From the Front Porch

Annie and fellow Bookshelf staffer Sidney Webb chat about book clubs, Bon Appetempt, food-blogging goddess Molly Wizenberg, and other bloggers with books (Design Sponge, Young House Love, Nie Nie Dialogues, Hey Natalie Jean, Ann Voskamp).

Annie and Katie chat about the controversy swirling around the discovery of Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman, what makes Southern stories so special, the truth about book sequels, and the documentary Hey, Boo; plus Annie reviews this year's ABA Winter Institute. (Bonus reading: HarperCollins botched the release of Harper Lee's new novel, the New York Times article about Go Set a Watchmanand the first comments from Tonja Carter, Harper Lee's attorney.

This episode, Annie reviews the books she read in January (eight in all... hooray!). A complete list of titles and reviews can be found on The Bookshelf store blog and in the latest issue of the Thomasville Townie.

Author Celeste Ng has a helpful book club guide on her website, and her novel, Everything I Never Told You, comes out in paperback later this year.

A free soundtrack inspired by Donald Miller's new book, Scary Close, is available here.

Here's a link to that BookPage article about Scott Blackwood's See How Small.

More about Carrie Rollwagen's The Localist can be found here.

In this episode, Annie interviews fellow entrepreneur Cadence Kidwell, owner of the new knitting shop The Fuzzy Goat, located in downtown Thomasville, Georgia. They talk about adjusting to entrepreneurship, living in a small town, and knitting vs. reading.

- The Fuzzy Goat is on the main street coming into downtown Thomasville. Pay her a visit, and take a class!

- Cadence's yarn shop was partially inspired by Fibre Space, a funky store in Alexandria, Virginia.

- Downtown Thomasville offers great resources for new business owners in our area; Cadence also took classes through the Small Business Development Center in Tallahassee (which Annie has now bookmarked for her own use).

- Knitting classes and community events are a huge part of both The Fuzzy Goat and The Bookshelf. For a complete list of Fuzzy Goat classes, check out their shop website; Bookshelf events are online through their website as well.

- New Voyager Trading Company will be familiar to knitters and weavers; Fuzzy Goat partners with them for weaving classes and more.

- Guy knitters, be on the lookout! The Fuzzy Goat and Sturdy Brothers have some plans for partnerships in the future.

We're back with Episode 11 of From the Front Porch! This episode, Annie is joined by Bookshelf staffers Sidney and Rebekah; they're talking about the new suspense novel The Girl on the Train -- a book readers are calling the next Gone Girl. They'll talk about whether that's a fair assessment, and why the book would make a fun book club read. (Not discussed? Author Paula Hawkin's ingenious way of marking time in the novel -- perhaps the staff's favorite characteristic of the book.) 

For information about the author, British journalist Paula Hawkins, Annie recommends this BookPage article, where she first heard about the book.

Curious about what the experts are saying? This New York Times review should do the trick.

Hey, book clubs: Penguin's done the work for you. Here's a book club discussion guide.

Sidney liked Gone Girl better, but truthfully, these are two pretty different novels. The Wall Street Journal compares and contrasts Gillian Flynn's bestseller with The Girl on the Train.

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We're back after a holiday hiatus! This episode, Annie and Katie discuss their reading resolutions and their words of the year.

- Annie's currently reading -- and loving -- All the Light We Cannot See, with her sights set on more nonfiction in 2015, particularly historical nonfiction. Any books in particular you'd recommend?

- Katie's favorite book for the new year is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (a Christmas gift from husband Scott), and it ties in perfectly with her word of year; any guesses?

- If book clubs aren't your thing -- for shame! -- start an article club, like Katie did with her friends. Tips for hosting your own can be found on Cup of Jo.

- Both Katie and Annie love the concept of setting margins in your life; Hayley from Tiny Twig elaborates in this post.

- It's not too late to determine your own word for 2015! Need help getting started? Try Ali Edwards' blog posts about the One Little Word concept, then hop on over to this 2015 workbook by Susannah Conway. (Annie and Jordan use this for their end-of-year review.)

- Fellow Thomasvillians, Katie's working with some local fifth graders to make MacIntyre Park even better. Take the survey here.

And, as always, you can follow along with The Bookshelf's adventures on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

Ever wondered if Grey's Anatomy is an accurate portrayal of med school? Annie interviews Sidney Webb, communications specialist at The Bookshelf. Sidney covers shop events and operates the store's social media accounts; in this episode, she and Annie discuss how working at The Bookshelf is a lot like working for a church, and how medical school isn't exactly like Shonda Rhimes says it is (go figure).

- Sidney's in charge of The Bookshelf's online presence; see how she's doing by following the store's social media accounts: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.  

- Check out Thomasville's downtown newspaper, the Thomasville Townie. 

- Some of Annie's favorite bloggers are medical school wives like Sidney: Jolie of Becoming Jolie, who happens to have a lovely Etsy shop, too; Grace of Camp Patton; and Kate of The Life and Writings of Kate Baer.

- Annie and Sidney are lobbying for store manager Rebekah to play the beloved Anne Shirley in Thomasville On Stage and Company's production of Anne of Green Gables. Join our imaginary petition?

Annie is joined by guest Rebekah Arwood, manager of The Bookshelf in Thomasville. Rebekah and Annie chat about that ever-controversial topic: Is the book better than the movie? The discussion runs the gamut, from the newly-released Gone Girl to The Hunger Games, Great Gatby to Little Women (which Rebekah and Annie both identify as a wintertime classic). 

- Gillian Flynn wrote her own screenplay for her bestselling novel Gone Girl; here are more novelists that could follow in her steps.

- We think Jane Austen would love both The Lizzie Bennet Diaries and Emma Approved, two web adaptations by Pemberly Digital, a company devoted to using new media to adapt classic works of literature. 

- The Bookshelf Film Society meets once a quarter to discuss the film adaptations of books; local film professor Lisa Mitchell guides the discussion each month. Join us!

Snuggle up on the couch with a blanket and a cup of tea, because this episode, Annie and Katie talk about married-lady crushes, poetry before bedtime, and turning off the TV. Summer might be for easy, breezy beach books, but fall is all about slower-paced fiction and re-reading the classics. Here are Annie's fall reading recommendations:

- The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant (releases December 15)

-  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

- An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott

- Habits of the House by Faye Weldon

- Anything by Kate Morton

- Dinner: A Love Story by

- I Am Pilgrim by Scott

- Anything by Tana French

And Katie's:

- My Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgaard

- The Book With No Pictures by B.J. Novak

- Happy City by Charles Montgomery

- A Path Appears by Nicholas Kristof

- This Town: Two Parties and a Funeral by Mark Leibovich

- The Gorgeous Nothings by Emily Dickinson

- This Day by Wendell Berry

Looking for more seasonal reads? Check out Anne Bogel's blog, Modern Mrs. Darcy, where she's published a great list of autumn-inspired suggestions.

If spooky reads are your thing this month, listen to the latest episode of Books on the Nightstand; Ann and Michael discuss their favorite creepy books of the season.

Interested in Candletime? This blog post explains. (And, in case you're looking for the perfect autumn candle, Thomasvillians rejoice! The Townie shop has -- in Annie's opinion -- the best selections for the season.)

Last, but not least, film lovers: Covey Film Festival is here! Check out a full list of films, and stock up on the books that inspired the movies; we've got a display devoted to them in the shop!

In this episode, Annie and her attorney husband Jordan discuss the ramifications of wrongful convictions, a topic central to the plot of Picking Cotton, this year's One Book selection for Thomas County. For the uninitiated, One Book programs celebrate literacy by encouraging entire communities to read the same book; this month, Thomas County is reading the bestselling memoir Picking Cotton. Later in this episode, Katie and Annie list their top One Book suggestions for your community (and for future Thomas County One Book programs) -- it's a more difficult decision than you might think! And, for some extra credit:

- A New York Times article earlier this summer mentioned the increasing "nosiness" behind jury questionnaires; would you be chosen for a jury? Take the quiz to find out. (Spoiler alert: Annie didn't make the cut.)

- Follow along as our small town celebrates literacy and Picking Cotton. Maybe there's a One Book program in your city! Check the Library of Congress' listing here.

- In town and want to join us at the Center for the Arts for our Picking Cotton author event? Tickets are on sale now! Purchase online here.