The Bookseller of Kabul

Author : Asne Seierstad Number of Pages : 320 Publisher : Back Bay Books List Price : $12.99 Amazon Price : $3.98 Used Price : $0.71

Product Description

Customer reviews

Great Book! by .. msdc25 (Washington D.C.)
This is an interesting read. I found it not only enjoyable but informative about issues in middle east culture. I don't think that saying it shows the problems with Islam is accurate. Rather, the culture in that region of the world is sexist and stunts the ability of these nations to prosper intellecutally and economically.

Insightful look into Afghan culture by .. A. Bonanno ()
The Bookseller of Kabul truly gives a representation of an Afghan family, shortly after 9/11. The book provides information that may never have been glimpsed had the author not lived with the family. Truly an intriguing, sad, shocking, emotional book. I highly recommend it.

Insightful and Compelling by .. R. S. Harbison (Tacoma, WA)
I read this book early into my year as an American military advisor in Afghanistan. I found that the picutre of Afghan family life that it painted was very helpful in understanding the lives of the Afghans I dealt with every day. Because of the insight, I felt better able to communicate and build rapport with my Afghan friends. The book discusses frankly the disadvantages of women in a cultural context. If the Global War on Terror is a campaign to win hearts and minds, then this book is a must read in order to understand the hearts and minds of the people on the front lines.

Honest and candid account by .. Gary Selikow (Great Kush)
Asne Seirstadt writes an honest and candid account of her four months of life with an Afghan family, following the fall of the Taliban and the end of the reign of terror they subjected the Afghan people to.

She spent these months with the family of Sultan Khan who- for twenty years-defied the tyranny of the Communists and then the Taliban by selling books on the black market because the tyrants did not allow books except those which subscribed to their narrow minded and sick ideas.

Afghanistan was a great, progressive and vibrant country during the reign of King Zahir Shah who was overthrown by Mohammed Daoud Khan in 1973 after which followed 5 years of instability and then the sheer hell of Communist repression followed shortly thereafter by the Taliban's reign of terror.

During the 70s already underdressed women risked being shot in the legs or having acid sprayed in their faces by the fundamentalists.
After the civil war broke out more and more women had to cover up. After the Taliban seized power all female faces disappeared from the streets of Kabul.

My heart really hurts for these women and girls who suffered so under the Islamists and had to be hidden away and obey through fear.
And I point an accusing finger at all those leftists who claim to believe in feminism but defend excesses Should women in these countries got less rights than what you people take for granted?

Even after the Taliban were overthrown women and girls feared going out alone or dressing as they pleased, because of the residue of terror that the Taliban had left behind.

During the Taliban era one of the most hated buildings in Kabul was the "Department for the Promotion of Virtue and Extermination of Sin". Here women who had walked unescorted by a male relative, or who wore makeup under their burkas, and men who cut their beards, languished under torture and many died.
Before that these had once bee the headquarters of the equally brutal Soviets.
No wonder Leftists and Islamo-Fascists love each other so much. They both have the mania for cruelty and destruction and the death impulse.



Asne Seirstadt witnessed the destruction and death left behind by the Taliban.
The Taliban engaged in ethnic cleansing of the Tajiks and other minorities in northern Afghanistan, raising entire villages to the ground and poisoning water wells and blowing water pipes and dams (vital for survival in these dry plains) before they withdrew.

Seirstadt masterfully covers the sights, sounds and smells of Afghanistan from the cramped life in people's houses where extended families lived together to the bazaars and the 'hamman', the massive communal bath, where thousands of women cleaned themselves and their children on certain days of the week.

Seirstadt captures much of Afghanistan's history and life and culture in these pages.
It is an excellent book for those who want to learn about this country.

An interesting portrayal of life in Kabul at the beginning of the 21st century by .. Helen Simpson (Leeds, England)
Seierstad begins the book with a foreword in praise of Sultan Khan, the bookseller she meets in Kabul. I (or the reader) is maybe expecting a warm account of family life amongst the unsettled times in Kabul during 2002, and after the terrorist attacks in America. Alongside that, a little history of Afghanistan and the political environment that saw soldiers burning his books in the street.

However...what we get is a disturbing account of everyday life for that particular family and others who are mentioned. The author tells us that this is not necessarily a picture of all Afghani families but a picture she gleaned from her stay with the Khans. It is clear however that there are many families that the women gossiped about who have a similar way of life.

It's sociologically interesting because Sultan's sons are a different generation and don't necessarily have the views of their father. They are are scared to go against him because he will disown them...and no matter what culture you are from it would hurt to be disowned by your family. Yet unlike more western cultures where you would remain in contact with some members of your family, the women in this account are so suppressed that they follow their husbands no matter what their own views.
It was sadly ironic to read of Leila's hard and unfair life to which she wakes every day "...to the sound of 'Allahu akhbar' - 'God is great'. A new day which smells and tastes like every other day: of dust."

How awful it must be to worry about things (the sex of an unborn baby, or an attraction to someone from the opposite sex) that are out of your control, for fear of how you or your children will be treated.

Although written in novel form, you are always aware that the people in the story, albeit with changed names, are very real.

Rebel Bookseller: How to Improvise Your Own Indie Store and Beat Back the Chains

Author : Andrew Laties Number of Pages : 320 Publisher : Vox Pop List Price : $14.95 Amazon Price : $8.93 Used Price : $5.85

Product Description

Customer reviews

Some Useful Information but Mostly a Bitter Pill by .. J. Knight (Portsmouth, VA United States)
I would have to strongly disagree with a previous reviewer who believes this is some kind of a masterpiece. This is basically an autobiography of a guy who owned a couple bookstores and thinks he is the Michael Jordan of Indie Bookstores. If he is so successful, why did his business fail? Paranoia sums up a good chunk of this dead wood, as the author thinks the chain stores stole most of their good ideas from him. He is very angry about this supposed fact but readily admits that he ripped off ideas from many others. He loves capitalism and making money until someone else is making money, then he thinks they should be regulated.

There are a few good tips for indie booksellers in here but nothing that you can't get off the ABA website of figure out with a bit of common sense. He is very much into events and PR and the back of the book is full of such information. I have met other indie booksellers who were more into being the center of attention and doing events than selling books. Most of them are now waiting tables...

not exactly a how-to, but inspirational and fun by .. Nicole (USA)
If you are planning on opening a bookstore and know nothing about the book trade, this book might not be as entertaining. If you have worked in the trade before, however, this book is both a quick, entertaining read and a wealth of information in the form of anecdotes and handy tidbits toward going it on your own. It won't give you a step-by-step guide to starting a bookstore, but then again if you wanted that you probably wouldn't be reading a book called "Rebel Bookseller." Laties' claims that he did everything first and the chains stole all the good ideas from him are a little wearing at times; then again, I can appreciate arrogance if it's justified and judging by his level of success both with bookstores and his book, obviously the guy knows what he's doing, so listen to him. Written passionately and optimistically, if nothing else this book will bolster your faith in indie bookstores and get you ready to do it yourself.

Rebel Bookseller: How to Improvise Your Own Indie Store and Beat Back the Chains by .. Brenda J. Medlam (Wichita, KS USA)
Very enlightening book about the bookselling industry and the giant chain stores. This is a must read for indie store owners, not just booksellers.

Masterpiece by .. Weiss (new york, NY)
Dear god this is good. I don't care if you know what a bookstore is, buy this immediately. I stayed up 3 nights finishing this brilliant work of literature.

Fighting Words by .. Andrew Laties (Amherst, MA, USA)
The review from Publishers Weekly, above, is pretty funny, considering that in "Rebel Bookseller" I make some not-so-charming comments about -- guess who -- Publishers Weekly! So, ahem, I really couldn't ask them for more. Why, in fact, on their very own website, this "Rebel Bookseller" review has even got a star!
[...]

However, here's a review from a more naturally sympa reader, Ramsay Kinaan of AK Press, who says:
"This is a phenomenal book. Laties has been in the trenches of bookselling and community organizing for the last 20 years. Herein you'll find part autobiography/memoir of the bookselling years (he's still doing it today), part history of the book industry, and part how-to guide to start, and succeed, in your own bookselling endeavors, even in the face of the competition from the chains and big conglomerate bastards. Laties is witty, opinionated for sure, impassioned, but eminently practical in both his desires for independent bookselling and how to actually do it effectively. As the man who almost invented in-store events, community outreach, and store mailings, he has a lot to share. Activists of all stripes, not just booksellers, can learn from this book. It made me laugh. It made me think. It inspired me. It'll do the same for you too."
[...]

Thanks, Brother!

Andy Laties
[...]

The Bookseller's Daughter

Author : Pam Rosenthal Number of Pages : 384 Publisher : Kensington List Price : $14.00 Amazon Price : $0.68 Used Price : $0.01

Product Description

Customer reviews

Fun to read by .. California Reader (San Jose, CA)
I enjoyed reading this book, as I have with the other 2 books the author has written. There were some challenges in tying together a few pieces of the book, and I stretched to make some storylines work. However, I really enjoyed the personalities of Marie-Laure and Joseph, and their love did prevail through very trying circumstances. I also felt that the author's style of writing and the flashbacks were interesting to read and kept the book flowing.

A Bit Ridiculous and Cliché by .. Barb Mechalke (in the lovely Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York)
I was sorely disappointed...I'm not sure what I expected...something believable perhaps. Unfortunately this novel reads like a sexually explicit episode of The Young and the Restless.

The characters are flat, the clichés are many and the murder mystery portion of the novel seems like a complete after thought. I have to admit that Rosenthal did a nice job with the backdrop, France 1783-1789.
But this story was overly focused on the explicit sex scenes between the main characters and falls flat with nearly every other aspect of the storytelling.

Engrossing, couldn't put it down! by .. Phyllis Sommer (Highwood, Illinois USA)
I didn't have high hopes for this book but I couldn't put it down! A great read, with nice historical details thrown in.

Wonderful and erotic... by .. ChicBookFiend (MA)
I've had this book on my to-read pile for almost a year and finally decided to give it a whirl. The Bookseller's Daughter sucked me in and didn't let go until its final page. This is the story of Marie-Laure Vernet, a young, passionate, bookish daughter of a bookshop owner who has a strong, profound connection with a book smuggler who turns out to be an aristocrat. She tends to his wounded leg when he enters her shop and meets him again after her father dies, loses the bookshop and is forced to work as a maid for an aristocratic family. The attraction is undeniable and Viscomte Joseph d'Auvers-Raimond decides to take her into his room every night and pass her off as his mistress so as to protect her from his father and brother, who cannot resist a pretty maid. At first, their nights together are nothing more than intellectual discussions about literature, politics and Joseph regaling Marie-Laure with tales of his adventures as a roguish libertine. But then their nights become passionate ones of sensual, erotic sex and development of loving feelings for one another. However, things soon get in the way -- marriage, aristocratic titles, murder and revenge being just a few of their many obstacles. There are various twists throughout the novel.

I agree with the reviewers that say that Marie-Laure and Joseph spend most of the novel apart. I did not mind that bit because it gave the story and its main characters seem like star-crossed lovers, which is refreshing in a romance novel. After all, we all more or less know that the protagonists will end up together, why not add a different flavor? I loved their love letters -- Joseph's erotic ones as well as Marie-Laure's intimate and loving ones. The letters were indeed romantic. As for the sex scenes, I thought they were very well written and scrumptiously erotic. The reviewer who said that the sex scenes were vulgar, trashy and full of F words must have read a different book. Then again, perhaps I am so used to reading books in which the authors don't bother to sugarcoat their sex scenes with G-rated euphemisms and instead choose a more uninhibited, bolder approach to erotic romance that the scenes in this book seem incredibly mild in comparison. The scenes are sensual, erotic and smoldering at times. The protagonists are great and Rosenthal did a wonderful job differentiating the commoners from the aristocrats and their friction during those times. The backdrop of France before the French Revolution was also great. However, there are some blatant anachronisms in this novel that were difficult to overlook. And the dialogue in the story sounded too modern at times, a common problem with historical romances. All in all, The Bookseller's Daughter is a curl-up-under-the-covers book that you'll want to give a whirl. I recommend it most highly...

mediocre by .. A. Smith (West Tisbury, MA USA)
While I enjoyed this book, I found it clumsy at times. In the first half, the two main characters have very little interaction with each other on-screen, which sometimes made it feel like nothing was really happening. Also, the story had a common problem of historical romances in which the characters are thoroughly (almost stereotypically) modern and don't fit their historical context. Both heroine and her love interest seemed a bit too uptight to be true, in their own ways (not sexually, though, the sex was all right). There were some small but jarring anachronisms in the setting, too. Otherwise, it was kind of a fun book.

The Booksellers Association's guide to starting and running a bookshop: An introduction to bookselling practice and organisation

Author : Malcolm Breckman Number of Pages : 256 Publisher : Malcolm Stewart Books Used Price : $12.25

Marden's Guide to Manhattan Booksellers

Author : William C. Marden Edition : 2nd Rev Number of Pages : 350 Publisher : City and Company List Price : $16.00 Used Price : $2.02

Product Description

Marden's Guide to Manhattan Booksellers is a comprehensive guide to almost 600 book dealers selling new, used, rare, and out-of-print books.

It includes addresses (with cross streets), phone and fax numbers, business hours, and subject specialties. It includes a separate index of more than 300 subject specialties--from "Accounting" to "Zoology"--plus an index of stores by neighborhood. In addition, it features a preface by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Arthur Miller.

Customer reviews

Still useful. by .. Martha R. Manno (Seekonk, MA)
This book is now very much out of date. The surprise is that it is still useful though less so than when new. Many of the stores have closed but some are still there; particularly the specialty stores. The book is fun to read, too. As a small publisher, it's a help to me to find those small, independent stores. Martha@littlepearpress.com