Welcome to Litsy!

6 NONFICTION books completed in November—setting up a few interesting matches. The tagged book was my pick. And my enjoyment of it pushed it ahead of its competitor from September. However, I‘m still thinking about the wild card memoir—so I gave it the nod to move on. But in the end, my love of a well-written narrative nonfiction propels “Challenger” into the finals. What a fun year this has shaped up to be!

#2024ReadingBrackets

I really enjoyed this breezy history of bookstores in the U.S., from colonial days to the present (shoutout to my local indie, RJ Julia Booksellers, which garnered a mention!). It took me a month because I didn‘t read it straight through — I dipped into it a chapter or a section at a time. Definitely recommend for anyone who loves books about bookstores —and nonfiction.

I have been so grateful for this community this past week. I spent more time here than I have in a long time and now I remember why I love it so much. This election cycle and the toxic waste from all other social media platforms almost did me in. But this community has people who are the complete opposite of toxic. Thank you. 💙

This is my Sunday ♥️♥️♥️♥️

Thank you @DGRachel - you‘re the best. I‘ve only read the first 20 pages and I know this will be on my best of the year pile. It‘s sooooo good 👍🏼

Sigh. A perfect five star narrative history.

#AboutABook. #SetinBookstore

I am very interested in this nonfiction book about US bookstores.

@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Someone was bad at B&N ! Well not too bad , McMurtry book on sale , having a magazine sale , who does that? $5 bucks off reward & paid for part with a gift card … still trying to downsize though 🙄I don‘t wear glamorous clothes but always enjoy the September brick of a Vogue !

What a wonderful book! Friss wisely looks at specific bookshops in depth to paint a picture of the history of bookstores in the US. I was riveted the whole time and definitely learned some things I didn‘t know. And I‘ve discovered that I want to be Frances Steloff. She was amazing!

This history of the US bookstore begins with Benjamin Franklin, bookseller, spans the Strand and specialty stores like Oscar Wilde and Drum and Spear, the big box Barnes & Noble, and Amazon‘s brief brick and mortar stint, coming home to roost at Ann Patchett‘s Parnassus. What I most enjoyed were the characters—“the tsarina,” a trendsetting book buyer for a Chicago department store or the iconic, avant-garde Frances Steloff behind Gotham Book Mart.

I love a book that teaches me something and I don‘t want to put it down. That was this one, 100%. Reading the first page of the Table of Contents alone gave me a thrill (How does my beloved Marshall Field‘s & Co. relate to books??) and that sensation never dissipated. Keep your phone or tablet nearby while reading, I fell down so many rabbit holes you might as well call me Alice 🐇🫖☕️ Don‘t sleep on this one, publishing August 6, 2024!

A delightful history of a deeply romanticized industry with the space to both revel and bemoan. Friss begins his bookseller's tale with Ben Franklin and ends with Ann Patchett running the gamut between. If publishing is dominated by white men, bookselling is the realm of white women and Friss addresses the complications within that while historicizing the mission driven shops created to serve queer communities and people of color.