Friday 28 February 2014

A Worship of Writers and others

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/728429-CompendiumofCollectiveNouns-FromanArmoryofAardvarkstoaZealofZebras-9781452108230


We've been having fun with this book this morning, there are some brilliant collective nouns such as:

A Draught of Butlers (because they leave the door open?)
A Troubling of Goldfish
A Rage of Teeth
A Superfluity of Nuns

And we came up with some of our own as well:
An Intelligence (or perhaps a Headache?) of Booksellers
A Lack of Principles (or perhaps Principals?) - suggested by a customer
An Irritation of Telemarketers
A Bling of Rappers

Thursday 27 February 2014

Leo lost in his own jungle


It's amazing what you can find lurking in the children's section. Today we found Leo (who loves books and animals) lost in his own private jungle.

Wednesday 26 February 2014

Travelling the Shelves


Every time we change the window, we need to collect a fresh pile of books for the window. Today we decided on an "on the road" theme. Here's a sample from our selections.



This one's for you Maclean Barker! (our staff member who left us recently for the life of the road and is now living in her caravan and currently residing in Dunedin.)



Monday 24 February 2014

Sunday 23 February 2014

Visiting bookseller

Karen is a part time bookseller and part time wine maker from Montreal. She popped in for her Kiwi literature fix before heading off to stomp grapes in Blenheim for three months.

Saturday 22 February 2014

A visit from a (late) screen legend

Shirley Temple (complete with ringlets) paid the store a visit this morning, faithfully guarding the postcard stand while her mistress shopped. As you can she see is very vicious and should not be approached.

Friday 21 February 2014

Time to take the Christmas tree down

We've packed away the baubles and the lights for another year and the dead Christmas tree is in the garden. The shop looks back to normal with the removal of the Christmas display tables and the re-emergence of the comfy chair and floating book stands.

Thursday 20 February 2014

Wild Biking

Liz is a regular customer at our bookshop. Here she is in person and on the front of the latest edition of the Nelson/Tasman Mountain Bike Tracks. Go Liz!

Wednesday 19 February 2014

Talking about Books

Every third Wednesday of the month we have our teen book group. The kids are super enthusiastic about books and reading so it is always a pleasure to pop along to the local cafe (Cafe Affair who make us very welcome - thanks for the hospitality!) for a session on our favourite books, our latest reads, and our pet grievances (why, oh why did the author do that!). We had our first session of the year today and swapped accounts of our summer reading. Everything from Lord of the Rings, to Jane Eyre and Little Men, to The Screaming Staircase and Zombies from Darren Shan. Here's a shot of some of the happy readers.

Tuesday 18 February 2014

Bringing books home


The nicest thing about a bookshop in your town is having time to browse the shelves, finding treasures and then bringing them home. I think there's nothing as satisfying and as tempting as a new stack of books waiting to be read. So on my weekend I went to the bookshop!{Stella}

Monday 17 February 2014

Puzzled???

We've had a big selection of puzzles arrive today, from "Birds' Eye View of New York City" to "Training Elephants".  Sarah puzzled too, over how best to display these! What do you think?

Sunday 16 February 2014

Saturday 15 February 2014

We have lift-off!

http://touchdownpageandblackmore.blogspot.co.nz/
 
TOUCHDOWN is our new weekly bulletin of new releases. We want to share some of the excitement we feel as new titles (both anticipated and surprising) come out of the carton. Click here to read the first issue. Subscribe and get each weekly issue e-mailed to you!
 

Friday 14 February 2014

International book giving day!

It's international book giving day and what better way to celebrate than to give away books. We have a wee stack of books to give away to children today and Holly was the first lucky recipient.

Thursday 13 February 2014

Welcome Lynn



Staff changes mean new faces. Lynn joins the team. Welcome Lynn. Lynn has a penchant for interesting shoes and travel. And reading, of course.

Wednesday 12 February 2014

A book that changed my life {written by Lucy}

Alanna: The First Adventure, by Tamora Pierce


I picked it up at the Nelson Public Library one day, I must have been about 11 or 12. Took it home, lay on my bed (I still remember the bed, the bedside light attached to the headboard) and read it straight through. I think I ate dinner in a haze, I wanted to be in that world, not in my own anymore. That night I lay in bed and read it again, twice in one day. I was hooked. Tamora Pierce instantly went to the top of my favourite authors list.

Then I discovered Alanna was just one of a series (can you imagine my joy?!). I immediately ordered the whole set from the old Blackmore's store and set off on a fantasy adventure I still enjoy atleast once a year.

A few months later my family and I went overseas, taking only four books each. Naturally I chose this series as the books that would accompany me on our open-ended adventure. Sadly, my original copy of Alanna suffered a fate worse than death involving raw sewerage in a campervan in Vancouver, setting off a several-months long mission to replace it. Every bookshop in every town and city we went through had to be searched for an elusive copy. My Father finally found a replacement copy at a huge barnlike bookshop somewhere in the American South. I think it may have been Arkansas. We eventually settled in Montreal, where I became a regular patron of the wonderful Babar books and purchased many of Pierce's other titles.

I credit Alanna, along with Maurice Gee's incomparable Half Men of O trilogy for setting my on a path of reading and loving fantasy fiction. Without her I wouldn't have found Terry Pratchett, Margaret Mahy, Sheryl Jordan, George R.R Martin, Tolkein and so many other brilliant fantasy authors.

I own every one of Pierce's books, but Alanna and the three sequels hold a very special place in my heart.

Tuesday 11 February 2014

Graphic distractions




Always a treat and a distraction to have graphic novels arrive in the shop. Alison Bechdel's Are you My Mother? just arrived - she's a guest at the Wellington Writers Week in March. Peter was so intrigued by The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil by Stephen Collins that he nearly forgot to work!

Sunday 9 February 2014

On this day

Did you know, on this day, February 9th, Zeno was crowned co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire, the British Parliament declared the Massachusetts colony to be in rebellion (1775) and The Hapsburg Empire joined the Russo-Turkish war on the side of the Russians (1788).

What interesting stuff you can learn in a bookshop on a quiet Sunday!

Saturday 8 February 2014

Watch this space

Stella creating a display for a very special event happening next week. The crocodile in the background (on loan from Crackerjacks) is a clue if you are very clever.

Friday 7 February 2014

Seen the film?

Read the book, see the film; see the film, read the book or just read the book...

Thursday 6 February 2014

Look who's hiding!

Look who we found relaxing on the bookshelf. Well-loved Ellie came to visit us all the way from London. (and don't worry it's not another lost doll, - Ellie's owner was keeping a close eye on her). Happy reading Ellie!

Wednesday 5 February 2014

Meet the staff: Lucy



I have worked here for 3 and a half years now, but have been a long term customer. I have fond memories of Tamora Pierce and Arthur Ransom in the old Blackmore's shop. When I'm not selling books, I'm a Mum to 2 year old Bryony, with another on the way this winter. I enjoy reading crime, memoirs, science-fiction and fantasy and I collect books on baby names.

Tuesday 4 February 2014

Cruising around

Land Ahoy for book-loving ship dwellers. The MV Seabourn Sojourn cruise ship was visiting port today and we met many happy tourists enjoying a great Nelson day and stocking up on their books before they head to Sydney. And here are two of the crew - Sophie the singer and Claudio the Bartender with the front page news.

Monday 3 February 2014

Happy Birthday Nelson!

Closed today due to Nelson Anniversary- in true Nelson style we are all lying on the beach in the sun. Have a great day!

Sunday 2 February 2014

Saturday 1 February 2014

Street market day

 Town is a bit crazy today with the Trafalgar Street market day on. Ours is always one of the busiest stalls with customers showing up the moment we open the first box and staying on until the bitter, hot end.
Some of our range

Musical neighbours


Peter and Kesia, two of our fetching stall minders.