Booksellers united for the new revolution

Last night, Weller's had the honor and privilege of hosting the opening reception of the American Booksellers Association Winter Institute IV. The energy of booksellers united with a common purpose was incredible. We here at Weller's have never felt anything quite like it. Don't get me wrong, our customers and readers fill this place with their love of books, but it was something else to have 200+ fellow booksellers partying here together, amongst the bookshelves. For more pics of the opening reception go here.

Without Hardly A Hitch: Dispatches From the Hardboiled Book Club

What makes a good book club? Is it a competent host? Couldn't be. Is it good treats? They sure don't hurt. Is it nice people engaging in spirited discussion about a book? Well, the nice people and the book sure help this equation. Is it that it's the last Tuesday of the month? Dunno. Is it perhaps an assortment of varied ideas about what we all just read? Could be. Or is it one of those tangly intangibles? Like uhh...oh I really don't have any idea. But I think it's one of those. Yes. It has to be.

Or is it an edgy book club? Let's dispel that whole idea right now. The Hardboiled Book Club is a book club for anyone 15-50 who wants to read a book and talk it out. Whether the edge is blunt or razor sharp, it's simply not there. So Dictionary.com (shout out!) says, and I'm only gonna list the 1st definition, cause it's humorous. Edgy: Nervously irritable; impatient and anxious. Aaaah. That takes me back to my first love, it was the Spring of 99, (OK, it was a crush, but at that time, my definition of love or anything remotely amorous, was well, nervously irritable).

I hope all of you reading this will think about coming to the next club. We meet on Tuesday (the last Tuesday of every month) at 6:30 and stay till around 8. February's book is The Girl On The Fridge (20% off at Sam Weller's'!). So, pull up a seat and join the discussion!

P.S. If you have any leather jackets (preferably with patches of Metal Bands on them that would be just great!). Give this damn club an edge.

Cult of the Book pics are up

The ghastly inversion out here has fogged my synapses at the moment, so, In lieu of saying something enlightening and clever about our ever-growing art gallery, I will simply now post a link to a vast reservoir of images of the opening reception and complete works of our most recent exhibition, cult of the book. There you will also find sets of our previous shows and events. Do take a gawk and a gander..

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach Canceled

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach has canceled his appearance at the Salt Lake City Jewish Community Center tonight, Monday January 19, 2009.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

Books at a Film Festival

In just a couple of days, the annual celeb-fest/film festival known as Sundance will slam into Park City like a freight train. Now I know what you're thinking, this is a blog for a bookstore so why are you mentioning a film festival? For one, this will be my fifth year attending the festival and I work at the bookstore, and for two, there are quite a few films this year with literary background.

I'll start with the one I'm most excited about, "The Informers" penned by Bret Easton Ellis, based on his book of the same name. I am truly disappointed that I won't be able to see this at the festival, it doesn't have very many screening times. Ellis is one of my favorite authors, and since he adapted his own book, it's probably going to be fantastic.

Then there's "Brief Interviews with Hideous Men". Adapted from the David Foster Wallace book by John Krasinski, yes Jim Halpert from The Office. It's about a girl who copes with her recent break up by interviewing various men. The film, also directed by Krasinski, boasts a laundry list of great actors and is in the U.S. Dramatic Competition category.

Nick Hornby, author of books such as "A Long Way Down" and "High Fidelity" wrote a film called "An Education", directed by Lone Scherfig, a coming of age story set in 1961.

In the Premiers category this year, there is a film called "Endgame" which is based on the book "The Fall of Apartheid" by Robert Harvey.

A Documentary Spotlight in the Spectrum category, is "Why We Laugh: Black Comedians on Black Comedy" based on the book "Black Comedians on Black Comedy" by Darryl Littleton. This film is a critical examination of the cultural influence of black comedy with interviews from Bill Cosby, Chris Rock, and many notable others.

And last, but not least, a short film directed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt called "Sparks". The screenplay was written by Gordon-Levitt and none other than Elmore Leonard. This one intrigues me, and I'm definitely going to try to get in to see it. "Sparks" is playing in the Shorts Program IV.

I will be going up on Saturday and plan to blog nightly about my daily escapades and review the films I see HERE on my movie blog, Vinegar Syndrome.

Used Book Buyer's Hot Picks! Books for the Proverbial "Downturn"

We have used books. We have very good used books. We have very, very good used books. We have new and rare too--but we want you to know that when the pocketbook feels a little tight, it might be time to check out our Used Book Buyer's Hot Picks Section. When you enter the bookstore from the front door you will find this section to the right of the Main Floor Information Desk. The books featured here are hot off the used book buying desk and handpicked by our used book buying staff. This section changes often and is heavily browsed--therefore you must come down often to see what is here! Here is a list of some of our current Hot Picks titles: Ulysses by James Joyce, Sun Under Wood by Robert Hass, The Changing Light At Sandover by James Merrill, Foucault for Beginners by Lydia Alix Fillingham, The Gutenberg Galaxy by Marshall Mcluhan, Quarrel and Quandary by Cynthia Ozick, The Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller and James Ellroy's The Cold Six Thousand.

Happy New Year!

Another year is gone and all I got was this picture of a lucky cork. Not long after midnight on New Year's Eve, a bottle of champagne was popped and the cork landed in the chandelier. Is this a sign of good fortune for this new year? I'd like to think so. I hope your 2009 is full of luck, happiness, love, and a few good books.