Trolley Square photos

Here are a few photos of the space in progress. I'm sorry they're so dark. But the lights aren't installed yet so it's dark in there! Don't worry, they're shipping.


This is the current outside of our store. The entrances, upstairs and down, will be immediately west of the atrium off the 600 South entrance.














This was how the space looked raw. It hasn't looked like this since early October.















This is the area Tony refers to as "The Grotto." Those spaces are transforming into offices and a meeting room.















Interior framing. The Grotto is off the the left. The mezzanine is above The Grotto. Big pipes are everywhere.














Still to come: electrical/phones/data/lights, a staircase from the balcony, flooring and railings for the balcony, main floor staining & sealing, painting, installation of sales racks and counters (to seismic code specs), signage and the facade, plus myriad little things I'm forgetting right now.

Oh, and a clothes line. Yes a clothes line. You'll see.

Stuff for Sale

You already know we've begun our Moving Sale. Oh, you don't? Well, used and rare books are 20% off. If you purchase 10 or more used books, or 10 or more rare books, the discount increases to 30%. The Bargain Rooms sale is still in effect, 10 or more items from there will get you 50% off.
Even better we've moved National Geographics published from the 1950's on to the Bargain Rooms. They're 25 cents a piece.

In addition to all that book goodness, we've got construction supplies for sale. We've got lumber, cinder blocks, oak doors, and enormous wood beams. Contact a manager for more details. More book cases have become available too. Come down and snag one or two today.

Banned Books Week Virtual Read-Out

And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell & Justin Richardson
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Crank by Ellen Hopkins
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Lush by Natasha Friend
What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones
Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
Revolutionary Voices edited by Amy Sonnie
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

What do these books have in common? According to the American Library Association, they are the books that were most frequently challenged in the United States in 2010. Do some of the titles on this list surprise you? A quick survey of the books challenged most frequently in the last decade would yield similar results. Literature, classics, children's books, histories, religious books including the bible... they've all been challenged at one time or another.

The reasons people challenge books are many: sexually explicit or offensive content, violence, homosexuality, inappropriateness for age groups, anti-family and anti-religious sentiments to name a few. If successful, the results of these challenges are often the same: narrowed access to ideas and information, censorship, limitations on your freedoms as a reader. Lest any of us feel too sanctimonious, challenges come from the right and the left, the religious and irreligious, any side of any political or social spectrum you'd care to identify. Often the motivation is based in an attempt to do the right thing; sometimes it is based in fear. Again, the results are the same.

As booksellers, we at Wellers are categorically against censorship. We, like nearly all booksellers and librarians, have faced objections to materials we chose to sell. I view each time I talk with customers concerned about a book stocked or on display as an opportunity. I get to hear what is disturbing to my customer. That is important, I need to hear my customers and to understand their complaints. But at the same time, it is equally important that I let them know I consider freedom of access to information to be a cornerstone in the foundation of our democracy. I also believe that controversial -- even ugly -- ideas are better kept in the light where they can be seen, discussed, and dealt with rather than kept in the dark where they can flourish unconfronted and untouched. During our conversation I also let my customer know that I practice what I preach. Every season I buy books for the store to sell that I consider offensive. Yes, every single season.

So what does one do about "banned books?" Get the word out, of course. Engage in civic dialogue and education. This year's Banned Books week is September 24th to October 1st. On Saturday, September 24, we will be participating in the Banned Books Week Virtual Read-Out. In bookstores and libraries across the country people will be reading two minute selections from challenged books of their choosing. This is an opportunity to dust off your old copy of Howl or recite your favorite passage from the Bible. Wellers staff will video your reading and post it to the Virtual Read-Out YouTube channel as well as Wellers own YouTube channel. And you'll go on record as a defender of the freedom to read.

Just call us at 801-328-2586 or email catherine@samwellers.com to sign up for a time on September 24th.

If you'd like more information about Banned Books week or would like to see what books have been challenged, visit the Banned Books Week web site. If you'd like to preview the Virtual Read Out channel on YouTube, go here.

The Banned Books Week awareness campaign is sponsored by Banned Books Week is sponsored by American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, American Library Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors,Association of American Publishers, National Association of College Stores, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, National Coalition Against Censorship, National Council of Teachers of English, PEN American Center, Social Icons by Lenka.

We Speak to the Neighborhood Council

Tonight Tony and I will be attending the Central City Neighborhood Council meeting to talk about our move to Trolley Square. We'll be addressing how& why we're changing and how the move is progressing. We'd love to see you there.

Central City Neighborhood Council Meeting
Wednesday, September 7th 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.

Alexandra Fuller

This Friday, August 26th, we will have the pleasure of hosting Alexandra Fuller for a reading from her brand new memoir, Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness. I remember reading her first memoir, Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, which looks on her childhood in Southern Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. It was an absolute delight, and it is still one of my favorite go-to reading recommendations. Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness is both a prequel and a sequel, continuing Alexandra's own story, but its main focus is on her mother, Nicola Fuller. I haven't finished it yet, but Catherine has—read her review in the current issue of BookTalk, Sam Weller's newsletter.

We hope you join us at the Salt Lake City Public Library at 7:00 PM for this wonderful reading and signing.

This event is free and open to the public.

THE ASK by Sam Lipsyte

The Ask is a real treasure: with Larry David-esque timing, the pathos of a recovering sports fan, and a fire-breather's flair for language, Lipsyte writes like most of his contemporaries only dream of. His prose is alive and well. He is as funny as Gary Shteyngart, as sad as Woody Allen at his most comfortless, and his ribald wit rivals comic Louis C.K.'s. In The Ask, Lipsyte writes about Milo Burke, a down-and-out full time dad who may just have a second whack at his old job. Burke has to contend with his old college roommate, Stuart Purdy, a real schmuck who snuck up on the dot com craze with a few crazy plans of his own, and is still collecting from that. Purdy wants Milo to do an Ask for him: "An Ask could be a person , or what we wanted from that person. If they gave it to us, that was a give." Purdy enlists Milo to do one last job, think 007 without all the sword play. Burke is entering a world of hell, and it'd only be wise to join him.

New Brandon Sanderson Book signed and numbered

Brandon Sanderson is the energizer bunny of authors. He just keeps going and going and going. In addition to completing Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, Brandon is still working on a number of his own projects. His newest book is a Mistborn novel and will be published November 8, 2011. It's called Alloy of Law.

For the past several years Wellers has been pleased to work with Sanderson offering signed and numbered copies of his releasing books to his legions of fans. I'm happy to write that Alloy of Law will be no exception. Pre-publication sales for signed and numbered copies begin today.

The details of the process are much as they have been in the past. Those of you who have ordered signed and numbered copies from us before may want to just give us a call or email books@samwellers.com. Those who are still interested keep reading.

For this promotion, Wellers will discount the cover price 20%, bringing the cost down to $19.99 plus shipping and handling via USPS Priority Mail. We will give you the total cost when you place your order. All orders must be pre-paid via credit card or Paypal. If you're paying by credit card, please call or email us. Those who are using Paypal should email books@samwellers.com. You may purchase up to three copies of Alloy of Law.

Numbering is split with the BYU Bookstore, where Brandon celebrates his book releases. The numbers allocated to Wellers are assigned on first come, first served basis. The sooner you order your book and pay for it, the lower your number. Since we'll be in the midst of relocating our store during the processing and shipping period, we will not offer other copies of Brandon's books. (As you can see from the photo on the left, there's a bit to do.) We will ship the books to arrive on the release date or as close to it as possible. This promotion is limited to 500 copies of Alloy of Law. Additionally, orders must be placed by October 14, 2011. We turn away a few unhappy customers each year, which is sad for us too. Once they're gone, they're gone so don't delay!

You can read all about Alloy of Law on TOR's site or on Brandon's blog.