February 2021... News, Gift Ideas, Events and What We are Reading
...and let’s keep it there. All year.
I always end our newsletter with a quote, but I am going to start it with one this month as well:
“What does LOVE look like?
It has the hands to help others.
It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy.
It has eyes to see misery and want.
It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men
That is what LOVE looks like”
Walt Whitman
With a new administration in the Whitehouse and COVID vaccines on the way as well as Valentine’s Day, Black History Month, Chinese New Year, President’s Day, and Spring blooms, there is much to celebrate this February. So take heart – with a good book, a cup of tea and a deep breath. Red roses, chocolates and champagne might be in order as well(!) Keep masking, keep distancing, keep sanitizing and keep the faith. There is light at the end of the proverbial tunnel! - Cheryl
Valentine Gift Ideas
A great collection of Valentine Greeting cards.
Books on romance and affairs of the heart – our favorite novels, poetry and other inspiration.
Heart-shaped Annie Glass plates – collectible, handcrafted glassware by Santa Cruz artist Annie Morhauser.
Heart shaped, hand carved Hippy Sister soaps – almost too pretty to use!
Luscious body lotions, bubble baths & soaps – Pamper your sweetheart with fragrant Margot Elena Toyko Milk as well as Cottage Garden and Broken Top.
Fragrant candles to set the mood and crystal votives from Orrefors.
Classic enamel picture frames by Addison Ross in London to capture a favorite photo of you and your loved one.
Homemade Valentine cookies by local chef Pam Henry and “literary” chocolate bars made from the highest quality organic chocolate.
Upcoming Events
Virtual Online Event
February 18th 5:00pm
Martin Terplan, M.D.
Book Launch Celebration & Interactive Discussion
Co-hosted by Sausalito Village
Sausalito resident & author Dr. Martin Terplan retired from private practice in 2013, but has continued to teach and has focused on geriatric medicine.
Understanding Aging : A Resource for Better Living is a comprehensive, yet concise overview of what causes aging, how it impacts us and how we can mitigate and manage these impacts to ensure healthy longevity.
Register for Zoom & Purchase Book sausalitobooksbythebay.com /2021-events
Virtual Online Event
February 23rd 5:00pm
John Cammidge
She Wore a Yellow Dress
Book Launch Celebration
Marin County author John Cammidge was born and raised in England, migrating to America as a young man. When he retired from a corporate career in Human Resources, he started writing. She Wore a Yellow Dress is his third novel, following Unplanned and Abandoned in Berlin. All of his fictional writing is based on autobiographical experience, including his passion for orinthology.
Register for Zoom & Purchase Book sausalitobooksbythebay.com /2021-events
Virtual Online Event
March 10th, 5pm
Anne Evers Hitz
Lost Department Stores
of San Francisco
Remember the City of Paris? I. Magnin and Joseph Magnin, the Emporium? Take a nostalgic tour of Union Square with author Anne Evers Hitz and special guest, Sausalito Woman’s Club member Denise Gustafson who was a buyer at Magnin’s during its heyday. I do miss that San Francisco! Anyone for Blum’s coffee crunch cake?
Register for Zoom & Purchase Book sausalitobooksbythebay.com /2021-events
Virtual Online Event
March 24th, 5:30pm
Vendela Vida
We Run the Tides
Book Launch Celebration
A beautiful coming of age thriller cast in the foggy oceanside mist of the Sea Cliff neighborhood in San Francisco in the 1980’s; an homage to teenage friendship in all its splendor, confusion and innocence. Join Bay Area author Vendela Vida for insights into her poignant and suspenseful new novel. A wonderfully written portrait of another time and place that will resonate with readers.
Register for Zoom & Purchase Book sausalitobooksbythebay.com /2021-events
Artist in Residence
We are now featuring the watercolor and oil paintings of Sausalito artist
Lucinda Eubanks
Some artists travel great distances to find inspiration for their art. Lucinda has always had a view from which to paint. She has lived on all three of the U.S. Virgin Islands, in the Napa Valley, and now in Sausalito. Thirty years ago, her career began with painting the narrow streets of St. Croix. Since then, Lucinda has owned two galleries, served as resident artist for Robert Mondavi Winery, Caneel Bay, St. John and The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas. Lucinda's art has been featured in many publications, on wine labels, and television shows. She also teaches art and is the artist in residence at Cavallo Point.
Chinese New Year Friday February 12th
– FREE FORTUNE COOKIES ALL DAY! –
The Ox is the second of all the Chinese zodiac animals. According to one myth, the Jade Emperor said the order would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived to his party. The Ox was about to be the first to arrive, but Rat tricked Ox into giving him a ride. Then, just as they arrived, Rat jumped down and landed ahead of Ox. Thus, Ox became the second animal.
According to the Chinese Lunar New Year pundits, the Year of the Ox is going to “be lucky and also perfect to focus on relationships” – friendships or love. In the Chinese Zodiac, the Ox is very hardworking and methodical. 2021 is going to be a year when work will get rewarded, and lucky in terms of money. This will also be a year they say when we will fully feel the weight of our responsibilities, a year when it is necessary to double our efforts to accomplish tasks.
San Francisco’s Chinatown is a visual delight captured by photographer Dick Evans with text by Kathy Chin Leong
What We're Reading
We Run The Tides
Vendela Vida
Local Bay Area author
I love this book. And, as many of you know, I don’t say that often! Local Bay Area author Vendela Vida has so superbly captured the gestalt of 1980’s San Francisco and the thrill and heartbreak of teenage years, all wrapped in a suspenseful thriller, that I could not put this book down. And even when I did, the writing stayed with me and still resonates. Cheryl P.
The Four Winds
Kristin Hannah
While her captivating WWII saga The Nightingale preps for its film premier later this year and the Netflix series Firefly Lane based on her book of the same name also launched (February 3rd) Kristin has penned another epic novel based on the horrific experiences in the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. It is a gut wrenching, beautifully rendered story of trials of a young, single mother and her children – her trials and remarkable strength – sweeping across the Great Plains from Texas to California. Until reading this, I don’t think I fully understood the ravages of this desperate and destructive time. Cheryl P.
The Push
Ashley Audrain
Blythe wants nothing more than to love Violet her baby daughter who is born into her idyllic relationship with Fox. But the first days are long and difficult as she navigates motherhood with her newborn daughter. As she tries to be the loving and devoted mother she did not have, the bonding of which she dreams does not happen. All of her loving and nurture comes forth when her son arrives. But as she dotes on her son, her husband and daughter grow further away. You will not put this story down until the very last line. Angela K.
The Infinite Tides
Christian Kiefer
I have championed only 3 contemporary novels over the last decade. In two instances, my support not only was not enough to give that book a life, but not enough to save the publishing house! In the third instance, however, the book survives as a forgotten hard cover, which we're selling at the paper back price. Christian Kiefer's The Infinite Tides, published in 2012, is an imperfect but shimmering debut, a panegyric on loss, and a hilariously frightening glimpse at the stupidity we engage in when confronting that loss. In other words, a perfect book for 2020, 2021, 2022. Jeff B.
The Bad Muslim Discount
Syed Masood
In 1995, Amar Faris is a recent immigrant to the United States after fundamentalism takes root in Karachi, Pakistan. Amar is rebellious and should adjust well to northern California, but somehow his deeply devout mother and model-Muslim brother seem to adapt more readily. Safwa is a young woman who survives life in war-torn Baghdad only to find life with her father very different in the America. This is often hysterically funny but also very moving with warmth and insight into two families trying to live the American dream. Angela K.
The Mystery of Mrs. Christie
Marie Benedict
From the author of the highly lauded book The Only Woman in the Room, comes another inspired work of historical fiction, this time based on the real -life disappearance of famous mystery writer Agatha Christie. Like something out of one of her own novels, the much-loved author had a disturbing private life and left authorities puzzled when she vanished. A fascinating portrait of the legendary author and must read for all Agatha Christie fans and book clubs. I’ve rather enjoyed reading one of her classic Hercule Poirot works at the same time (The Murder of Roger Ackroyd). Cheryl P.
Pnin |
Vladimir Nabokov
We all know Nabokov through Lolita, an almost perfect novel. Arguments run rampant regarding its consort. Most cite Pale Fire, or Speak, Memory. Wrong, and wrong. Pnin is his other masterpiece, and the book which announced his arrival as an important English-language author. Imagine a defeated Humbert Humbert, a decade after the events of Lolita. Jeff B.
A Swim In A Pond In The Rain
George Saunders
An excellent read for anyone who loves short stories, and for anyone who wants to write fiction. George Saunders offers commentary on seven classic short stories from Russian literature, presenting material from writing classes he taught at Syracuse University. Saunders is deeply empathetic, toward the authors he analyzes and toward his reader. He gets right down to brass tacks, discussing story structure and the art of characterization with excellent detail and clear terminology. The stories that he analyzes are English translations, not in the original Russian, but I was quickly assured of Saunders' expertise and meticulous research while reading. On every page, his love of literature is on full display. This book is an excellent tool to improve one's writing, and it is sure to enrich your experience of some brilliant Russian short fiction. Matthew K.
Everything Sad Is Untrue
Daniel Nayeri
While this book is categorized as a “middle reader” story for young teens, it is much more. Daniel Nayeri weaves a tale of lost relatives in the old country with current difficulties of a young immigrant teenage boy. This book is full of layers, with ancient myths, family truths and current day stories. It is a moving chronicle of one child’s attempt to be a good student in his new country, to “fit in” with other teenagers, and make sense of the world around him. Angela K.
Anya's Ghost
Vera Brosgol
A graphic novel for young adults with some excellent cartoon art! Anya's Ghost tells the story of a fed-up girl who forms an unusual partnership with a (ninety-year-old) teenage ghost. This is a story all about the crushing self-consciousness of high school life, and the moments of heart and clarity that shine through. It is also a spooky story. Mixed in with the familiar beats and tropes of a high school drama are words and images that feel straight out of the mind of David Lynch. A total page-turner that will surprise you with just how suspenseful it gets. Matthew K.
The Wanderer
Peter Van Den Ende
This exquisite book, with echos of E.M. Escher, is so much more than a picture book for children. Author and illustrator Peter Van Den Ende visually follows a small origami-type boat as it floats through a magical world of sea birds, aquatic animals, and mythical creatures. It is full of breathtaking artwork at which anyone, young or old, can spend hours looking. Angela K.
Community Supported Bookstore Program
By opening a CSB account with us – or adding money to an existing account – you provide us with valuable working capital to help make ends meet during this dramatic economic downturn.
For more information CSB program
Hours of Operation
OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK 10am – 6pm, Sunday Noon – 5pm
Recognizing all COVID-19 concerns,
we continue to offer remote services
Fulfilling special orders via phone 415.887.9967
or email staff@sausalitobooksbythebay.com
FREE Home Delivery – right to your doorstep in Southern Marin
FREE Shipping Anywhere in the U.S
TAKE-OUT – order books, jigsaw puzzles, or gifts for
Pick Up Curbside with Free Downtown Parking
The Best Little Bookshop On The Bay!
“How do you spell love?” asked Piglet
“You don’t spell love….You feel it,” said Pooh
”
sausalitobooksbythebay.com
100 Bay Street, Sausalito, CA 94965, 415.887.9967
FREE PARKING in front of the store in the Sausalito Yacht Harbor lot.
Follow us on Facebook & Instagram & Twitter & Pinterest