Rep Me a New One, pt. 1

People often ask us, when considering the volume of books in the store, "How do you know which books to buy?"  Good question.  There are thousands upon thousands of new books published every year, and the best way for a store like Turnrow to wade through the glut of new titles is with a little help from our publisher reps.  Most of them will shoot you straight, dissuading you from buying the junk (unless it's junk you need) and serving as a liason between our store and the publisher.  It's easy for a small independent store to get lost among the hubbub of the big chains, which makes it crucial to have a voice on the inside.  A lot of the success we've achieved luring authors to the Delta is due to the reps.

Therefore we wanted to recognize our book reps and share their insight with you in a new series, Rep Me a New One.  Our first contributor is Jeff Cope (pictured at left in our nature section) of Macmillan (Picador, Bloomsbury, FSG, Henry Holt, St. Martin's and many more), who recently came to sell us his summer list.  We asked him to point out a few of his favorite books coming out from Macmillan this summer, and here's what he wrote.... 

I love coming to Mississippi. It’s one my favorite places in my territory.  The people, the land, the food and its history all fascinate me, and especially the birth place of the blues. I have been bragging to my sales manager Ken Holland what a great store Turnrow is. He finally picked the locks to the chains binding him to his New York City desk and came to see for himself. He was not disappointed. I wanted Ken to leave Mississippi not impressed but wanting to come back, and I think I achieved that. 

We made two other pilgrimages besides Turnrow. The first was to Rowan Oak in Oxford.  Ken is also a writer, so we could not pass up a chance to see the home of one of America's greatest writers. It was a beautiful day to explore the grounds with blue skies and a temp near 70. We had a good conversation with the curator, and we both learned something we thought we should have learned while studying Faulkner: he added the "u" to his name for publishing purposes. The second destination was Robert Johnson’s grave site. More chamber-of-commerce weather greeted us. The air was crisp, cool, with the only sound the wind in the trees and a few birds. The quietness of the moment was moving, as were the tributes left on the headstone from other “pilgrims.” We were the only people there and it felt like we were the only ones around for miles. We got this strange feeling of being alone but not quite alone. It was almost a mystical moment. The only thing missing was a little mist in the air and fog hugging the ground. It’s a trip I’ll make again.

From there it was on to Greenwood, Turnrow Books and the continuing culinary adventure I was also taking Ken on. If he left Mississippi hungry, it was his own fault. We had a lovely dinner with Jamie and Kelly at Giardina’s and lunch the next day at Hoover's for some home cooking. He was in heaven. To say he loved Turnrow, and all of the things Jamie and Kelly are doing is understatement. I can safely say that this is a trip he’ll want to make again.

I’m also here to talk about some summer books! So let's talk about the trip Tony Horwitz made and wrote about in his new tome, A Voyage Long and Strange, due this May from Henry Holt. In this adventure, Tony (Blue Latitudes and Confederates in the Attic) follows the explorers that came before the Mayflower. From the Vikings to Columbus to Cortez and other explorers, Horwitz tries to retrace their foot steps, especially across the southeast U.S., and along the way not only entertains but educates us about the early exploration of this continent that is all too often glossed over, if taught at all, in today’s history classes. I think it’s his best yet. (Thanks to Jeff & Ken, Tony is signing and reading at a special author luncheon at Turnrow on May 21. Reserve your lunch and book here. -ed.)

Time for a confession. My reading tastes run more to literary fiction and lots of history and biographies, but when my friend Emily Giffin asked me to read her new book, Love the One You’re With (due this May from St. Martin’s), I made the exception. Yeah, I read some chick lit. I started it one Saturday evening and as the hour got later, I kept telling myself “one more chapter and I’m going to bed,” then it was “just one more chapter” until the last chapter somewhere around 1 a.m. Once again Emily has touched on a subject that many people can relate to and will strike a chord with many readers. Reading groups that choose this book will have lots to discuss.

Remember Two Kinds of Decay by Sarah Manguso (FSG, due in May). Books by and about survivors of life threatening illness are everywhere. As a survivor (fighter) I think this one stands above the crowd.

Look for these books at Turnrow in May. Hopefully on my next trip through Mississippi, they'll let me contribute some more.

Never Quit,
JC