Falling leaves, falling prices - I'll never write slogans for a living

However, it is the time of year to curl up with a book. To retreat from the wind, the damp and the falling leaves into the world of the imagination. I'm never quite sure I want to be 'lost' in a book, though I do like to be engrossed there. I realise that it is almost Halloween and that it is now a very short sprint towards Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year and muddle as the clocks change. It's a time of endless lists and new diaries (balancing two as you are running out of space in the old one and the new one just doesn't quite cover the necessary dates). To encourage people to curl up with my book I have started a pre-Thanksgiving sale of The Whicharts in the shop.

Happy news and sad news

I am still smiling at the lovely review the equally lovely Elaine at Random Jottings gave The Whicharts. It can be very lonely as a publisher and I'm enduringly grateful to all the generous bloggers who write recommendations, even if I don't post a heartfelt 'Thank you' at the bottom of the entry - that seems a little 'eye over shoulder-ish'. I have, however, emailed Elaine.

In less happy news, I read Eva Ibbotson's obituary in The Times this morning. I suspect it's hidden behind the paywall, but The Guardian have some good interviews with her online in the Culture section. I use her books for comfort reading when I feel in the mood for formula, but formula done with a very deft touch and a sense of foodie revelling in indulging in coffee, cream-stuffed cakes and warming Viennnese dishes.

Apart from the absolute freedom to create what I like, then agree it with the rights holders, the best things about being a tiny publisher are rediscovering books you find as footnotes, as titles on dustwrappers or in catalogues. Then, you have the fun and hard work of preparing them for a new audience. Finding the Mary Evans Picture Library was pivotal in my Whicharts project. They couldn't have been nicer or more helpful and emails just flashed into my inbox. Lewis Baumer was my source for The Whicharts art, but I need something very different for my new project. This part of the research is a pleasure and I'm slowly shortlisting from the riches available.