The BookReport

On Our Website: The Daily Specials

We all love the Daily Specials at our favorite restaurant — when we walk in the door, we check the chalkboard first thing. What’s the kitchen going to surprise us with today? What’s fresh, and what’s intriguing?

BookHampton presents its own Daily Specials — we post a new selection on our chalkboard every day, and the books are available at 20% off for one day only. We’re serving up great books from throughout the store, from the latest novels and nonfiction, to gorgeous art and cookbooks, to classic children’s stories. And several times each week you’ll find a CD or DVD, too.

Make BookHampton.com a regular stop as you surf the Internet — browse our tables, check out our events schedule, and see what’s on today’s Daily Specials! Get a taste of what’s new in our stores and on the website, and save 20% on some delicious books!

Winter Lecture Series: Michael Striffler Plays from the American Songbook

BookHampton readers were treated to a trip back in time via talented pianist Michael Striffler's selections from the American Songbook in East Hampton Saturday afternoon.

Featuring the romantic, silly and wonderful songs of composers Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin and George Gershwin, listeners hummed and sang along while the multifaceted Striffler played. Between songs, he described the times and lives of the composers, postwar America's prosperity, the relaxed morals that led to Prohibition and the influence of a burgeoning African American musical culture that caught the ear of many a New York musician.

Striffler, who hails from Long Island and studied music at SUNY Stony Brook, has played at many local venues. He'll return to BookHampton this Saturday the 11th at 4 PM to pick up where his musical timeline left off, featuring Broadway hits (and more) from the 1950's and 1960's.

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Also this weekend, join us as we help celebrate HarborFrost, Sag Harbor's winter festival of ice, music, and fireworks.

Our Winter Lecture Series schedule, and all of our upcoming events, are listed on our website.

Peace of Mind in 2012, the BookHampton Way

Welcome to 2012! BookHampton has a terrific New Year's Resolution that we promise will deliver peace of mind!

Here's our simple every day plan:
Come home.
Turn on lights.
Turn off cellphone.
Give dog (or cat or plant) water.
Put on kettle (or open nice bottle).
Find a cookie or clementine.
Do not go near computer.
Take mug or glass, cookies (and cat).
Settle into favorite spot on couch.
Open a book*.
Start reading.
Repeat daily for 365 days.
Result: Peace of mind.

Here's what our BookSellers are reading & recommending this week*:

Charline & Jeremy: Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie
Chris: Hedy’s Folly by Richard Rhodes
Mary: The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka
Billy:  His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman (Everyman Edition)
Sarah: Then Again by Diane Keaton
Kim: Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
Greg: Agent 6 by Tom Rob Smith
Jane: Swan: Poems and Prose Poems by Mary Oliver "Joy is not meant to be a crumb"
Amy: The Cat’s Table by Michael Ondaatje
Jeff: The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman   
Ashley: Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
Ken: 007: Carte Blanche by Jeffrey Deaver
Mike: A World on Fire by Amanda Foreman

*Purchase any 2 and shipping is free: www.bookhampton.com (just check out as usual and your order will be revised before it's processed).

A Letter to Our Neighbors and Readers

Dear Neighbors and Readers:

We don't know if you've heard, but last week Jeff Bezos and Amazon announced a full out campaign intended to put independent booksellers like BookHampton out of business.

In an aggressive and unconscionable move, they offered a reward to customers who browse at local stores and then buy the product from Amazon. This maneuver, coming just in time for Holiday shopping, will have the effect of stripping independent stores of income and permanently closing many doors.

BookHampton is fighting back. We need you to help us.

For over forty years, BookHampton has been an integral part of our Villages. Our tradition of community involvement has reached way beyond book-knowledge and personal service. We have offered our support to families, schools, charities and, of course, unlike the Amazonians we pay our taxes.

We are asking you to keep in mind the simple joy of going to BookHampton, and to consider how serious this threat is to our small bookstore. This Holiday Season please bring your book wish list to BookHampton, or order online from our new website at bookhampton.com. Please: Buy your books (and e-books, too!) from BookHampton.

We wish everyone the joy of the Holidays, the warmth of friends, and the happiness that is found in a good book!

— Charline, Jeremy, Chris, Jane, Sarah, Amy, Kim, and the BookHampton BookSellers

BookHampton is Getting Ready to Launch a Brand New Website!

We're Bringing E-books to Your Favorite Local Bookstore!

BookHampton is thrilled to announce that in addition to print books, you can now get your e-books from the local independent bookstore that you've been supporting all along! Right in the store, or from your computer, tablet, or phone — BookHampton is the place to purchase the e-books you’re looking for.

The new bookhampton.com is a full-service online shop, where you can browse the latest releases, search for books in the categories that interest you, and make purchases using a completely secure shopping cart. You'll be able to have your books shipped, or you can have us hold them to be picked up at your local BookHampton store.

Our booksellers will provide you with the same expertise and great recommendations, both in the store and online. And when you create an account at bookhampton.com, you can keep track of all your book and e-book purchases.

The BookHampton Calendar of Events will keep you up to date on who's reading at BookHampton this week and in the future, and you can even place advance orders for books to be signed by the authors.

These are just a few of the many things our new website will have to offer. Stay tuned, visit us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter (at bookhamptons) — we’ll let you know when the new bookhampton.com is open!

Around BookHampton: 4th of July

The Harrington Ladies, East Hampton, July 2010

There's no better way to spend a Summer afternoon.

Owner Charline Spektor, Uncle Sam, and Assistant Manager Mary Braverman

Even Uncle Sam thinks so!