, the second consecutive to be held at St. Paul's RiverCentre.
The show's pièce de résistance came at the general meeting, which featured a talk from Holt that was provocative even for her. Repeatedly using terms like "illegal" and "loathsome" to describe the actions of online and bricks-and-mortar megaliths, Holt came down particularly hard on the New York Times for what she perceives as skewed coverage. "I think the New York Times should be ashamed," she said, for running "more and more puff pieces about the Riggio brothers because Barnes & Noble is [its] primary bookseller." She added, "They [the Riggios] have been romanticized beyond belief." She slammed Amazon. com CEO Jeff Bezos for devising "the worst business model in the history of life," and went on to say that Bezos loses millions of dollars "but has the audacity to say that he likes going to Elliott Bay where 'you can hear the creaking of the books.' It's so patronizing and so loathsome."
Booksellers responded to Holt's breathless speech with loud applause at several points. Also drawing strong applause was the introduction of UMBA board member and Amazon Bookstore manager Barb Wieser, who is suing the Seattle e-tailer for trademark infringement. A trip to the store bore out the notion that she is not taking this lightly -- in the window was a T-shirt that read: "Amazon NOT com -- I Support the Original Bookstore Since 1970." Though the suit d s not necessarily address the fundamental issues many indies have with Amazon. com, in the Upper Midwest, at least, it has become a touchstone for much of what they object to in the current bookselling environment.
Of course, booksellers got their chances to mingle with authors. Esme Raji Codell (Educating Esme, Algonquin) imparted her thoughts on children's books and reading at an educational seminar. Among the other scribes in attendance were Pulitzer Prize winner David Maraniss (When Pride Still Mattered, S&S), who spoke at the Saturday breakfast; Amelia author Marissa Moss (Emma's Journal, Silver Whistle), featured at the Sunday children's breakfast; and Ana Castillo (Peel My Love Like an Onion, Doubleday) and Ron Hansen (Hitler's Niece, HarperCollins) who, among others, spoke at the Saturday Book & Author dinner. Hansen riffed on an unfavorable review he received from the New York Times's Michiko Kakutani. She called Hitler's Niece "inept" -- prompting Hansen to speculate that she had talked to ex-girlfriends of his.
Despite Minnesota's image as a wintry place, the show confirmed what many who live and work there already know: the region is a warm, embracing literary community. Nowhere was this more obvious than at the show and its ancillary events. A 25th anniversary for the extraordinary nonprofit Graywolf took place Friday night in the press's funky St. Paul digs, with Consortium head Randall Beek and other local luminaries in attendance.
