Canada Reads Contest

Don't forget about our Canada Reads Contest - email us with your pick as to who's going to win before it is announced tomorrow and be entered to win a store gift certificate!

A Dance with Dragons

So I'm currently trying to get our orders done for titles being released up to and sometimes including September. According to Bantam Books (the publisher) George R.R. Martin's new book in the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series is being released September 30, 2008. Whoo Hooo!!

http://bookmanager.com/7600798/?opt=kw&q=h.ts&so=oh&qs=dance+of+dragons


I, like many, have been waiting on pins and needles for the new book "A Dance with Dragons". However, I know that this book had a release date previously before the writing was completed and the book never arrived so I checked Mr. Martin's website.

http://www.georgerrmartin.com/if-update.html


This is a small excerpt of Mr. Martin's post about "A Dance with Dragons"

"This summer I am scheduled to travel to Spain to speak at Semana Negra in Gijon, make some appearances in Madrid and Barcelona, and then head over to Portugal to visit with my publishers and readers there. I want to have A DANCE WITH DRAGONS done and delivered before I leave. If that happens, the book will likely be published in the fall of 2008 in the U.S, and somewhat earlier in the U.K. I am pleased with the way the writing is going at the moment, and I think these projections are realistic ones... but as you all know, I've been wrong before. So I am not swearing any blood oaths here. "


I guess we'll all have to wait and see - here's hoping for a September release!

Canada Reads on CBC

Starts next Monday! Check it out.

Five great works of Canadian fiction. Five celebrity panelists. One week of heated debates about CanLit. Let the battle of the books begin…

Jian Ghomeshi hosts Canada Reads, a week-long radio special that celebrates books. Tune in to CBC Radio One from February 25–29, 2008, to hear the panelists make the case for why their favourite Canadian fiction should be picked as the Canadian book to read in 2008.

Brown Girl in the Ring
Defended by
Jemeni
From the Fifteenth District
Defended by
Lisa Moore
Icefields
Defended by
Steve MacLean
King Leary
Defended by
Dave Bidini
Not Wanted on the Voyage
Defended by
Zaib Shaikh

Chat Noir Open Mic

Our first Open Mic Night of the year will be on Feb the 16th 2008. Musicians, poets, story tellers, you are all welcome come out. We will be kicking this off at 6:30pm and going until 10:30pm, we do have limited seating, so come early to get a good seat.

Sunparlour Players

Before anyone asks...no we are not a music store, no we cannot order in CD's for you unless they are book related. Alright so now that we have that out of the way, we do try and carry a small selection of Music that is put out by Local Musicians.

Funny thing...As I am writing this entry, Dennis Van Dine's Father walked into the store and bought a copy of "Hymns for the Happy". We also happened to be playing the Sunparlour Players Album "Hymns fo the Happy" in the store at this time as well. Dennis is in the band.

As you might have guested I am talking about Toronto's "Sunparlour Players". Their Brand of gospel/folk/rockabilly/punk etc seems to be winning over Toronto's indie scene "They've been described as "AC/DC guest starring on Little House on The Prairie" and their blend of guitar, banjo, drums, organ pedals, accordion and so much more converts just about anyone who sees them live...." Sunparlour Players at the Dakota Tavern and yes we have copies of their CD in stock here at the store.

Great Coffee in Northern Ontario

If you are traveling through Northern Ontario and are looking for a great cup of Coffee, or maybe an Espresso or a Cappuccino, then come and Check us out on Google maps! All of our coffees are Fair Trade and Organic!

Canada's oldest bookstore is closing in Halifax

Canada's oldest bookstore will close its doors for good at the end of March.

The Book Room in Halifax opened for business in 1839 and survived two World Wars and the Great Depression, store president Charles Burchell said in a release.

But the retail store couldn't outlast big box bookstores, Burchell said, nor the ease of ordering books online, competition from book selling pharmacies and grocery stores or the pressure to lower prices to reflect a stronger Canadian dollar.

To Read the CBC article:
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2008/01/29/book-store.html