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Open for Shipped Orders!
Our physical store is closed, but you can still get many books shipped to you directly from our warehouse. Here's how:
1. Only order titles with an inventory status of "Available at the Warehouse"
2. Select the "
UPS/USPS Ground Shipping"
option
3. Five or fewer books per order if possible.
We are happy to fulfill other orders, but will not be able to process them until at least May 18. Other options: try
Indiebound.org
or
Bookshop.org
- keep it indie!
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“There are many horrible sights in the multiverse. Somehow, though, to a soul attuned to the subtle rhythms of a library, there are few worse sights than a hole where a book ought to be.”
–
Terry Pratchett,
Guards! Guards!
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"The time is out of joint,” Hamlet laments in Act I scene v.
He’s referring, of course, to the state of affairs in Denmark--and perhaps, too, of his own mind--having just seen the ghost of his father and learned that the former king was murdered by his own brother. But those words may have been eerily prescient for their own writer: in 1603, a year after Hamlet’s publication, a wave of the black plague hit England that would continue off-and-on until 1613, shutting down theatres for a total of 78 months over that time-span.
The line has come to my mind over and over again during the strangeness of self-isolation. I feel like I’m in that Dali painting, time both stretching out and snapping short, never quite sure of the day or hour. Lately, I’ve been diving into books with that same sense of
weirdness
.
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I just cracked open
Finna
,
a slim and absorbing novel about a big-box furniture store whose confusing layout has a tendency to create inter-dimensional wormholes. Of course, corporate has defunded the branch of the company who was supposed to deal with the whole wormhole issue, so it’s up to two underpaid retail workers to journey into this bizarre and dangerous multiverse. I’ve been thinking about
The Hike
a lot, a book I read years ago but has stuck with me, a dizzying, time-warping, utterly unpredictable work about a businessman who sets out for a brief walk in the woods. (It features a profanely philosophical blue crab and a number of twists that somehow just
make sense,
in that dream-logic way.) And ironically, the last book I picked for book club before this all started was
Neverworld Wake
, which features a murder mystery at the heart of a nightmarish time loop.
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Back to the Bard--Shakespeare, of course, managed to get a lot done during quarantine,
possibly penning King Lear
during the summer outbreak of 1606. As for the rest of us… what day is it? Where did April go? Why am I still in my pajamas? Oh, it’s night again? Guess I might as well live in them.
Yours in books,
Kate @ PSB
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Join our next virtual event!
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Friday, May 22 @ 7pm
Welcome to the Neighborhood:
An Anthology Reading
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Welcome to the Neighborhood: An Anthology of American Coexistence:
Literary Collection
Join Porter Square Books virtually for a reading with contributors to the new anthology
Welcome to the Neighborhood: An Anthology of American Coexistence! Featured readers include Katherine Hollander, Aaron Devine, Sarah Green, Sonya Larson, Jennifer De Leon, Lynne Viti, and Lloyd Schwartz.
How to live with difference—not necessarily in peace, but with resilience, engagement, and a lack of vitriol—is a defining worry in America at this moment. The poets, fiction writers, and essayists (plus one graphic novelist) who contributed to
Welcome to the Neighborhood don’t necessarily offer roadmaps to harmonious neighboring. Some of their narrators don’t even want to be neighbors. Maybe they grieve, or rage. Maybe they briefly find resolution or community. But they do approach the question of what it means to be neighbors, and how we should do it, with open minds and nuance.
The many diverse contributors give this collection a depth beyond easy answers. Their attentions to the theme of neighborliness as an ongoing evolution offer hope to readers: possible pathways for rediscovering community, even just by way of a shared wish for it. The result is an enormously rich resource for the classroom and for anyone interested in reflecting on what it means to be American today, and how place and community play a part.
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You asked, we answered! Introducing fifteen gift bundles perfect for grads (or you, or anyone, we won't judge).
Quantities are limited, so get your order in soon!
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From the Travelogue of a Great Adventurer
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See end of entry for footnotes.
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We have been six long months (1) at sea (2) and I begin to fear I will never see the sweet face of my cat. Will she still remember me, I wonder, if, or dare I hope, when I return? Or will she have forgotten me, perhaps climbing into the waiting arms of one of my roommates? Oh, the cries she made, the wails, the yowling - one would have thought being parted from me as bad as murder. But the heart of the young feline can be fickle, and when she hears the twist of the canopener, she may be tempted to love another.
We were filled with high hopes when our voyage began. Laden with such priceless cargo (3) and promise of adventure (4). But supplies are dwindling. I have consumed all the cheesesticks and chocolate covered almonds and our stores of water are running low. Crew morale is low (5), and I fear if I do not find land soon, there may be a mutiny. Worse, my captain's hat is missing (6). Could some knave have run off with it, or is it merely hidden amongst the detritus of our journey? The bandana I'm using to replace it lacks the proper gravitas.
The glimmer of land in the distance has brought me hope, but with my supplies so low, I'm not sure I'll live to see it. But wait! I recall on my last journey, I stashed away a snack bar and some banana chips! Could I have been so filled with forethought as to save myself now? Yes! I am saved! I weep as I feast. My journey has been long and harrowing, but I have survived, and my precious cargo shall be delivered safely unto the destitute populace. My noble quest, complete. I refill my water bottle, relieve my bladder, and start the journey home.
My cat has remained true! She comes to me immediately, purring and bumping her head against me until I pet her and, most importantly, feed her. I relax onto the couch, tired but proud, and grab a book to complete my evening. Uh, I mean, my many months.
Also, my captain's hat was in my other pocket.
-- Captain Shana of the PSBS Mini Cooper
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- Maybe two hours
- Driving around Cambridge and Somerville
- Books, obviously
- Leaving the house
- I NEED TO PEE
- facemask
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Today in "What Do PSB booksellers watch on YouTube": Cats and Deer
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Digital Audio Books:
A terrific way to support local indies!
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Events are back, baby! Want to stay up to date on the full upcoming line up of virtual happenings? Make sure you're signed up for our events newsletter!
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For all the latest on events, new books, reviews, and more for young and young-at-heart readers.
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Virtual Bookseller
Looking to get some good book recommendations, personalized
just for you?
Check out our Virtual Bookseller! Just fill out the form with your likes and dislikes, genres and favorites, and we'll crowdsource a bunch of great picks for you with our crack team of
real life
booksellers. Give it a whirl!
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Preorders are a great way to support PSB while we're not able to actually be at the store for two reasons:
- They bring in income now while the store is closed.
- We can deal with them later!
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You can see all of the books from the future we're excited about here.
But you can preorder more than just what we're excited for. Any book with an inventory status (who knew you'd have to get to know our online inventory statuses so well) of "Coming Soon--Available for Pre-Order Now" or "On the Horizon--Available for Pre-Order Now," is, uh, available for preorder now.
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Make your shopping easy by buying bundles, handpicked by our expert booksellers. We'll be adding more of these so stay tuned.
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Are you missing out on our recommendations, pining for our Staff Pick display?? Our May crop of staff picks is now live on our website! We'll feature titles throughout the month, but you can browse the full list at the link below. As ever, all staff picks are 20% off - so go crazy!
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Sign up for Shelf Stable recently and want to catch up on what you missed? Or maybe you want to share this whole Shelf Stable business with someone in your life who hasn't signed up for it? Check out the full archive!
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Sinny Cooks "Garry's Stir-Fried Cabbage with Garlic and Chile"
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There are days that I want to cook 5-course meals and there are days like today, in which, I want something
simple
and easy. I love Ottolenghi's
Simple
for that reason. Today's lunch is Garry's stir-fried cabbage with garlic and chile served with rice. I'm sorry I won't be able to share the entire recipe since it's not available online, but I can assure you that the cookbook is worth it, and you'll end up making at least 20 more easy recipes from there. However, I can give you a list of the ingredients I used!
Please enjoy with rice, cheers!
-- Sinny
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Ingredients
- 2 1/2 tbsp sunflower oil (I used peanut oil)
- 6 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 red chiles, seeded and cut into roughly 3/4-inch/2cm pieces
- 5 green onions, cut on an angle into 1 1/4-inch/3cm pieces
- Napa cabbage, leaves separated and roughly torn in half (the grocery store didn't have Napa cabbage, so I used bok choy)
- salt
- 1 lime, quartered, to serve
And that's all the ingredients you need (it's super cost-effective too)!
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Face Masks: Now Available from PSB
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Face coverings are going to be with us for a while, so
we’re now offering non-medical grade cloth masks
(including kid size) from a variety of makers. Right now quantities are limited, but additional styles are on the way. We’ll keep you posted!
Left: Plaids and Hawaiian flowers
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Plaids, stripes, and more flowers
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Solid colors in pastels and brights
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A direct and compelling headline
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I feel like I should be reading a record number of books right now. I’m home all the time! I can’t see my friends! But somehow—OK, I know why—I have been struggling to read a lot of days. My brain is just too confused and all over the place to focus on a book a lot of days. It’s just easier to go on Instagram for two hours than it is to tune my brain in to a book.
This week’s attempt at getting more reading done (and making myself feel some warm fuzzies inside) was reading graphic novels, and on nice days, reading them outside (and leaving my phone inside while I do). Graphic novels are quicker reads, giving me a sense of accomplishment when I finish one a day, but they can still have substantive, emotional, well developed stories that are able to envelop me. I’ve been especially focusing on YA graphic novels this week, and they’ve brought me a lot of joy.
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I read two very sweet romances:
Heartstopper
by Alice Oseman and
Bloom
(above right) by Kevin Panetta. They were charming and lovely and squeezed my heart in the best way.
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If you’re also struggling to read right now, I recommend picking up your equivalent of a graphic novel—maybe for you it’s a stack of comics or a sci-fi novella or a romance (I’ve been reading a lot of these recently too) or a middle grade book—something that can suck you in enough to distract you a bit from everything going on around us. If it’s a nice day, maybe go out on your porch like me, backyard, or front stoop. I hope this week we can all find a way to read a little bit—and hopefully get that warm feeling inside that I found this week.
-- April @ PSB
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Meaghan returns with
Boy, Snow, Bird!
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And of course, don't forget to meet us over at our Instagram story at 8:45pm for tonight's live bedtime reading!
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Support Cafe Zing Baristas!
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Although Cafe Zing is its own business separate from ours, we really don't see it that way: Zing workers are part of the Porter Square Books family. They keep us well supplied - very well supplied - with caffeine, kindness, and some great tunes. Sometimes they give us staff picks; sometimes we give them exact change because we've bought the same, perfect, comforting, delicious beverage twice a day five days a week for how long, now?
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A charming and fun story of enduring friendship…perfect!
--Robin
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This is the book I turn to when I need cheering up. Set in a crumbling English castle populated by a quirky and delightful cast of characters, the diary entries of the witty, charismatic, and "consciously naive" Cassandra Mortmain make up a coming of age story so utterly charming that I couldn't stop smiling while reading.
--Katie
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A Porter Square Books Choose Your Own Adventure!
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You decide to turn back to the book for advice or so that you can corroborate Roger's story. Remembering he mentioned page 53, that's where you decide to start. "Wow, this page really needs some weeding," you think to yourself as you note the plethora of erroneous semicolons and unnecessary apostrophes. It does seem like Roger - or someone - had been working on that page. As you try to sift through the sea of punctuation and word soup, you happen to notice some words appearing real-time and try to parse the message.
"Oh bloody '''; ' I do think I chose the incorrect SQUID corridor. ; But'' it does not appear BEARS LEMON CAT LITTER that there's ''' a way out of this rather unruly PESTILENCE'';' ''' word garden."
It's hard to tell, but you think you can hear a familiar voice in the garbled language: Summit. So THAT'S where the right hallway goes. This would seem to suggest the Witch could easily appear in the book to seduce unsuspecting characters into a life of ...baking. Something Roger said keeps needling you. "That Witch seems to be many things," you think to yourself, while trying to keep a neutral face for Roger, "but in possession of a clever tongue does not strike me as one of them. They just seem to yell a whole lot."
You're beginning to suspect, not for the first time, that the only trustworthy character in this mess is Summit. You really want to rescue your piratical friend from the pages of a book (that you're strongly beginning to suspect is alive), you're even more curious about Roger and the Witch, but you also just want to read, dang it.
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Decide to ignore Roger for a bit and keep reading. Maybe there are more answers.
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Follow the right hallway and hope you can rescue Summit.
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Go help the witch with the cake and pump them for answers while you're at it.
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Decide to trust Roger for the meantime and ask how to break the curse.
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The Bird King
by G. Willow Wilson
“Fatima is a concubine of the sultan of the last emirate in the Iberian Peninsula to submit to the Spanish Inquisition. When her dearest friend, Hassan, a mapmaker who can map places he has never seen (and that do not always exist), is singled out by the Inquisition, she flees with him and a jinn, following the trail of the elusive and mythical Bird King, who may or may not be able to grant them sanctuary. Wilson’s latest novel is rich with the historical detail, lush description, and fantastical elements that we have come to know and love from her. A story of resistance, freedom, seeking, and strength, and a true fable for our times.
”
--Anna Elkund, University Bookstore
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)
Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"
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See you next time here at Shelf Stable!
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We'll get out our next issue as soon as we can. In the meantime, don't forget about all the other places you can catch up with us from afar, on
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube:
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25 White St. Cambridge, MA 02140
617-491-2220
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