Shelf Life: Second Edition

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While larger concerns won't explicitly exclude titles from smaller presses, they don't give them much of a chance, either. Because the average Barnes & Noble superstore is 25,000 square feet and holds 60,000 to 200,000 titles, it matters which few books are prominently displayed. Most small presses can't afford front-and-center placement, so while their books may be in stock, they're less likely to be picked up.

Smaller shops invite idle perusal, impromptu conversation, and aimless aisle-trolling. Many stores--including St. Paul's Common Good Books, recently opened by author and radio host Garrison Keillor--practice the art of hand-selling, which involves employees showing customers a book they've been enjoying and, they hope, convincing them to buy it. At Back Pages Books in Waltham, Massachusetts, the owner is trying to use hand-selling, in person and online, to help find a U.S. publisher for a novel about Zionist terrorists in Brooklyn--a book that is already available in Canada.

Meantime, Larry Portzline, a writer who's in the process of launching the National Council on Bookstore Tourism, works with regional booksellers' associations to organize indie bookstore tours, including an outing to beach-town bookshops sponsored by the Southern California Booksellers Association.

The last decade has been a challenge for indies, to be sure, but those that have weathered the storm are employing promising strategies. Additional book clubs, author events, and stronger online presence have made many shops more impressive and more engaging. They're not, as one bookseller suggests in Indies Under Fire, 'just a soft spot in people's hearts.'

From the Stacks...

The June 2007 issue (#8.75) of Smile, Hon, You're in Baltimore! features stories about crime in Charm City. Many contributors matter-of-factly recount car or home break-ins, some of which are ultimately foiled by inept criminals or gutsy bystanders. I get the impression that very little actually surprises the average Baltimore resident, though Ben Robinson does seem mildly freaked out by a confrontation in which a homeowner throws dumbbells at a fleeing burglar. When one hits the thief in the back of the head, he runs off and returns a few minutes later 'wielding a MACHETE.' Even in Baltimore, a machete still is cause for capital letters. $3 for each issue from William P. Tandy, Box 11064, Baltimore, MD 21212; www.eightstonepress.com.

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