Prospero's Punk Continues to Seek Publicity by Burning Books
If you really don't want to go to Irish Fest this weekend then I guess you can help some tired old hippie have a barbecue. Still, I have to think that this kind of temper tantrum is bad for business and I can only hope that people will stay away from round 2 of the book burning. Here's the press release I got in my e-mail today:
On Sunday September 2, 2007, Prospero’s Books will host a book burning of unwanted books to protest the decline of reading in the US. The event will take place at 1800 W. 39th Street beginning at 4:00 pm . . . "Hitler burned books to prevent people from reading; Prospero’s is burning books because people aren’t reading, thus accomplishing what the Nazis wanted,” said co-owner, Will Leathem.Awesome, that sure beats doing anything productive . . . Say, like shopping at ANY OTHER local bookstore, which is what I suggest.
Also, I reject the premise that nobody is reading . . . Maybe just people are staying away from his hippie, rat trap that smells dusty . . . I notice that Barnes and Noble is always packed and selling a ton of reading material along with lest hostile KC Independent Book stores.
I know I'll be standing in line to read OJ's book and then spill coffee on a couple of magazines I won't buy.
posted by Tony Permalink
They should have a Book Sale and make money.
Book burning is wrong too. Tony, you are right. I will be at B&N just to help drive these idiots out of town. :0 I support local business, but when you act stupid, it is usually brought back on to you.
Will-
If you or someone who knows you is reading this post, please contact me. I know of a thrift store near my house that would take your books in a heartbeat. Please respond and I'll send you my E-mail.
(Not as exciting or politically charged as a book burning, I know, but your books will find their way into deserving hands.)
Your "protest" is a sham! I hope you called the NY Times...
That Prospero's guy is a real D-bag.
On the Prospero's "buy $100 and get 25% of your next purchase of $10 or more," punch card I have is the following printed quote: "There are worse crimes than burning books. One is not reading them. ~ joseph brosky."
I've had the card for about a decade.
Um, anybody who says they know someone who will take the books please contact the store. Then you will probably find out that the people you thought would take the books won't--or they will take a tiny fraction of them. They *have* given many away. They've tried selling the books for $0.25, giving them away to charity, all sorts of things...nothing has managed to get rid of more than a few hundred or thousand. We're talking tens of thousands of books here. Warehouses full of them. If anybody has room for all that and wants them, Prospero's would happily give them away.
I sure hope they have a burn permit for this charade. I really really hope they haul that douche off to jail. Great idea: big bonfire in the middle of midtown on a hot summer afternoon.
That douchebag owner needs to move to San Francisco where he belongs.
my favorite bookstore is amazon.com now.
No snot nosed bookstore workers and they have every copy of every significant author, plus free shipping.
Free market, baby.
Ryan-
In my post I was trying to point out that Prospero's doesn't care about giving the books away, they are burning them for free publicity, as far as I can tell. Uh, to paraphrase Monty Python (sorry), not every book is sacred. I have plenty of books that suck and WOULD burn, but I personally don't need the attention that would attract (ahem).
TFW
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