The White Queen by Phillippa Gregory

Release: August 18, 2009
Call or visit your local bookstore

BROTHER TURNS ON BROTHER to win the ultimate prize, the throne of England, in this dazzling account of the wars of the Plantagenets. They are the claimants and kings who ruled England before the Tudors, and now Philippa Gregory brings them to life through the dramatic and intimate stories of the secret players: the indomitable women, starting with Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen.

The White Queen tells the story of a woman of extraordinary beauty and ambition who, catching the eye of the newly crowned boy king, marries him in secret and ascends to royalty. While Elizabeth rises to the demands of her exalted position and fights for the success of her family, her two sons become central figures in a mystery that has confounded historians for centuries: the missing princes in the Tower of London whose fate is still unknown. From her uniquely qualified perspective, Philippa Gregory explores this most famous unsolved mystery of English history, informed by impeccable research and framed by her inimitable storytelling skills.

With The White Queen, Philippa Gregory brings the artistry and intellect of a master writer and storyteller to a new era in history and begins what is sure to be another bestselling classic series from this beloved author.

Pout-Pout Fish

Deep in the water,
Mr. Fish swims about
With his fish face stuck
In a permanent pout.

Can his pals cheer him up?
Will his pout ever end?
Is there something he can learn
From an unexpected friend?

Swim along with the pout-pout fish as he discovers that being glum and spreading “dreary wearies” isn’t really his destiny. Bright ocean colors and playful rhyme come together in this fun fish story that’s sure to turn even the poutiest of frowns upside down.


This adorable book is our latest favorite. The illustrations are wonderful, the rhyming text is fun to read out loud and we agree..."Sometimes a kiss is all it takes to turn things aruond."

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Written by Stieg Larsson


The international bestseller is now available in paperback! The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo combines murder mystery, family saga, love story, and financial intrigue into one satisfyingly complex and entertainingly atmospheric novel.

“Wildly suspenseful . . . an intelligent, ingeniously plotted, utterly engrossing thriller.”
—The Washington Post

Cheney to publish his memoirs

From the New York Times:

Former Vice President Dick Cheney is working on a book. A spokesman for Simon & Schuster said Mr. Cheney would write a book for Threshold Editions, where Mary Matalin, his close friend and adviser, is editor in chief.

Mr. Cheney, who had been looking for a publisher for about two months, joins a roster of Bush administration figures writing memoirs, including President George W. Bush; his wife, Laura; former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; former Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr.; former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld; and Karl Rove, the former presidential political adviser. Mr. Rove’s book will also be published by Threshold.

Mr. Cheney’s memoir, which will focus on the past 40 years of his life, mostly in Washington, will be published in the spring of 2011. The deal was negotiated by Robert Barnett, a Washington lawyer who also represents Mr. Bush, former President Bill Clinton and President Obama.

The former vice president is working with his eldest daughter, Liz Cheney, on the memoir. Ms. Cheney is helping with research and “filling in the gaps.”

“He’s a student of history, and I think he never really planned to write a book,” Ms. Cheney said. “But I think because the job he just finished is obviously his last job he’ll ever have in government and because he cares about history and has been part of so many consequential events over the last 40 years, he wants to make sure that his story is told, and told in a way that his grandchildren will be able to understand and appreciate even 20 or 30 years from now.”

She said Mr. Cheney had been writing out his thoughts in longhand but had also begun writing on a laptop, working in homes on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, in Virginia and in Wyoming.

In addition to covering his roles in the administrations of Presidents Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, George Bush and George W. Bush, Mr. Cheney will write about his private-sector experience, including his time as chief executive of the Halliburton Company, the oil field services provider.

A person familiar with the negotiations said Mr. Cheney would receive around $2 million for his book. The spokesman for Simon & Schuster declined to comment.

Catching Fire

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.


We loved "The Hunger Games" and wondered whether she could do it again with "Catching Fire". The answer is a resounding yes and with another cliff-hanger ending, I can't wait for her third book in this series. Hurry and reserve your copy now!!!

Indie Bookstores

Quotation of the Day

Best Way to Help Indies: Visit, Buy, Spread the Word

"I began a story in the same place I always do--a feeling, a lump in my throat, a 'what if.' And then I took two of my favorite things--beaches and bookstores--and combined them into a story. . . . I have dreamed of owning a bookstore just like the Driftwood Cottage, but I am also realistic enough to know it is just that: a dream. I don't believe I could run a bookstore and continue to write novels. I've watched the commitment and dedication that it takes to keep an independent bookstore afloat, viable and interesting. . . . I believe many people love their independent bookstores but don't understand the problems the bookstore is going through. Readers are very upset when a local indie shuts down, yet they don't understand the things they could have done to prevent the bookstore's demise! I think the best things we can do to help save our local indies are to visit them, buy our books from them and spread the word about them. Buy local: It's not just a slogan, but a real way to save our indies and help the local economy thrive."--Patti Callahan Henry in an interview with the Fayetteville Observer. Her latest novel, Driftwood Summer (NAL, $15, 9780451226884/045122688), focuses on the complicated relationship among three sisters as well as the challenge of running an independent bookstore.

Happy Father's Day

Authors on the Beach

The Washington Post asked authors which book character they would like to accompany them for a day on the beach. Read what they had to say.

Summer Reading

"Eat your way around the world with this collection of fun summer reads," suggested USA Today in featuring food and travel titles.

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Physick Book of Deliverence Dane

A spellbinding, beautifully written novel that moves between contemporary times and one of the most fascinating and disturbing periods in American history–the Salem witch trials.
Harvard graduate student Connie Goodwin needs to spend her summer doing research for her doctoral dissertation. But when her mother asks her to handle the sale of Connie’s grandmother’s abandoned home near Salem, she can’t refuse. As she is drawn deeper into the mysteries of the family house, Connie discovers an ancient key within a seventeenth-century Bible. The key contains a yellowing fragment of parchment with a name written upon it: Deliverance Dane. This discovery launches Connie on a quest—to find out who this woman was and to unearth a rare artifact of singular power: a physick book, its pages a secret repository for lost knowledge.

As the pieces of Deliverance’s harrowing story begin to fall into place, Connie is haunted by visions of the long-ago witch trials, and she begins to fear that she is more tied to Salem’s dark past then she could have ever imagined.

Written with astonishing conviction and grace, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane travels seamlessly between the witch trials of the 1690s and a modern woman’s story of mystery, intrigue, and revelation.



The Physick Book of Deliverence Dane...check out this video!

Katherine Howe's wildly inventive and comelling The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane is in stores now. Take a minute (more precisely, 62 seconds) and watch this creepy and cool book trailer:

Let's Get Fancy Together

Take a tour through all of the fun things inside "Fancy Nancy: Let's Get Fancy Together!"

Fig Gig in Fig Garden Village

A long-standing Fresno tradition continues in 2009! Bring your friends and family to Fig Garden Village for a FREE fun-filled evening of great music, shopping and dining.

The June Fig Gig, on Thursday, June 18th at 7:00 p.m., will feature a Fig Garden Village favorite...The Ed Burke Band!

Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Smell of New Books

For those of you that want to transition to e-books, but are simply too in love with that unique scent of books, Smell of Books is just what you’re looking for. Described as an “aerosol e-book enhancer,” it is meant to bring a whole new experience to digital reading. There are multiple aromas to choose from, including “Classic Musty Smell” and “New Book Smell,” and don’t worry about the scent not working on certain devices - it has been tested across the board.

Catching Fire on Sale September 1

Catching Fire, the sequel to the unanimously popular The Hunger Games, will be available September 1st! Pre-order your copy today and be one of the first to find out what happens to Katniss and her friends in this thrilling second installment.

To pre-order your copy, give us a call at 559-226-1845 or visit our website at
www.figgardenbookstore.com and shoot us an email.

Bookstock 2009

Purchase a copy today!
Celebrate the book & movie with film makers and authors
Logan & Noah Miller
(The purchase of the book admits 2 to the big event
at AT&T Park in San Francisco on June 6!)



BOOKSTOCK 2009: Art, Music & Movie Festival
Saturday, June 6, 7:00 pm

AT&T Park, San Francisco

BOOKSTOCK 2009! is a summer celebration of art for the whole family, with partial proceeds benefiting the Giants Community Fund. Join us for an exceptional evening of art, entertainment, great food and plenty of children's activities—all on the field at AT&T Park.

Attendees will enjoy a night of live music provided by top Bay Area bands including Stroke 9 and Eoin Herrington, a live art show featuring 25 renowned artists, and an advanced screening of Logan and Noah Miller’s film Touching Home, starring 4-time Academy Award nominee Ed Harris; the movie that inspired it all! Plus, the book release and signing of the Miller brother's exhilarating memoir Either You're In or You're in The Way, released by HarperCollins April 28. Film cast, including actor Ed Harris, will be in attendance!

Purchase the Miller Brother's book and your receipt will admit 2 into the event. Children 12 and under are free! Purchase a copy today!

My Forbidden Face

In a moving tale of oppression and courageous defiance, sixteen-year-old Latifa tells her story of growing up in war torn Afghanistan. She was a prisoner in her own home as the Taliban wreaked havoc on the lives of Afghan girls and women. The regime banned women from working, from schools, from public life, even from leaving their homes without a male relative. Female faces were outlawed as the burka, or head-to-toe veil, became mandatory. Like a contemporary Anne Frank, Latifa was forced to observe, absorb, and make sense of what was happening to women, to her country, to her family, from the confines of her four walls. In 2001, after escaping to Pakistan, then to Paris, with her parents, Latifa's future finally opened up. Written during exile, this book is an extraordinarily powerful account of a teenager's life under terrible circumstances and a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit.

The Road of Lost Innocence

Born in a village deep in the Cambodian forest, Somaly Mam was sold into sexual slavery by her grandfather when she was twelve years old. For the next decade she was shuttled through the brothels that make up the sprawling sex trade of Southeast Asia. Trapped in this dangerous and desperate world, she suffered the brutality and horrors of human trafficking—rape, torture, deprivation—until she managed to escape with the help of a French aid worker. Emboldened by her newfound freedom, education, and security, Somaly blossomed but remained haunted by the girls in the brothels she left behind.
Written in exquisite, spare, unflinching prose, The Road of Lost Innocence recounts the experiences of her early life and tells the story of her awakening as an activist and her harrowing and brave fight against the powerful and corrupt forces that steal the lives of these girls. She has orchestrated raids on brothels and rescued sex workers, some as young as five and six; she has built shelters, started schools, and founded an organization that has so far saved more than four thousand women and children in Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Her memoir will leave you awestruck by her tenacity and courage and will renew your faith in the power of an individual to bring about change

Summertime Reading

This is what we do in California in the Summer!!!

It's Official.......

Hey Everyone,
The "New Moon" trailer is finally out. The movie looks great!

Theater Release: November 20th 2009

Keeping It Cool

It gets hot, hot, hot here in the summer and I'm always looking for something to keep in my car to stash the groceries that need to stay cold. I think I found the perfect solution in this lightweight,waterproof, fully insulated basket from Picnic at Ascot. It even collapsibles flat to store in the car when I'm not using it. Who knows, maybe we'll even use it to go on a picnic!