The Retail Bookseller

When a company's workers are literally dying on the job, when their business model relies on preying on local businesses and even their own vendors, when their CEO is the richest person in the world while their workers make low wages with impossible quotas... wouldn't you want to resist? Danny Caine, owner of Raven Book Store in Lawrence, Kansas has been an outspoken critic of the seemingly unstoppable Goliath of the bookselling world: Amazon. In this book, he lays out the case for shifting our personal money and civic investment away from global corporate behemoths and to small, local, independent businesses. Well-researched and lively, his tale covers the history of big box stores, the big political drama of delivery, and the perils of warehouse work. He shows how Amazon's ruthless discount strategies mean authors, publishers, and even Amazon themselves can lose money on every book sold. And he spells out a clear path to resistance, in a world where consumers are struggling to get by. In-depth research is interspersed with charming personal anecdotes from bookstore life, making this a readable, fascinating, essential book for the 2020s.

"A touching poetic exploration of budding sexuality, the mysticism of religion, and family dynamics. Shraya's text and Neufeld's illustrations capture the confusion, innocence, and de3lusions of adolescence bang on." -Brian Francis, author of Fruit I am often mistaken for a girl. Not just because I like to wear dresses or makeup. I don't mind. My parents are from India and here is not quite home. School isn't always safe and neither is my body. But I feel safe in my love for God. And God loves hair. First published to acclaim in 2011, Vivek Shraya's first book, now published by Arsenal Pulp Press for the first time, is a collection of twenty-one short stories following a tender, intellectual, and curious child of Indian origin as he navigates the complex realms of sexuality, gender, racial politics, religion, and belonging. Told with the poignant insight and honesty that only the voice of a young mind can convey, God Loves Hair is a moving and ultimately joyous portrait of youth that celebrates diversity in all shapes, sizes, and colors. A Lambda Literary Award finalist in the category of children's books. The stories are accompanied by the award-winning full-color illustrations of Juliana Neufeld. Vivek Shraya is a multimedia artist, working in the mediums of music, performance, literature, and film. He is also author of She of the Mountains.

“Filled with enchantment and intrigue” (Toronto Star) and “a great choice for a book club” (The Huffington Post), Dragon Springs Road takes readers on an evocative journey a century in the past and half a world away. In early-twentieth-century Shanghai, an ancient imperial dynasty collapses, a new government struggles to life and two girls are bound together in a friendship that will be tested by duty, honour and love. Abandoned in the courtyard of a once-lavish estate outside Shanghai, seven-year-old Jialing learns she is zazhong—Eurasian—and thus doomed to face a lifetime of contempt from both Chinese and Europeans. The Yang family, new owners of the estate, reluctantly take her in as a servant. As Jialing grows up, her only allies are Anjuin, the eldest Yang daughter, and Fox, an animal spirit who has lived in the courtyard for more than three hundred years. But when a young English girl appears and befriends the lonely orphan—and then mysteriously vanishes—Jialing’s life takes an unexpected turn. As Jialang grows into womanhood during the tumultuous early years of the Chinese republic, she must find a way to survive political intrigue, jealousy, forbidden love and even murder. Through every turn she is guided, both by Fox and by her own strength of spirit, away from the shadows of her past toward a very different fate. “Rich with detail and a fascinating interplay between the spiritual and earthly realms, Chang’s second novel explores whether it is possible to overcome your past” (Booklist).

A comprehensive guide to writing, publishing, and launching your book—and monetizing your content ​Are you considering writing a book to boost your visibility and credibility? Or just trying to figure out how to use the book you already have to build more influence and income? No matter where you are in the process, Ideas, Influence, and Income is your field guide to using a strategic and successful publishing experience as the groundwork for a larger plan to monetize your content. Designed for experts and thought leaders and written by Greenleaf Book Group CEO Tanya Hall, this book will teach you how to • Get clarity on your message and audience • Develop your manuscript and choose a publishing option • Build your author platform and presence through social media, publicity, influencer marketing, and partnerships • Launch your book with the bang that it deserves • Use the content you’ve developed to create new income streams beyond the book These are the tools and strategies Hall has used to launch the 1000+ titles represented by Greenleaf Book Group, an independent publishing company that has made the Inc 500/5000 Fastest Growing Companies in America list seven times. A book is the holy grail of content marketing, and approaching it strategically from the outset ensures a return on the time, energy, and money behind it. Ideas, Influence, and Income is a must-have resource for authors seeking a smarter way to get the most out of publishing.

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Over the past half-century, bookselling, like many retail industries, has evolved from an arena dominated by independent bookstores to one in which chain stores have significant market share. And as in other areas of retail, this transformation has often been a less-than-smooth process. This has been especially pronounced in bookselling, argues Laura J. Miller, because more than most other consumer goods, books are the focus of passionate debate. What drives that debate? And why do so many people believe that bookselling should be immune to questions of profit? In Reluctant Capitalists, Miller looks at a century of book retailing, demonstrating that the independent/chain dynamic is not entirely new. It began one hundred years ago when department stores began selling books, continued through the 1960s with the emergence of national chain stores, and exploded with the formation of “superstores” in the 1990s. The advent of the Internet has further spurred tremendous changes in how booksellers approach their business. All of these changes have met resistance from book professionals and readers who believe that the book business should somehow be “above” market forces and instead embrace more noble priorities. Miller uses interviews with bookstore customers and members of the book industry to explain why books evoke such distinct and heated reactions. She reveals why customers have such fierce loyalty to certain bookstores and why they identify so strongly with different types of books. In the process, she also teases out the meanings of retailing and consumption in American culture at large, underscoring her point that any type of consumer behavior is inevitably political, with consequences for communities as well as commercial institutions.

If you have ever considered opening a used bookstore, here is your chance to learn from someone who knows first-hand what it takes. Author Stephanie Chandler is the owner of Book Lovers Bookstore in Sacramento, CA. Features in this workbook include: *Worksheets: Budget planning, evaluating competition, forecasting, and more. *Business Basics: What you need to get started. *Inventory: Twelve sources for acquiring used books. *Suppliers: Library supplies, printed goods, retail supplies and more. *Shop Setup: Store layout, book categories, bookseller software and tools. *Operations Procedures: Trade policies, overstock, and a sample operations manual. *Marketing: Low-cost and no-cost tactics for maximizing exposure. *Website: Steps for setting up a website and selling books online. *Resources: Dozens of useful website links. *Business Plan: Sample business plan (actual plan used for Book Lovers Bookstore).