As cities, towns, and neighborhoods deal with the changing landscape of their local business community, we, the independent booksellers of California, reaffirm our commitment to our communities. Independent bookstores value our place in the community, as well as our ongoing connections within it. We’d like to offer some other defining thoughts about independent bookstores.
Independent booksellers talk with our customers directly and enjoy fulfilling—even exceeding—their expectations, whether its recommending a great book we’ve just read, or helping you discover new or little known authors or publishers.
Independent bookstores have an onsite owner—we’re right there answering questions and making decisions, rather than relying on a corporate office, thousands of miles away.
Independent booksellers are leaders in the fight against censorship and other threats to freedom of expression.
Independent bookstores reflect the character of our communities. We support local causes. We participate in and fund community activities. We patronize other local businesses and keep our money in the community.
Our mission is “To promote the vitality, diversity and prosperity of independent bookselling as essential to the life of our communities and crucial to the dissemination of ideas in society.”
Many of your favorite players and coaches are really great cooks; just like you they love to barbeque and share their secrets of great grilling, with recipes for Fire-alarm Chili, Special Ribs, Pesto Lasagna. We offer lots of collectible books with menu ideas to “rev up” your tailgating parties, making the prep work easy and the weekends Fun!
In 2013, our own front yard garden was showcased during this same tour as an example of replacing an old front lawn with vegetables and fruit trees. During this California drought people ask me how is my garden doing? My answer is that I have planted lots of wonderful herbs, mulch with compost, and keep using the buckets of collected water from inside the house.
We have many collectible books on gardening, greenhouse design, practical advice on composting and seed propagation. For more info (831) 251-9218
From our collection of signed cookbooks: the great Diana Kennedy describes her technique for shaving the spines off nopales in her book "From My Mexican Kitchen, Techniques and Ingredients" (2003) which we currently offer a signed 1st edition copy on our website. Call for more information (831) 251-9218
Celebrate Bastille Day! I love to watch the Waiters Race or “Course des garçons de café“ where uniformed waiters carrying trays loaded with 3 glasses and a bottle of beer run five miles through the streets of Paris.
Here is the link to a previous year's Waiters Race on youtube
A sure-fire way to start a conversation, this cocktail Folio size book of stupendous photographs by Nathan Myhrvold and the team at The Cooking Lab will take you on a visual journey of raw food and food being cooked "really close up."
I personally attended this exhibit in San Jose, CA and this book is a knock-out production! The Photography of Modernist Cuisine. By Nathan Myhrvold. Bellevue, WA: The Cooking Lab, 2013. Heavy Folio size. 13.5" x 17". 300pp., with detailed description of the photographic process, list of contributors including Chris Hoover, Ryan Matthew Smith and Melissa Lehuta. Color pictorial bds., color pictorial endpapers.