Saturday Miscellany—3/21/20

In the words of @Fred_Delicious, “what’s the most annoying thing that’s happened to you this week? for me it’s the global coronavirus pandemic”.

So let’s try to distract ourselves for a moment, all right? (although, looking over my open browser tabs, I’m going to end up talking about it a lot…hmmm, maybe I should re-write that intro)

that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
           Let’s start with the good news: Amid Pandemic, Libro.fm and Bookshop.org Sales Skyrocket—Yay! Indie shops get a boost!
           And the bad news: Emily Powell on bookstore’s future: ‘I am doing everything within my power to keep Powell’s alive’—truly depressing.
           Independent Bookstore Day Has Been Postponed—because what hasn’t?
           Narnia to Wonderland: Oxford’s Story Museum brings kids’ books to life—a cool place to visit, if, y’know, you could visit places now.
           How to Support Indie Bookstores During COVID-19—I posted a very similar article from We Are Bookish last week. Still a good idea.
           We Are Bookish remembers the authors, too: How to Support Your Favorite Authors When You Can’t Go to Events
           And one more from that blog: 2020’s Virtual Bookish Events—this should be helpful
           Paterson’s David Rosenfelt launches a new series and talks dogs with New Jersey Authors—Ahead of next week’s release of The K Team
           Lee Child: Not “The Man”—Lee Child on a PBS show I’ve never heard of before (if you’re familiar, hit me with must-watch episodes in the comments)
           Book Riot lists 20 Must-Read Feel-Good Fantasies
           The 19 Best Crime-Solving Writers in Fiction, Ranked—I enjoyed this more than I probably should have (it also gave me something to think about for one of Monday’s posts…stay tuned)
           Fun Things to do at Home that go with Audiobooks—a good start for a list…you have any you’d add?
           How Can We Get Others to Read?—Bookidote’s Lashaan suggests some drastic measures to correct “people not picking up a book for whatever reason they got.” Also, Robert DeNiro gifs.
           No, it’s not YA—The Orangutan Librarian tackles one of my pet peeves.
           My top 5 tips to interact with the book blogging community—(I really need to pay more attention to #2)
           10 Biggest Disasters for Any Bookworm—I think I’ve fallen prey to all of these…you?

That I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
           Lenny by B.R. Stateham—the tried-and-true story of a military vet turned local law enforcement. Put this one in a Texas border town facing a narcotics cartel, add in the Fahrenheit 13 spice, and this is guaranteed to be a great read.
           Last Couple Standing by Matthew Norman—a couple goes the extra mile to save their marriage when all their friends divorce. Norman’s third novel promises to continue his winning streak.
           Smoke Bitten by Patricia Briggs—Mercy’s on the hunt from an escapee from Underhill, the fae’s abandoned prison.
           Agatha H and the Siege of Mechanicsburg by Phil Foglio and Kaja Foglio—It’s been four years since the last novel about Agatha Heterodyne, I hope I can remember enough of it. Fun steampunk fantasy novels (and comics, which I gave up trying to catch up on ages ago).

I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to beyondthecryptsandcastles, Uniquely Portable Magic, and Daniel MacKillican for following the blog this week. Don’t be a stranger, and use that comment box, would you?

(I don’t have a source to link this to, wish I knew where this came from, but…