Archives - Weekly Update

Finally sunny here. Okay, it's still cold, but sunny is nicer than grey. Both my sons had birthdays in the past week so it's been a blur. I baked cakes, cookies, cupcakes and mini-cupcakes. I frosted in so many different colors that I am dizzy. My favorite baking book --- THE CAKE MIX DOCTOR. Makes cake mixes taste like "baked from scratch." Click on the cover above to learn more about this truly fun cookbook.

Thanks to all of you who answered our poll about what you would like to see in book advertising. We had close to 1,000 respondents in two weeks! We heartily agree with you that we want to see "what the book is about" in the ads. I realize how many books I read just because I saw one of our one-line promos! When I see "tantalizing," "mesmerizing" and "breathtaking" in ads I just bluster. You could be talking about breath mints, Donald Trump's hair on "The Apprentice" or sunsets instead of books. We will be sharing your feedback with publishers and other folks who create these campaigns.

Sad news to report today. Olivia Goldsmith, who is best known as the author of THE FIRST WIVES CLUB died yesterday afternoon from complications during plastic surgery. She was one of those authors whose writing made me laugh out loud. The first year we started Bookreporter.com she came to the office one day to work with Jesse on a project. There she made me laugh in person. She was charming, witty and so full of life. In a piece I read today it was said that she had asked upon her death that her organs be donated. I wish she also could have donated her warm sense of humor to someone. She will be missed.

During our three-week break I did a lot of reading at the beach, most of it of books coming out in the next couple of months. One favorite was HARD REVOLUTION by George Pelecanos, which will be in stores on March 9th. It's a long hard look at 1968 and the racial tension in Washington, DC. Fans of Pelecanos' lead character Derek Strange will love this prequel. Those who never have read him will appreciate the raw grit with which he writes about these times. It's interesting that my boys and I watch American Dreams on Sunday nights and they have no comprehension of why the racial tension portrayed on the show exists. Their world is so much more integrated. For those of us who remember 1968, reading a book with the power of Pelecanos' hammers home how far we have come.