If You Missed our Event with Danny Caine on Friday...

… don’t worry, because you can still watch it here.

It was a really interesting discussion which touched on pretty much every aspect of Danny’s brilliant book, How To Resist Amazon and Why. We think it’s crucial reading for these times.

(Also, we know that if you click on the link to the book the website will tell you that the title is presently unavailable - but we have copies of the book in the shop and if you’d like a copy, just drop us a line and we’ll take care of you.)

Danny Caine!

You may have noticed that there aren’t many Skylark events going on right now - that’s because the Unbound Book Festival is in full flow and is putting on two events a week, which is giving everyone pretty much all the literary online goodness they need. (It’s been a stunning program so far, by the way.)

That said, we’ve just added an event for early April that we’re really looking forward to. Danny Caine, who in addition to being one of our favorite poets is also the owner of Raven Book Store in Lawrence, Kansas, has been an outspoken critic of the seemingly unstoppable Goliath of the bookselling world: Amazon. In HOW TO RESIST AMAZON AND WHY, he lays out the case for shifting our personal money and civic investment away from global corporate behemoths and to small, local, independent businesses. It’s a funny, sharp, essential book, and everyone should read it. Danny will be in conversation with Alex - for more details click here. Or you can go directly to the (free!) registration page by clicking here.

The fun starts at 7:00 p.m. CST on Friday, April 9. See you there?

Scholastic Parents' Night - February 10 at 6:00 p.m.!

Skylark Bookshop is excited to offer a free virtual event to our customers who are also parents: Scholastic Parents Night: Keeping Kids Engaged as Readers on Wednesday, February 10 at 6pm.  

At this event, a panel of Scholastic authors, editors, and education experts will answer your questions on how to engage kids with books, build their skills, and grow their confidence. The panel includes:

• Moderator John Schu - Lecturer at Rutgers University, Ambassador of School Libraries for Scholastic, host of the Facebook show Book Joy Live, and the author of the popular blog Watch. Read. Connect. 

• Pam Allyn: Co-Author of Every Child a Super Reader and Founder of LitWorld

• Andrea Davis Pinkney - Vice President and Executive Editor, Award-Winning Author 

• Phil Falco - Creative Director (Graphix)

• Malcolm Mitchell - Author of My Very Favorite Book in the Whole Wide World, Founder of Share the Magic Foundation

• Ernest Morrell:Co-author of Every Child a Super Reader and Director for the Center for Literacy Education at the University of Notre Dame

• Lauren Tarshis - Author of the I Survived series, Publisher of Scholastic Classroom Magazines 

Attendees who visit Skylark Bookshop after the event will receive a goodie bag (on a first come, first serve basis), and all attendees will receive digital activities, brochures and more! 

You can register here.

And here’s the Scholastic recommended booklist, which includes books that will be discussed in the event, as well as other great spring titles.

We hope you’ll join us!

... And we're back.

After a fun few hours of fumigating, wiping, scrubbing, and cleaning, we are back in business today. We’ll be open our usual (Covidian) business hours of 10 to 6 today.

We’re very grateful to everyone who has written to express concern and good wishes. We are following all CDC protocols and keeping everyone safe. Those affected are staying home and those of us still standing are ready to help you find your next brilliant book!

Closed for COVID - January 15

We’re sorry to report that one of our beloved staff members has tested positive for COVID-19.

As soon as we learned the news yesterday we shut the shop and announced on social media. We’re so very grateful to everyone who has been kind enough to write and express their concern and well wishes. Y’all are wonderful.

The good, and most important, news is that the person’s symptoms are minor and we have all extremities crossed that things will remain that way.

Those staff members who qualify as “close contacts” to the employee in question are self-isolating and will be taking a test at the appropriate juncture, once the requisite period of time has passed. We miss then already and send them our best. (At least they all have plenty of good things to read while they stay home.)

In accordance with CDC guidelines, the shop is closed today. Tomorrow morning we will perform a thorough cleaning of all surfaces and then we plan to open as usual at 10:00 a.m. Those employees who will be working are of course perfectly safe to do so. That said, we are down several key folks and will be operating with a much-reduced staff for quite a while, so please be patient with us!

Stay safe, everyone!

New Event! Andromeda Romano-Lax discusses "Annie and the Wolves," Wednesday, January 17

We’re VERY excited to welcome to the Skylark online world Andromeda Romano-Lax, who will be discussing her fantastic new novel, Annie and the Wolves. It’s an electrifying novel that explores female revenge and the allure of changing one's past.

The online event takes place at 7:00 p.m. CST on Wednesday, February 17. More details are here, and you can register (for free!) by going here.

Ruth McClintock is obsessed with Annie Oakley. For nearly a decade, she has been studying the legendary sharpshooter, convinced that a scarring childhood event was the impetus for her crusade to arm every woman in America. This search has cost Ruth her doctorate, a book deal, and her fiancé—but finally it has borne fruit. She has managed to hunt down what may be a journal of Oakley’s midlife struggles, including secret visits to a psychoanalyst and the desire for vengeance against the “Wolves,” or those who have wronged her. With the help of Reece, a tech-savvy senior at the local high school, Ruth attempts to establish the journal’s provenance, but she’s begun to have jarring out-of-body episodes parallel to Annie’s own lived experiences. As she solves Annie’s mysteries, Ruth confronts her own truths, including the link between her teenage sister’s suicide and an impending tragedy in her Minnesota town that Ruth can still prevent.

Andromeda Romano-Lax is the author of The Spanish Bow, a New York Times Editors’ Choice that has been translated into 11 languages; The Detour; Behave; and Plum Rains, which won the Sunburst Award for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic, as well as numerous works of nonfiction.

Andromeda will be in conversation with Juliet Grames. Juliet is the SVP, Associate Publisher at Soho Press, where she also acquires and edits the critically acclaimed Soho Crime imprint. Her novel The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna was published by Ecco/HarperCollins in 2019 and has been translated into ten languages.

BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME - Exclusive Launch Event on Wednesday, January 6!

We have been waiting for the publication of BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME, the wonderful second novel of Mary’s favorite writer, Julia Claiborne Johnson, for ages - and now the time is almost here! The book is published tomorrow, Tuesday January 5, and Skylark is excited and honored to be one of just a handful of independent book stores who are participating in what will be a (virtual) launch party for the ages the following evening.

On Wednesday at 6:00 p.m., Julia will be in online conversation with another Skylark favorite, Steven Rowley, author of LILY AND THE OCTOPUS, THE EDITOR and the forthcoming (in May) THE GUNCLE. It’s going to be a hugely entertaining discussion which you will not want to miss.

BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME is an absolute riot. Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review and called it a sizzling, rollicking comedy. Julie Schumacher, who knows a thing or two about writing hilarious books, wrote: “Do you want to read something funny? Let’s say, a novel set at a divorce ranch in Reno in the 1930s? A book with memorably eccentric characters, sparkling dialogue, a satisfying plot twist, and some romance and sex? A feel-good literary comedy/western? Here it is, then, the book you've been looking for.”

I mean, how can you resist?

If you would like to join the event, you just need to purchase a copy of BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME from us. You can either drop us a line or buy online - whatever is easiest - and we’ll send you an exclusive link to the event, which takes place on Wednesday, January 6, at 6:00 p.m. CST.

If that wasn’t enough: Julia has signed copies especially for Skylark customers and so you’ll receive a signed copy of the novel.

Come join us for this wonderful online event!

Our new e-commerce website - your questions answered.

Since we began our new e-commerce site we’ve noticed a lot of the same questions keep getting asked, so we thought it might be helpful to address all these in one spot. Got a different question? Let us know.

What does it mean when it says a book is not in stock? 

Our online inventory is not linked to what is on our shelves in the shop. (That would be a constantly changing computer puzzle.) Instead, the online store shows you what titles are available through our wholesaler. (And no, it is not the evil river. It is a company called Ingram, who are very nice. Retailers buy from wholesalers, not other retailers.) What this means is that we have things on the shelf that may not be available online, and the online shop shows things that may not be in the shop. If you see a “call or email us” button instead of a buy button, check with us and we can tell you what the story is. 

I ordered a book online a minute ago, why isn’t it ready?

Carol is working her fingers off keeping up with online orders. Alex and Carrie help when they can, but Carol is the SLAYER of online orders. She is a rock star – but not a miracle worker. She is a hive of industry, working alone in the back concrete room, storming through the online orders so that the staff up front can continue to serve our calling, emailing, and in-person customers. Sometimes she even takes a lunch break. And, look, it takes a lot more work to process an online order (especially when we’re shipping, too) than it does to swipe a credit card and hand a book across the counter. We are grateful for your business and treat every order with the care and love that you would expect. And care and love takes time. 

Can I use gift certificates, KBIA certificates, frequent buyer rewards, etc. online?

You can use Skylark gift certificates toward your online purchases, but not KBIA certificates. And while everything you buy through the site counts to your frequent buyer account, you aren’t able to redeem those benefits online. We’re sorry. You’ll just have to come in and see us (or talk to us on the telephone.) We don’t bite, we promise.

Do my online purchases go toward my frequent buyer program?

See above. They absolutely do.

Wright Thompson and PAPPYLAND - online event and drawing for an amazing prize!

We’re very proud to welcome Wright Thompson back to Skylark (remotely, of course) for a special event to celebrate the publication of his latest book, Pappyland, which immediately zoomed into the New York Times bestseller lists. Why is this event so special? Because, to celebrate the book’s success, Abel Reels and Penguin Press are giving away an incredible prize - a custom-made unicorn fly fishing reel, adorned with a hand-painted logo of Old Rip Van Winkle. This is a strictly limited edition: only twenty have been made! For more details about Abel Reels, go to the bottom of this post.

To get a link to the event, and to be entered into the drawing for the reel, you need to purchase a copy of the book from us, which you can do either by clicking this link or shooting us an email. Once we’ve processed your order, we’ll send you a link to the online event and enter your name into the drawing.

The conversation will feature Wright Thompson, Preston Van Winkle, and Art Webb, director of marketing of Abel Reels. It will be an unmissable event!

Pappyland is the story of how Julian Van Winkle III, the caretaker of the most coveted cult Kentucky Bourbon whiskey in the world, fought to protect his family's heritage and preserve the taste of his forebears, in a world where authenticity, like his product, is in very short supply. The New York Times Book Review described it as “a soulful journey that blends together biography, autobiography, philosophy, Kentucky history, the story of bourbon’s origins and an insider’s look at how the Van Winkle whiskey is made and marketed . . . Pappyland moves smoothly through the family lore with the subtle nuances of a well-aged bourbon; it has top notes of stoicism and melancholy and a lingering finish of pride, even when recounting the hard times.” Walter Isaacson said: “In Wright Thompson’s beautifully written and delightful book, Julian Van Winkle’s odyssey to make whiskey in the spirit of his beloved Pappy becomes a story about how we keep faith with the past—with our ancestors and with the legacy of a great craft—and how we move on from it. Pappyland is a beautiful antidote to false sentiment; I cherished it.”

JULIAN VAN WINKLE III AND WRIGHT THOMPSON

Wright Thompson is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, The Cost of These Dreams and, most recently, Pappyland. He is a senior writer for ESPN. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi with his family.

Preston Van Winkle is the fourth generation member of the Van Winkle family to enter into the bourbon business. He is the great grandson of iconic bourbon maker Julian P. "Pappy" Van Winkle, Sr. and son of the current Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery President, Julian P. Van Winkle, III. He lives in Louisville, KY.

Art Webb, Director of Marketing at Abel Reels, is a veteran of four decades in the advertising agency business and a lifelong fly fisherman. Upon selling his agency in 2017, Art purchased, and for three years ran, Silver Kings — a three time Emmy Award-winning TV show about fly fishing in the Florida Keys. He now resides with his wife in Montrose, Colorado heading up all things marketing-related for Abel Reels, Ross Reels and Airflo Fly Lines.

THE PRIZE, Y’ALL.

Abel Reels

Founded in 1988, Abel Reels are legendary. They lay claim to more world record catches than any fly reel in history. And, since their inception, Abel reels have been coveted for their beautiful fit and finish, and a drag system capable of stopping anything that swims. But these reels are more than functional fishing tools. They are hand-crafted works of art, each and every one. A staff of artists located in Camarillo, CA hand "paint" (dye, actually) these reels to artfully reflect the beauty of dozens of different aquatic species from across the globe — not to mention, the occasional, rare and coveted bottle of Bourbon.

Holiday Giving Made Easy (Really.)

Thankfully we survived 2020's Friday the 13th, and now we're preparing in earnest for the next several weeks. We've written on this blog about why it's a good idea to start holiday shopping early this year, and the holidays already feel different. For us, there will be less (if any) gatherings and a heck of a lot more meaning. We find ourselves wanting to extend our gift giving to more people - people we miss and want to send a little packaged hug to. That got us thinking about how we might make that easier for all of you, too.

Conversations at Skylark tend to be filled with "what if we did this" moments, and the more we talked, the more ideas we came up with. In the end, we settled on four new things to offer you. Hopefully, at least one of the links below will make your life easier and allow you to focus more on the love this year . . . less on the details.

Each of the links below will take you a Google form. Fill it out, and we'll be in touch with you soon!

Jolabokaflod

Every time* Carrie says "Jolabokaflod", Alex replies with, "Bless you." For those of you whose Icelandic is a bit rusty, jolabokaflod translates to "Christmas book flood." It's one of the most perfect traditions ever: books are given as presents on Christmas Eve, so that friends and family can spend a cozy night in curled up with a good story. Skylark is ready to help you make this happen for you: let us choose a book for each member of your household. You unwrap and retreat to your couch corners and celebrate the night before Christmas with wordy wonder. Every last one of you gets a surprise (including the giver, and we all know it doesn't always work that way.)

* Really, every time.

Holiday Helper

Want us to take care of your entire shopping list? With our Holiday Helper, leave all your loved ones' bookish needs to us. We'll do the brainstorming and wrapping and mailing, and you get the glory. Our test run customer had this to say: "Five minutes of typing, a five minute phone call, and everybody on my list has something personalized coming their way! Eerily spot-on selections."

Oodles of Holiday Goodness

We wanted to create some book bundles for the kiddos in your life - a book a day for Advent, the 12 Days of Christmas, Kwanzaa, Chanukah, or whatever holiday you feel like celebrating. You fill out the form and we send the lucky recipient a stack of wrapped books to mark the days with stories. These take a bit of time to put together, so pay attention to the reply-by dates!

Your Own Personal Book Club

Do you have a book you want to share, something to talk to your friends and loved ones about for months to come? Do you want to start your own regular zoom meeting to make sure they are really reading THE MOST AMAZING BOOK EVER?! Fill out the form and let us help. Not sure which title actually isthe most amazing book ever? We can totally help with that, too.

Don't Forget Subscriptions, Book Spas, and Gift Certificates!

We are, of course, still offering the old Skylark favorites, which are always hugely popular gift options. Book subscriptions are the personalized gifts that keep on giving throughout the year; Skylark Book Spas offer unparalleled book pampering for the book lover in your life; and a gift certificate is always a good option if you're unsure what to choose.

Oh, and Good Old Fashioned Recommendations, of course

If you're in need of inspiration for possible gift ideas, our new e-commerce website has got pages of enthusiastic staff recommendations (in the menu at the top of the page) and we'll soon be adding some holiday-specific pages too, with suggestions for certain kinds of hard-to-please friends and family members. And of course you can always drop us a line or call us or pop in for a visit and we'll be happy to find the perfect gift for everyone on your list.

Kids Online Storytime this Saturday at 11:00!

This Saturday we’re thrilled to welcome Ed Hanson to the Skylark online author community! Ed will be reading from his lovely new book, THE ADVENTURE OF ARTFUL DODGER. Based on a true story (which many of us in Columbia followed anxiously along with on social media as it happened) it tells the story of the time when Dodger escaped from his day care and went off on an adventure - and nearly gave the rest of us a heart attack.

Here’s the link for the event.

The book is full of charm and lovely illustrations, and is sure to be a firm favorite of dog lovers everywhere. If you’d like to meet Ed and hear him read his book, this is your chance! We have signed copies of the book available at Skylark.

Look at that cute face. (And Dodger’s, too.)

Artful Dodger Hanson is a fifteen-year-old mixed breed canine who lives with his special people, Ed and Tim, in a lovely home in Columbia, Missouri. He enjoys long naps, leisurely walks, and scouting for rabbits and squirrels. He also loves his doggie day care and all the great friends he's met there. Dodger has a great life, but he also has a taste for adventure. When he gets dropped at a dog sitter's one day, Dodger decides he can find his own way home, but can he? Soon his special person, Ed and the whole city are involved in the search for Dodger.

Start Your Holiday Shopping Early! (Please.)

We know, we know. It’s the start of November.

Not even the most egregiously holiday-minded radio stations have started playing Christmas tunes yet, but we wanted to make a quick plea with you all to start your holiday gift shopping early this year. There are a couple of reasons for this:

1. We spend a lot of time talking to publishers, and we are constantly hearing alarming news about paper shortages, supply chain issues, printing limitations, and other scary things. Some of these problems are pandemic-related, some are not. But the overall message we’re hearing is that the shop needs to order all the books we need now because there literally may not be so many books available in a few weeks’ time. If you order early, you’re less likely to be disappointed.

Also, bear in mind that there are certain books like this one whose demand will be so huge that we anticipate there will be an almighty scramble to grab copies on Christmas Eve. Don’t wait until the last minute and risk disappointment.

2. Then there’s this. Frankly, it would be hugely helpful to us, as a business, if you were to shop early. Like all small, locally-owned businesses, we’ve been struggling throughout the pandemic, and have been improvising madly over the past several months in an effort to keep the business viable. The holiday season is our busiest time of year, but with restrictions on the number of people we can allow into the shop and our ongoing commitment to keep our staff and our customers safe, it’s going to be really, really hard to sell enough books.

If you’re able to buy early, that would certainly help us. If you want to shop online, that helps, too.

We’ve come up with a ton of great ideas for unique solutions to all your holiday gifting dilemmas, and will be sharing those with you soon. In the meantime, please stay safe, keep reading, and - if you’re reading this on Tuesday, November 3 - please go vote.

Thanks!

Tonight's Sarah Kendzior Event is CANCELED!

Just in case you missed the news… unfortunately we have had to cancel this evening’s online event with author Sarah Kendzior. We were so looking forward to this discussion - Sarah’s book is simply amazing.

Our apologies for any disappointment. Every so often these things happen! Thanks, 2020.

Still, to make up for it next week (Thursday, October 29) you’ll have a chance to meet Jennifer Rosner and hear about her beautiful novel, THE YELLOW BIRD SINGS. Link to free online registration is here.

Now You Can Shop Skylark Online!

When we began Skylark back in 2018, we had a very specific idea of what we wanted our bookshop to be. We wanted to fill our shelves with fabulous books, of course, but our ambitions went beyond that. We wanted to provide a highly personal service, and to create a lovely space where people would feel comfortable just browsing, chatting, and hanging out. It seemed to work. We've had many marvelous conversations since we opened, and we're proud that we know the names of most of the people who come through our door. That means a lot to us - and, we hope, to you. The better we know you, the better we can serve you. 

That is why, when we began this adventure, we made the conscious decision not to offer online shopping. It seemed antithetical to everything we wanted to do: there isn't much personal connection in the click of a mouse. And so you came in, and you called, and you emailed. And we answered your questions, and we ordered your books, and we got to know you. 

Then COVID-19 came along.

Things have been difficult these past several months. This article from the New York Times spells out some of the challenges independent bookstores across the country are facing. We've been so, so grateful for the support that we have received from you since the pandemic began. But the virus shows no signs of letting up, and so we decided that we owed it to you, our beloved customers, to make your life a little easier, after everything you've done for us.

And so: we're proud to announce that you can now purchase books from us online! On our brand new e-commerce website you can browse to your heart's content, and order whatever you want - including Skylark merchandise and gift certificates! You can have your books mailed to you or pick them up from the store - whatever works best for you. We now ship books all across the country, to all fifty states - and we hope that this will make it easier for our non-local friends to remain part of our universe.

Please do go ahead and check the site out. We're encouraging everyone to start their holiday shopping early this year - more on that in future missives - and we'd be thrilled to help you out with whatever you need. Of course, we're still here every day, and if you need some recommendations or guidance, or just a chat about books, we'd still love to hear from you, so feel free to pick up the phone or drop us an email. (Alex always says that Carrie's brain is a gazillion times better than the smartest computer algorithm.) 

These are difficult, scary times, but we always tell each other that nothing worthwhile was ever easy. We're excited to be moving into new territory with this website, and look forward to serving you better than ever.

Thank you for your support. We literally couldn't do this without you.

Sarah Kendzior Online Event Postponed!

Worth the Wait, is all we can say.

What’s the saying? Man plans, God laughs?

Unfortunately next week’s online event with the incomparable Sarah Kendzior has had to be postponed. But fear not - we hope to reschedule as soon as possible and will let you know when that date is fixed. In the meantime, you can (and should) still read Sarah’s extraordinary new book, HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT. It’s a searing indictment of the toxic political environment we presently find ourselves in, but the first chapter, which is all about Missouri (Sarah lives in St. Louis) is worth, as they say, the price of admission, and will BLOW. YOUR. MIND.

Punching the Air

We have an amazing weekly October literary opportunity that we are thrilled to share out with our community.  Rather conveniently, it occurs on Wednesdays, those amorphous (in these pandemic times) school days for high school students.  The American Booksellers Association is sponsoring a free virtual four-part reading series with Punching the Air authors Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam!  This young adult novel in verse was just published on September 1 and has received many outstanding reviews.

Here's a synopsis:  "Amal Shahid has always been an artist and a poet. But even in a diverse art school, he's seen as disruptive and unmotivated by a biased system. Then one fateful night, an altercation in a gentrifying neighborhood escalates into tragedy ... Suddenly, at just sixteen years old, Amal's bright future is upended: he is convicted of a crime he didn't commit and sent to prison. Despair and rage almost sink him until he turns to the refuge of his words, his art"

And here are the details:

• This event will take place from 1 pm to 2 pm CST on Zoom every Wednesday on the following dates:

  • Wednesday, October 7, 2020

  • Wednesday, October 14, 2020

  • Wednesday, October 21, 2020

  • Wednesday, October 28, 2020 

• Registration for the free event series is required through Eventbrite; the event link and password will be shared with attendees a few days ahead of the event in a direct email. An attendee will only have to register once for access to the entire four-part series.  

• An educators' guide accompanies the series.

Topics covered include:

• My Punches will be my Paintbrushes – the importance of art for teens

• The Criminalization of Blackness

• The Prison-industrial complex

• The Emotional Work of Social Justice

Obviously, these topics are super current and will encourage thoughtful discussions.  Perhaps not so obviously, the fact that a book is labeled "young adult" doesn't mean that older adults can't benefit from it (once more, with feeling: YA IS FOR EVERYONE!)  Whatever your age, we have copies of the book and would love to get them into your hands.  As a member of the event's sponsor, the American Booksellers Association, we at Skylark Bookshop hope that you enjoy learning through Punching the Air authors Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam!  Give us a call at (573) 777 6990 or email us and we’ll take care of you!

Secret Skylark Online Party!

We had a WONDERFUL time on Thursday night celebrating our second birthday remotely and sharing stories about our favorite books. In addition to a lovely crowd of Skylark customers, we were thrilled to welcome some of our favorite writers: Will Schwalbe, Mamta Chaudhry, Christina Baker Kline, Jennifer Rosner, Mary Morris, Elliot Reed, Joanna Eleftheriou and Caroline Leavitt all joined in the fun.

During the evening we had some Skylark trivia quizzes and gave away some excellent goodies; shared bookshop stories (ask Will Schwalbe about Warrior Cats); and we heard from Garrett of City of Refuge who talked about the organization (Secret Skylark participants have raised over $1,000 for them, for which we are beyond grateful.)

And we talked about so many books! Here is an incomplete list of some of the books we discussed:

Is Rape A Crime? by Michelle Bowdler (Michelle did an event at Skylark earlier this week and her book was just long-listed for the National Book Award, so we raised a glass to her)

All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews

Caste by Isabel Wilkerson

The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante

The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline

The Paris Hours by some guy

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward

The Moth Presents

Warrior Cats

All the Way to the Tigers by Mary Morris

The Magus by John Fowles

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

The Library Book by Susan Orlean

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

The Knock-Out Queen by Rufi Thorpe

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Fresh Water for Flowers by Valerie Perrin

The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish

Across the Nightingale Floor by Gillian Rubinstein

Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann

Our deepest thanks to everyone who has participated in Secret Skylark. We’ve had over 100 people who have played, and there is still time to get involved! We will be running the program until the end of September. You can read more about it here. We’ve so loved reading your notes to other readers about why you love the books you chose. (As if we weren’t already emotional enough, these days.)

Finally, congratulations to Kaitlyn Burke, who won the grand prize of the evening, this fabulous basket of books and other assorted goodies.

Caroline Leavitt brings her swag A-Game!

Thursday evening’s edition of Must Read TV saw the mighty Caroline Leavitt discuss her brilliant new novel, WITH OUT WITHOUT YOU. It was a wide-raging, entertaining discussion which touched on many topics about the novel, the writing life, and many things in between. If you would like to watch the whole thing, you can! Here’s the link.

Caroline also made a series of wonderful offers to Skylark readers which we wanted to remind you about. She is, you see, the Queen of Swag, and so you have three (count ‘em) different options:

1. If you purchase a copy of WITH OR WITHOUT YOU from Skylark, then in addition to the exclusive Skyku bookmark, Caroline will also paint a small watercolor, just for you, for free. Seriously. Her specialties are dogs, cats, and coffee mugs. Your choice!

2. If you purchase WITH OR WITHOUT YOU and a copy of the tenth anniversary edition of PICTURES OF YOU, then Caroline will give you a free consultation on three pages of your writing. She does manuscript consultations professionally, people, so this IS A VERY BIG DEAL.

3. If you purchase four books from Skylark, one of which is WITH OR WITHOUT YOU, then if you send Caroline your book, she will annotate it for you - that is, she’ll write all over it, with inside information, secrets about the characters and plot, probably some silly stuff, and more. It will be a unique collector’s item, a genuine one-of-a-kind thing. How often do you get that chance for something like that?

We’re so thrilled that Caroline has been so generous! If you’d like to take advantage of any of these offers, give us a call at (573) 777 6990 or drop us a line at mail@skylarkbookshop.com, and we’ll take care of you.

Christina Baker Kline discusses THE EXILES - ICYMI

We had a wonderful time on Wednesday evening welcoming Christina Baker Kline to our virtual author series. Over a thousand people (!!) tuned in to watch the discussion about Christina’s beautiful and powerful new novel, The Exiles. If you missed it, it’s now been posted to our You Tube channel, and you can watch it here at your leisure.

And yes, we have copies to sell you at the shop! With free Skyku, composed and signed by the author exclusively for Skylark customers, while (strictly limited) stocks last!

Secret Skylark - Now For Fledglings!

Carrie writes:

Some of you might already know about our Secret Skylark Book Exchange. If not, click here to learn all about it! This project has turned into a beautiful glimpse into all of the joy, compassion, & laughter in the Skylark reading community. Your notes have made me cry (more than once), and laugh out loud. It reminds me how deeply I yearn for our shop to be filled to the brim, with all of you talking to us, talking to each other, about books . . about everything. But, as tired of the pandemic world consequences as I am, it also warms my soul to know that our caution is helping us all keep a little safer. We are all worth it. I love that our non-local friends are able to take part in our Two-Year-Old celebration. I love packaging these treasures for someone else to meet. I love that our younger friends have been asking to take part. And I love that we can help make that happen!

Check out Secret Skylark for Fledglings. This is essentially the same as the original Secret Skylark festivities, but for hardcover picture books and board books. Our chapter book loving adults and youth should continue to utilize the original form - as we already have several chapter book goodies in that nest. We should also note that our not-so-young-friends-who-love-younger-books should feel free to partake. I already have my picture book selected. Can’t help it. The memories . . . We will not be including a free copy of Setting Free the Kites with these Board and Picture books, but there is a stash of secret goodies to add to packages while supplies last. You will have until the end of the month to get your title into the Nest, and the Fledglings will begin to head out as soon as they need more space to spread their wings!