This is Where I Came In--Reflections on Little Bee Three Years Later.

If you've been following the blog since the beginning, you know that for the first six months, I was pretty obsessed with Little Bee. It was the last event hosted at the Schwarz Bookshop on Downer, and pretty much the last book at Schwartz where I led a charge to consolidate some major handselling. By the time the event happened, we had about eight people on staff who read the book. I even had a case of Little Bee quotes from around the country. I had fun!

With Little Bee, I did something I rarely do, which is read the manuscript. I guess now we're expected to read e-manuscripts--Jason just told me he's read two of them, though I've slacked on getting folks to write early reviews. And rarer than that, I actually really loved the manuscript. I find that when I read things very early, and there is no book jacket, and the type isn 't set, the experience for me isn't quite there. Honestly, that's one of those things I don't understand about reading ebooks; the enjoyment for me is partly in the package.

By reading the manuscript, I spent not one but two bookseller conventions (Great Lakes in the fall and Winter Institute in January) yammering about the book. I put the book in a lot of booksellers' hands, and then went back and did the same thing to customers.

We wound up having a very good event for this sort of breakout, early in the process, low thirties. I note that my hand-selling skills were nothing if not rusty. I really didn't know many of my customers yet and they really didn't trust me. And yet we wound up selling over 100 copies in hardcover, and though I had friends that could plow through 500 copies of non bestselling hardcovers, for me, 100 was amazing. It helped that in December, I was invited to go on Morning Edition with Susan Stamberg and my Little Bee conversation was the one featured on the air.

At the time, I was obsessed with showing the jackets for Cleave's novel as it was released in various countries. I wondered why the US and UK held firm on different titles--as you know it was called The Other Hand in the UK, though later editions show that Little Bee was likely the better title, as variations of this title were the preferred way to go, but not in Spanish, where they went in a completely different direction.

I wondered whether they would keep the beautiful hardcover jacket, or go in a more commercial direction it up the way they did for the UK paperback. I have to say I was rather shocked that they went with the original, but boy did it pop against everything else out there. It just goes to show that sometimes the best course of action is the unexpected. And haven't we all seen a lot of copycat jackets since?

Was I alone in my Little Bee love? Of course not--there were booksellers all over the country cheering the book on. And of course most people did not get events--I spoke several times to a suburban Chicago store that so desperately wanted Cleave to get to their store, but it just never happened.

And then the book broke out in paperback. At the time, Borders was really working on making these things happen, and like City of Thieves and A Reliable Wife (also books heavily blogged about on Boswell and Books), they found titles with handselling potential and worked them very aggressively. The rumor was that the booksellers were forced to upsell these books to everyone who came in, no matter what they wanted. It was surely successful at breaking books, but forced handselling comes at a price, both in your relationship with customers and also as a proprietor, with your booksellers.

We recently sold our 500th copy of Little Bee. And then the manuscript came for the next book. I know I should have read it right away, but other Boswell business got in the way.  When Jason got an an advanced copy of Gold with the tentative jacket, a striking yellow and black number that plays off of Little Bee and uses the classic optical illusion of a chalice that turns into two faces, I dug right in. But it's too early to write about that.

And now it was time to write our event proposal for Gold. We'll see how it goes. But how swell would it be for Cleave to return to Milwaukee this summer? Remember his Milwaukee winter video?

So now what happens? We wait! That's the way these proposals go.

We Love These Books--The Lonely Polygamist and Day for Night Display

One of the skills I have tried to master while being an independent bookseller is tenacity. Unlike mass merchants, as long as we have the desire to sell a book, the gift of time is on our side. We don't generally open big (The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest to the contrary), but we play for a long time, just like a classic art house movie theater (and what do you know, we are just blocks away from two, the Oriental and the Downer).

Little Bee came out last February, but we sold almost half our books in the fourth quarter. We didn 't discover last fall's Yarn until January, and it's selling for us much like a new release. The same for 1954's The Tortoise and the Hare (also released here in the fall). And The Power of Kindness has now been out for several years, and we've sold 100 times more books in its third year than in its first too (I love it because it sounds so dramatic, but really, we only sold one copy in its first two years)

That's why I'm not too worried that we've had the books for two months and we're just now putting up our dual display for The Lonely Polygamist and Day for Night. Now it's not like we haven't had the books on Boswell's Best and in our staff rec cases and in piles in various places--it's just that it took a while for me to get around to the special signage needed to do our full court Little Bee push.

Half court really, as the case is being shared. This is the same place where we did the Best Buddies case last spring and have periodically placed top 25 bestsellers lists. It's an odd case, but it is heavily shopped.

My goal is to sell 100 copies of each book. I thought Lonely P. would hit the bestseller list and be easier, but that's another thing it has in common with Middlesex--it hasn't cracked the top 15 of the New York Times, despite being comfortably in the top ten for independent bookstores.

In some ways, Day for Night has been a bit tougher as it is so difficult to describe. On the other hand, it's been so rewarding because not too many booksellers have jumped on the bandwagon. The thing about selling Reiken is, it's not enough to say you like it, you have to love it. In the end, it's definitely a "trust me" proposition.

Similarly, reviews have been coming slowly (nothing in either the daily or Sunday New York Times, even though I suspect that Janet Maslin would love this book) but the ones that have come in have been rather good, sometimes spectacular. I loved Julie Orringer's piece in the Washington Post, but that Joan Frank review in the San Francisco Chronicle I think best captured the essence of the book (shelf talker at left).

If you're a bookseller, I'd love to use your rec somewhere, maybe on the shelf talkers that we've come up with, maybe on a poster. Email me or just post a comment on this blog.

Oh, and if you're wondering whether it's all me, the answer is no. I've got 4-5 bookseller recommendations on both, and I didn't read one of our big pushes from last fall, The Magicians, now available in paperback. And there our books I've really loved that I never got traction on from other Boswellians. But that's for another post.

How Did Things Go This Week?

I'm a little too anxious today to come up with a cohesive post. We've got five offsites this week, and I've been at four of them. Find me tomorrow at the Women's Leadership Conference at the Pfister.

We've had a nice week wit The Tortoise and the Hare. I talked it up to two folks from the Jane Austen Society at the Library Literary Lunch, and today one of my favorite authors ordered a copy from us.

We had a mini-bookstore at the Wisconsin Club. In addition to the above-mentioned Tortoise, titles we sold in multiples included Yarn, Little Bee, and Murder on the Eiffel Tower. And Sue Miller hand-sold a few copies of Brian Morton's Starting Out in the Evening. I'm not sure why I brought that instead of Breakable You, but since it worked, I'm not questioning.

Miller's other recommendations:

The Privileges, by Jonathan Dee

Too Much Happiness, by Alice Munro

and

Blame, by Michelle Huneven, which is hard to find in hardcover right now, and releases in paperback May 25th. (Editor's Note: and by this I mean that the book was out of stock at our nearby wholesalers).

Miller's talk on The Lake Shore Limited was very well received! Thanks to all involved.

How the World Reacts to Day for Night, a Post About Translation Rights

It's almost time for Day for Night, my spring obession, to arrive. It's time to start posting.

About a year ago, when I was in my throes of Little Bee love, I did a post about the book's two titles, and the various jackets. It turns out the publishers' were correct--the two titles were appropriate for different markets. Or...the book was so good that you could call it Immigration Detention Center Story or Batman on the Beach and it still would have found its market.

That said, I thought the hardcover jackets for the US and UK versions for Little Bee/The Other Hand were quite similar in style. For the paperbacks, the visions diverged greatly. The US stayed the course with their beautiful artwork and bold color that popped that book off the shelf in a big way. The UK went with a more traditional paperback jacket--a photo of a boy on the beach. Both worked.

It's an interesting topic, and I could talk about international rights with just about every author and get some sort of insight, but surprisingly enough, it came up again with my new book obsession, Frederick Reiken's Day for Night. The book has started shipping!

I asked Mr. Reiken to talk a little about how foreign rights have gone for him.

"I can tell you that the foreign rights thing has always seemed pretty random in my case. My first novel, for instance, had German, Dutch, and Greek translations. You can see all the foreign covers on my web page and I still have no idea what those kayaking Eskimos are doing on the cover of the Greek version, but I've been told it's a good translation (by a Greek speaking person who still has no idea about the Eskimos).

"So far, with Day For Night, there are going to be Dutch and French translations, as well as editions in the U.K. and Australia. I'm told that these days there is sometimes more international action after the pub. date. Here's hoping -since I really thought more European countries would be interested. The book will be available throughout most European countries in English (the British edition, I think).

"What might amuse you is that the same house (Little Brown UK/Abacus Books) is doing both the U.K. and Australia editions, but they decided to go with two completely different covers - which you can also see on my web page (go to the "books" link and look on bottom right of the Day For Night page) both of which are radically different from the U.S. edition cover. I was told by the British publisher that Brit readers are cynical and don't like anything that might have spiritual connotations (i.e. the sunburst on the watery blue U.S. cover), and I suppose the Aussies will always like animals and motorcycles."

You might think these jackets represent three different books, but to me, they work on a continuum. The UK cover plays up the serious aspects of the novel, while the Australian cover emphasizes the playful ones. The American cover seems to try to balance them.

Still to come--why do the Dutch love Reiken so? It looks like his second novel, The Lost Legends of New Jersey, had trouble getting international publication, and not surprising, because of the place-centered aspect of the novel, which doesn't work outside of the international tourist destinations of New York, San Francisco, and a handful of other American locales. That said, there was still a Dutch edition.

A Conversation About Hardcovers, and Can I Just Get a Little Excited that Little Bee is #3 on the New York Times bestseller list?

I was at a dinner with some authors, and they wondered why American publishers are still doing hardcovers. I guess they haven't checked their royalty statement, as the average percentage for a hardcover is higher than the paperback (and that's on a more expensive book, to boot). (Hope I got this correct. It's hard being an expert of nothing who makes grand pronouncements).

There's no question that many publishers use the extra money they get from a hardcover to upgrade the quality of the hardcover. I've complained a bit before about see-through paper (and I will again, just watch me), which you almost never see on a hardcover. Crappy, newsprint paper on the trade paperback? I can't think of a better adverstisement for an ebook. Also, publishers usually build more marketing into the hardcover. A recent publicist, on hearing my go-between request for an author to tour in paperback, replied, "We don't do paperback tours."

There's another reason for a hard/soft publication. Publishers doing hard then soft get a second chance to launch a book. This was brought home to me by my dearest Little Bee exploding in paperback and hitting #3 on its paperback publication (officially for next Sunday but nowadays, the ranks get released fairly early), selling in one week (and that's just on Bookscan) about a third of the copies it sold for the life of the hardcover. I hadn't seen so much paperback advertising for a book in some time, but if this means a year on the bestseller list, it was a wise investment.

Hey, librarians loved the book too. Little Bee was picked as Santa Monica's "One City, One Book" program. And I want to give a thank you to Simon and Schuster for not rushing out the paperback. A third of our hardcover sale for this book that came out in February was during the Christmas season. Oh, and can I also thank you for the beautiful paperback jacket that totally pops off the shelves? You can have great sales without a woman's headless body*, imagine that!

Another publisher that used the hardcover to set up the paperback was Algonquin with A Reliable Wife. Though it had very strong sales in some markets, it never cracked the top 15. In trade paperback, it reached #1 on the New York Times.

Are those huge paperback sales from indie bookstores? We're only a tiny part. But did independent bookstores help set up the book in hardcover? Absolutely.

*Not a Chuck Palahniuk headless body, but body parts shown close up with the rest of the body edited off the page. It's very hot in book jackets, particularly trade paperbacks, and nobody's given me a suitable explanation.

How Many Miles Should You Drive to See Chris Cleave in Paperback?

I think a two-hour drive each way is definitely worth it to see Chris Cleave. Why? Two reasons.

1. Little Bee is that good.

2. Chris Cleave is that charming.

Someone asked me why we weren't hosting Chris for the paperback. It makes sense to me--I'm already on board for the book. I want the book to break out everywhere.

I am so, so, so, so glad that Simon and Schuster went with the hardcover jacket for the paperback. It it so beautful, so different from anything out there, and the orange so pops against everything else. And orange is very hot. I'm sure there was temptation to have a boy with his arms spread out at the edge of the beach, or a woman with her hard cut off the page, but don't forget, folks like to trade up. And just in case you forgot the the book can be very sweet too, there's the picture of Charlie dressed like Batman inside.

Little Bee was selected as a Indie Bound selection for February by the booksellers in the American Booksellers Association. Very few paperback reprints that were also Indie Next in hardcover repeat in paperback. Alas, it looks like it might have a 2/16 laydown. If that's the case, it should have been featured in March.

And yes, we passed the 100 book mark in sales.

Here's the tour cities. I'm glad to say the links held as I copied the schedule from Cleave's site.

Tuesday Feb 16BERKELEY, CA...Catherine, I really think you'd enjoy this.
Wednesday Feb 17SAN FRANCISCO, CA...Todd, don't miss out on Cleave.
Thursday Feb 18SAN DIEGO, CA
Friday Feb 19LOS ANGELES, CA
Saturday Feb 20SANTA MONICA, CA
Sunday Feb 21PHOENIX, AZ...Merrill, you must go. Bring your friends!
Monday Feb 22SALT LAKE CITY, UT
Tuesday Feb 23DENVER, CO...Jocelyn, I insist you attend.
Wednesday Feb 24CHICAGO, IL...I have an event at night, but could I visit during the day?
Thursday Feb 25PHILADELPHIA, PA
Friday Feb 26PRINCETON, NJ...Nina, this one's for you.
Saturday Feb 27GREENWICH, CT...I'm in Boston visiting my Mom and I considered driving.
Sunday Feb 28DARIEN, CT
Monday March 1NEW YORK, NY...Rachel, this is like 5 blocks from your house.
Tuesday March 2ATLANTA, GA...Brian, how could you pass this up?
Wednesday March 3LOUISVILLE, KY...You're going, Johanna, right?
Thursday March 4 ST LOUIS, MO
Friday March 5WASHINGTON, DC...Eric, you are missing something if you do not attend.
Friday March 20WESTBURY, NY
Saturday March 21CINCINNATI, OH...Bob, this should be great.
Monday March 22MIAMI, FL
Tuesday March 23HOUSTON, TX
Wednesday March 24AUSTIN, TX
Thursday March 25 - Friday March 26DALLAS, TX
Saturday March 27DALLAS, TX

That's a lot of Dallas!

Nicole Kidman has the film rights. And that's pretty much all I have to say.

Listen to Carmichael's Bookseller Carol Besse (OK, and Others) on NPR's "On Point"

I was driving around his week with the HHR that I rented so we could do four offsites this week. It also got me to Fox Wake Up News on Tuesday (and no, I don't know how to link to my interview) and to Alverno College, where I picked up the sign for our Jeannette Walls event (January 9th, 2 PM).

On "On Point", Carol Besse was discussing some of her favorite books of the year. Hey, I know who she is! Besse is one of the principals of Carmichael's Books of Louisville. Their two stores are must-sees for any book lover visiting that city. You just wouldn't believe how they pack such interesting stuff into such a small space. I've only been to the city twice but I think I went to one store or the other every single day I was there.

It's a really interesting segment, also including David Ulin of the Los Angeles Times and Laura Miller of Salon. But I'm a bookseller, so I'm most interested in Bessie's Best:

Nonfiction:

- Chris Hedges, The Empire of Illusion
- David Grann, The Lost City of Z

- T. R. Reid, The Healing of America

- Michael Sandel, Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do

- David Small, Stitches: A Memoir

Fiction:

- Chris Cleave, Little Bee

- Muriel Barbery, The Elegance of the Hedgehog

- Tania James, Atlas of Unknowns

- Lydia Peelle, Reasons for and Advantages of Breathing

- Lorrie Moore, A Gate at the Stairs

Listen to the broadcast here.

And please visit Carmichaels web site!

Interview Today w/Mark Concannon on Fox 6 Wake-Up News; Snow Strategy is to Panic & Reschedule David Wagner's American Wildlife Art

This morning I was on Fox 6's Wake Up News, talking to Mark Concannon about some holiday ideas. Here's what I recommended:

1. Little Bee, by Chris Cleave (shocker!)

2. Ad Hoc at Home, by Thomas Keller

3. The Captain Frederick Pabst Mansion, by John C. Eastberg (reminder, our event is on Wednesday, December 16th, 7 PM)

4. Otis, by Loren Long

5. Raymond Carver, by Carol Sklenicka

A big thank you to Mark and WITI for having me on, particularly on a day when everyone is glued to their TV sets for updates on the big storm. Maybe some folks out there will get some ideas. And yes, the implication is that we have copies of Ad Hoc at Home; I know that many stores have sold out. If you got here by search engine, our phone number is (414) 332-1181. You can order on our web site, but you must "hold for pickup" and we will call you back to get your credit card number.

I should have had this totally set up. My apologies.

***

Speaking of big storms, ours is predicted for late today and tomorrow. We'll probably stay open until the customers disappear, and we're planning to open a bit late tomorrow, around 11 AM. (Editor's Note: Milwaukee got slush, snow was further north and west. We'll probably open regular hours).

We're rescheduling our event for David Wagner's American Wildlife Art for next Monday, December 14th, at 7 PM. Read more about David's book here. (Editor's note: we did get a handful of people, all of whom were local and were happy to come back next Monday...I hope).

Meanwhile, we're probably a bit bored. Give us a call at (414) 332-1181 or use our general order email address at info@boswellbooks.com. You can also always email me at daniel@boswellbooks.com.

Yesterday I got an email back from Pat, who was a bit shocked that I replied to a note she sent me about my appearance on Susan Stamberg's book segment on NPR's Morning Edition. The only stops me from replying to all real (that is, all those that don't promise me a million dollars) emails is my disorganization.

***

A big apology to Carol S., with whom I missed having coffee. In my panic, I showed up at Fox yesterday (!), having mixed up the two appointments. It had to happen eventually, and I'm shocked it's not more often. Anyway, thank you for understanding, particularly because it had to do with a service gaffe on our part. This turn of events doesn't exactly make things better.

I Got to Talk to Susan Stamberg and Everyone Listened in on the Conversation

Here's the Link to the Indie Bookstore Holiday Pick Roundup. You can listen to me recommend Little Bee, as if you haven't heard me recommend it before. I've also got my other favorite books to talk about--hope I didn't make to many factual errors.

Needless to say, I was a little starstruck about the whole experience. And not just about Ms. Stamberg, though let's just say I am still a bit overwhelmed by those kinds of interactions. No, I was sort of starstruck at being grouped with regulars Lucia Silver and Rona Brinlee.

Especially Rona Brinlee of the Book Mark in Atlantic Beach, Florida. I still remember her 2008 piece where she talked up Wrack and Ruin and City of Thieves, books that are familiar to folks who shop Boswell regularly because I always want to talk about them. This year's book that she hyped that I'm obsessed with was Jonathan Tropper's This is Where I Leave You...except with everything going on, I didn't read it yet.

But Rebecca in our store loved it and my sister Merrill loved it and Dave loved it at Next Chapter. For me, that's an equation for sure-fire pleasing.

My next visit to Southern California is definitely including a pilgrimage to Studio City. And if I were living in Florida, I'd be driving hours to visit the Book Mark. Hint to everyone I know who lives in Florda.

No, I Haven't Forgotten About Little Bee.

So I'm talking to my excoworker Nancy B., a Brookfield stalwart whose daughter now lives in our neighborhood and found us located close enough to Beans and Barley* to pay a joint visit.

We're talking about books I love, books I think Nancy would love, and we come across my ever-moving display of Little Bee. Hurray, a sale means I'm one step closer to my personal goal of 100 copies sold in hardcover (the store's at about 63.)

But today I'm tongue-tied? What do I do? I invite Nancy over to watch Green Apple Books promo video when it was their book of the month. She's convinced!

Now they are having a book vs. Kindle smackdown. So here's the link, if you haven't been following it.

***

Brian, one of the Simon and Schuster regional managers, visited the store this past week. You may know I have been panicking about the paperback cover. I'm positive I'm not going to like it because there's not way they'd keep this one, and what could live up to it? I was sure they'd go mass merch on it, but he says no. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but still suggesting folks go with the hardcover.

Listen to Chris Cleave on Today's Lake Effect on WUWM

Mitch Teich interviews Little Bee author Chris Cleave on WUWM's Lake Effect. Listen to why so many booksellers have fallen in love with this author and his new novel. There is a bit of a spoiler alert here--there are a few details discussed here that I've chosen to keep from potential readers.

Link to Chris Cleave's Milwaukee video

Thanks to everyone who came out to see Chris Cleave in our strangely localized snowstorm. We're up to 49 copies sold. I'd love to say tomorrow that we are at 50 (note a few days later--we're at 54. Hurray!). Maybe this video will convince you to come out and buy a copy.

Tonight is Yiyun Li at Shorewood, 7 PM.

Just One More "Little Bee" Note Before Monday's Event

Nowadays newspapers schedule reviews from big publishers around their on-sale date. I've been despondent because the American critics don't seem to be rallying around Little Bee the way international critics and American booksellers have. Finally a few breaks:

Sarah L. Courteau in the Washington Post compares Cleave to Ian McEwan and says "Little Bee will blow you away."

People Magazine gives Cleave four stars as the weekly People Pick, praising it as a "stunning work" with mixing "wry humor" with "heartbreak and hope." I think they wait a week to post online, so that you buy the magazine.

For those folks who aren't Milwaukeeans who follow this blog (Hi Mom! Actually she has trouble with the cable box), here's where else Cleave is appearing...

Milwaukee, WI, March 2 at 7pm: Event at Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop
Ann Arbor, MI, March 3 at 7pm: Event at Borders, 612 E Liberty
Seattle, WA, March 4 at 7pm: Event at University Bookstore
Seattle, WA, March 5 at 7pm: Event at Third Place Books
Santa Barbara, CA, March 6 at 7pm: Event at Chaucer’s Books
Santa Monica, CA, March 8 at 3pm: Event at Diesel Bookstore
Portland, OR, March 9 at 7.30pm: Event at Powell’s City of Books
Danville, CA, March 10 at 7pm: Event at Rakestraw Books
Capitola, CA, March 11 at 7.30pm: Event at Capitola Book Café
Corte Madera, CA, March 12 at 7pm: Event at Book Passage

Cleave states in his blog that the East coast is next, especially if momentum builds and crowds show up at the events.

Did you notice we are the first event? I'm plotzing. We've got 40 books. If we sell out (I know, I'm dreaming big), don't worry, I've got a backup plan as this schedule is filled with bookseller friends. We'll get your book signed (personalized or not) at one of the stores later on the tour and then mail the carton back to Downer Avenue.

If I Said I Read "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," Would You Point Me to the Loo?--What's WIth the Two Titles for "Little Bee"?

Why do books change titles when published abroad? For years, publishers bought rights, and they probably figured that they knew what title was best for their market. Perhaps the book was called I Left my Knickers in the Loo in Great Britain and that just didn't work stateside.

Traditionally this just didn't matter. The world was not flat, and we all couldn't order books that easily from other countries. Lately though, I think this causes more problems. When you're searching for a book, it's a bit confusing. Why is this still happening?

And if there's a movie version that's released internationally, what do you do then? In the Harry Potter example above, the film was released under two titles, and the audio of scenes were edited to refer to both the "philosopher's stone" and "sorceror's stone."

With Zoe Heller's last novel, the answer was to change the name of the book again. It was originally released in Great Britain as Notes on a Scandal. The American title became What was She Thinking? When the movie came out again, the book was renamed Notes on a Scandal. Here are a couple more notes on Zoe Heller:

1) We have some bargain copies of Notes on a Scandal left. It's a great deal at $6.99--the book was shortlisted for the Man Booker prize, for goodness sake. You can't order it on our web site but you can stop by and pick one up, or reserve a copy by phone or email.

2) Her new novel The Believers is scrumptuous. It should be out in March. Expect a full-blown, enthusiastic posting on this one.

A good example of a book that was helped by a title change was Linda Olsson's Let Me Sing You Gentle Songs. There's no question that Astrid and Veronika is simply catchier. The title went on to be used for most subsequent publications.

Well, what do you know? Chris Cleave's book also has two titles, and just like with Olsson's (did I mention for the hundredth time she's appearing at our Mequon shop on March 27th?), the American publishers chose to go with the name of the character Little Bee as the title for Cleave's new novel.

What did he think about that? Let's ask him!

Daniel: Whose idea was it to have two titles? How did the publishers explain to you that one idea was better for the US and the other for the UK?

Chris: Actually both are big improvements on my original title for the novel, which was The Developing World. One of my publishers rang me up and said: “Which part of A NOVEL’S TITLE MUST NOT MAKE IT SOUND LIKE A GEOGRAPHY TEXT BOOK is confusing you?” I thought that was nicely put. In the end I like both the titles we came up with. The Other Hand is a good title because it speaks to the dichotomous nature of the novel, with its two narrators and two worlds, while it also references Sarah’s injury.

Little Bee is a good title too, because the novel is really Little Bee’s story, so it’s a straightforward and an honest title. Also I like it because it sounds brighter and more approachable – and that was my aim with this novel after all: to write an accessible story about a serious subject.

The titles weren’t chosen because it was thought, “Oh, the Americans will like this, and the British and the Australians will like that.” It was more about the personal taste of my respective editors. I like the fact that the novel has two titles. I like it when two apparently divergent choices are simultaneously right. I like complexity. While we’re on the subject, I like my name. I think “cleave” might be unique in having two synonyms that are antonyms of each other.

Daniel: It looks like despite the title, you used two very different jackets, but they seem to be by the same artist. True?

Chris: I see what you mean - they’re both outrageously orange, and they are both very elegant in my opinion. The US jacket was drawn by Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich, a supremely gifted designer and typographer, who has among his many achievements a book called Men of Letters in which he recreates the faces of the famous writers of history using lovingly calligraphed letters. He’s also made a book of zoo animals formed entirely from the “Bembo” typeface. His website at http://www.devicq.com/ is a thing of beauty.

The UK jacket was designed by the head of my London publisher’s art department, a genius and such a team player that he refused to take credit for it. The jacket had gone through several incarnations, and it still wasn’t right, and it had to be printed on Monday morning, and the man had a flash of inspiration and came in over the weekend and drew it to perfection.

The interview ends here, but I have a bit more to say (shocking).

There are so many jackets for the book that my head is spinning. The book is being published as Little Bee in Canada, but the rights are held by Random House Canada, not Simon and Schuster. It has a different jacket.

In addition, the paperback of the UK edition (the book came out in cloth there last year) was going to be the hardcover in a calmer shade of blue, but the new jacket seems to be that standard inspirational child picture that seems to be all over trade paperbacks of late. Sadly, if I saw that picture, I would have a bit of trouble picking the book up; it just wouldn't speak to me.

Just another reason to buy the book in hardcover, I guess.

Don't forget, the event is March 2nd at Downer Avenue, 7 PM.

The First of Many Things to Say About Little Bee

A year and a half ago I read an advanced copy of a book for which I had boundless enthusiasm. It sure was an uphill battle getting reads, and in the end, our hardcover sales were disappointing. The book was The White Tiger. It turned out to be a pretty good book after all--it was awarded the Man Booker Prize.

If at first you don't succeed, try again. In fact, I'm trying even harder. In the past I shunned manuscripts. I just didn't think I got the best reading experience I could out of the book. There were several times I read a book very early on, and there were pages missing, or I later learned that entire swaths of plot were changed.

The rules keep changing. With web 2.0 and electronic distribution, independent bookstores need to be further out in front of the pack, chiming in when we think a book is great, and perhaps sometimes even offering criticism. I still believe I enjoy the experience of the finished book or reader's copy more; that's why when I read pages on a book that blow me away, I'm even more impressed.

Last fall I read just such a book that had me gushing. It's called Little Bee, and it's finally published. Simon and Schuster used some of my bookseller feedback when they did a galley mailing to member stores in the American Booksellers Association. At least one bookseller went to the marketing person and accused her of bribing me. She did not. And I stand by my gush.

One of my sales reps took my advice, read it, and was so over-the-top excited by this book, she called me from the road at night and left me a message that I wish I knew how to save. Alas, it's gone forever. Then Jason our buyer (he's following me to Boswell Book Company) read it. Then Lanora, our Mequon manager (the new proprietor of Next Chapter Bookshop). Both loved it.

By the time I got to Winter Institute, that bookseller education conference, the book made the Indie Next top 20 for February, recommended by the esteemed bookseller Valerie Koehler of Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston. The reads had been plentiful, and were about seven to one enthusiastically postive. Still, there were some naysayers--see my post on Cutting for Stone for why that happens. Oh, and if you read that post, you know I'm eating a bit of paper.

I said that Little Bee was the kind of book that could be a Man Booker shortlist, and guess what? It was nominated for the other big British prize, the Costa award, formerly the Whitbread. I have so much to say about this book that I'm saving it for other postings. For goodness sake, I haven't even mentioned what it is about.

The author is coming to our Downer Avenue shop to discuss his novel on Monday, March 2nd, at 7 PM. It's not a large tour, and this is his only stop in this area--no Chicago or Madison. Much like Linda Olsson's tour (hey, she's coming again for her new book, to Mequon on March 27th), this is pretty amazing. And we haven't even sold 2000 books yet.

More posts to come. Meanwhile, read Chris Cleave's blog. And show your support for Schwartz and the future Boswell Book Company by taking a chance on this book. This is what independent booksellers are for, helping you find a book that will rock your world.

Just an aside. Though it's hardly a copy, I think the cover treatment, which by the way I think is beautiful, is referencing What is the What. Hey, if Cleave could pick up just a fraction of Eggers' sales, he'd have quite the hit.