Awards season

During these ice cold months it's always nice to have something fun to think about. For me it is the book award season. Not only were the Caldecott and Newbery winners announced recently the Minnesota Book Award nominees were as well.

Get your pad and paper or your iPhone ready. Your lists will be long when you see all of these amazing books being honored.

List of Minnesota Book Award nominees here.

Caldecott and Newbery award winners here.

We are working on getting our stock up to speed to make sure we have all of these fine books on our shelves.

Recommendations from Lucia Watson

Lucia Watson, Chef and avid reader shares with Magers and Quinn cookbook recommendations and some recent favorite non- cookbook reads: 

Momofuku, by David Chang and Peter Meehan. Sometimes Asian flavors can be tricky at home. This book translates nicely into thehome kitchen. Recipes are simple and work, and the book gives a great glimpse into the workings of a young industrious chef.   

The Cooking of Southwest France, by Paula Wolfert.  A reliable classic that is really a doctrine on the cooking of the southwest of France. Anyone who loves authentic, detailed, thoroughly researched recipes that you can settle in with for a day should have this timeless book.

The Northern Heartland Kitchen, by Beth Dooley.  This is the book that not only makes everyone tell you what an amazing cook you are, but also teaches you how to eat more local food, and why that is a good thing (and a fun thing!). Uncomplicated ingredients, clear cooking instructions and interesting sidebars about cooking in the heartland make this book a must for any cook.

Lucia says "For baking, I turn to these books..." 

Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. by Matt Lewis.  Quickly becoming my favorite turn-to book for sweets and desserts. Even for a new baker, the recipes are clear and easy to understand and complete, and include important steps for achieving a good end result. They don't leave out important steps that make the end result not work and you  don't know why feeling. A great confidence builder for the home baker.

Tartine, by Elisabeth Prueitt et. al.  Another favorite baking book. Great pictures that inspire and good solid recipes.

Chicken and Egg: A Memoir of Suburban Homesteading with 125 Recipes, by Janice Cole. Why this book isn't on the bestseller list I don't know. This book never fails to provide me with a recipe I can use right now that turns out every time and is delicious. Not only that, but I need to allow extra time for reading the copy about raising chickens in an urban setting. If you know someone who had their own chickens, someone who loves to cook or someone who just likes to read cookbooks this is my recommendation.

For some non-food recommendations... 

Dersu the Trapper, by V.K. Arsen'ev and Malcolm Burr and The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival, with by John Vaillant, my best read of the year COMBO.  What a fun and amazing combination! 

Sea of Poppies, by Amitav Ghosh, A great and rollicking read!

Lucia is co-author of Savoring the Seasons or the Northern Heartland with Beth Dooley, and Cooking Freshwater Fish.  In 2004, 2005 and 2006 she was nominated for Best Midwest Chef by the James Beard Foundation, and in 2009 she was knighted by the French Government as a Chevalier du merit Agricole for her work in farming issues and food. Lucia lectures and teaches nationally and locally, often in support of sustainable food.

Stop by the store to check out her display and take a peak at these fabulous recommendations.

Successful Author Events: Tips from a Twin Cities Author

In May of 2012, Twin Cities author Colin Nelson held a launch party for his book, Fallout (nominated for a Minnesota Book Award), at Magers and Quinn. The number of attendees and book sales at this event made it one of the most successful events we have had at Magers and Quinn. The ongoing commitment Colin makes to the marketing and promotion of his books, and himself as an author, are part of what made this event so successful. 

After talking with him about his marketing techniques, we asked if he would be willing to share them, and he graciously obliged.  His recipe for successful book launch events follows. We feel it includes tips and an approach that also apply to events held after the launch, to selling books in stores and online, and to successful marketing, promoting and selling of books in general, for both self-published authors and those that work with publishers.