This time of year the bookstore is generally incredibly busy. We do get stolen moments to relax, however. Sometimes these moments involve a cup of coffee and a snack, and sometimes, they allow us to play. The other day, I caught Elizabeth choosing the “play” option.
Several young boys had taken it upon themselves to put together both of our 2×3 foam firetruck bath puzzles. They put one away and then I came upon the other puzzle, completed, on the floor. I  put the puzzle away and somehow discovered two extra pieces on the floor. I mixed up the containers and knew there was no way to know which tub had the extra pieces. I was too busy to deal with it as the store was suddenly busy, so I brought both puzzles back and put them in the office. Elizabeth asked why they were there and I told her about the extra pieces. We both went back to work.

Several hours later, during a lull, I found Elizabeth on the floor of the office, doing puzzles. Elizabeth had decided that the only way to solve the extra pieces mystery was to put both puzzles together (what you can’t see is the other puzzle underneath the first one). See how happy she looks? There is real fun in putting together puzzles. And to be able to solve the extra pieces mystery seemed to be a fun challenge.
When she put the last piece in the last puzzle many minutes later, she exclaimed, “These are harder than they look.” It’s always good to know more about the games we sell, so putting the puzzles together was more than just a fun break, it was good customer service.
As we head full-on into the crazy retail days of December, these little breaks are vital to refresh a bookseller’s energy and remind us that sometimes work should just be fun.

The best opening lines to books may be one of several things: they may startle and surprise, they may amuse, they may set a scene, establish the strong voice of a narrator, or introduce an alien milieu. The one thing they have in common? Making a reader want more.
In 2011, I collected fantastic first lines for a ShelfTalker blog post. It was a really popular post — who doesn’t love to start a few dozen novels in five minutes? — and I’ve been toying with doing a reprise of it with this year’s crop of books. When I read the following first line, I knew I had to do it:
Applying butt glue to my sister’s backside is, without question, not the first way I’d choose to spend a weekend. —Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality by Elizabeth Eulberg
That is a galvanizer of an opening line. Who wouldn’t read on, even if only to learn what nefarious modern-day product is “butt glue”?
So, dear readers, here are the best first lines I’ve found in the 2013 ARCs and finished books stacked around my home. Some are quiet and some start with a bang, but all of them offered readers the promise of something compelling ahead.
*****
If I had known what the next six years of my life were going to be like, I would have eaten more. —Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz
No one noticed the soldier. —The Whatnot by Stefan Bachmann
I grew up in what some people would call a mobile home and what other, snobbier people might call a manufactured home, but I was always fine with calling it a trailer. That’s right, I said I grew up in a trailer. Fuck you. —Gorgeous by Paul Rudnick
I had arrived early for my own assassination. —The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Every time a human walks out of a room, something with more feet walks in. —The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail by Richard Peck
When I was eight, my papai took me to the park to watch a king die. —The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson (This also makes me think of one of my all-time favorite first lines, from Quest for a Maid by Frances Marie Hendry: “When I was nine years old, I hid in a corner and heard my sister kill a king.”)
Sophie had waited all her life to be kidnapped. —The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
It’s the first day of summer, and I know three things: One, I am happy. Two, I am stoned. Three, if Lukas Malcywyck’s T-shirt was any redder I would lean over and bite it like an apple. —Wild Awake by Hilary T. Smith
This story starts in a hospital, but don’t freak out. —Elvis and the Underdogs by Jenny Lee
It was the bitterest, meanest, darkest, coldest winter in anyone’s memory, even in one of the forgotten neighborhoods of Chicago. —Hold Fast by Blue Balliett
“Hey, dance boy!” — Panic by Sharon M. Draper
If it were up to my dad, my entire life would be on video. —Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg
I used to practice leaving my body. —Under the Light by Laura Whitcomb
Sweet Mother of Teen Vogue magazine, I’m model-marvelous in this new outfit! —The Laura Line by Crystal Allen
From the rooftop of Information Headquarters, Bingo and J’miah stood on their back paws and watched Little Mama and Daddy-O trundle away; their stripy gray and black silhouettes grew smaller and smaller in the deepening dusk. —The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt
The front door was painted black, with a shiny brass knocker that made a satisfying noise when Alfred used it. Rat-tat-tat. —How to Catch a Bogle by Catherine Jinks
Sophronia intended to pull the dumbwaiter up from the kitchen to outside the front parlor on the ground floor, where Mrs. Barnaclegoose was taking tea. —Etiquette & Espionage: Finishing School (Book the First) by Gail Carriger
Poppy set down one of the mermaid dolls close to the stretch of asphalt road that represented the Blackest Sea. —Doll Bones by Holly Black
In the Urwald you grow up fast or not at all. —Jinx by Sage Blackwood
It usually took the new kids two weeks to dump me, three weeks at the most. —Rogue by Lyn Miller-Lachmann
This is how Kyle Keeley got grounded for a week. —Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein
It was the first day of second grade and Billy Miller was worried. —The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes
[The first page is a letter accepting a pirate applicant. The header reads:] The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates, Servin’ the High Seas for 152 Years, Membership Division. The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates by Caroline Carlson 

I’ve seen Steelheart bleed. —Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
Kouun is “good luck” in Japanese, and one year my family had none of it. —The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadohata
“Yaqui Delgado wants to kick your ass.” —Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina 
“Mama, why do we have to live in a cage?” Flora dug in the dirt at something hard and rusty. —The Adventures of a South Pole Pig by Chris Kurtz
When you’ve drawn breath for nearly a hundred years, not much surprises you. —The Last Present by Wendy Mass
If you were a high school quarterback, a Texas high school quarterback, this was the moment you imagined for yourself from the first time somebody said you had some arm on you. —QB1 by Mike Lupica
November dusk slips into Moscow like a spy; you don’t know it’s there until it has stolen the day and vanished into the dark. —Dancer Daughter Traitor Spy by Elizabeth Kiem
***
Have I missed any humdingers? Please feel free to add them in the comments section!

I read with horror the latest Amazon news. Jeff Bezos said on 60 Minutes that he is testing using drones to deliver packages. Drones! Some people who order from Amazon will receive their packages in under an hour. Wow. I have to admit, I went from horror to amusement pretty quickly. I found myself walking around my house folding laundry, doing chores, just chortling and muttering, “Drones.”
I can’t imagine what I would do if a drone delivered me a package, or I saw a drone in my neighborhood delivering a package. How odd would that be? An unmanned aircraft delivering packages seems like a colossal mis-use of technology. Only an ego as large as Jeff Bezos could think this up. This sort of delivery system begs for these things to be shot down by ornery folks who just need something to do and steal the package contents.
Sadly, it will just be one more thing indies have to explain: Sure, you can get your package 40 minutes after you order it, but Amazon still won’t sponsor your kid’s Little League. How odd will it be to have packages delivered this way? As Amazon continues to eschew the human touch in favor of automation,  the indies will continue to value human interaction.
I like people and find there is a real benefit to actually interacting with them. The exchange of information is critical, for customers and us. I learn from my customers every day, not by reading some computer aggregate, but by talking to them. I learn what’s happening in their life that informs my book buying decisions, i.e., did someone just lose a pet? Maybe I should order Dog Heaven? Is there a spate of divorces happening in town (that always seems to be the way)? Maybe I need to beef up the life issues section. And of course, the information exchange about authors and beloved books just makes me a better bookseller.
While we might not deliver by drone anytime time soon (okay, never) we will continue to fly our Flying Pig high and proud as we continue to deliver the best personal service we can, just like all the indies. There is so much more to a good store than speed, and drones or not, I’m convinced all good indies will remain long after the drones have been grounded.
 

A few months ago, author Sherman Alexie wrote an open letter to fellow authors. His letter began,
“Hello, hello, you gorgeous book nerds,
Now is the time to be a superhero for independent bookstores. I want all of us (you and you and especially you) to spend an amazing day hand-selling books at your local independent bookstore on Small Business Saturday (that’s the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 30 this year, so you know it’s a huge weekend for everyone who, you know, wants to make a living).”
He called on fellow authors to get out and share their love of reading, and celebrate the importance of indies to their communities and to the continued success of authors themselves. In an NPR interview, he said, “My career happened because the booksellers at independent bookstores hand-sold my book.” This is true for so many literary careers; enthusiastic indie booksellers raved about a new title by an unknown author, spreading the word to their communities and to other booksellers, until the lapping waves become a tidal wave of public awareness.
Many authors responded to the call, and I threw out a call to them on Facebook to share some of their experiences working at indies this weekend. By all accounts, they had a wonderful time! We would love to hear from all of you authors who participated, so feel free to add yours in the comments section!
Karen Romano Young — I was at Byrd’s Books in Bethel, Connecticut, admiring some of the surprise successes: a little book called Twelve Kinds of Ice by Ellen Bryan Obed with beautiful pictures by Barbara McClintock, as well as Tibetan ‘singing bowls’ and the music and writing of Janet Ettele. Such a lovely store!
Jeanette Larson — I was pleased by the displays in The Book Spot and by the number of people who showed up. The owner said there was actually a line at opening! Traffic was pretty consistent throughout the morning. People seemed to appreciate having us there to give gift suggestions for gifts. I hand sold a couple of copies of A Wilder Rose by Susan Wittig Albert as well as books by a few of the other authors who were there. And a copy or two of my book…. ;-] 
Jo Knowles — I hand-sold Gareth Hinds’ graphic novel The Odyssey to a young reader who then convinced her mom to let her start reading right away instead of waiting until Christmas.
Jeanie Wogaman — Talk to Erica Perl. The Obama family came in to shop while she was signing her books at Politics & Prose Bookstore. [Ed. note: I did! And Erica led me to her blog post about it, POTUS & Prose. It’s fun reading, and has pictures of the President!]
Anne Broyles — I loved thinking of the best questions to ask a customer looking for “a special book” for a particular child, and was glad I’ve read so many picture books (most requests were for younger kids). My favorite suggestion was to an uncle who rarely sees his 2-year-old nephew, but wanted a book they would enjoy reading together and the kid could look at on his own. Mr. Tiger Goes Wild was a big hit with the uncle, and hopefully, the nephew when he opens it on Christmas. (At Bestsellers Cafe in Medford, Mass.)
Wendell Minor — Florence and I spent two and a half happy hours “working” in our favorite Indie, The Hickory Stick Bookshop in Washington Depot, CT. Our friend Marilyn Singer was also there signing her latest book, Tallulah’s Nutcracker. We feel very lucky to have such a wonderful bookstore in our small New England town. Small Business Saturday was a very busy day at the Hickory Stick. It was great to meet and greet so many customers, and help them select books for children on their holiday shopping list.
I have to say that our Indie is the heart and soul of our community, and it was our joy and pleasure to be part of a special day!
Cynthia Lord — At DDG Booksellers in Farmington, Maine, I helped a reader find The Fault in Our Stars and had great conversations with all ages of readers with all different interests. One lady came to the counter to ask if we thought Shel Silverstein’s Falling Up would be a good choice for her to read to an elderly former first grade teacher who now has Alzheimer’s. She had liked Where the Sidewalk Ends, and we said, “Oh yes.” She bought it and it touches me to imagine them sharing the rhythm and joy of those poems together. It was a good reminder to me that wonderful children’s books are really for all of us. I gift-wrapped, too! And I had a funny moment when a mom said to her 3 year old, “OH! We love Hot Rod Hamster at our house, don’t we? Do you see this lady here? It’s her book!” The little girl looked shocked and said, “No. That’s MY book.” I think she was afraid I was going to come to her house and take her book away!
Leda Schubert — Bear Pond Books in Montpelier had a star-studded cast of eager booksellers: Tom Greene, M.T. Anderson, Linda Urban, Howard Norman, Howard Mosher, Sarah Stewart Taylor, me, and another author. Most of us were fairly incompetent, but Linda, formerly a professional bookseller, set an impossibly high standard. I was upstairs, but Senator Patrick Leahy came in downstairs to buy a NY Times. Fun was had by all.
Kristin O’Donnell Tubb — At Parnassus Books in Nashville, I gift-wrapped several books (and the customers were thankfully very forgiving of my skills!) My favorite was the family who purchased two copies of Jessica E. Young’s My Blue Is Happy, and the young girl had to read it one last time before I wrapped them up for her cousins.
Catherine Thimmesh — At the amazing Addendum in St. Paul, Minn., I was stumped by a young girl who wanted realistic fiction. I suggested 5 or 6 of my favorites — she had read them all! Finally, I thought of Rose Under Fire, and backtracked to Code Name Verity which was a hit and a sale! The funniest was a woman’s expression upon seeing Battle Bunny which I insisted was perfect for her 7-year-old boy who was a reluctant reader. I had to explain the whole concept and walk her through the book and finally she got the joke and decided it would be perfect. Most amazing were owners Marcus and Katherine who knew every title of every book and exactly where to find it. Great fun!
Kelly Barson — I was an honorary bookseller at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with Sarah Perry (aka S.J. Lomas) and Shanda Trent. Later Philip and Erin Stead were there. I had several favorite moments. The first was when I asked a girl what she liked to read and she said books about girls today (not future or past). I showed her my book, a contemporary YA, 45 Pounds (More or Less). She read the back and put it back on the shelf with a shrug. I cracked up and then sold her a post-apocalyptic scary story (In the After by Demitria Lunetta), which she was excited about. When I asked another girl what she liked to read, she seemed distracted and not interested in answering. Finally, she said, “I thought there were going to be authors here today.” When I told her I was, she asked for my book, hugged it, and asked for a signature. I later learned that she’d just come from spending the night in the hospital. She was adorable. I also suggested other friends’ books to eager readers. The whole morning was a blast. I loved it! But it’s hard work, too. Real-life booksellers are my heroes!
***
Awww. We are mighty fond of you real-life authors, too, without whom our stores would just be big collections of blank pads of paper and our minds less nuanced, provoked, enlightened, enriched, and entertained. Thank you so much for sharing your passion with your communities this weekend!