What’s also been fun is following all of the hoopla over in the UK. The Guardian newspaper launched their own “official” Charles Dickens at 200 mini-site late last year as a place to aggregate all of the pieces they’re putting together. It’s worth checking out, but only after you to their archives section to see how the paper covered Dickens way back in 1912 on the 100th anniversary of the author’s birth. It’s neat to be able to compare the thinking and statements.

In keeping with the self-published push, they have also invited Liz Reed, of the Birmingham Arts Journal, to lead a 90-minute discussion/orientation for people wanting to get published. The event is called “Every Writer Needs an Editor“. It is free, but they’re asking that you click through that link to reserve a spot, so they can make sure they have enough seats.

UPDATE : OverDrive has released a statement saying that the library system will work with WhisperSync to push notes, bookmarks, etc. to the ebook if you buy it or check it out again. But you still can only download library ebooks via WiFi or the USB cable. /stop/

News broke today that Amazon officially started letting people, in select parts of Washington state, check out and read library books on their Kindles. This program is in partnership with OverDrive, which is a good move I think, but Amazon should have worked harder to integrate. For starters, they’re wrapping all of the ePubs in their proproetary .tpz format. Whatever. But the “ugh” part really kicks in during checkout.

Checking out JCLC books via the OverDrive app is a painless one, once you get the Adobe DRM straight. But Amazon has added a couple more clicks and a couple more steps to the process. So to read library books on your Kindle you:

1. log in to your library
2. check out book
3. which take you to Amazon.com where you have to log in there
4. check out book there which lets you download the file
5. hook your Kindle up via USB, drag and drop the Kindle library book

Now I don’t live in Seattle and have yet to do this myself. I’m very thankful to the Seattle Times crew and their detailed photos and coverage.

I am not a software engineer and I’m sure it’s very hard to get the big independent systems to work together on something as complicated as checking out files that need to expire. But it’s Amazon! If anyone has the customer-centered focus, skills and dollars, to bring harmony to the library>>OverDrive>>Kindle>>library cycle, it’s them.

No word yet on when the rest of the country might get the service, but no doubt Kindle users will be very glad to have access to their library’s ebook collections, no matter how cumbersome the checkout process gets.

It caps out at $10. So if you have $11 in fines, you will need to bring 10 cans and $1. For that you’ll get your overdue library fines erased, help some people in need and get a warm smile from a friendly librarian.

An acceleration from .4% to 10.2% and 4.6% to 26.6%, in only a year’s time, is a crazy thing to wrap my mind around. I hope everyone in ANY kind of publishing is cranking out new ideas to respond to what and how readers want to read.

Also, I should mention that BookScan covers about 75% of the shops out there and they do not yet track ebook sales. So any comparison or shift in consumer behavior is guessing based on their data.

A limited selection of books will be available, including best sellers, classics, beach reads, children’s literature and staff picks. (The pair plan to add e-books by December). Free wi-fi will also be on hand.

The article says they plan to open mid to late June. It sound a little more coffee shop than bookstore but I hope they get the support they need to take their “limited” selection of books and grow it. Though, they may need more space in there, huh?

And no doubt they’re looking to survive their first few months doing what they’ve been doing. So if they keep the coffee customers coming back then the book sales are sure to follow.

I hear the folks over in Monroeville, AL are pretty excited about this and are already planning ways to corner the market on the Peck stamp. On the 29th, they are hosting a ‘stamp release party’ and debuting their new postmark proclaiming Monroeville as the “Literary Capital of Alabama”.

I haven’t seen a price yet, but it seems that the limited premium print run/edition run will be available overseas, in January and will include just three women’s styles.

First, Vestavia Hills library has shut down as they are moving to their new building (slated to open in early-November) so they are toting books outside to a tent and selling what they can. It’s being organized by volunteers, so they start selling sometime between 9a-10a and stop sometime around 6p. It all depends on their help. But be prepared to stay. There is no organization. So a child’s book will be stacked on a business book sitting next to a computer programming text book. But if you love to sort through new and dusty books. This is for you. They bring out new boxes every couple of hours, so the selection changes.

Ex-library books (hardback and paperback) are $.50. Donated hardbacks are $1 and donated paperbacks are $.50. Magazines are $.10. You can also pay $5 and fit as much as you can into a grocery sack.

The sale started yesterday and runs through all of next week.

Second, is the Whistle Stop Festival, out in Irondale. The library, has been culling their collection and taking donations for weeks and is setting up tables alongside the usual festival fair, from 9a-4p. I have not heard of the prices yet, but if they follow their usual price schedule, hardbacks will be a dollar and paperbacks will be $.50. Traditionally, they have not made a distinction between donated and ex-library.

Third, this weekend 2nd & Charles (which BBJ mentioned earlier this week) is supposed to open Saturday morning. The Books-A-Million crew had an invite-only preview party last night. I didn’t get to go, but have seen some photos. It’s in a vacated Goody’s department store and is massive. Very cool looking, too. I haven’t seen prices yet, but they will be buying books, cd’s, dvd’s, videogames, etc. all day, every day too. Hopefully they will make their open date.

I have fun this weekend and do tell about any loot you score!

***************

This is the sign that greets you as soon as you enter the Books-A-Million on Highway 31 in Hoover:

Last week this location started buying used books, cd’s, dvd’s and video games. They only accept used books and such between 11a and 5p and they only pay cash.

I can’t find any information on their website about this new program (which I’m guessing is spurred by the success of their selling “used library books”). But here are the bullet points off of the flyer at the store:

1. We pay cash for your books, printed or recorded merchandise, and computer games.
2. We cannot make an offer until we see the merchandise.
3. Each buy is different and will be evaluated individually.
4. We will make you an offer based on: a) Supply and Demand b) Condition
5. No appointment is needed – we buy daily, between 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
6. Sellers must remain in the store until merchandise evaluation is completed.
7. Sellers under 18 years old must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
8. We may ask to see valid proof of purchase for the items you sell to us.
9. State and local ordinances regarding buying and selling used merchandise must be observed.
10. We reserve the right to decline to buy merchandise.
11. Government-issued identification required on any merchandise sold.

I have no idea if other locations are trying this too or where else this program has been rolled out too. I wonder how many other book sellers will expand their store models in this way?  And I have no idea what the going rate for a used Harry Potter or Steven King book is these days either, but I do have a ton of cd’s I wouldn’t mind unloading, if they’ll take them. Maybe, what… ten cents a piece? Who knows.

So if you have some books or cd’s or dvd’s to sell, take them over and see what they offer. And let us know about your experience. We’d love to know if it’d be worth our while to throw some of our stuff in a grocery sack and head down 31.