Hello from BookDabbler. March is the month that’s - in like a lion out like a lamb - preparing us all for the changes of Spring (and hopefully rain). Come see how we’re preparing for Spring as well.

Spring Cleaning Sale March 13 – 15 at BookDabbler
You pick your price on selected books depending on the day:
Thursday 3/13 - selected hardbacks $3, paperbacks $2
Friday 3/14 - selected hardbacks $2, paperbacks $1
Saturday 3/15 - selected hardbacks $1, paperbacks .50¢
We'll also have some clearance gift items and 2008 calendars at great prices, clearing the way for new merchandise. Come one or all of these sale days and stack up on beneficial book buys.

Featured local artist
Lauren Stewart, of Brilliant Beads
Lauren currently has a colorful selection of bead bracelets that include a creative bracelet holder. Recycling soda bottles, Lauren has invented an artistic and imaginative use for these glass bottles. At only $8.99, the bead bracelet alone is a deal, but getting the unique bottle bracelet holder makes supporting this local artist a value indeed. Lauren is a senior at Orange High School. You may have also seen a few of her smaller paintings here, as she exhibits her artistic fervor in various ways. Come see (and buy) Lauren's fun and inspired, functional art. She will also make custom pieces.

Avi’s account
No Country For Old Men is Cormac McCarthy's book about a man who finds a suitcase full of drug money in the desert, a hit man hired to retrieve the money, and an old sheriff who sees the changing times as he struggles to save a fellow citizen regardless of his flaws. Set in 1970's, McCarthy’s tale revolves around the violence brought to the southwest by drug dealers. The rules used by the hit man are poignant even today where ruthless people justify their actions by following a different doctrine than that to which an older generation is accustomed. Read the book, see the Oscar winning movie and decide for yourself!

Sue’s review
The House that George Built:With a Little Help from Irving, Cole, and a Crew of About Fifty, by Wilfrid Sheed If you hear the title of a song from the swing era and the words and music pop into your head, you'll enjoy this book and its breezy style. It's a musical history of the swing era, focused on the extremely self-confident and generous George Gershwin. The book also covers Irving Berlin, whose music diverted Gershwin from the classical path he'd been on, and the tunesmiths and lyricists Gershwin mentored and/or influenced -- the ones you know, like Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, ..., and the ones whose music you love and names you wouldn't recognize.
A great way to hear some of these songs LIVE is to go to Ellen Ciompi’s concert, "Obsessions" this Saturday, March 8th at Duke East Campus. See Community Events for more details.

Come pick up a copy of these new books at BookDabbler.

March Trivia question
To what does the phrase, "the ides of March" refer?
Contact us with your answer via e-mail at info@bookdabbler.com, or call the store at 919-382-8448, or stop in and tell us what you think. If more than one correct answer is submitted (as expected), a random drawing will chose the winner by March 31th. The lucky winner will receive a $20 gift certificate, good towards the purchase of any books or gift items at BookDabbler. Good luck!

February Trivia winner
Mary Auen is last month’s trivia winner. The question: What 18th century author, though completing 6 novels, died before completing the final, Sanditon? Answer: Jane Austen. If you’ve never read Jane Austen, she’s a great classical literature read injecting humor, a sense of the times, and love into each of her books. Come get one of her books at BookDabbler for the first time, or to recapture the nostalgia of reading again. Congratulations Mary!

New book titles at BookDabbler
Peony in Love, by Lisa See
Eat, Pray, Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert
Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Martenson & David Oliver Relin
Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant, by Daniel Tammet
Oil! by Upton Sinclair (Oscar movie, There Will be Blood)
Winter’s Tale, by Mark Helprin
These and other new books are available at BookDabbler for 20% off the publisher’s price.

Community events
Saturday, March 8th, 8pm –"Obsessions", An evening of Cabaret
Ellen Ciompi, vocals, and Glenn Mehrbach, piano. Admission only $10 at the door. Nelson Music Room, Duke East Campus. If you missed her last month at BookDabbler, definitely come to this performance!

Saturday, March 8th, 9am – noon - The Durham Soil & Water Conservation District and the City of Durham's Department of Water Management team up for an Education Event to Help Residents Save Money and Water. Durham residents can exchange their old, water-wasting showerheads for free, water-efficient (1.5 gallons/minute) showerheads or purchase one for $3 (cash only). The Department of Water Management will offer other free items (such as toilet retrofit items and faucet aerators) to make homes even more water efficient. Location is the parking lot on the corner of Foster St. and Hunt Ave. in downtown Durham. For information about this event, contact James Lim, conservation coordinator with the City's Department of Water Management, at (919) 560-4381 or Jennifer Brooks, watershed conservationist with the Durham Soil & Water Conservation District, at (919) 560-0558.

Sunday, March 9th, 3-4pm - THE PRATIE HEADS
St. Patrick's Celebration concert
Come share a hilarious, tender, roaring, whispering afternoon of "more or less traditional" Irish songs and tunes. FREE. NC Museum of History. Click http://www.ncmuseumofhistory.org for more information.

Wednesday, March 12th, 7pm – Book discussion
The historian and author Thomas Cahill will discuss and sign copies of his latest book, Mysteries of the Middle Ages: The Rise of Feminism, Science, and Art from the Cults of Catholic Europe. FREE and open to the public. First Presbyterian Church, 305 E. Main St. (919) 682-5511.

Saturday, March 15th, 9am – 3pm – Annual Used Book Sale
Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 4907 Garrett Road.

Monday, March 17th – Saint Patrick’s Day – wear green!
Thursday, March 20th – 1st day of Spring!
Sunday, March 23rd – Happy Easter!

Wednesday, March 26th, noon - Victor Wooten: The Music Lesson
The Music Lesson chronicles the story of a young bass player and an expedition that opened his eyes to things he never before dreamed of. He quickly realized that he is learning much more than music and, that by helping himself he is actually helping his life and the life of music in the process. Performance and workshop. 6th grade and up. FREE for noon showing only. Carolina Theatre, www.carolinatheatre.org.

Friday, March 28th, 7:30pm - LGBTQ film series - Nina’s Heavenly Delights
(Pratibha Parmar, 2006, 94 min, UK, in English, Color)
A surprising love story where Scottish humor meets Bollywood spectacle! It follows the mixed fortunes of a Glaswegian family, the Shah’s and their award winning Indian restaurant, The New Taj. The story is told through the eyes of Nina Shah, a young Scottish Asian woman. Free and open to the public. Sponsored by DukeOUT. Screening location: French Family Science Center, room 2231. For information about other Screen/Society screenings and events, visit: http://fvd.aas.duke.edu/screensociety/schedule.php

Saturdays in March - Durham's annual Great American Cleanup
(formerly the Spring Clean & Swap) -- begins Saturday and continues each Saturday in March, except March 22. FREE to city residents who bring acceptable items in cars, pickup trucks and trailers less than eight feet in length. The goal of the Swap Shop is to keep as much materialout of the landfill as possible, helping the City to meet its overall waste reduction goals by extending the useful life of materials. Residents can also bring items to the event that arestill usable or can be repaired, to be swapped or donated to the Swap Shop. For rules and more information call (919) 560-1200.

Again, we thank you for your patronage. Please feel free to share this newsletter with your friends and family.

Avi and Shawna

BookDabbler Used Books & Gifts
1821 Hillandale Rd in Loehmann's Plaza Durham
919-382-8448

Mon - Fri 10 to 6:30
Sat 10 to 4

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