Ekahni Books

Hello everyone!  Sherry here and I hope everyone is getting out and enjoying this beautiful Spring day!  We’ve gotten in another fantastic shipment of books that we are very excited to tell you all about.  And even more exciting, we have finally  finished our new logo!  More about that in a minute…

This week, we have new books from the presentation given at the Pine Grove on tsunamis and Native American history, a new young adult (YA) book from John Green, and some just general fun books.  Let’s get to the list, shall we?

Books From The Tsunami Presentation

The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes- And Why by Amanda Ripley – the NPR’s Book Tour said of this book that it is “The thinking person’s manual for getting out alive.”  And that is exactly what it is.  Personal behavior in an emergency is often the single most important factor in a person’s survival.  This book shows you how you can change your behavior and save your life.

Oregon’s Greatest Natural Disasters by William L. Sullivan – You might recognize Mr. Sullivan from the excellent travel & hiking guide of his that we carry here at the shop, and he has done just as good a job with this book while talking about our state’s very active disaster history.

(Note: Many of you have asked about “Elephants of the Tsunami”- after some  initial confusion from the publisher, we are hoping to see these books shipped out sometime next week.  They will be coming from back East, so it might take just a bit longer than usual.  We are working on it diligently, though!)

New From YA Author John Green

Those of you who have a young person in your home probably already know about John Green.  He and his brother Hank became massive internet celebrities with their “Brotherhood 2.0” videos on YouTube.  They used that following to build up John’s YA writing career, further Hank’s reporting on green issues and the environment, and perhaps most importantly, they built a community on the internet for young people of a nerdy persuasion to get together to discuss their lives, their books and their worlds.  Members of this community are called Nerdfighters.  Well, Nerdfighters unite (and DFTBA), because John Green’s new book (written with the equally awesome David Levithan) is out.  It is called Will Grayson, Will Grayson and it is brilliant.  One thing is certain with this book… neither of them have forgotten to be awesome.

Other Interesting New Books

Convictions: A Prosecutor’s Battles Against Mafia Killers, Drug Kingpins and Enron Thieves by John Kroger – Mr. Kroger is our Writer’s Series author in August and we are very happy to start selling his book early.  He is Oregon’s Attorney General, and after just glancing at this book I can see how lucky we are to have him.  This book is a truly fascinating (and very well written) look at what it is to be a federal prosecutor.  (Let me put it this way, we ordered one more than we have at the shop because I will be reading this one at home.)

The Boy In The Striped Pajamas by John Boyne – originally published in 2006, there has been a lot of recent interest in this book because of the film adaptation of the same name.  This is a beautifully written, deeply affecting and powerful book. It’s made for teens,  but it’s probably one that everybody should read.

Store Notes:

We got in a bumper crop of used paperbacks yesterday… so we have over one hundred new paperbacks in the shop today!  Many are classics, but there is also some romance, mystery, fiction and even some philosophy and non-fiction.  A little something for everyone and the vast majority of them are on sale for $2.00 a piece!

Alright, without any further adieu, here is our new shop logo (designed by Franz, me, and Kate Johnstone of Smite The Pellet Graphic Design- look for her on Facebook!):

We hope you like it!  (It might look a little stretched on your screen- it just depends on what kind of screen you have.)  And thanks again for supporting local independent bookstores in your community!

Hello everyone!  Sherry here and I hope everyone is getting out and enjoying this gorgeous Spring day!  We’ve gotten in another shipment of books that we are very excited to tell you all about.  We have new books for writers, books of and about poetry (in celebration of Poetry Month), books on sustainable food (in advance of this month’s Manzanita Film series showing of “Food, Inc.”- more on that in a bit), and some just general fun books.  We also received a shipment of fun cards and journals to help you get your writing down on paper.  Let’s get to the list, shall we?

Books for Writers & Poets

Shimmering Images: A Handy Little Guide to Writing Memoir by Lisa Dale Norton – for those of you who don’t know, Ms. Norton lived here on the Oregon Coast in the 90’s and founded the Neahkahnie Institute, an arts organization that offered writing workshops exploring landscape and creativity.  This is a fantastic “hands on” resource for people who are looking to better structure and more easily write memoirs.

Writing the Life Poetic: An Invitation to Read & Write Poetry by Sage Cohen – Ms. Cohen is our Manzanita Writer’s Series writer this month, and she will be at the Hoffman Center this Saturday promoting her latest book.  In celebration of Poetry Month, we are offering her earlier work on how to write poetry.  She has some wonderful exercises in the book to get your poetic juices flowing!

Sometimes the Magic Works:Lessons From a Writing Life by Terry Brooks – in addition to being a source of inspiration and a resourceful “how to” guide, this book is also part autobiography for bestseller Mr. Brooks- how important things like daydreaming and knowing how to talk to people at book signings all are a part of “the writing life”.

Local Poets

Old Nehalem Road and Fragments of a Silent Film by Travis Champ

Finding Crossroads by Vincent Reynolds

Sackcloth and Ashes by Tricia Gates Brown

Salt:  A Collection of Poetry on the Oregon Coast by Various Authors

Books About Food

Food Rules by Michael Pollan – whether he wanted to or not, Michael Pollan has become the authority on food and sustainability in America.  This New York Times #1 bestseller brings a welcome simplicity to making daily decisions about food and answers the age old question, “What should I eat?”  (In particular, I like Rule #19- “If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.”)

In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan – This was Mr. Pollan’s second best seller, and it just so happened to be the first book I ever read on this subject. He makes more sense than any other author I have read since when it comes to health and diet. If you haven’t yet read this book, you should.

Bringing It To The Table: On Farming and Food by Wendell Berry – Mr. Berry is sort of like the Michael Pollan of the 1970’s and 80’s.  Most of the things that we as a nation are now “discovering” about food and sustainability, he has been writing about for decades.  This collection of essays is a bracingly good example of how when something really is the right thing to do, it has a tendency to continue being the right thing to do.

Fun Books

The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder by Rebecca Wells – from the bestselling author of the Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood comes the story of a pink-collar heroine whose willingness to remain vulnerable in the face of adversity opens our own hearts to the possibility of love growing from sorrow.

The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho – another gem from Mr. Coelho that is a suspenseful look at the fascinating worlds of fortune and celebrity, where the commitment to luxury and success at any cost often prevents one from hearing what the heart actually desires.  A lovely parable for our times.

Lost States: True Stories of Texlahoma, Transylvania & Other States That Never Made It by Michael J. Trinklein – this book is a fascinating glimpse into the nation that we might have become… with gorgeously rendered maps of “what might have been”. (Can you imagine living in the state of “Transylvania”? Southern Oregon could have been “Jefferson”!)

Reminder: Don’t forget to join us for the Manzanita Film Series showing of “Food, Inc.” on Saturday, April 24th, at 7 p.m. at the Hoffman Center in Manzanita. We will have representatives from Mother Nature’s,  Lower Nehalem Community Trust’s Alder Creek Farm and R-evolution Gardens to talk with folks both before and after the film about options for sustainable agriculture and food in our community.  We will be selling books about food and film at a 20% discount there as well.

Hello everyone!  Franz here and I hope everyone is getting out and enjoying this beautiful day!  We got in another shipment of books that we are excited to tell you about.  We have new books for writers, books on film, cooking, fly fishing, spies, the great outdoors and some just general fun books.  Let’s get to the list, shall we?

Writing Freelance – Wonderful resource on becoming a freelance writer.

Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy – Great book on focusing your writing for Science Fiction and Fantasy, which according to my wife, is an under served genre if there ever was one.

The Writing Group Book – How to create and sustain a successful writing group.  Lisa Rosenthal is the founder of The Playwrights Collective in Chicago and is a professional editor, author and playwright

Infamous Scribblers – A fascinating story about our Founding Fathers and the rowdy beginnings of American journalism

Slam Dunks and No Brainers – An interesting book about “language in your life, the media, business, politics, and like, whatever.”  (it really says, “Like, whatever.”)

Gods and Monsters – Another book for our “Film and Theater” section in support of the Manzanita Film Series, this book is the culmination of “thirty years of writing on film and culture” from one of America’s most incisive writers, Peter Biskind. (Not being confused with the excellent film starring Brendan Fraser and Ian McKellan)

Cult Movies in Sixty Seconds – “The best films in the world in less than a minute.”  That’s a pretty tall claim, but this book meets it and exceeds expectations.  Some surprising choices, too!

Celluloid Skyline: New York and the Movies- A wonderful look at New York and its neighborhoods seen through the movies.  Wonderful stories and pictures.

Cooking with the Wines of Oregon – A comprehensive guide to the wineries of Oregon and 100 recipes that pay tribute to their wines. If you are a locavore, or just a foodie who loves Oregon, this one is not to be missed!

Spies and Espionage – A directory containing the adventures of the most exciting spies in history.  Some would argue that being a good spy means not ending up in a book like this.  But with the end of the Cold War, lots of incredible stories have been declassified.  You will be astounded at the ingenuity and daring of some of these men and women!

The Human, the Orchid, and the Octopus – Jacques Cousteau’s last book about exploring and conserving our natural world.  A graceful epitaph that really showcases how important oceans are to our continued existence on the planet.

Jack London’s Grand North – Jack London’s trip to the Klondike and his adventures

The Practical Fly Tier – No-nonsense patterns and techniques for wet and dry flies, nymphs, and streamers… catch those hard to get fish!

Simple Flies – A book on fishing flies you can tie with three materials or less- good for frugal fisherman on the go!

Bark & Ride – Imagining dogs can drive through pictures and words.. this book is just plain fun.

Childish Things – A photography/art book of traumatic events with childhood toys.  This is a quirky book of weird proportions and outlandish oddness. In short, we love it.

Peter and the Wolf – children’s book re-telling and illustrating this classic tale.  Maybe there is a little person in your life that doesn’t know this story… this book can solve that problem!

Don’t Eat This Book – Morgan Spurlock’s take on fast food and the supersizing of America… and excellent and important follow-up book to “Supersize Me”.

Whew! You made it to the end of one of our marathon posts.  Congratulations!   As a special, super secret good reader reward, if you come into the store by April 8^th and say the words “Bazooka Joe” to Franz or Sherry you get 10% off any one book on this list.

Thanks for reading and thank you for supporting local independent bookstores.

Franz and Sherry Hasslacher