Let us deliver authors to your living room.

S.A. Cosby – BLACKTOP WASTELAND [order here]
TUESDAY JULY 28th at 5PM EDT

The next author in the Reader Meet Writer series is S.A. Cosby.  You may have read Cosby’s earlier work: My Darkest Prayer and Brotherhood of the Blade.

Cosby will be talking with us TUESDAY JULY 28th at 5PM EDT about the his new book BLACKTOP WASTELAND as well as answering your questions.  Cosby is one of many authors we’ll be bringing into your living room.

BLACKTOP WASTELAND is about a diamond heist schemed up by an uneasy alliance of poor men and women.  Black and white, they live in the Virginia Tidewater region in a town where the desire to be more, have more, leave and live large haunts. With breakneck twists, heartbreaking intents and the missteps of its indelible characters, S. A. Cosby weaves a story about black male identity, about what it means to be from the South and have its history not include your story, and about the pull of family and its confusing messages about love and inheritance.  

To attend please RSVP here

You can also RSVP by emailing booksandbooks@tskw.org with the subject line “RSVP for S.A. COSBY”

Attendance is limited.

If you elect to attend, we will email you on Tuesday morning (7/28) with the link to attend this virtual event, plus the link to purchase books.  If you purchase the book through our website we will automatically send you the login information you need to join the event. If you ordered by phone please RSVP above.  

Happy Reading!

Books & Books and Miami Book Fair presents…
“AN EVENING WITH MAMTA CHAUDHRY & RUSSELL BANKS”
discussing Haunting Paris

Thursday, June 11 at 7PM

REGISTER HERE

Paris, 1989:  Alone in her luminous apartment on Île Saint-Louis, Sylvie discovers a mysterious letter among her late lover Julien’s possessions, launching her into a decades-old search for a child who vanished in the turbulence of the Second World War. She is unaware that she is watched over by Julien’s ghost, his love for her powerful enough to draw him back to this world, though doomed now to remain a silent observer.  Sylvie’s quest leads her deep into the secrets of Julien’s past, shedding new light on the dark days of Nazi-occupied Paris. A timeless story of love and loss, Haunting Paris matches emotional intensity with lyrical storytelling to explore grief, family secrets, and the undeniable power of memory.

About the Author:
MAMTA CHAUDHRY‘s fiction, poetry, and feature articles have been published in the Miami Review, The Illustrated Weekly of India, The Telegraph, The Statesman, Writer’s Digest, and The Rotarian, among other publications. Much of her professional career was spent in television and classical radio at stations in Calcutta, Gainesville, Dallas, and Miami. She lives with her husband in Coral Gables, Florida, and they spend part of each year in India and France. Haunting Paris is her first novel.

About the Moderator:
RUSSELL BANKS, twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, is one of America’s most prestigious fiction writers, a past president of the International Parliament of Writers, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His work has been translated into twenty languages and has received numerous prizes and awards, including the Common Wealth Award for Literature. He lives in upstate New York and Miami, Florida.

Books & Books and Miami Book Fair present…
An Evening with Chanel Cleeton
In Conversation with Renee Rosen discussing

The Last Train to Key West
Thursday, June 18, 7pm 

In partnership with Lit Hub, Culture Crusaders, and Miami DDA

REGISTER HERE

About the Book:

In 1935 three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys.
 
For the tourists traveling on Henry Flagler’s legendary Overseas Railroad, Labor Day weekend is an opportunity to forget the economic depression gripping the nation. But one person’s paradise can be another’s prison, and Key West-native Helen Berner yearns to escape.

After the Cuban Revolution of 1933 leaves Mirta Perez’s family in a precarious position, she agrees to an arranged marriage with a notorious American. Following her wedding in Havana, Mirta arrives in the Keys on her honeymoon. While she can’t deny the growing attraction to her new husband, his illicit business interests may threaten not only her relationship, but her life.

Elizabeth Preston’s trip to Key West is a chance to save her once-wealthy family from their troubles after the Wall Street crash. Her quest takes her to the camps occupied by veterans of the Great War and pairs her with an unlikely ally on a treacherous hunt of his own.

Over the course of the holiday weekend, the women’s paths cross unexpectedly, and the danger swirling around them is matched only by the terrifying force of the deadly storm threatening the Keys.

About the Author:

Originally from Florida, Chanel Cleeton grew up on stories of her family’s exodus from Cuba following the events of the Cuban Revolution. Her passion for politics and history continued during her years spent studying in England, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Richmond, The American International University in London, and a master’s degree in Global Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Chanel also received her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law.

About the Moderator:

Renee Rosen is the bestselling author of historical fiction. Her novels include Windy City Blues, White Collar Girl, What the Lady Wants and Dollface as well as the young adult novel, Every Crooked Pot. Her most recent novel is Park Avenue Summer (April 30, 2019 from Penguin Random House/Berkley). Renee is a native of Akron, Ohio and a graduate of The American University in Washington DC.  She now lives in Chicago where she is at work on a new novel, The Social Graces, a story about Mrs. Astor and Mrs. Vanderbilt vying for control of New York society during the Gilded Age. (Coming soon from Penguin Random House/Berkley).

Let us deliver authors to your living room.

TJ KLUNE – THE EXTRAORDINARIES [order here]
THURSDAY JUNE 11th at 4PM EDT

The next author in the Reader Meet Writer series is TJ Klune.  You may have read Kune’s earlier work: THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA and others.

TJ Klune will be talking with us THURSDAY JUNE 11th at 4PM EDT about his newest book THE EXTRAORDINARIES and answering your questions.  TJ is one of many authors we’ll be bringing into your living room.

To attend please RSVP here

You can also RSVP by emailing booksandbooks@tskw.org with the subject line “RSVP for TJ KLUNE”

Attendance is limited.

If you elect to attend, we will email you on Thursday morning (6/11) with the link to attend this virtual event, plus the link to purchase books.  If you purchase the book through our website we will automatically send you the login information you need to join the event. If you ordered by phone please RSVP above.  

Happy Reading!

Let us deliver authors to your living room.

Lisa Wingate – THE BOOK OF LOST FRIENDS [order here]
THURSDAY MAY 28th at 7PM EDT

The next author in the Reader Meet Writer series is Lisa Wingate.  You may have read Wingate’s earlier works: BEFORE WE WERE YOURS, BEFORE AND AFTER, TENDING ROSES and others.

Lisa Wingate will be talking with us THURSDAY MAY 28th at 7PM EDT about her newest book THE BOOK OF LOST FRIENDS and answering your questions.  Lisa is one of many authors we’ll be bringing into your living room.

To attend please RSVP here

You can also RSVP by emailing booksandbooks@tskw.org with the subject line “RSVP for LISA WINGATE”

Attendance is limited.

If you elect to attend, we will email you on Thursday morning (5/28) with the link to attend this virtual event, plus the link to purchase books.  If you purchase the book through our website we will automatically send you the login information you need to join the event. If you ordered by phone please RSVP above.  

Happy Reading!

To help slow the spread of COVID-19 to our staff volunteers and customers Books and Books at the Studios has made the difficult decision to close our doors to the public until further notice. 

Everyone needs books (and puzzles and art supplies) now more than ever! Here’s how we will continue to serve Key West: 

Place orders by phone-
Staff will be answering phone calls from 10am to 3pm daily to take orders for shipping and home delivery. 305-320-0208

Place orders online–
Our online store will remain open 24 hours a day for free shipping or home delivery.

Home delivery–
Orders placed by noon of in-stock items are eligible for delivery to your door by 4pm. As of now this extends just to the island of Key West but we hope to expand our delivery area soon. Click here for more information.

Signed and personalized Judy Blume books-
Judy will continue to personalize her books. Orders placed for signed Judy Blume books will be signed daily and are eligible for shipping and home delivery.

Purchase a gift card-

Not sure you need anything right now, but want to support us? Purchase a gift card and give it as a supportive sheltering-at-home gift or use it yourself in the future. Click here to purchase a gift card online or call the store 10am to 3pm daily.

Hi Friends,

What a strange, crazy, scary week!  I’m thankful for the books that have helped me through it.  Being at the store is my favorite place, my happy place, and when my son called Thursday night and gave me and George #$%& (in a loving way, of course) we knew he was right.  Although we think of ourselves as kids, we’re in that most vulnerable age group.  So we’re “social distancing” and staying out of the store for now.  And if that isn’t a crazy expression I don’t know what is.

We were hoping the store could remain open but with everything changing so fast, we’re going along with The Studios and closing at least until April 2, to protect our staff and you, our customers.  BUT, and this is a big But, we’re going to be open for you to shop by phone or online. Full info at BooksandBooksKW.com 

You don’t even have to leave your house.  If you live in Key West, call or order online before noon and we’ll deliver your books or art supplies before 4pm, free of charge.  No, it won’t be me in my purple Jeep (George just liked that photo).  I don’t even have that Jeep
anymore.  The package can be left on your doorstep.  No interaction necessary.  AND I’m still signing and personalizing books.  I’ve done a few bags of them in the last two days.  Our staff will be working from 10am-3pm, to take your calls, orders, questions.  And we’re hoping to come up with even more ways to keep in touch.

I just read about a bookstore that’s asking patrons to send a surprise gift of a book (s) to someone who may be isolated.  We’ll gift wrap and enclose a card if that appeals to you.  We appreciate your understanding and your loyalty.  Indie bookstores all over the country are doing what they can to be there for you.

Oh – in case you’re wondering, I just finished Dear Edward a novel by Ann Napolitano.   It’s a wonderful story that took me away from my own problems.  And last night I watched the first episode of the limited HBO series based on Philip Roth’s great novel, The Plot Against America. Some of you know that’s one of my favorite books.  You might want to read it before you watch the series, or read along with it.  Tomorrow night I’ll be watching the first episode of Little Fires Everywhere on HULU.  Also a limited series, it’s based on Celeste Ng’s bestseller, another terrific book to read right now.

Stay well!