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Arlington Moves Up on ‘Most Well-Read Cities’ List

By Katie Pyzyk

Arlington is again on the Amazon.com list of The Top 20 Most Well-Read Cities, but this year it moved up.

Arlington was listed as #7 on the list, moving up 3 spots from last year’s #10 position. Alexandria also moved up the list from its spot at #2 last year. It has overtaken Cambridge, Mass. to become the #1 most well-read city in America.

Alexandria also has the distinction of liking spicy books. According to the press release, “Virginia is for lovers – Alexandria, Va., that is, which tops the charts in the Romance book category.”

Localities had to have at least 100,000 residents to be considered for inclusion on the list. Amazon.com compiled the data of all book, magazine and newspaper sales in both print and e-reader formats since June 1, 2011.

Here is the full list:

  1.  Alexandria, Va.
  2. Cambridge, Mass.
  3. Berkeley, Ca.
  4. Ann Arbor, Mich.
  5. Boulder, Colo.
  6. Miami
  7. Arlington, Va.
  8. Gainesville, Fla.
  9. Washington, D.C.
  10. Salt Lake City
  11. Pittsburgh
  12. Knoxville, Tenn.
  13. Seattle
  14. Orlando, Fla.
  15. Columbia, S.C.
  16. Bellevue, Wash.
  17. Cincinnati
  18. St. Louis
  19. Atlanta
  20. Richmond, Va.

Arlington Author Releases Novel About Vampires, Cupcakes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington author Mindy Klasky has released a new novella, with a plot that features vampires, lawyers and cupcakes.

Klasky, a Princeton University graduate and former litigator, is the creator of a series of fantasy novels that center around Jane Madison, a librarian who finds out she’s a witch. Her latest creation, Capitol Magic, teams Jane up with Sarah Anderson, who works as a clerk in a secret supernatural court and who’s apparently fond of cupcakes.

From the book’s description:

Jane Madison is searching for a job that will fulfill her, enabling her to combine her peerless librarian skills with her witchcraft. Sarah Anderson, clerk of court for the District of Columbia Night Court, is just beginning to figure out what she can do as a sphinx, an ancient protector of vampires. Magic flies when Jane and Sarah team up to protect a rare collection of books. Along the way, both women need to balance personal goals, professional careers, and their often-unwieldy love lives!

This novella combines the beloved world of the Jane Madison Series with the excitement of the stand-alone novel, Fright Court. Where else can a reader find a novella of witchcraft, vampires, and cupcakes?

Capitol Magic is available as an ebook from Amazon.com.

Wine, Books Come Together at Fundraiser

By Katie Pyzyk

Wine and beer may not be the first things that come to mind when you think of children’s literacy. But a fundraiser is combining the two in an event called “Of Wine & Words.”

The Reading Connection is hosting the event on Friday at the Boeing Conference Center (1200 Wilson Blvd). Attendees can enjoy a wine and beer tasting, food from local restaurants and a silent auction.

WJLA Meteorologist Brian van de Graff will emcee and children’s book author Jarrett J. Krosoczka will be the literacy honoree. Lyon Hall‘s Executive Pastry Chef Rob Valencia has earned the distinction of being the event’s first ever Chef Chair.

A special VIP reception will allow guests to speak with Krosoczka, Valencia and representatives from Tallgrass Brewery and Chateau O’Brien at Northpoint winery.

The 8th Annual Of Wine & Words runs from 7:00-10:00 p.m., and the VIP reception begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $75 per person, or $115 including the VIP reception.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Life-Like Simulators at Arlington Nursing School — The Chamberlain College of Nursing in Arlington is using simulated humans to train its students. The life-sized, life-like simulators can sweat, breathe, talk, and even give birth — and can be treated by new students without risking life or lawsuit. [WUSA9]

Local Indie Book Store Recognized — One More Page Books (2200 N. Westmoreland Street) in the East Falls Church area has been named one of the “Best Indie Bookstores on Twitter” by Mediabistro. The store, which specializes in books, wine and chocolate, has 857 Twitter followers. [GalleyCat]

CEO Leaves Rosslyn Company — Pete Snyder, the CEO and founder of Rosslyn-based New Media Strategies, has announced he’s leaving the company to pursue other ventures. Snyder sold the company five years but stayed on as CEO. New Media Strategies has 130 employees in Arlington and across the U.S. [AdAge]

Flickr pool photo by Maryva2

Borders Book Bonanza

By Katie Pyzyk

Here’s your chance to catch up on summer reading at a lower cost than expected. Borders’ liquidation sale is officially on.

It’s no secret that Borders filed for bankruptcy in February and then announced last week that all stores would be closing, including the one in Pentagon City. Now you can pick up books and basically anything in the remaining Borders store in our area, at 1201 S. Hayes Street in Pentagon Centre, for 10-40% off.

The sale will continue until the stores close, which is expected to be in September.

Bob Edwards to Speak at Central Library

By ARLnow.com

Former NPR “Morning Edition” host and longtime Arlington resident Bob Edwards will speak at Arlington Central Library in two weeks.

The radio great will reflect on his work at NPR and, most recently, Sirius XM satellite radio. He will also discuss his books about sportscaster Red Barber, Fridays with Red: A Radio Friendship, and legendary newsman Edward R. Murrow, Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism.

Edwards will take the stage at Arlington Central Library Auditorium at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 14. See more about his appearance on the Library Blog.

Arlington Among the Top Ten ‘Well-Read Cities’ in U.S.

By ARLnow.com

Arlington has been ranked among the most “well-read cities” in the United States, according to Amazon.com.

The internet retailer compiled sales data of all book, magazine and newspaper sales since Jan. 1, 2011 — in both print and Kindle formats — to find out which areas read the most on a per capita basis. Only “cities” with a population over 100,000 were considered.

Arlington ranked #10 on the list. Next-door neighbor Alexandria ranked #2, while the District ranked #14. Alexandria also topped the list of the cities that order the most children’s books.

See the full list, after the jump.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Holiday Closures — Most federal and Arlington County government offices are closed in observance of Washington’s Birthday — better known as President’s Day. ART is operating on a holiday schedule and Metro is operating on a modified schedule with on-going closures on the Blue and Orange Lines.

Real Estate Prices Up — Arlington real estate continues its upward trend. The median sales price in Arlington rose by 7.5 percent, according to Arlington Real Estate News.

Restaurant Coming to Siena Park? — Taqueria Poblano is in talks to open a location on the ground floor of the Siena Park apartment building on Columbia Pike. [Pike Wire]

Book Club Devoted to Intellectual Adventures — A group of students and their parents have formed a book club devoted to topics from space to the classics, with expert speakers for each book selection. [Washington Post]

Independent Booksellers Learn from Arlington Bike Store

By ARLnow.com

These are anxious times for independent booksellers. Having survived the emergence of e-tailers like Amazon.com, now small book stores are bracing for the impact of e-books on their business.

The American Booksellers Associations, which represents independent booksellers, held a four-day convention in Crystal City last week to network and discuss business strategies.

Among the activities was a field trip to Arlington’s Revolution Cycles.

NPR tagged along as Revolution Cycles CEO Mike Hammanwright shared words of wisdom on how to connect with customers.

Hammanwright said consumers are passionate about books in the same way they’re passionate about bicycles. To connect with those passionate consumers, you have to have a passionate (and well-trained) sales staff.

“If we’re listening and paying attention, and we hear what you’re looking for, then we can show you the products we have that we feel meet those needs,” Hammanwright said. “If a customer comes expecting that expertise, and you don’t deliver it, you’re going to do very poorly.”

Read more from NPR.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Place and Street Names Explained — Ever wonder how Rosslyn, Clarendon, Aurora Hills, Lorcom Lane and other county neighborhoods and thoroughfares got their names? The Falls Church News-Press’s Arlington correspondent has the answers, courtesy of a new book from the Arlington Historical Society. More from FCNP.

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day Events in Shirlington — Check out this comprehensive list of the New Year’s Eve happenings in Shirlington Village (via Shirlington Village Blog). After you party all night, feel free to lounge all day at Busboys and Poets’ New Year’s Day pajama brunch (via Shirlington Village Blogspot).

Two Die in AHC-Owned Building — Carbon monoxide poisoning is suspected in the deaths of two people in a Baltimore rowhouse. The home is owned by Arlington-based affordable housing organization AHC Inc. More from the Baltimore Sun.

Flickr pool photo by BrianMKA

Tonight: The CIA and the Sunken Soviet Sub

By ARLnow.com

It’s a plot straight from a Tom Clancy novel — except it’s real.

In 1974, the CIA embarked on an outlandish, secret $350 million project to salvage a sunken Soviet ballistic missile submarine from three miles below the North Pacific. Under the cover of an undersea mining operation sponsored by the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes, some of the country’s best and brightest were given the task of figuring out how to raise millions of pounds of steel from a nearly unreachable depth.

The result was one of the greatest feats of American engineering since the 1969 moon landing.

Tonight from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Arlington Central Library, author and historian Norman Polmar will discuss recently-revealed details about the audacious effort, told in part through interviews with the men who made it happen.

Here’s a trailer for a documentary produced by the co-author of Polmar’s book, “Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of K-129.”

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