Where the Love of Books and Music is Always Brewing

227 SW 2nd Corvallis, Oregon 97333 Tel: 541-754-7668
email groots@peak.org

Mon - Thur: 9am - 7pm;   Fri: - 9am - 9pm;   Sat: - 9:30am - 5:30pm;   Sun: - 11am - 5pm
 

After love, book collecting is the most exhilarating sport of all. -- A Book Hunter's Holiday, A. S. W. Rosenbach
 

As buyer for Grass Roots, when Scott isn't roaming the store helping customers, he might be found perusing catalogs, figuring out which books and music to buy, or sitting at the computer placing orders, or tracking orders, or just plain thinking about orders.

He is allowed the occasional break to hug his three kids when they come by to check out the books and the quality of Grass Roots' hot chocolate.

In an effort to completely exhaust his free time, Scott also currently serves on the board of directors for the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association.

Scott's previous reviews.

Title of Book: The Three Pigs (order)
Author of Book: David Weisner
David Wiesner's picture books are some of the most clever and inventive kids' titles published in the past years. His classic Tuesday and last year's Sector 7 were both awarded the Caldecott Medal for achievement in illustration. The Three Pigs sets sail normally enough, with the very familiar story of Big Bad and co., but reality begins to unravel soon after the poor wolf blows down the house of pig 1. To the utter astonishment of the wolf, the pigs discover a way to exit the story page and embark on a remarkable adventure across the colorful panels of other familiar nursery stories. My kids loved the skewed view of the fairy tales, and quickly lost themselves in the richly detailed drawings.

Title of Book: The Virgin of Bennington (order)
Author of Book: Kathleen Norris
Possibly the most personal volume yet by one of my favorite writers - author of Dakota: A Spiritual Geography, Cloister Walk, Amazing Grace and a few collections of poetry. Norris' new memoir returns to a time before her move to the house of her grandparents. Virgin chronicles the coming of age of the reclusive fledgling poet in 1960s era New York under the tutelage of American Academy of Poets director Betty Kray. In addition to describing the various efforts of the AAP, the author frankly portrays her encounters with such luminaries of the era as Erica Jong, Jim Carroll, James Wright and Patti Smith. Throughout, Norris employs the vivid and accessible writing style that has made her previous books independent bestsellers, and interweaves, in retrospect, elements of spirituality which gradually became important during her adulthood.