Ronald Rice has worked in book publishing, as a sales and marketing professional, for more than 25 years. He began his career at Koen Book Distributors and then served as Sales Director/Small Press Buyer for Bookazine, Co. He was a four-time nominee for Publishers Weekly Sales Representative of the Year and has served multi-year terms on both the New England Independent Booksellers Association and Southern Booksellers Alliance advisory councils. He is currently a publishing industry consultant.
This is more than just a celebration, more than just a compendium of bookstore kudos. This is like each of your favorite writers (84 of them!) penning a love letter to their favorite bookstore. Names you may recognize include Dave Eggers, Louise Erdrich, Francine Prose, Lisa See, and Simon Winchester. Editor Rice, a publishing professional, has recruited new pieces that illuminate the quirks and many intangibles that make a great bookstore. From the owner who will trek across town to help out at a library signing, to the fierceness with which some owners protect their customers' privacy, to the overall comfort of stepping into a world that you just know is full of compatriots, the beautiful stories in these pages tell of those things that make any neighborhood bookstore great. VERDICT: There are other collections that focus on bookstores... but this one is a personal peek into the hearts of the contributing writers as well as into the bookstores they love. Sure to please any bibliophile, even if borrowed from the library!