SandyHatesBooks

In Praise of the Undiscriminating Reader

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 17:35:00 -0400

It’s no secret that we’re Serious Readers over here at powerHouse. Our tastes run from the erudite to the indie-quirky to Brooklyn’s literati and then back to the erudite—we’re the kind of people who wouldn’t think twice about taking Middlemarch to the beach. Or a Melville House novella (Bartleby, anyone?). We have MFAs, you guys.

A casual scan of our staff picks shelf reveals Her, Christa Parravani’s heart-stopping debut memoir about her identical twin sister’s rape, subsequent struggles with addiction, and eventual death; The Love Song of Jonny Valentine, Teddy Wayne’s uncanny rendering of an 11-year old pop star; Julian Barnes’s quiet stunner Sense of an Ending, one of the most deserving Booker winners in recent memory; master genre-manipulator Mark Danielewski’s The Fifty Year Sword, which kept this events coordinator—and ghost story addict—from falling asleep the night she turned its final page; and Diane Williams’s Vicky Swanky is a Beauty, about which bookseller Matthew writes, “if these stories were given physical form, they’d most resemble Dr. Manhattan’s floating brain, from The Watchmen.”

But most of us didn’t start as pleasure readers of Thomas Pynchon. (Okay, most of us still aren’t.) We came to our choosy taste through reading. The more we read, the easier it became for us to hear the clang of sloppily written sentence, or sniff out a shopworn plotline. We craved better books. We craved artful, revelatory details, like this one from Amity Gaige’s Shroder: “Behind us, the shoreline fell away, and a chaos of seagulls hung over our wake like bridesmaids holding a veil.” Those of us who write craved books that would teach us how to write better—with more insight, with a sharper eye. And so we read Charles Dickens and Heidi Julavits, Shirley Jackson and Roald Dahl, George Saunders and Joan Didion and Herman Melville and Jamaica Kincaid and Marcel Proust and that Marcel Proust of girlhood, Jo Ann Beard.

In other words, we got better at reading, and as we got better at reading, we wanted more from reading.

This is a post in praise of every time we pick up a book—not because it is recommended, or because we read about it on a blog, or because everyone calls it a classic—but simply because we like the first sentence. This is a post for the little girl (no more, I’d say, than 11) who came into the store last week and asked me if she’d like Moby Dick. The first page is very good, she said, holding the book out to me, her two hands bracketing it on either side like halves of a parenthesis. It looked almost too heavy for her. I asked what she liked to read now. Oh, she said. Everything.

Yes, I said. I think you’ll like it very much.

—Julie Buntin

Al Gore predicts THE FUTURE

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:00:00 -0500

We’re gearing up for Al Gore’s appearance at the Arena this Friday, March 8th.

Did you hear that, internet?

Al.

Gore.

He’s going to be delivering an impassioned take on the forces shaping our future as a country, and most importantly, as a world.

Obviously, it’s a huge honor for us to host him. Get your ticket now. Don’t miss what might be your only chance to witness Al Gore—former VP and Nobel Prize recipient—as he outlines his forecast for the future in an intimate bookstore setting. Ticket purchase promises a signed copy of his latest book, THE FUTURE: SIX DRIVERS OF GLOBAL CHANGE.

togatherinc: Julie Buntin is the literary events coordinator at...

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:58:47 -0500

togatherinc:

Julie Buntin is the literary events coordinator at powerHouse Arena, where she curates, manages, and publicizes between 15 and 20 book events a month. Previously she worked for the NYU Creative Writing Program as the reading series assistant, helping select fiction readers, write introductions, and tame a finicky audio system. As a co-curator of the KGB Emerging Writers Reading Series in 2010, she worked with writers like Anne Enright, Chad Harbach, Nick Flynn, and many, many more. After work, you can find her writing freelance book reviews for Publishers Weekly, reading like a maniac, and obsessing over her novel. Julie is finishing up her MFA fiction thesis at NYU. Her prose can be found in Sonora Review and Explosion-Proof, and she is an editor-at-large at Bodega Magazine.

powerHouse Arena is Togather’s downstairs neighbor in Dumbo, so we met up with Julie over lunch to talk about punk rock posters, unlikely author pairings,how bringing two disparate audiences together can lead to a really amazing event, and how not to pitch your event to her. (“I think my friends might come” is a no-no.)

Read More

News, News, News

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 17:37:36 -0500

Lots of stuff going on here lately. After hurricane Sandy ate our books and our customers helped us get lots of beautiful new ones, we savored a restful, well deserved (read: fattening) holiday break.

But now we’re back, and we feel better and stronger than ever, just as all our encouraging supporters said we would. Come see for yourself. We’ve got gorgeous new books on our tables (my last post is evidence), and an event schedule that will lure punk fans, YA readers, graffiti aficionados, lovers of Joy Division, film buffs, Brooklyn hipsters (especially those who’ve dreamed of running a literary magazine), unlikely couples, social media trend trackers, people who hate reading, people who love reading, Huffington Post devotees, and trivia sharp-shooters.

True Life I Work in a Bookstore

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 16:47:00 -0500

I woke up this morning, and yeah, I’m getting over that wretched winter flu thing that took down half of New York City, and yeah it wasn’t as snot-freezingly cold as usual, but you know, I didn’t really want to tear myself out of bed and hurry off to powerHouse to start the day. It wasn’t exactly my first choice.

(Hint: My first choice was sleeping and then waking up to read David Copperfield for awhile before sleeping again).

But then I got to work. And a few hours later, a giant Random House shipment showed up. And a few minutes later, THIS WAS REVEALED.

Best. Day. Ever.

George Saunders is all over our tables. Come get your copy now. It looks even better in person.

P.S. Has anyone read yet? What do you think?

Thank You

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 16:26:00 -0500

Dear Readers, Attendees, Patrons-

We owe you our livelihood. We owe our reemergence, first by fire last October, then by hurricane flooding this October, to your tenacious and fiercely loyal love and support. We couldn’t be more humbled or more thankful that we live in a city where what we strive to do strikes such a chord. We are blessed, and we thank you.

As we cleaned and repainted and asked for donations to replace destroyed merchandise, we realized our financial losses were in the tens of thousands. We don’t need to tell you what that means for an independent bookstore, literary event space, and art book publisher. So we decided to do what powerHouse is known for—throw an exuberant reading event to celebrate our collective passion—books—and our determination to not let any bastards, natural or otherwise, get us down. We are here for you, and boy did you turn out for us.

We asked our favorite writers for help and couldn’t have been more honored by how eagerly they stepped up to support us. Ayad Akhtar, Teju Cole, Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, Jennifer Egan, Cecily von Ziegesar, Rick Moody, Joseph O’Neill, Paul Auster, Pete Hamill, Sarah Vowell, Fiona Robinson, John Bemelmans Marciano, Téa Obreht, Jonathan Franzen—their participation (and patience throughout a barrage of logistical emails) is a testament to their generosity as people, writers, and readers. Words—our quotidian ones—can’t adequately express our gratitude.

Publicists and editors were cheerleaders from the get go: Jynne Martin, James Meader, Jeff Seroy, Maria Braeckel, Nicole Dewey, Jeffrey Yamaguchi, Kate Runde, Theresa Giacopasi, Caitlin McKenna, Noah Eaker, Elizabeth Garriga, Carolyn O’Keefe, and more—they contacted authors and sent us cartons of donations. If there’s a kinder or more hardworking crew in the publishing industry, we haven’t met them yet.

Under the coordination of Rob Spillman, New York’s indies supplied boxes of donations, from issues of One Story, Bomb, Vice, Tin House, Electric Literature, and A Public Space to beautiful new releases from Black Balloon, The Coffin Factory, Akashic, Triple Canopy, and Dalkey Archive Press.

We’re also indebted to the following media outlets for helping publicize our story and our fundraiser: The New Yorker listed the event despite short notice, as did our friends at Time Out. New York Magazine covered our new store (we managed to stick to our opening at powerHouse on 8^th albeit two weeks off schedule) and added a note about Sandy Hates Books. The National Book Foundation turned 5 under 35 into a partial benefit for powerHouse. Artforum donated a web banner, and The Village Voice contributed a wonderful ad space. Other publications that spread the word include The Paris Review, tumblr, Publishers Weekly, NY 1, Huffington Post, Bomb Magazine, The Rumpus, and the staff of Armchair/Shotgun, who also provided elbow grease. We’re so proud to be associated with each of you, an integral part of New York’s culture.

Special thanks to writers and artists and presses and editors across the United States who donated time, books, tweets, artwork, or all of the above plus more: Ampersand Books, Simon & Schuster, Random House, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Random House, Penguin, Hachette, Lonely Planet, Rain Taxi, Drawn & Quarterly, Taking the Lane, Europa Editions, Graywolf Press, Chronicle, Rizzoli, Orion, Herald Press, Megan Abbot, Ben Wallace, Theresa Ortolani, Yolanda Cuomo, Norma Brown, Adrian Tomine, Chuck Gonzales, Jim Benton, Leanne Shapton, Sophie Blackall, Peter Brown, Jane Mendelsohn, Brett Helquist, Snorri Sturluson, Brian Floca, Paul Morris, Leigh Stein, and Benjamin Samuel. You all are dear friends and your help was indispensable.

Next, our indefatigable staff, interns, and former employees—Craig Mathis, Lena Valencia, Jordan Nielsen, Ashley McNelis, Syreeta McFadden, Sam Brewer, Todd Muller, Will Luckman, Kris Poluchowicz, Nina Ventura, Jacob Pastrovich, Mickey Hyun, Wes Del Val, Craig Cohen, Susanne König, Madison Morales, Ariel Stenek, Jingjing Tian, Erin Hawkins, Sophia Wolff, and Abigail Parsons. Could not have done it without your smiling (or stern, which we like too, but don’t admit it) faces.

A great heap of thanks to Brooklyn Roasting Company and One Girl Cookies for being here and donating refreshment proceeds. Both were hit as badly or even worse than we were, but that’s what Dumbo is: a small village where neighbor really means neighbor. We love you guys.

As we hear stories of people in Staten Island and the Rockaways still in crisis mode, we feel a complicated sense of gratitude and frustration. Gratitude for the literary community in this city and its inspiring dedication to independent bookstores, but frustration that we can’t do more for people who’ve lost their homes or no longer know where they will find their next hot meal. If you have anything left to give, we’d like to encourage you to support those still in need.

Because thanks to you, our Sandy Hates Books hurricane relief fundraiser was a huge success. We recouped a sizeable chunk of our losses, but we’re grateful for more than just that–seeing the Arena packed full of writers and readers was a much-needed morale booster. In total—book donations, cash donations, and sales taken into account—we raised over $20,000.

There is no other way to say this: readers are the best people. We couldn’t have weathered this disaster without your help, and we won’t forget your kindness and generosity during this difficult time for so many.

Finally, a bear hug for our customers. Without you we wouldn’t be here, and frankly—we wouldn’t want to be.

All our gratitude,

Julie Buntin, Events Coordinator

Daniel Power, CEO

This is what it’s all about…..thanks to all the...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 20:56:00 -0500

This is what it’s all about…..thanks to all the amazing authors and supporters and fans and donations….full list tomorrow! #SandyHatesBooks is now #BrooklynLOVESbooks

(all photos by Todd Muller)

Last panel set of epic #SandyHatesBooks; Paul Morris moderates...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 20:52:00 -0500

Moderater Paul Morris opens last reading set for #SandyHatesBooks

Joseph O'Neill, Jennifer Egan, moderator Paul Morris

Jennifer Egan reading

Last panel set of epic #SandyHatesBooks; Paul Morris moderates after readings from Jennifer Egan and Joseph O’Neill.

His enchantments know no bounds! POWERHOUSE Arena Creative...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:57:45 -0500

S-U-S-A-N-N-E....

("Did you see what he wrote?!")

oh, the hair twirling now!

His enchantments know no bounds! POWERHOUSE Arena Creative Director Susanne König succumbs to the writerly charms of Jonathan Franzen.

What effect this master writer has upon the fairer...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:48:00 -0500

Mere mouth movements are not enough to communicate with this level of writer...

she soon floated a good 6 inches off the ground....

before pulling herself together.

gracious and patient and warm in greeting fans

hair twirl = ??

admiration from afar...

What effect this master writer has upon the fairer sex…..only @powerHouseArena, #SandyHatesBooks, #WomenLoveFranzen….

The big kahuna did not disappoint…

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:38:00 -0500

You could hear a pin drop

folksy, gracious, distilled...a fine artisnal spirit

The big kahuna did not disappoint…

Headlining act #SandyHatesBooks: Jonathan Franzen

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:28:00 -0500

Jonathan Franzen takes the floor

Franzen with hushed packed house

Franzen reads never-before-read disaster story

Headlining act #SandyHatesBooks: Jonathan Franzen

the fun and merriment continue! Ooh Franzen just walked...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 17:57:25 -0500

Ayad Akhtar, Teju Cole, and Téa Obreht signing books @powerHouseArena

The hilarious Sarah Vowell!

Sarah has an idea...

Big fans with a big book

the fun and merriment continue! Ooh Franzen just walked in….more soon.

Stellar reading continues @powerHouse Arena’s...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 17:50:01 -0500

Ayad Akhtar riveting readers @powerHouseArena

Téa Obreht captivating the crowd #SandyHatesBokos

Teju Cole listening intently to Ms. Obreht's words

Stellar reading continues @powerHouse Arena’s #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser!

A Superb afternoon of kinship and wonderful words!...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:49:00 -0500

Mr. Auster reading at #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser, POWERHOUSE Arena 11/17/12

The lovely Cecily von Ziegesar

The dashing Saïd Sayrafiezadeh reading the melancholy grape story....

A Superb afternoon of kinship and wonderful words! @powerHouseArena 11/17/12

The inimitable Paul Auster reading at...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 15:38:43 -0500

The inimitable Paul Auster reading at #SandyHatesBooks—>BrooklynLOVESbooks!

An incredible start to #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 15:21:00 -0500

Pete Hamill reading; he is, in words and sounds, Olde Brooklyn!

Rick Moody, Paul Auster, and Pete Hamill share a laugh and sign each others' books

Bowser did not get his book signed by Auster, is appalled....(thanks John Lurie painting caption)

the guys...the best of Brooklyn right here yo!

An incredible start to #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser @powerHouseArena! The camaraderie is visceral….

Here we go! The epic #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 15:12:00 -0500

#SandyHatesBooks...what a line up!

Rick Moody & friend singing disaster songs....

John Bemelmans Marciano & Fiona Robinson sign for a big fan after their reading

#SandyHatesBooks-->now #BrooklynLOVESBooks!

Here we go! The epic #SandyHatesBooks fundraiser @powerHouseArena 11/17/12.

Photo

Fri, 09 Nov 2012 14:23:00 -0500

Sandy Hates Books Fundraiser Teaser

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 15:55:13 -0500

Our fundraiser is coming together! Thanks to all who have volunteered time or donated books/artwork or spread the word or are simply planning on being here. Feeling so grateful for all the love and support from readers across the country.

There is no other way to say it: book people are the best people.

Also, Jennifer Egan is reading! And Paul Auster! And Joseph O’Neill! And many, many more!

Save the date (11/17, 12-9pm) and get your party hats ready NYC. This thing is on.

(Okay, so that was three teasers.)