel outsells top authors in just three weeks
By Catherine Milner, Arts Correspondent
(Filed: 28/03/2004)


A mother who wrote a novel in the evenings after her children had gone to bed and "if there was nothing good on the telly" has beaten John Grisham and Danielle Steele to the top of the bestseller list.

Kate Long's book, The Bad Mother's Handbook, about an 80-year-old grandmother who shares a council flat in Lancashire with her daughter and granddaughter, was given only short reviews when it was released 23 days ago.

Yet it has already sold more than 18,000 copies and Mrs Long, a teacher, has secured a four-book deal with Pan Macmillan, one of Britain's biggest publishers, for "a considerable sum", although they won't say how much.

In the last week alone the book has sold 8,238 copies compared to 5,314 of John Grisham's The Last Juror and 3,133 copies of Joanna Trollope's Brother and Sister.

Mrs Long, 39, who lives with her husband and two young children in a small village in Shropshire, sat down to write the book after a day's teaching and after her children had gone to bed. She told the Telegraph: "I can't believe what's happened - it's amazing. I'm just a table scribbler, really. I wrote most of it in eight weeks, between 7.30 and 9 at night, depending on whether there was anything good on the telly. And then I spent a year revising it.

"My life is very noisy on account of my two young sons, so I settle down to write on my computer as a means of escape to some extent, like some people might paint or do a tapestry." Over the past 10 years Mrs Long, originally from Bolton, Lancashire, has tried and failed to get two other novels published. "I have a stack of more than 20 extremely nice rejection letters," she said.

Peter Strauss, Mrs Long's agent and the former publisher of Bridget Jones's Diary, spotted the potential of The Bad Mother's Handbook having been shown it by David Rees, a friend and magazine publisher.

Mr Strauss hawked the book around a number of publishing houses and a fierce bidding war ensued, securing a "considerable advance" for Mrs Long. "Going to Number One in a hardcover is pretty extraordinary," he said. "You can spend millions of pounds on a good marketing campaign but in the end it is word of mouth that is selling this book. It's simply a fantastic book. Kate is a born storyteller."

Edward Mitchell, the headmaster of Abbey Gate College in Chester, where Mrs Long has taught English for more than 10 years, said: "Kate always had a very acute brain. We knew she had a lot of talent in understanding how teenagers think and that shows in her portrayal of the granddaughter in her book."

Mr Mitchell was, however, not sure the book would make appropriate reading for his pupils - it begins with a graphic description of the granddaughter having sex with her spindly teenage boyfriend when her grandmother stumbles into the room talking about a horse.

He said: "A number of the pupils have been talking about Mrs Long's book but I'm not quite sure how suitable it is for them to read as it is quite saucy in places - which means of course that they'll almost certainly go out and buy it."

Because of the hefty advance she received, it will be some time before Mrs Long receives any royalties for her book, which sells for £12.99.

The biggest sales have been through Tesco stores, which sold more than 6,000 copies last week. It is also currently being broadcast as The Book at Bedtime on BBC Radio Four.

A salesman at Waterstone's in Kensington High Street, London, said: "Although it seems to be mostly women in their thirties and forties who are buying it, we have also had the odd husband as well."

Mrs Long says she was prompted to write the book after finding it hard to relate to other family sagas she had read. "Although some of them were quite funny, they weren't about the lower middle class kind of life I came from.

"They always seemed to be talking about choosing designer clothes, whereas the poshest clothes I buy are those from Marks and Spencer."

She has given up teaching. "Writing books is better," she said. "I'm going to spend the money on a new kitchen."

Mrs Long follows in the footsteps of other overnight literary sensations. Patrick Redmond, 32, a solicitor from Essex, sold his first novel for £100,000 in 1998, while J K Rowling's Harry Potter books transformed her from a penniless single mother into the richest woman in Britain worth £280 million.

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Telegraph | News | Mother's debut novel outsells top authors in just three weeks

Press Release
Source: The History Channel


True Crime Authors
Wednesday March 24, 12:51 pm ET
Murder In Greenwich With Mark Fuhrman
Donnie Brasco With Joe Pistone
A Sniper In The Tower With Gary Lavergne
Fire Lover With Joseph Wambaugh
Blow With Bruce Porter
The Westies With T.J. English

A six part series airing on The History Channel(R) April 4th, April 5 and April 6th at 8p.m. ET/PT


NEW YORK, March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- What drives someone to commit a crime? Find out the shocking details behind some of the most notorious true crimes of the 20th century as told by the authors who wrote the books. Astonishing tales of murder, mayhem, corruption and cover-up are exposed in TRUE CRIME AUTHORS, a six-part series airing Sunday, April 4th through Tuesday, April 6th at 8p.m. ET/PT on The History Channel.

MURDER IN GREENWICH with Mark Fuhrman (Sunday, April 4th at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT)

In 1975, the brutal murder of fifteen-year-old Martha Moxley shocked one of America's wealthiest communities making national headlines. Evidence points to Michael and Tommy Skakel, members of one of the town's most affluent families and the nephews of Ethel and Robert Kennedy, but for nearly a quarter of a century, no arrest is made. It isn't until former detective Mark Fuhrman's investigation uncovers a web of influence and shoddy police work that justice is done. His investigation leads to the discovery of evidence that clearly implicates Michael Skakel. As a result, shortly after the publication of Fuhrman's book, Skakel was indicted for the crime, found guilty and began a twenty-year prison sentence.

DONNIE BRASCO with Joe Pistone (Sunday, April 4th at 9:00 P.M. ET/PT)

For six years Joe Pistone lived among two of New York's most infamous crime families -- The Bonannos and the Colombos -- posing as a jewel thief named Donnie Brasco. He accomplished what no one in the history of the bureau had ever done before. He successfully infiltrated the secretive and deadly world of La Cosa Nostra. Pistone pretended to condone burglaries and extortion; all the while he was keeping notes and taking names. By 1984 his perseverance and work helped put more than 100 mafia associates behind bars. In this True Crime Authors, the former federal agent recounts his own terrifying, often surprising and fascinating six year journey through the world of organized crime.

A SNIPER IN THE TOWER with Gary Lavergne (Monday, April 5th at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT)

No one ever could have imagined that Charles Whitman, by all outward appearances the All-American boy, would become one of America's most notorious mass murderers, but on a brutally hot day in August 1966, he climbed up to the 28th floor observation deck of the University of Texas tower and began firing on the campus below. Fourteen people die and 31 are wounded in just over an hour. In the days to follow, America was gripped by a need to try to make sense of the madness and grieve for its lost innocence at the unexpected and incomprehensible turn of events. Gary Lavergne is ten years old at the time, he later decides to learn all he can about the events of that infamous day. This episode of True Crime Authors is considered the definitive account of the crime as Lavergne tells it.

FIRE LOVER with Joseph Wambaugh (Monday, April 5th at 9:00 P.M. ET/PT)

John Orr, considered one of southern California's most respected arson investigators was also one of the state's most prolific serial arsonists. This fire fighting hero's Jekyll & Hyde career is revealed as investigators working from the most miniscule evidence are led to the last individual they would suspect -- one of there own. John Orr is held responsible for millions of dollars worth of property damage, lost businesses, destroyed homes and the deaths of four people. His knowledge of fire fighting and investigation technique was the greatest weapon in his spree of arson explored and told in this episode of True Crime Authors by the master crime writer Joseph Wambaugh.

BLOW with Bruce Porter (Tuesday, April 6th at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT)

George Jung was a small town Massachusetts kid who revolutionized the cocaine trade in America. He began in 1976 with imports from Colombia into the United States via private airplanes flying below radar. By 1977, he and his partner, Carl Lehder were bringing in hundreds of kilos per month to feed America's appetite for the drug. By doing so Jung also began fueling the ascent of the Colombian cartels -- an alliance of drug lords that ruled with guns and fear. But Jung's own success led to his downfall. The market was flooded with cheap cocaine leading to the invention of crack and America's war on drugs. In 1985 Jung was caught in a massive sting operation, lost his personal fortune and was forced to testify against Lehder to secure his freedom from prison. In 1994, he was arrested again and given a twenty-two year prison sentence that he is still serving today. In this episode of True Crime Authors, Bruce Porter recounts Jung's life from the days of early drug running to the rise of Pablo Escobar and the Colombian cartels.

THE WESTIES with T.J. English (Tuesday, April 6th at 9:00 P.M. ET/PT)

In the mid 1970's, Hell's Kitchen was ruled by the Irish-American gang knows as The Westies. The gang led by Jimmy Coonan and Mickey Featherstone, terrorized the West Side of Manhattan with countless murders, hundreds of beatings, shootings and stabbings. When their murderous regime came crashing down in the fall of 1987, Featherstone, became the government's star witness. Mickey's conversations with author T.J. English tell the story of gangland terror and the bloody brotherhood with Jimmy Coonan that leds him to choose between a twisted code of loyalty and his own survival. T.J. English weaves together this tale of a brutality and brotherhood in this episode of True Crime Authors.

Executive Producer for The History Channel is Carl Lindahl. True Crime Authors is produced for The History Channel by Towers Productions.

Now reaching 86 million Nielsen subscribers, The History Channel® brings history to life in a powerful manner and provides an inviting place where people experience history personally and connect their own lives to the great lives and events of the past. The History Channel is the only place "Where the Past Comes Alive®." The History Channel received the prestigious Governor's award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's "Save Our History®" campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel web site is located at www.HistoryChannel.com.

10 years of best sellers: How the landscape has changed

By Bob Minzesheimer, USA TODAY

When USA TODAY began its Best-Selling Books list 10 years ago, books weren't sold on the Internet, J.K. Rowling was a struggling, unknown writer, and Oprah Winfrey had yet to become publishing's darling.

Oprah's book club has worked magic on book sales for new titles and classics alike.
Harpo Productions

My, how things have changed.

A decade later, USA TODAY's book list reveals a different world. Rowling is the decade's most successful author, landing five of the top six spots on the list of the 100 best-selling books of the past 10 years.

A decade's worth of data shows just how much book sales and reading habits have changed since USA TODAY began tracking best sellers in October 1993:

•The popularity of religious titles has soared. Books such as Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, the first in a popular series and No. 61 for the decade, used to be sold primarily in Christian bookstores. Now they're stacked thigh-high at discount stores such as Wal-Mart.

•Self-help, always a fixture of best-seller lists, is shifting the focus from improving people's lives to improving their health as many baby boomers pass 50.

•Brand-name series grabbed a growing share of the list. Chicken Soup for the Soul begat Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul, which begat Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. All were among the decade's 100 most popular titles.

•With 12 novels on the list of 100, John Grisham staked out a nearly permanent spot on the weekly best-seller list. Only the titles changed. But if the familiar was popular, there were a few surprises. Previously unknown novelists such as Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code) and Alice Sebold (The Lovely Bones) ended up among the decade's best sellers.

•Fiction, led by thrillers, staged a comeback, accounting for 72% of last year's weekly best sellers, compared with 59% in 1998. In that year, the Monica Lewinsky scandal briefly propelled The Starr Report to the top of the weekly list.

E-books, which are read on computer screens, failed to attract much attention.

But never have so many printed books been published: more than 1,000 new titles a week, nearly double the volume in 1993. And never have they been so easy to buy, accessible over the Internet and in nationwide chain superstores. Still, book sales are flat.

"There's more and more competition for people's time," says Albert Greco, professor of media management at Fordham University in New York, who cites surveys showing that last year the average American spent more time on the Internet (about three hours a week) than reading books (about two hours a week). And, he says, the average American adult spent more money last year on movies, videos and DVDs ($166) than on books ($90).

It's a money game

Best sellers (top 10 hardcover fiction, top 10 hardcover non-fiction, top 10 trade paperbacks and top 10 mass-market paperbacks) accounted for only 4% of sales last year at the largest retailer, Barnes & Noble, vice president Bob Wietrak says. "But they're important because they bring people into the stores."

Simon & Schuster's editor in chief, Michael Korda, says best sellers have always been a mixture of "quality and trash, of literature for the ages and self-improvement schemes." For better or worse, the list is a way of assessing the culture. Korda calls it "a kind of corrective reality. It tells us what we're actually reading, or, at least, what we're actually buying."

Selling books is a hit-driven business, especially for the five biggest publishers (Random House, Penguin, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins and Time Warner), now all part of entertainment conglomerates. Profits from best sellers cover the costs of other books. Greco estimates seven of every 10 new titles either lose money or break even.

Sometimes quality sells. Eight of the decade's 100 most popular books won major literary awards, including Frank McCourt's memoir, Angela's Ashes, No. 14, and Charles Frazier's debut novel, Cold Mountain, No. 48. Both began with modest first printings and ended up selling millions.

Since the first weekly list, four major forces changed the list, reflecting a changing culture:

•An age ofabundance and familiarity. "Remember when the word Amazon meant a river in Brazil?" asks Carol Fitzgerald, president of BookReporter.com, a Web site for book discussions. "How many times a day do people now say, 'Let me look it up on Amazon?' "

Amazon.com, which began selling books online in 1995, boasts a catalog of about 2 million titles. Sales rankings for each title change hourly based on sales in the last 24 hours. Amazon and rivals BN.com and BookSense.com, the joint effort of independent stores, account for less than 8% of book sales. But they provide unprecedented information about a wide range of new and old books.

Offline, the two largest chains, Barnes & Noble and Borders, went on a building spree. The number of superstores, each stocking as many as 200,000 titles, jumped from 247 in 1993 to more than 1,000.

But more isn't always better, says Nancy Pearl, a Seattle librarian and author of Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason. "It's unbelievable the number of titles that come across my desk, and so many of them are so badly written and badly edited. ... It's harder and harder to find the books you want to read because of all the dross and dreck."

David Gernert, Grisham's editor and agent, says that in "a superstore environment, readers are more likely to take refuge in the familiar, the tried and true, what's trusted and known, than in some new author. When you're faced with thousands of choices, you go with what you already know."

Discount stores and price clubs, which now account for more than 11% of book sales, limit nearly all their selection to proven best sellers. "Until you're known, you're not even allowed into these humongous outlets," Gernert says.

•The wizard of bookselling. Before Rowling there was J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, a best-selling trilogy before it hit the big screen. But Tolkien "appealed more to the college crowd than to kids," says Gayle Feldman, whose study of the book business, Best and Worst of Times, was published last year. Feldman says Rowling "did nothing less than revive the pre-radio, pre-movies, pre-TV tradition of the family-reading book," the kind popularized by Charles Dickens and Walter Scott that were "both classic best seller and best-selling classic."

Rowling also "showed us that children appreciated complicated story lines," says Fitzgerald of BookReporter.com. "They live in a world of 15-minute television programming where a story unfolds and warps, often with complex detail. It's changed how they want to read from the moment they get started."

•The Oprah effect. Reading groups were active long before Winfrey launched her book club in 1996. But she popularized the idea and created instant best sellers. Four of her selections are in the top 100 of the decade, and she propelled three other titles onto the list, including No. 21, In the Kitchen With Rosie by Rosie Daley, her cook. When Winfrey halted her book club in 2002 (she revived it for classics last year), TV shows started their own book clubs, although none can match her clout.

More so than newspapers and magazines, TV and radio personalities are driving book sales, says Borders vice president Anne Kubek.

"Readers increasingly are taking their clues (on what to buy) from the people they watch and listen to." That's important, she says, "when it's becoming so hard to break through all the media clutter."

Then there's the "One Book, One City" programs where residents are all urged to read the same book and discuss it. Since librarian Pearl began the idea in Seattle in 1998, it has spread to hundreds of other cities, including Chicago, which in 2001 recommended reading Harper Lee's 1960 classic, To Kill a Mockingbird, No. 25 on the list.

•The aging of America. Books offering advice on how to improve your life — mentally, physically or financially — are a fixture on the top 100. In the early years of the list, self-help books such as John Gray's Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus (No. 9) led the self-improvement category, but now, in the era of low-carb fixation, Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution (No. 2) and other diet books are the weapon of choice in the quest for a better me. Wietrak attributes that to baby boomers.

What's unchanged

If Rowling, Winfrey and the Internet changed things, much remains the same:

•Hooray for Hollywood. Nothing sells books more than a movie. Nineteen of the decade's best sellers were movie tie-ins. Laura Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit, No. 36 for the decade, was a hit before the movie, and the movie fostered even more sales. The most successful books enjoy four incarnations: hardcover, paperback, movie and video/DVD.

In fact, Pat Schroeder, the former congresswoman and president of the Association of American Publishers since 1997, says, "We need to find a way to get books into movie theaters so they can sell them along with the popcorn."

•Many exports, few imports. American authors routinely turn up on best-seller lists in other countries, but few foreign writers and translated works become best sellers in the USA. The one recent exception: One Hundred Years of Solitude, the classic by Gabriel García Márquez, hit the weekly list but only after Winfrey chose it for her revived book club.

•Word of mouth. Greco says that despite the marketing efforts of publishers, nothing continues to sell a book like word-of-mouth recommendations, passed on from one reader to another or one reading group to another.

In one of the case studies in The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Difference, author Malcolm Gladwell traces the success of Rebecca Wells' novel Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, No. 19 on the decade list. Before it became a national best seller, Gladwell found it was a hit among reading groups in Northern California.

"It was the kind of emotionally sophisticated, character-driven, multilayered novel that invites reflection and discussion, and book groups were flocking to it." Gladwell concludes that the novel's "roots in book-group culture tipped it into a larger word-of-mouth epidemic."

•Publishers don't know why some books sell. Books often become best sellers to the surprise and puzzlement of their publishers, says Korda of Simon & Schuster, who wrote a history of a century of best sellers, Making the List. "That's why publishers find it so hard to repeat their success. Half the time they can't figure out how they happened in the first place."

Despite growing competition from other parts of the entertainment industry and changes in technology, he says, "The book has survived and people continue to buy the big best sellers.

"Possibly literacy itself is doomed in some kind of digitalized future, but for the moment, all we can say is that people are reading about as much as they ever did, that the big best sellers are measured in numbers significantly higher than ever before, and that the best-seller list, in one form or another, is very likely to be with us, for better or for worse, for another 100 years more."

Contributing: Jacqueline Blais, Anthony DeBarros, Rati Bishnoi

USATODAY.com - 10 years of best sellers: How the landscape has changed

A decade of books and events

By Jacqueline Blais and Anthony DeBarros, USA TODAY

Book sales reflect the national conversation, a fact evident from the beginning of the USA TODAY Best-Selling Books in October 1993. Let's review ten years of events and books.

J.K. Rowling's books actually became events of their own accord, sparking midnight release parties at bookstores.
By Jill Connelly, AP

1994

Jan. 6: Figure skater Nancy Kerrigan clubbed after a practice; fellow skater Tonya Harding implicated. One instant book: Kerrigan Courage; Nancy's Story by Randi Reisfeld.

Jan. 13: Chicken Soup for the Soul, first of 77 Chicken Soup books, makes the list.

April 22: Richard Nixon dies. Final book, Beyond Peace, makes list in May.

May 19: Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis dies. Many books about her life make the list. Highest ranking is The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, edited by her daughter, Caroline, in 2001.

June 12: Football star O.J. Simpson's ex-wife Nicole Simpson and friend Ronald Goldman murdered in Brentwood, Calif.

Oct. 27: Nicole Brown Simpson: The Private Diary of a Life Interrupted by family friend Faye D. Resnick with Mike Walker is No. 1.

Book of the year: In the Kitchen with Rosie by Rosie Daley.

1995

Feb. 2: O.J. speaks out in I Want to Tell You, No. 1.

April 19: Bombing at Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma kills 168; American Terrorist, on list in 2001, chronicles life of convicted bomber Timothy McVeigh.

July 15: Amazon.com sells its first book: Fluid Concepts & Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought by Douglas R. Hofstadter.

Nov. 9: Calvin & Hobbes cartoonist Bill Watterson announces retirement. At Christmas, The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book rises to No. 4.

Nov. 30: The Road Ahead by Microsoft's Bill Gates debuts, is a major holiday gift.

Book of the year: Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by John Gray.

1996

Jan. 11: Sign of the wired age: Internet for Dummies, 3rd Edition breaks into the 150 list.

Sept. 17: Oprah Winfrey launches Oprah's Book Club. First selection, The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard, is No. 1 by Oct. 24.

Nov. 12: Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt enters the list, stays four years.

Book of the year: The Runaway Jury by John Grisham.

1997

April 13: Tiger Woods, 21, becomes the youngest to win golf's Masters Tournament. In 2001, explains his craft in Tiger Woods: How I Play Golf.

Aug. 31: Princess Diana killed in auto crash in France. Kitty Kelley's new The Royals is an instant No. 1 in September.

Dec. 19: Titanic opens in theaters. It goes on to win 11 Academy Awards. Books abound, including the revival of Walter Lord's 1955 classic A Night to Remember.

Book of the year: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... And It's All Small Stuff by Richard Carlson — signals the start of a Don't Sweat franchise, with 32 variations on the title to come.

1998

Jan. 19: President Clinton's relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky becomes public. The political fallout will reach the list as writers examine all the players involved.

May 14: Last episode of Seinfeld draws 76 million viewers. Jerry Seinfeld's SeinLanguage makes a brief return to the list; four years later he reinvents himself as a children's author with Halloween.

Sept. 24: Three compilations of The Starr Report, documents from independent counsel Kenneth Starr's investigation into President Clinton, debut at Nos. 1, 2 and 3.

Dec. 10: First in the series Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone quietly appears on the list, a year after being published in England. It eventually spends 31 weeks at No. 1.

Book of the year: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... And It's All Small Stuff by Richard Carlson is the top book for two years in a row.

1999

Feb. 4:Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson debuts; slim volume about embracing change becomes darling of management.

March 4: First sign of approaching millennium: Survival guide Y2K breaks into the list at 150.

March 11: Monica's Story by Andrew Morton (Monica Lewinsky's version of the Clinton scandal) goes to No. 1.

June 10:Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, second in the series, debuts at No. 1.

July 16: John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and her sister Lauren Bessette, killed in plane crash near Martha's Vineyard. One Kennedy book in circulation: 250 Ways to Make America Better by the editors of JFK Jr.'s George magazine.

Dec. 16: After 115 weeks on the list, Mitch Albom's Tuesdays With Morrie hits No. 1.

Book of the year:Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling.

2000

Feb. 12: Peanuts creator Charles Schulz dies. The following week, Peanuts: A Golden Celebration by Schulz comes on the top 50.

March 14: Stephen King publishes e-book Riding the Bullet. Says King: "I don't think anything will replace the printed word and the bound book. Not in my lifetime, at least."

July 8: Midnight mania when Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, fourth in the series, goes on sale; 3 million sold the first weekend, fastest-selling book in history, says U.S. publisher Scholastic.

Book of the year: Wizards continue to reign: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling.

2001

Jan. 18: Bruce Wilkinson's The Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life enters the book list, begins quick ascent to No. 1. It spends nine weeks in the top slot.

Sept. 11: Terrorist attacks on World Trade Center, Pentagon.

Sept. 27: A sign that many Americans want to see what the world looks like in greater detail after Sept. 11: The Rand McNally Quick Reference World Atlas lands on the buttom rung of the list — a first.

Oct. 11: Four weeks after the terrorist attacks on New York and D.C., books that give information about a scary world flood the list: Bin Laden: The Man Who Declared War on America by Yossef Bodansky and Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil & Fundamentalism in Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid.

Dec. 19:The Fellowship of the Ring opens in theaters; sales are building all year for beloved fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien.

Book of the year: Third year in a row for J.K. Rowling: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

2002

April 5: Oprah Winfrey announces that her 48th book club selection, Toni Morrison's 1974 novel, Sula, will be her last.

Dec. 5:The Two Towers, second in J.R.R. Tolkien's Rings series, opens in theaters. Tolkien is the third best-selling author of the year.

Book of the year:Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling.

2003

March 20: U.S. and British troops invade Iraq.

June 18: Oprah Winfrey relaunches her book club with a classic twist. Her first pick, the 1952 East of Eden by John Steinbeck, jumps to No. 3 the next week.

June 19: Hillary Rodham Clinton's Living History debuts at No. 1; she's reportedly paid $8 million.

Book of the year: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling.


USATODAY.com - A decade of books and events

The 2004 - 2005 Reading Group Suggestions Book Sense 76

Mar 10, 2004

1. THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES: A Novel, by Sue Monk Kidd (Penguin, $14, 0142001740) "The Secret Life of Bees is a wonderfully sensuous read. Book groups will be intrigued as relationships are explored in the context of religion, family, and race. I will share this book with all the people I care about." --Genny Lord, Browsing Bison Books, Deer Lodge, MT


2. LIFE OF PI: A Novel, by Yann Martel (Harvest, $14, 0156027321) "While 16-year-old Pi is emigrating to North America, the ship on which he is a passenger goes down at sea, and he ends up in a lifeboat with a 450-pound Bengal tiger. This is a story of survival, introspection, and adventure, told with insight and humor. There is a lot to talk about in this book, so hold on and enjoy!" --Clyde Holloway, So Many Books..., Vancouver, WA


3. THE DA VINCI CODE: A Novel, by Dan Brown (Doubleday, $24.95 hardcover, 0385504209) "This thriller about secret religious societies is the quintessential book club choice. It fascinates with its subject matter; it informs with its in-depth research; and, perhaps best of all, it's the book everyone is already talking about. No one fails to have a passionate reaction, and therein lies the secret to a great book club discussion!" --Jill Miner, Saturn Booksellers, Gaylord, MI


4. ATONEMENT: A Novel, by Ian McEwan (Anchor, $14, 038572179X) "A beautifully crafted novel of love and war. Topics of childhood and class -- as well as guilt and forgiveness -- span the years from 1935 to the turn of the 21st century, and offer many opportunities for discussion. This novel was a Man Booker Prize finalist and winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award." --Elizabeth Merritt, Titcomb's Bookshop, East Sandwich, MA


5. DON'T LET'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT: An African Childhood, by Alexandra Fuller (Random House, $13.95, 0375758992) "Reading groups will find much to discuss in Fuller's gritty memoir of growing up white during the Rhodesian civil war. The book segues from the horrific to the comic and back again, as booze, guns, and the land defined her parents' hardscrabble existence in Africa." --Mary Kay Watson, Sister Wolf Books, Park Rapids, MN


6. BEL CANTO: A Novel, by Ann Patchett (Perennial, $13.95, 0060934417) "In Bel Canto, a ratty group of terrorists holds hostage an opera singer and a group of dignitaries in a South American country. Patchett brings humor and sympathy to all the characters, and, by this poignant story's end, reading groups will feel compassion for all the characters." --David Cheezem, Fireside Books, Palmer, AK


7. MIDDLESEX: A Novel, by Jeffrey Eugenides (Picador, $15, 0312422156) "More than a novel about a girl who becomes a man, Middlesex is the story of an American century. It offers everything a book group needs: little-known history that broadens our minds; many complex characters who provoke animated debate; and gender issues that take us into contemporary politics." --Marian Nielsen, Orinda Books, Orinda, CA


8. THREE JUNES: A Novel, by Julia Glass (Anchor, $14, 0385721420) "Glass has created a novel full of wisdom and interesting observations on life. The author is adept at intertwining and examining the lives of the various characters, their loves, and their relationships. There's a lot to digest in this great book club selection." --Marianne Kitchell, Madison Park Books, Seattle, WA


9. THE NO. 1 LADIES' DETECTIVE AGENCY, by Alexander McCall Smith (Anchor, $11.95, 1400034779) "When the middle-aged Botswanan Mma Ramotswe inherits some money, she renovates an office, borrows a typewriter, and hires a secretary. What more do you need to open the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency? This is the first in a series of surprising, insightful, and charming mysteries that book groups love to discuss." --Amy Rosenfield, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Cleveland, OH


10. PEACE LIKE A RIVER, by Leif Enger (Grove, $13, 0802139256) "A truly remarkable debut novel about a father raising his three children in 1960s Minnesota. I recommend it for everyone, but especially book groups, because the book -- with its focus on family, love, miracles, and faith -- offers so much to discuss and share. A definite must-read." --Pat Olbert, Forget Me Not Books, Spring Green, WI


Three From Book Group Favorite Barbara Kingsolver

THE POISONWOOD BIBLE, by Barbara Kingsolver (Perennial, $15, 0060930535) "A fascinating novel for book groups about the politics and culture of the Belgian Congo in the late 1950s. The story is told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, an evangelical Baptist missionary, as their family is transformed during three decades in postcolonial Africa." --Wilfried and Lilo Eder, Fort Ashby Books, Fort Ashby, WV


PRODIGAL SUMMER, by Barbara Kingsolver (Perennial, $14, 0060959037) "It's easy to slip into the heart of Appalachia with one of our most gifted writers. Kingsolver's knowledge of the region makes for an absorbing read, and her talent for character development provokes deep discussion about our connection to nature and each other." --Beth Henkes, University Book Store, Bellevue, WA


SMALL WONDER: Essays, by Barbara Kingsolver (Perennial, $12.95, 0060504080) "On subjects ranging from genetic engineering to what it means to be an American post-9/11, Kingsolver's thought-provoking essays are a call to attention regarding things of our world both big and small -- yet her relaxed style will make book groups feel as if they are sitting at Kingsolver's kitchen table." --Derf Maitland, The Reader's Café, Hanover, PA


Stories of Memorable Women

THE BLIND ASSASSIN, by Margaret Atwood (Anchor, $14.95, 0385720955) "This is a family saga filled with secrets and lies, an exotic science fiction novel written by clandestine lovers, and, best of all, an account of the day-to-day musings of the narrator, Iris, a complicated woman in her twilight years. Why do I think it would be good for reading groups? Because if I recommend it to a customer who has already read it, the chances are we form an immediate bond." --Paula Foley, Cover to Cover Booksellers, San Francisco, CA


THE ELEGANT GATHERING OF WHITE SNOWS, by Kris Radish (Bantam, $11, 0553382411) "Both men and women will find many discussion topics in this novel about eight women and their joyous friendship. The women revel in the freedom to walk outside the door and leave responsibility behind for a time, and exemplify the way in which sharing a burden with another can lighten that burden's load." --Susan Wasson, Bookworks, Albuquerque, NM


MISS GARNET'S ANGEL, by Sally Vickers (Plume, $13, 0452282977) "Julia Garnet, retired teacher and spinster, travels to Venice for her first extended stay away from England. In Venice, Miss Garnet has a spiritual and emotional journey that causes her to see her life and the lives of her new friends in an entirely different light. Our reading group read this book more than a year ago, and it still comes up in our monthly book discussions." --Fred Powell, Main Street Books, Frostburg, MD


I DON'T KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT, by Allison Pearson (Anchor, $13.95, 0375713751) "Every mom will relate to Kate -- even if you aren't a world-traveling bonds trader, you're still balancing job, kids, husband, and maybe a minute or two for yourself. With a sharp British tone, Pearson melds the poignancy and frustrations of Kate's life with hilarious episodes. You'll laugh and cry, and love knowing Kate!" --Cheryl McKeon, Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, WA


THE LAST GIRLS, by Lee Smith (Ballantine, $14.95, 0345464958) "More than 30 years ago, five college roommates traveled, on a lark, down the Mississippi on a makeshift raft. Now, four of them make the trip on a cruise ship, reunited to scatter the ashes of Baby, their wild, beautiful, complicated friend. The reader grows to care about these friends and their choices, which offer rich topics for discussion." --Ellen Davis, Dragonwings Bookstore, Waupaca, WI


MRS. KIMBLE, by Jennifer Haigh (Perennial, $13.95, 0060509406) "I love to begin a book without first reading the jacket copy ... especially one like this, where I managed to get well into the book before realizing exactly what was going on. The character of each of the three Mrs. Kimbles is beautifully developed -- and through these women, we learn about Mr. Kimble. What a great book club book!" --Liz Murphy, Learned Owl Book Shop, Hudson, OH


POPE JOAN, by Donna Cross (Ballantine, $14.95, 0345416260) "The Catholic Church denies (and/or has covered up) the existence of Pope Joan, so this book is a work of literary historical fiction. Whether or not you believe her story, you'll be enthralled by Pope Joan. It's all here: war, romance, Vatican intrigue, politics, and a shocking ending. Rich in discussion topics, Pope Joan continues to be a perennial favorite of our book clubs." --Kate Larson, Book Passage, Corte Madera, CA


THE RED TENT, by Anita Diamant (Picador, $14.95, 0312195516) "The Red Tent offers something for readers of all ages and backgrounds. History, Bible lore, relationships between women, and interactions among family are all presented in a story that explores the strong role women played in ancient times. A powerful and moving book." --Susan Danner, Danner's Books & Coffee Shop, Muncie, IN


THE VIRGIN BLUE, by Tracy Chevalier (Plume, $14, 0452284449) "The Virgin Blue features two story lines -- one set in the present and one in the 16th century -- that are intricately interwoven in terms of relationships, omens, dreams, and memories. As in her earlier books, Chevalier expresses interest in the special difficulties and issues faced by women, and here she also makes note of cultural differences. Add in a centuries-old crime, and the book comes alive for discussion." --Blanchette W. Bailey, Baileywick Books, New Milford, CT


Going Behind the Headlines

THE HEMINGWAY BOOK CLUB OF KOSOVO, by Paula Huntley (Tarcher/Penguin, $13.95, 1585422932) "A remarkable journal of the author's eight months spent volunteering as an English teacher in Kosovo. Huntley offers a sympathetic, loving look at victims of war without demonizing those who wage it. Book groups will be intrigued by this real-life account of an experience that revealed the similarities and differences between two different cultures and countries, and reminds us of the importance of human connections." --Linda Rolcyznski, Lindon Bookstore, Enumclaw, WA


NICKEL AND DIMED: On (Not) Getting By in America, by Barbara Ehrenreich (Owl, $13, 0805063897) "I struggle to find the words to describe this book -- sad and frustrating are the two that come to mind most often. This is the true story of the people who serve us our food in restaurants, clean our houses, and even help take care of our elderly parents. Book groups will grapple with the fact that these are jobs that have to be done -- but can anyone really afford to do them?" --Stacey Carr, Scott's Bookstore, Mount Vernon, WA


READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN: A Memoir in Books, by Azar Nafisi (Random House, $13.95, 081297106X) "This memoir about secretly teaching Western literature to a small group of young women in revolutionary Iran is structured around the novels studied; each section reveals both the transformative powers of literature and the tragic consequences of repression. The author's experience of two cultures colliding provides a wealth of ideas for reading groups to explore." --Tripp Ryder, Carleton College Bookstore, Northfield, MN


Amazing Debuts

THE DIVE FROM CLAUSEN'S PIER, by Ann Packer (Vintage, $14, 0375727132) "This book has so many layers to unpeel for discussion. The ethical and moral dilemmas that face this young couple and their families as they deal with personal tragedy will generate animated discussions for book groups." --Patti McCall, Queen Anne Avenue Books, Ltd., Seattle, WA


EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED, by Jonathan Safran Foer (Perennial, $13.95, 0060529709) "Everything Is Illuminated turns humor on its head. It begins as a light story of a young Jewish-American traveling to the Ukraine to find the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. However, the novel grows from laugh-out-loud to very serious as history is revealed in a fantastical, magical-realism sort of way. The characters will stay with book groups for weeks afterwards." --Deb Wehmeier, Garden District Book Shop, New Orleans, LA


THE LOVELY BONES, by Alice Sebold (Little, Brown, $21.95 hardcover, 0316666343) "Teenage Susie Salmon, speaking from heaven, will mesmerize readers and enthrall on every page. It is also the strength of her voice that elicits conversations within book groups about the use of voice in the novel." --Karen Shelnutt, Chapter 11, Marietta, GA (Paperback edition scheduled for April)


THE SONG READER, by Lisa Tucker (Downtown Press, $12, 0743464451) "The premise alone of The Song Reader -- that the snippets of tunes playing in one's head are windows into one's wounded psyche -- will prompt as many hours of discussion as there are book club members. A multi-layered work that will resonate with readers from young adults on up." --Nancy Colalillo, Tome on the Range Books, Las Vegas, NM


THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, by Audrey Niffenegger (MacAdam/Cage, $25 hardcover, 1931561648) "This is an engaging love story chronicled like no other. Due to a genetic disorder, Henry DeTamble finds himself spontaneously displaced in time to different moments in his past and future, many of which involve the love of his life, Clare Abshire. Book groups will discover the connections between these two soul mates in the same way they do themselves -- through a patchwork of scenes, eras, and settings that ultimately connects into one poignant history." --Tom Heywood, The Babbling Book, Haines, AK


WHITE TEETH, by Zadie Smith (Vintage, $14, 0375703861) "Reading groups will not be disappointed by this brilliant debut from a young writer with an uncanny knack for dialogue and description. Cockney Archie and Bengali Samad become lifelong friends after serving together in World War II, and the tragicomic tale of their families weaves themes of fate, free will, race, religion, and assimilation into plot lines involving mutant mice, radical vegetarians, and more." --Carla Jimenez, Inkwood Books, Tampa, FL


History

BLUE LATITUDES: Boldly Going Where Captain Cook Has Gone Before, by Tony Horwitz (Picador, $15, 0312422601) "Horwitz vividly recounts the three epic voyages of Captain James Cook and confirms his place as one of the greatest navigators in maritime history. In retracing many of the journeys while working as a crewman aboard a replica of Cook's vessel, Horwitz uses his reporting skills, insight, and humor to explore the enigma of the man and the conflicted legacy he left." --Tripp Ryder, Carleton College Bookstore, Northfield, MN


THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE, by Michel Faber (Harvest, $15, 0156028778) "With the scope of a sprawling Dickens or Eliot novel, Faber's bawdy masterpiece has everything a great novel should: penetrating social commentary, fabulously drawn characters, and an immensely compelling and tragic plot. There's plenty of grist for any book group's mill." --Will Peters, Annie Bloom's Books, Portland, OR


PIANO TUNER, by Daniel Mason (Vintage, $14, 1400030382) "Mason's sensitive writing details images of colonial Burma and the British Empire of the late 1800s. He translates a simple story of duty, love, and companionship into a fascinating account that merges history, music, geography, and colonial politics." --Charlie Peterson, Books by the Way, Vashon, WA


SPIES, by Michael Frayn (Picador, $13, 0312421176) "Stephen Wheatley finds himself compelled to return to his childhood home, and to disturbing memories of a long-forgotten summer in wartime London, 50 years before. As the story unfolds, reading groups will see how Frayn demonstrates that things -- and people -- are not always what they seem." --Robin Buckingham, Lindon Bookstore, Enumclaw, WA


THE STORY OF LUCY GAULT, by William Trevor (Penguin, $14, 014200331X) "Nine-year-old Lucy Gault goes missing the very morning her family must leave behind their beloved home in Ireland. Under the threat of violence from Irish nationalists, the Gaults have made the bitter decision to leave the country, with devastating consequences. There's much to discuss in this quiet and poignant story of lives forever changed by misunderstanding and guilt, and bolstered by the power of love and forgiveness." --Kristine Kaufman, The Snow Goose Bookstore, Stanwood, WA


YEAR OF WONDERS, by Geraldine Brooks (Penguin, $14, 0142001430) "An itinerant tailor brings plague -- on a bolt of cloth -- to a rural English village in the year 1666. In a few months, the village is decimated. Should the villagers flee, or close themselves off from the world until the plague abates? Superstition, panic, complex feelings, and great personal courage make this lyrical novel a title that will provide fuel for book group discussion." --Valerie Ryan, Cannon Beach Book Company, Cannon Beach, OR


Crossing Cultures

BALZAC AND THE LITTLE CHINESE SEAMSTRESS, by Dai Sijie (Anchor, $10, 0385722206) "An amazing narrative about the secret power of literature in the lives of two young Chinese boys who are exiled to a remote mountain village. This is a story as finely detailed as the garments sewn by the little Chinese seamstress with whom the boys fall in love." --Heather Folan, Bristol Books, Inc., Wilmington, NC


EMBERS, by Sandor Marai, (Vintage, $12, 0375707425) "Originally published in Hungary in 1942, this rediscovered gem is suspenseful and compelling. You'll want to discuss the three characters' relationships with one another, and the very nature of memory, friendship, and love." --Joe Battaglia, Towne Center Books, Pleasanton, CA


THE NAMESAKE, by Jhumpa Lahiri (Houghton Mifflin, $24 hardcover, 0395927218) "A moving and poignant portrait of a family in search of self-acceptance and cultural identity from an author who is a master at depicting the immigrant experience. No detail is too small, no character undefined. The result is a book you can't put down, and reading groups of all ages, genders, and backgrounds will find much to discuss." --Hester Jeswald, Sarasota News & Books, Sarasota, FL


Modern Classics

CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY, by Alan Paton (Simon & Schuster, $14, 0743262174) "After rereading this book, a favorite of ours in the 1960s, it was reassuring to find that it still rang clear and true, tragic and hopeful. With beautifully written language and a love of country and kin, a gentle, loving man deals with personal and cultural racial injustices and tragedies in South Africa with poignant dignity." --Lynn Heiser and Barbara Siepker, The Cottage Book Shop, Glen Arbor, MI


DISGRACE, by J.M. Coetzee (Penguin, $13, 0140296409) "Disgrace, written by Nobel Prize-winning South African writer J.M. Coetzee, explores the nature of relationships -- husband to wife, father to daughter, man and his country, in violence and peace. Disgrace will grace reading groups with a memorable literary experience." --Fred Powell, Main Street Books, Frostburg, MD


EAST OF EDEN, by John Steinbeck (Penguin, $16, 0142004235) "This is classic Steinbeck: It's Genesis set in the first half of 20th century California farm country. A tale we all know we should read, but probably haven't -- and a good candidate for a book group." --Carolyn Chin, Books on First, Dixon, IL


TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, by Harper Lee (Perennial, $11.95, 0060935464) "One of the best-loved stories of all time, this novel has an edge that cuts through to the heart and teaches us an astonishing number of useful truths about growing up, about life in the deep South, and about standing up for what is right among all who think it 'wrong.'" --Karla Gundlach, Snickernoodle Kids, Reno, NV


American Stories

BLESSINGS, by Anna Quindlen (Random House, $13.95, 0812969812) "This is one of the titles we most often recommend to reading groups. A tiny baby, abandoned on matriarch Lydia Blessing's estate, opens hearts long closed to love. An unlikely group of damaged souls comes together to form the village that will strengthen them all." --Bobbie McCormick and Dinah Price, The Twig Book Shop, San Antonio, TX


CARAMELO, by Sandra Cisneros (Vintage, $13.95, 0679742581) "Sandra Cisneros writes wonderfully about families. The characters bloom with life, and the inner workings of the fictional Reyes family are dramatic and lively. Lots to discuss here!" --Martha Wales, Bear Pond Books of Montpelier, Montpelier, VT


CHILD OF MY HEART, by Alice McDermott (Picador, $13, 0312422911) "McDermott's skill in bringing the reader into the world of a Long Island teenager over the course of one summer shines on every page. This novel's examination of friendship, family, love, and loss will appeal to reading groups -- and the character of Theresa will find a place in every reader's heart." -- Duff Bruce, The Open Book, Greenville, SC


THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America, by Erik Larson (Vintage, $14.95, 0375725601) "This is a thrilling look at Chicago during the 1893 World's Fair told via two storylines: the building of the fair and the story of a vicious serial killer who preys on the young women who attend the event. Reading groups will enjoy both the juxtaposition of the two stories and the fascinating look at a place in time told from such different points of view." --Sue Boucher, Lake Forest Book Store, Lake Forest, IL


HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG, by Andre Dubus III (Vintage, $14, 0375727345) "The complications and tragedies engendered by a dispute over home ownership are magnified by the combatants' vastly different cultural backgrounds. Trying to understand how the cultures affect the behavior of the individuals, trying to grasp how people's lives can quickly spiral downward, and trying to plumb the tragedies that inevitably result will spur fascinating discussions." --Susan Wasson, Bookworks, Albuquerque, NM


THE HUMAN STAIN, by Philip Roth (Vintage, $14.95, 0375726349) "The Human Stain is a fascinating and powerful novel about an educated man who has lived his life guarding a surprising secret. This entertaining and rewarding book lends itself to discussion of race, culture, and relationships." --Anita Isser, Bloomsbury Books, Ashland, OR


THE LITTLE FRIEND, by Donna Tartt (Vintage, $14.95, 1400031699) "A heartbreaking account of a precocious young girl who, while on the trail of her brother's killer, embarks on a journey of self-discovery as well. This thrilling whodunit is infused with wisdom and humor, and has all the earmarks of a book club book, simply because it has everything: a coming-of-age, murder, mystery, and fascinating family dynamics. How can you go wrong?" --Heather Sussman, Chapter 11, Roswell, GA


THE MASTER BUTCHERS SINGING CLUB, by Louise Erdrich (Perennial, $13.95, 0060935332) "This is an emotionally rich novel about German immigrants and their neighbors in Argus, North Dakota. Book groups will especially enjoy discussing this story, because the moral complexity of the characters set against the backdrop of small-town life leaves the reader with much to think about." --Lanora Hurley, Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop, Mequon, WI


PLAIN TRUTH, by Jodi Picoult (Pocket, $13, 0671776134) "A collision of culture and faith provides controversy -- and much to discuss -- in this book, which examines the murder of a newborn child and the resulting trial. In this intricate story, Picoult treats us to a richly written narrative of scandal, courtroom drama, and Amish life." --Debra Goldenberg, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR


POPULATION: 485: Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time, by Michael Perry (Perennial, $13.95, 0060958073) "Population: 485 is a story of place -- a smart, fascinating look at life in a rural small town. Volunteer EMT Perry takes the reader from sorrow to laughter, from a fire call to the origins of the fire department, and from life to death. Because he is from the small town he writes about, he tells his story with an authenticity that resonates with readers and may prompt them to take a closer look at the people in their own communities." --Carol Dunn, Northwind Book & Fiber, Spooner, WI


SEABISCUIT, by Laura Hillenbrand (Ballantine, $15.95, 0449005615) "This is an exciting, interesting, and well-written account of a charismatic horse. There are several areas for lively discussion: horse racing, the Depression, character development, and the inevitable comparisons between the book and the movie." --Else Petersen, The Cottage Book Shop, Glen Arbor, MI


War

THE SAMURAI'S GARDEN, by Gail Tsukiyama (St. Martin's, $12.95, 0312144075) "Set in Japan at the start of World War II, Tsukiyama weaves a beautifully written tale of young and old while exploring issues of culture and history. With a story like this, it's no wonder this novel has been added to high school reading lists." --Beth Henkes, University Book Store, Bellevue, WA


WHEN THE ELEPHANTS DANCE, by Tess Uriza Holthe (Penguin, $14, 0142002887) "The family stories collected in this novel bring the life and times of World War II on the Philippine Islands new meaning. Filipino legends and history, religious beliefs, and family responsibilities are some of the topics for discussion to be found in this rich story." --Barbara Theroux, Fact & Fiction, Missoula, MT


WHEN THE EMPEROR WAS DIVINE, by Julie Otsuka (Anchor, $9.95, 0385721811) "A Japanese-American family is uprooted and sent to an internment camp during World War II. Readers will be riveted as Otsuka tells their stories in a poignant and powerful voice. A great book for discussion about a shameful time in America's history." --Rachel Bandock, Twenty-Third Avenue Books, Portland, OR


Great Reads

EMPIRE FALLS, by Richard Russo (Vintage, $14.95, 0375726403) "Richard Russo's big novel about a small town is full of his typically well-drawn characters, who seem like people you already know. Miles Roby, a short-order cook, faces many dilemmas that are both real and discussable. Told with humor and drama, this book draws a detailed picture of American life and personal conflict." --Debra Goldenberg, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR


THE MIRACLE LIFE OF EDGAR MINT, by Brady Udall (Vintage, $14, 0375719180) "From the moment the mailman runs over his head, this kid grabs your attention and your heart and doesn't let go. Edgar takes everything that life has to throw at him, teaches us about good and evil, and, in the end, finds his own place in the world. Is he admirable, pathetic, or a bit twisted? You decide." --Barb Bassett, The Red Balloon Bookshop, St. Paul, MN


MYSTIC RIVER, by Dennis Lehane (HarperTorch, $7.99, 0380731851) "Mystic River is not a light read, nor even a book you must read in one devouring gulp (although you may not be able to resist it), but it is a story you will chew over and over and over. An urban crime novel of surpassing darkness, it can stand as a Notable Book, a fiction of its time and place like, say, Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby or the Dostoevsky novel it more nearly resembles. An amazing work and a great choice for book groups." --Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, AZ


UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN, by Frances Mayes (Broadway, $15, 0767900383) "This enchanting novel is a great escape -- if you've ever dreamed of going to Italy, this is the book for you. Filled with vivid details of Tuscany, the book will prompt conversations about lifestyle, house renovations, cooking, and travel." --Lee Musgjerd, Lee's Book Emporium, Glasgow, MT


Like Nothing Else

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME, by Mark Haddon (Doubleday, $22.95 hardcover, 0385512104) "An exceptionally bright but socially inept 15-year-old is accused of killing the neighbor's dog. He decides to investigate the crime. The novel delves into the minds of autistic children and will lead to frank discussion about how others view the world, and the author's interesting choices regarding plot and characters will keep the conversation lively and interesting." --Valerie Koehler, Blue Willow Bookshop, Houston, TX


THE EYRE AFFAIR, by Jasper Fforde (Penguin, $14, 0142001805) "Imagine being able to jump inside your favorite book and watch the plot unfold before your eyes. In The Eyre Affair, heroine Thursday Next finds herself in all sorts of trouble in her work and love life. Reading groups will enjoy this funny, fast-paced -- even dizzying, at times -- story of time travel and adventure." --Jennifer Roberts, Wind & Tide Bookshop, Oak Harbor, WA


THE SPARROW, by Mary Doria Russell (Ballantine, $13.95, 0449912558) "When music emanates from a distant planet, a gifted linguist and a not-so-spiritual Jesuit priest assemble a crew for a space expedition. This novel will consistently intrigue devotees of science fiction, as well as those who don't usually read books in this genre because of the way in which it addresses both spiritual questions, and the unintended consequences of exploring new worlds." --Cammie Mannino, Halfway Down the Stairs, Rochester, MI


WICKED: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, by Gregory Maguire (Regan Books, $15, 0060987103) "Maguire tells the familiar story of The Wizard of Oz from the point of view of the Wicked Witch of the West. In the process, he gives us a fascinating look at being an outsider and the nature of good and evil, and reminds us that the winner of any given conflict is the one who gets to tell the story." --Peggy Hailey, BookPeople, Austin, TX


The Art World

GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING, by Tracy Chevalier (Plume, $14, 0452282152) "Chevalier eloquently captures the essence of an artist and his time, with reflections on class and culture in 1660s Holland. I gained a new appreciation for art and history after reading this beautifully written and evocative novel based on the relationship between Vermeer and a serving girl." --Carrie Sutherland, JW Beecroft Books & Coffee, Superior, WI


HEADLONG, by Michael Frayn (Picador, $14, 0312267460) "Martin Clay -- a philosopher who will follow any siren song that takes him away from the book he is supposed to be writing -- believes that he has discovered an authentic Bruegel painting stuck in a dusty corner of a neighboring country squire's chilly manse. Can he acquire it, and convince his art-historian wife that the painting is what he thinks it is? A wonderfully discussable meditation on obsession, self-deception, and the lore and lure of great art." --Valerie Ryan, Cannon Beach Book Company, Cannon Beach, OR


THE PASSION OF ARTEMISIA, by Susan Vreeland (Penguin, $13, 0142001821) "A vibrant tale of 18th century patriarchal society and its effects on the life of a brilliant female artist. This book will prompt thought-provoking conversation, and will surely relate to readers' personal experiences." --Karen Dallett, Books & Beyond, Heber City, UT

Stories of the West

BREAKING CLEAN, by Judy Blunt (Vintage, $13, 0375701303) "Blunt grew up a third-generation homesteader on an isolated family ranch in Montana, a place where men were men and women knew their place. Though she ultimately walked out on her ranch-wife life, Blunt pays homage to her past. Readers will be left with a sense of awe, not only for a giant land and the wind that strips it raw, but also for one woman's humble and brave act of breaking free." --Judy Klein, Chapter One Book Store, Hamilton, MT


THE POWER OF THE DOG, by Thomas Savage (Back Bay, $13.95, 0316610895) "This is the story of one family's internal hierarchy on an isolated ranch, where the struggle to eke out some kind of happiness leads ultimately to murder. The actual and metaphorical landscapes Savage describes are rich enough to keep any book group discussion lively. Every reader will see something different in the story." --RoseMarie London, Chickering Bookstore, Laramie, WY


RED WATER, by Judith Freeman (Anchor, $14, 0385720696) "Red Water is the story of the 1857 Mountain Meadows Massacre in southern Utah, told by three of the wives of John Lee, the man who was blamed for the slaughter. The women's characters vividly come to life, and their personalities shine through and make this an exciting read and a great discussion book." --Catherine Jordan, Orinda Books, Orinda, CA


UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN, by Jon Krakauer (Doubleday, $26 hardcover, 0385509510) "In addition to the true story of the Mormon brothers who murdered their sister-in-law and her baby in God's name, Krakauer discusses the history of the Mormon Church and its numerous fundamentalist spin-offs. This book will provide ample fodder for discussion, because the book highlights both the good and bad sides of the mainstream Mormon Church." --Gary D. Robson, Red Lodge Books, Red Lodge, MT

Family Dramas

CROW LAKE, by Mary Lawson (Delta, $12.95, 0385337639) "An elegant, well-paced tale of a family striving to manage its responsibilities in the face of monumental tragedy. The complex emotions of fear, anger, and guilt are explored through the eyes of the Morrison children. This debut novel is a worthy candidate for book group discussions." --Rebecca Willow, Parkplace Books, Kirkland, WA


UNLESS, by Carol Shields (Fourth Estate, $13.95, 0007154615) "Shields' story of a daughter who decides to leave behind life as she knows it and take up begging on a Toronto street corner explores the ways this decision affects the woman's family. This book also explores what we fear most: loss, be it of innocence, of health, of a child, of life itself. Ideal for book groups." --Lynne Shotton Reed, Misty Valley Books, Chester, VT


RUNNING WITH SCISSORS: A Memoir, by Augusten Burroughs (Picador, $14, 031242227X) "Burrough's story will bring you to your knees, whether laughing or crying at the extremes of his childhood. A discussion of this book will surely be lively and heartfelt … and will go on all night." --Martha Wales, Bear Pond Books of Montpelier, Montpelier, VT


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Bookselling This Week: The 2004 - 2005 Reading Group Suggestions Book Sense 76