80 West Portal, San
Francisco, CA 94127
415-564-8080
www.bookshopwestportal.com
Open 10:00 AM
- 9:00 PM, Every Day
Don't Miss These Upcoming Events:
Joan Gelfand reads from her poetry Tuesday, November
18th
Janis Bell discusses writing Wednesday,
November 19th
Our Annual Pre-Holiday Sale
Saturday & Sunday, November 22nd & 23rd
One-hour documentary film about 50-year history of Bay area
bookselling on KQED this Sunday
JOAN
GELFANDIn her second full-length poetry collection, Joan Gelfand explores the poignancy of living in a world that is war-torn and environmentally damaged. With a nod to the humorous paradox of modern life, Gelfand writes from the vantage point of a mother, an artist, and a Zen meditator. A Dreamer's Guide to Cities and Streams looks beyond the surface of our lives at the connections that make life worth living, and the sensual details that color it.
This poetry collection is earthy and mystical, leaving readers longing for love, beauty and the natural world. Gelfand's use of sensual, evocative language opens readers to deep, startling feelings. Many works in "A Dreamer's Guide…" are simply about the language and the observation of small, intimate details of daily life while poems such as "Requiem for a Dying Planet," and "War Rant" open our souls to the urge to be a part of something bigger, and more humane. Joan's work has been compared with Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath and Stephen Dunn.
"Joan Gelfand's poems vibrate, shudder or take flight, roaring and purring to safe and not so safe landings in the heart, in the gut. Readers, beware. This is powerful stuff."
– Al Young, California State Poet Laureate
Janis BellLong overdue: a clear, good-humored discussion targeting only the most common errors in American sentences—nothing more. This is a focused, respectful, entertaining guide to getting our sentences into good shape. After thirty-five years of teaching writing, Janis Bell knows which sentences those are and precisely what ails them. She describes grammar and usage problems in ways that make immediate sense. She explains precisely what our punctuation marks do and won't do. She also answers the very questions that readers are likely to have. Besides being extremely readable and relevant, each chapter offers a challenging quiz followed by answers that leave no doubt. This small, engaging book is for people who know what they want to write and who know English--all they need to hear is what Bell has to say about the gaffes that have crept into their sentences. Equally useful to a ninthgrader and a senior-level manager, Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences is a sweet and timely find.
"You will find reading Janis Bell a pleasure… This is a book that gives you an immense training ground without being dry or mechanically overloaded, as such books too often are."
– Michael Krasny, host of KQED's Forum
Third Annual Pre-Holiday SaleAs a locally-owned and operated
business, we are pleased to serve our community. Bring your holiday gift
lists, and we will do our best to help you select something special for
everyone on it.
Thank you for your support.
Paperback Dreams on KQED this SundayWe don’t often promote television shows in our emails to customers, but we can’t help telling you about a unique documentary film about two landmark Bay area independent booksellers that will be shown on KQED (Channel 9) this Sunday, November 16 at 6pm. "Paperback Dreams" profiles the 50-year history of Cody's and Kepler's, two stores that, through tireless efforts to protect free speech and to celebrate intellectual inquiry, have made a tremendous difference in our community.
Early reviews for the documentary have been great. If you miss the showing, or would like to own a copy of “Paperback Dreams”, we’ll have DVD’s available for sale at the store. Call us at (415) 564-8080 to reserve your copy.
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