Welcome to catalog number 237.

Good news. The slim pickins as far as new books are concerned is over. December and January are traditionally slow months for publishers and February ain’t much better. However, things have certainly picked-up in the last month or so and we’re having a hell of a time keeping up with new releases in addition to processing the virtually constant flow of secondary market material that comes our way. Lots of books. Lots of work. Lots of fun – at least that’s how we look at it. Things are perkolating around here and we think you’ll find that reflected in our offerings this time around. But before we get to the books – the news:

Busted Bear. Our youngest grandson is two years old. His name is Bear. Sadly, Bear took a dive off a chair not long ago and landed in such a way that he broke his leg. Yes, most unusual for a two year old, but then, Bear is a most unusual kid. Busted femur. This is a problem for most anyone, but it’s a major problem for a two year-old. The procedure is to set the bone like you would with any broken bone, but when your setting the bone of a two year-old precision is paramount. Anesthesia was required to get the bone just so. A cast is applied and that’s pretty normal too, what’s unusual is that, in the case of a very young person and a broken leg – you have to put both legs in a casts and install a rod between the casts to insure that the leg with the break is really immobile. Bear, at present is unable to walk, crawl or otherwise move around and, with the casts on both legs – he weighs a ton. Momma (our daughter Katherine) is seven and half months pregnant – she’s not exactly a track star at present either. This creates issues for our entire family. Although our son-in-law has taken some time off and is doing his best to help out on all fronts he’s not able to stay home 24/7. Katherine and her family live in a neighborhood and have lots of friends and a number of family members who live close by – but, though they’ve all been very thoughtful and giving, they can’t be there all the time. Grandma Cindy has taken up the slack. She’s been spending a couple days a week with our daughter tending to Bear and all the associated chores involved with his recouperation as well as the household work that, quite understandably, has gotten away from poor Kate. Grandpa is doing his best to take care of business on the home front. The good news is that Bear will only be in a hard cast for a couple more weeks and at that time, things will return to something resembling normal. Please keep Boo Boo Bear and Momma Kate (and grandma and grandpa too) in your prayers.

I hope to lighten the mood of this intro before it’s over, but I’d feel pretty crummy if I didn’t mention our dear friend Baba. Baba would think it was cool if we dedicated this catalog to his memory – and so we will. Baba was initially a glorious customer. He rapidly turned into a glorious friend. He loved books as much as we do and he was a steadfast, loyal and generous supporter for close to thirty years. After battling several health-related issues for many years Baba passed away a few weeks ago. He asked his wife to contact us to dispose of his significant book collection. We consider this a tremendous honor as well as something of a sacred obligation. You’ll see Baba’s books appear at our site and in these pages in the not too distant future. Cindy and I have been asked to act in this capacity on many occasions and, like I say, we’re honored. Most all books are soaked in powerfully good karma anyway, but those that come from Baba’s collection and from other collections of friends who’ve passed should virtually glow with a powerful and positive juju. May the Great Spirit shine on our buddy, Baba.

Spring. Yeah baby! Spring might be just the ticket for the healing of broken bones and decayed muscles. Spring is the best of reminders of renewal and new life too. Life goes on. Existence is a great circle. More life, more books and a greater glory await. I know it’s coming. . . it’s just hard for me to envision right now both because of my state of mind and because, at this particular moment in time, it’s 35 degrees, snowing lightly and there’s about three or four inches on the ground. It’s pretty, but it sure ain’t Spring-like.

Okay, time to lighten up a bit. Talking about books always puts me in a groovy frame of mind. Yes, we’ve heard of “the Kindle” and we even have a mild interest in acquiring an IPad, it would really come in handy when we’re watching the grandkids and Cindy wouldn’t have to squint so hard when she’s playing “Words with Friends” with various family and friends. However, who the hell in their right mind would want to read a book on such a thing? I mean, really. Not many people we know – that’s for sure. You know that historically I like to sing the blues to gather the sympathy vote and hussle more product. However, the fact of the matter is, our business has been and remains to this very day, reasonably stable and reasonably prosperous. Sure, we’ve suffered a bit with the recession like everyone else and we don’t like to fill the gas tank or buy a head of lettuce any more than anyone else does. Still, we manage. Our customer base, our demographic, our screwy appeal has remained virtually unchanged for four decades now. We still sell enough books to pay the mortgage and buy groceries. By my calculations we’re one of less than eight percent of booksellers who have managed to keep their shingle up. Our friends and patrons don’t seem to have an interest in giving up their passion or in keeping their books as digital files on soulless electronic gizmos. The proliferation of the small press industry is tribute to this persuasion. They’re the real deal. They have intrinsic value and in many many cases have personal, financial, spiritual, cultural and educational value as well. We couldn’t predict ten, twenty or thirty years ago the heavy seas and gusting winds that would buffet the book industry nor could we predict the gradual erosion of books as physical objects. At the end of the day I guess it’s all about art. Books are like sculptures, like paintings, like music – the stuff that makes life worth living and the stuff that makes one life different from another. Art is here to stay, isn’t it? Without it, wouldn’t we all just be mindless drones marching through a drab and gray landscape – lemmings off the edge of the cliff? I know: “I like books” says the guy that wants to sell same. Perhaps I can’t pretend to be objective about this particular issue, but don’t you guys all share this view? Obviously, you do, ’cause Cindy and I continue to pick up the phone, pick up the email, pick up the cards and letters and orders. Books still come and go around here and the flow is constant – a virtual literary Nile that really is our source for life and love and happiness. Thanks for all your contributions – contributions that certainly aren’t just financial. Cindy and I are very grateful , very grateful indeed that the powers that be have seen fit to give us a life and livelihood that is truly blessed.

Thanks for buying books from us.

Onward!

Mark & Cindy Ziesing

Elapsed time since production of the last catalog is reduced this time around. Traditionally, January and February aren’t terrific months for book publishing, but arrivals here from big and small publishers alike have been frequent and substantial the last few weeks. As usual, you’ll see the results of those arrivals in the front part of the catalog and our continuing parade of secondary market (used and rare) books in the back of the catalog – what Cindy and I have come to call the “line list.”

We’ve got this scanner from the turn of the century (literally) and a dedicated computer (also quite ancient) to run it. These old warhorses are how we produce images for both the catalog and our site. I’ve come to believe computers and electronics age at about the same rate as dogs: one year equals about seven dog-years or electronic-years. We hope to upgrade later this year. For now though, we’re working these guys hard. After several gentle complaints from good friends and customers about the lack of images at our site that correspond to vintage paperbacks and the like, we’ve taken to scanning every book that crosses our desk. This includes five hundred dollar vintage firsts and two dollar paperback reprints. What a pain! But, the people, our people, seem to appreciate it. And so, we comply. So please, go check out the site, we think it’s more beautiful and more interesting and entertaining with all these crazy scans.

Obviously, we haven’t given up on the paper catalog. You hold in your hands the fruits of that labor; but our perceptions and distribution of the paper catalog is evolving as well. First, a mini version of what all you good folks are sick and tired of hearing: The damn paper catalog is incredibly labor-intensive and outrageously expensive to print and mail. Please check your label on the catalog. If you’ve got a red “X” by your name our records indicate that we haven’t heard from you in a while and that means we’re giving you the boot from the mailing list. All it takes is regular orders to keep the catalogs coming your way. If you don’t have the time to get an order together but still want the catalog, a Jackson ($20 ) will keep the catalogs flowing for a year – unless you live overseas. I doubt this will surprise many people, but we do a significant amount of business with customers and friends that live overseas. We always have. Even thirty or thirty-five years ago we were supplying reading material to people from all over the world. We’ve got some tremendous friends and supporters in Japan, England, France, Austria, Italy, Greece and Singapore. We believe this to be partly a function of what we sell and partly a function of how we sell it and how we pack it. Regardless, we value these overseas accounts. Hey, you guys, we’re saving our nickels and plan on making a trip to Europe in a couple years to avail ourselves of all your spare rooms, beer, wine, vodka, food and tour guide services. Don’t say we didn’t warn ya. Anyhow, we appreciate our regular overseas patrons but we don’t appreciate the fact that printing and mailing a catalog overseas now sets us back more than a Lincoln ($5). So, with a couple exceptions, overseas book buyers will normally receive a catalog with their orders rather than under seperate cover. If your reading these words on foreign shores, please send us an order to insure an uninterrupted flow of catalogs. And, if you can’t do that but still want our paper catalogs, please send us $30 to keep them coming for the next year.

We’re looking out the office window at about three feet of snow. yes, we live in sunny California, but we live in the North State and we live in the mountains. Our elevation here is a bit more than 4000 feet. Wood stove is blasting, pellet stove too. Coffee and herb tea flow all day. We like it, for the most part. However, I’ll wager we’ve burned at least one full work day over the course of the last week blowing, shoveling and otherwise dealing with relatively massive quantities of snow – blocking our driveway, drifting across our deck, making walking and driving nearly impossible. My back hurts (Cindy’s too) my arms and legs hurt and, as much as we like to fool around in the stuff (cross-country skiing mostly), it’s been too deep and too powdery and sticky for much winter fun. Our worthless dogs have a hard time getting anywhere and an even harder time conducting their business comfortably. We like the changing seasons, mittens and stocking hats are okay with us. Reading by the fire is very pleasant indeed. Ah, but I think we’re ready to turn the corner.

What else can I tell you? Your friends and book-pushers Mark and Cindy Ziesing are doing okay. Sore back and muscles aside, we’re hale and hearty. Our motors are still running. We’re still selling books! Amazing! Mega bookstore Borders folds, indi bookshops across the country (and the world) disappear, enrollment in the American Booksellers Association plummets, the economy stumbles, world-shaking news abounds. And yet, some things, some people, some cottage industries remain. Okay, so we’re not exactly thriving. We can kiss off that new truck (actually, we were thinking about a used, late model truck) that was part of our pipe dream a few years ago. early retirement ain’t in the cards. Hell, retirement at any age is only a very remote possibility. Our modest stash of wine will remain modest and mostly it comes from the bottom or middle shelves. But, we’re paying the mortgage, there’s stuff to eat in the fridge (organic even) and there’s enough funds to keep our suppliers happy, the lights on and the wolves at bay. It’s a damn miracle and a testament to the loyalty and devotion of our customer base and the health and tenacity of the true book lover. We’re amazed. We’re thrilled. We’re giddy with glee and we’re just as grateful as can be.

Thanks for buying books from Mrs. Ziesing and her faithful companion.

Affectionately,

Mark & Cindy Ziesing

We’re back in your mail box! This catalog will mail about the third week of November. It seems to us that the catalog is making its way to catalog-getters a bit faster than in years past. We’re not sure if the post office is being more efficient or if the abundance of alternate carriers has enabled the USPS to process mail more rapidly. Regardless, this catalog should be in your hands in time for us to get books to you for gift-giving purposes. If you’ve got a family member or friend that appreciates ah. . . alternative literature, maybe we can help. I’d like to remind you good folks that we are more than happy to drop-ship a book order to any destination in the world, that we gift wrap for free and that we issue gift certificates in any denomination. Books, the gift you can open more than once. Most everyone likes to read, don’t they? Okay, maybe not, but for those that do, a gift certificate or box-o-books from us has the potential to spread some holiday cheer. If we don’t have the kind of books that your mom, or your boss, or the neighbor that helped you out likes to read – please remember we’re happy to order any book in print. Thus ends our awesome Christmas promotional push.

May I switch to the first person and relate a story from my childhood? Please? Thank you. Mark here. My father was a career military man. He was a mustang colonel. Came up through the ranks. He did most everything in the military fashion. I was born in Texarkana, Arkansas. My dad was stationed there for a while. Shortly after I was born he was transferred to The Presidio in San Francisco. We spent a number of years there and, ultimately, when my dad retired, we stayed in Northern California. My dad was an absolute, die-hard, San Francisco Giants fan. (Okay, now you know where this is going, but please read on). I was too young to remember the games he took me to in Seal Stadium, but I certainly remember all the games we saw at Candlestick Park. Sadly, we didn’t attend but just two or three games a year. My dad, and anyone within earshot (my dad was quite deaf), would listen to the Giants on the radio. He drug a transistor radio around with him everywhere. The yard, the house – everywhere. Back in those days we had a beat-up TV (there was no color TV at this time) and a set of rabbit ears. The Giants games weren’t broadcast on television – just the radio. If they were playing, we were tuned-in. Even non-baseball people know the names from this era: Mays McCovey, Davenport, Cepeda, Alou, Perry. Usually we’d listen on the porch, reception was good there and my dad could smoke his Terrytons and drink his Hamms beer. It was great fun. My mother would have run off with Willie McCovey. She loved him with a flaming passion that bothered my dad. Invariably, they wouldn’t go anywhere. “Damn Giants,” my dad would say, “Sons of bitches,” my mom would echo. Years passed. I met Cindy in high school. Guess what, her dad was a Giants fan too. Cindy herself was a big Giants fan. When Cindy and I moved back east for a while, the only TV station we could get was the Boston affiliate. We became interested in both the Red Sox and the Mets. Of course, we were still Giants fans but had to satisfy our baseball urge with the Sox and the Mets. One of the benefits to moving back home some twenty years ago was that we could see our parents regularly, help them out and once again tune-in our beloved Giants. During the course of this season we watched them progress – a real Cinderella story. During the post-season we were riveted – Cindy being every bit as enthusiastic as her husband – maybe even more enthusiastic. She’s quite the baseball gal – one of her many attractions for this aging utility infielder. Anyhow, now that the season is over and our team has won their first world championship in San Francisco, we’re a bit deflated. Sure, we watch movies, tune-in to some basketball and football, but I think it will be quite some time before we experience this same brand of sporting thrill. Besides, it feels so weird to pull for a winner. Forgive me, but I just had to share our emotional experiences with other baseball fans out there. We’re looking forward to Spring already.
Last week we had six inches of rain in one 24-hour period. The lake is full and the temperatures are dropping. The many different maple trees Cindy’s planted have turned and we feel as though we’ve got a bit of New England right here in our back yard. The wood stove is cranking in the stock room and the pellet stove is hopped-up in the living room. Fall is one of our favorite times of year and we’re trying to enjoy it before the snow flies.

Lots of cool stuff in the back of the catalog this time. More and more swappers arrive almost daily. Some of the books we’re offering in the list in the back of the catalog are offered at a fraction of their original price. Please have a look and please remember we’re always interested in acquiring quality books of any kind and that a good many of our friends and patrons have arranged to trade their cast-offs for books of interest to them and that this swapping process works for both you and us. And, as long as I’m on the subject of cheap books, please check our “SALE” books at the web site. Yes, there’s a few bombs there that we had a hard time selling, but there’s also a number of spectacular books that we simply over-ordered on and have to move to make room for new books. These sale books might be listed in this catalog (if there’s room), but they’re always viewable at our site.

Thank you Allen Koszowski for providing another great cover!

Finally, Cindy and I would like to offer our heartfelt gratitude to all our friends and patrons for providing us with the means to buy food, shoes, medical supplies and even some beer and wine and Jack Daniels. We never forget where our income originates and we continue to value that most precious commodity: friends and customers.

Thanks a million. May the Great Spirit shower blessings on each and every one of you.

Mark & Cindy Ziesing