Inventory Reminder

We will be CLOSED for INVENTORY on Sunday, February 12, 2017.  We will resume buying books for CREDIT on February 13^th.

Support Free Speech

after-words is helping support a fellow bookseller in Hong Kong and free speech around the world.

American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE) has created a T-shirt calling for the release of a Hong Kong bookseller who has been held for more than a year by the Chinese government. The T-shirt is part of an international campaign to free Gui Minhai, the co-owner of the Causeway Bay Bookstore.
Gui is one of five men connected with the bookstore who disappeared in the fall of 2015 and later resurfaced in police custody on the Chinese mainland. The bookstore is owned by Mighty Current, a publisher of gossipy and sometimes sensationalistic books about Chinese leaders. Gui, a Swedish citizen, is the only bookseller who remains under arrest. The others were allowed to return to Hong Kong after months of detention.

The front of the shirt uses Chinese characters to demand Gui’s release. The back reads, “American independent bookstores and readers for the release of Gui Minhai.”

We are only charging $5 per shirt and all proceeds will go towards more shirts and more support for our fellow bookseller.

FREE staged reading of Close by Tom Mizell December 8th 7:15 pm

Join us December 8th for a staged reading of an original play by Tom Mizell called Close.
Paul and Mel are two long-time friends and season ticket holders to a small minor league baseball team. When Paul attempts to welcome a newcomer into their group, it reveals the depth of their anxieties and pushes the boundaries of their friendship.
The reading starts at 7:15 pm. This is a FREE event open to the public.

New local cards are ready to buy

We have a lot of new Chicago holiday cards.  Come and see!

New at after-words

Music and Murakami.  A deeply personal, intimate conversation about music and writing between the internationally acclaimed, best-selling author and his close friend, the former conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Haruki Murakami's passion for music runs deep. Before turning his hand to writing, he ran a jazz club in Tokyo, and from The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood" to Franz Liszt's "Years of Pilgrimage," the aesthetic and emotional power of music permeates every one of his much-loved books. Now, in Absolutely on Music, Murakami fulfills a personal dream, sitting down with his friend, acclaimed conductor Seiji Ozawa, to talk, over a period of two years, about their shared interest. Transcribed from lengthy conversations about the nature of music and writing, here they discuss everything from Brahms to Beethoven, from Leonard Bernstein to Glenn Gould, from record collecting to pop-up orchestras, and much more. Ultimately this book gives readers an unprecedented glimpse into the minds of the two maestros.

A new novel by Zadie Smith: 
An ambitious, exuberant new novel moving from North West London to West Africa, from the multi-award-winning author of White Teeth and On Beauty
Two brown girls dream of being dancers—but only one, Tracey, has talent. The other has ideas: about rhythm and time, about black bodies and black music, what constitutes a tribe, or makes a person truly free. It's a close but complicated childhood friendship that ends abruptly in their early twenties, never to be revisited, but never quite forgotten, either.

Tracey makes it to the chorus line but struggles with adult life, while her friend leaves the old neighborhood behind, traveling the world as an assistant to a famous singer, Aimee, observing close up how the one percent live.
But when Aimee develops grand philanthropic ambitions, the story moves from London to West Africa, where diaspora tourists travel back in time to find their roots, young men risk their lives to escape into a different future, the women dance just like Tracey—the same twists, the same shakes—and the origins of a profound inequality are not a matter of distant history, but a present dance to the music of time.

Autographed Copies at after-words

The pressure’s really piling up on Greg Heffley. His mom thinks video games are turning his brain to mush, so she wants her son to put down the controller and explore his “creative side.”

As if that’s not scary enough, Halloween’s just around the corner and the frights are coming at Greg from every angle.

When Greg discovers a bag of gummy worms, it sparks an idea. Can he get his mom off his back by making a movie . . . and will he become rich and famous in the process? Or will doubling down on this plan just double Greg’s troubles?

Get your autographed copy at after-words

Where's Banksy? New at after-words

Where’s Banksy? fully captures the drama of this illustrious artist’s exploits on the world stage with clever chronologically-arranged maps.  The only survey that looks at Banksy’s entire street art career, from his earliest works in 2002 through Dismaland and to the present, the book details his most significant works one piece at a time, with photos and in-depth analysis of the history of each work as well as its often-deeper meaning. A modern day Robin Hood, Banksy’s public persona has grown to mythic proportions, making his actual identity irrelevant. And yet, he can be found in his art — work that is recognizable and accessible — stylized social commentary for the masses. This stunning new book is the ultimate introduction to the work of this brilliant artist and social pioneer.  Look inside: http://gingkopress.com/shop/wheres-banksy/

Banned Books Week September 25-October 1st, 2016

Every year we look forward to spreading the word about Banned Books Week.  We participate by making a display at the front of the store with books that have either been banned or challenged in schools or libraries sometime in their published history.  These challenges go back to the 1500s and stretch throughout history up to and including this year.  Every year books are challenged and banned.  In every case, the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom is there to defend the book under scrutiny.  Support your local bookstores and libraries by reading a banned book.

To bring awareness and enlightenment to the plight of banned books after-words is offering a promotion during Banned Books Week, September 25th through October 1st.  If you buy a book from our display you are entitled to a free gift while supplies last. 

With that purchase, we will give you a FREE literary themed matchbox and a copy of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  This holds our 1^st Amendment which guarantees us that all-important freedom of speech.

For more information you can visit: http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek

 

 

Banned Books Week September 25- October 1

Every year we look forward to spreading the word about Banned Books Week.  We participate by making a display on our large octagon table with books that have either been banned or challenged in schools or libraries sometime in their published history.  These challenges go back to the 1500s and stretch throughout history up to and including this year.  Every year books are challenged and banned.  In every case, the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom is there to defend the book under scrutiny.  Support your local bookstores and libraries by reading a banned book.

For more information you can visit: http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek