Department of Book Reports: There's still time to ship, but it might cost ya...

Those clever folks over at Indie Bound have written my favorite slogan for the holiday season: "Books. Because a scented candle never changed anybody's life."

It has amused me to see that giving used books as gifts is now acceptable, although bookstores are tipped to possible givers by their pleas of "Is it in pristine condition?"

The Pacific Northwest Booksellers announce the short list of nominees for the annual awards. There is an "I told you so! moment".
American Buffalo: In Search of a Lost Icon by Steven Rinella of Anchorage, AK; Spiegel & Grau,
The Art of Racing in the Rain: a Novel by Garth Stein of Seattle, WA; Harper ...earlier version
Conquistador: Hernán Cortés, King Montezuma, and the Last Stand of the Aztecs by Buddy Levy of Northern Idaho; Bantam Books,
The Eleventh Man by Ivan Doig of Seattle, WA; Harcourt, Inc.
The English Major by Jim Harrison of Montana; Grove Press
Guernica: A Novel by Dave Boling of Tacoma, WA; Bloomsbury
The Jewel of Medina: A Novel by Sherry Jones of Spokane, WA; Beaufort Books
Little Hoot by Jen Corace, Illustrator, of Seattle, WA; Chronicle Books
Selected Poems: 1970-2005 by Floyd Skloot of Portland, OR; Tupelo Press
Shopping for Porcupine: A Life in Arctic Alaska by Seth Kantner of Kotzebu, Alaska; Milkweed Editions
Wild Beauty: Photographs of the Columbia River Gorge, 1867-1957 by Terry Toedtemeier and John Laursen of Portland, OR;
The Northwest Photography Archive & Oregon State University Press
The Wink of the Zenith: The Shaping of a Writer's Life by Floyd Skloot of Portland, OR; University of Nebraska Press

As always, lovely books can be found at your favorite independent bookstore. Jackson Street Books might just have what you're looking for. If you don't see it, do ask . We have many boxes to unpack.