ISLANDPORT PRESS

Maine Holiday Gift Guides for Readers

It's been a busy few weeks at Islandport Press! Our books have been featured in three popular gift guides. Alex Steed, a founding partner at Knack Factory, creates the Ultimate Maine Gift Guide each year, and Halfway Wild, a picture book written by Laura Freudig and illustrated by Kevin M. Barry gets a mention in the Books/Music/Hobbies section. 

The well-reviewed children's book also got a mention on Maine Calling's Made in Maine Gift Guide. In addition to Halfway Wild, Digital Editor Jennifer Hazard also discussed new books for young adults, which included The Kinfolk, the final installment of The Five Stones Trilogy by Portland-based author, G.A. Morgan. 

We were also proud to see Coloring Maine, a beautiful coloring book of woodblock prints by Blue Butterfield, in the December issue of Downeast Magazine. The coloring book is #30 in their 50 under $50 list. 

We are thrilled to be included in these locally inspired lists! If you need more ideas for book lovers, stop by one of our mall kiosks, located at the Maine Mall in South Portland and Bangor Mall, and ask for our staff picks. You'll find books for every age and interest plus travel guides, stunning coffee table books and a 2017 Maine Poster Calendar from beloved artist, Dahlov Ipcar. 

If you're not near to the malls or a local bookseller, visit our online bookshop, where you'll find many more thoughtful gifts for everyone on your list.

 

Last-Minute Mother's Day Gifts for Readers

If you're in search of a special book for your mother, we have a great selection of titles for Mother's Day. From humorous titles such as The Sweet Life to beautiful new cookbooks like Green Plate Special, here’s a peek at some of our most popular selections for Mother's Day:

Food lovers will enjoy How to Cook a Moose by Kate Christensen. This memoir is a follow-up to Christensen’s bestselling book, Blue Plate Special. In How to Cook Moose, we find the author in the process of remodeling a new home in the West End of Portland, Maine with her partner, Brandon. During the construction, the couple becomes acquainted with Maine food purveyors, chefs and farmers. Readers will enjoy following the pair on local adventures, and learning the stories behind some of the influencers behind Maine’s burgeoning food scene. Christensen, who is also an accomplished home cook, also shares some of the recipes that were inspired by her visits.

Always in Season, by Elise Richer, considers farmers’ market finds and CSA shares for every month of the year, and provides simple recipes so there’s no longer a question about what to prepare with your produce. Similarly, Green Plate Special by chef and Portland Press Herald food columnist Christine Burns Rudalevige, offers valuable tips on how to create a sustainable pantry, and how to use those ingredients to create memorable meals. Both titles make an ideal addition to any New England kitchen library.

For moms who enjoy a good page-turner, we suggest Contentment Cove by Miriam Colwell. Set in a Maine fishing village in the 1950’s, the novel explores the lives of three women — a local shopkeeper, an artist, and a wealthy retiree. Readers will learn what happens when their lives intertwine, first pleasantly, and then tragically.

Nine Mile Bridge by Helen Hamlin takes readers on a journey through the Maine wilderness. They’ll get to know Hamlin, a teacher and the wife of a game warden, who spent three eventful years living deep in the woods near the St. John River. For moms who love the outdoors and stories of survival, Nine Mile Bridge makes a thoughtful gift. 

And for those moms looking for a fun and breezy read, we recommend The Sweet Life. The book, which is written by Maine's funniest woman Ida Leclair, offers both down to earth and laugh out loud advice on relationships. 

Like our suggestions? You can find many of our books online or at your local bookseller. Best wishes to all for a wonderful Mother’s Day!

Teaming Up with Creative Local Businesses

 

Find the IP Bucket Bag here.

For the past few months, we've been working with neighboring businesses to bring our friends and readers some fun giveaways. We first teamed up with Sea Bags in Portland to create a limited edition Islandport Bucket Bag, featuring our logo. The bags were sold at our mall kiosks during the holidays and were also a part of a popular giveaway featuring The Havener Sisters and Abbott's Reach by Ardeana Hamlin. 

With the success of our collaboration with Sea Bags, we decided to reach out to more local makers. Enter Katie Chalmers of Betty Louise Studio in Yarmouth. Her colorful crocheted hats seemed like the ideal accompaniment to Elizabeth Atkinson's novel, The Sugar Mountain Snow Ball. We sent Katie an image of the cover, and she designed an adorable hat for our Instagram giveaway! 

The Betty Louise Studio hat got us thinking about Valentine's Day and how much fun it would be to host a pop-up shop at a nearby business. Our office manager, Shannon, came across the Blind Date with a Book concept, where each title is gift wrapped and tagged with a few clues about its ideal reader. Once we had an idea in mind, we approached Maple's in Yarmouth. The bakery and gelato shop has provided our staff with delicious pastries and coffee for events, and we thought the space would be the ideal neighborhood spot to host the pop-up shop. The result was a beautifully designed stand featuring a variety of our titles — cookbooks, mysteries, fiction and memoirs. The response to the pop-up shop was a positive one, and we're planning on another for Mother's Day soon!

Our most recent collaboration was with Ellen Okalita in Gray. Ellen is the talented owner behind Tree + Vine — an Etsy shop that sells handmade felt masks and wings for children. With National Bat Day approaching, we thought a giveaway featuring A Little Brown Bat Story and one of Ellen's masks would be embraced by our readers. Ellen did an incredible job creating a mask that looks just like the little brown bat in the story. We liked the mask so much, we're hoping someday we can have her make some wings to match! 

Know a Maine maker or shop that would like to work with us? Comment below. We'd love to hear your ideas. Keep your eyes on our Facebook and Instagram pages for more locally-inspired giveaways!  

 

 

 

 

Valentine's Day Pop-Up Shop

Searching for your perfect literary match? This week, we're debuting our first “Blind Date With A Book” pop-up shop at Maple’s Bakery & Coffee Shop on Route One in Yarmouth. 

 

Our staff selected six favorite titles, wrapped the books to hide their identity, and labeled them with tags that describe the perfect reader for each. Are you a thrill-seeking, amateur sleuth? A food-loving locavore? We’ve got the right book for you. And best yet, all of the books available are up to 40% off the retail price.

Stop by Maple’s, grab a cup of coffee and a treat, and see if your true literary love awaits. The pop-up shop will be open now through Monday, February 15, 2016. Enjoy!

Maple's 
881 US Route One
Yarmouth, Maine
(207) 846-1000
Find them on Facebook

 

Islandport Books by the Numbers

2015 marked the second holiday season we sold books at the malls in South Portland and Bangor. Our kiosk staff enjoyed getting to know readers and were impressed by the variety of books shoppers were interested in gifting. "Merry Moosey Christmas" and "Suddenly, the Cider Didn't Taste So Good," proved to be popular at both malls, but that's where the similarities end. Here are our top 5 titles by location:

The Maine Mall

1. "Merry Moosey Christmas" (Plourde, Cox)
2. "Christmas in Maine" (Coffin, Butterfield)
3. "Suddenly, the Cider Didn't Taste So Good" (Ford)
4. "My Wonderful Christmas Tree" (Ipcar)
5. "A Moose & a Lobster Walk into a Bar" (McDonald)

Ford's book appeared at
#3 on every list!

Bangor Mall

1. "Merry Moosey Christmas" (Plourde, Cox)
2. "The Havener Sisters" (Hamlin)
3. "Suddenly, the Cider Didn't Taste So Good" (Ford)
4. "Abbott's Reach" (Hamlin)
5. "Huntin & Fishin' with the Ole Man" (O'Connor)

Much like The Maine Mall shoppers, buyers who shopped Amazon.com were also interested in "Christmas in Maine" and "Suddenly, the Cider Didn't Taste So Good." However, a few other titles also popped up in the Top 5: 

Amazon.com

1. "Christmas in Maine" (Coffin, Butterfield)
2. "The Cat at Night" (Ipcar)
3. "Suddenly, the Cider Didn't Taste So Good" (Ford)
4. "When the Sky is Like Lace" (Horwitz, Cooney)
5. "How to Cook a Moose" (Christensen)

Did your favorite Islandport book appear on any of these lists? If not, we'd love to hear from you. Which of our books do you enjoy most? 

Many thanks to all of you who supported our books and authors over the holiday season. Here's to a 2016 filled with great reads! 

 

Staff Picks: Recipes

As the holiday season begins, we're always looking for new foods to bring, serve, and enjoy. Islandport Press offers a wide range of cookbooks, and our staff members have been testing recipes from them to bring you a new miniseries called Staff Picks: Recipes. Children's book editor Melissa Kim kicks off the fun with some easy-to-make cookies:

I chose a recipe from Favorite Island Recipes, a cookbook written by members and friends of the Frenchboro Congregational Church on Frenchboro Island. The recipes in this practical cookbook are told in a no-nonsense, no frills way, island style. Some call on ingredients from the coast, like goose grass, rose hips, lobsters, and mussels, but others have ingredients that can be found in any kitchen pantry. 

These cookies were a huge hit with my 11-year-old son who said, "First you taste the chocolate, then you taste the pumpkin. They're good," he said. After his second cookie, he said "They're really good. Actually, they're great!"

A few notes: I greased the pan lightly before baking. The batter is very moist. This recipe made almost four dozen cookies. Best part: You can make the recipe in one bowl. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

By Shirley Eaton

1 egg

1 C sugar

1/2 C oil

1 C pumpkin

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 C flour

1 tsp milk

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Mix together egg, sugar, oil, pumpkin, vanilla, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Then add flour, milk, and chocolate chips. Bake 8 - 10 minutes at 375 degrees. 

 

 

5 Things You Didn't Know About Artist Blue Butterfield

Blue Butterfield is the artist behind the gorgeous, new woodcut illustrations that accompany the 1941 classic "Christmas in Maine" by Pulitzer Prize winning poet Robert Tristram P. Coffin. Blue has quite a following, especially in Portland where her calendars are sought after each year. But even her most loyal fans might not know some of these fun facts:

1. In 2008, Blue Butterfield and her husband started the Reiche International 5K Road Race to benefit Reiche Elementary School in the West End of Portland, one of Maine's most ethnically diverse schools. The race has become the school's largest annual fundraiser.

2. Blue started assembling her woodblock prints into a yearly calendar in 2007, and now receives orders from across the country.

3. When she's not working in her studio, Butterfield is a Physician Assistant at Maine Medical Center.

4. She has a passion for track and field.

5. As a budding artist in high school, she won a grant to study abroad and spent her junior year painting in Germany and traveling across Europe.

Many thanks to Blue for sharing these fun facts with us! Want to learn more about the artist and her work? Check out these events coming up in November and December!

November 20: "Christmas in Maine" Book Launch at the Portland Museum of Art  at 5 p.m. (Portland, ME)

December 4: Meet Blue Butterfield at Harmon's & Barton's Gallery at 5 p.m. (Portland, ME) 

December 13: Discussion, book signing, and holiday concert with Blue Butterfield at the Jesup Memorial Library at 2 p.m. (Bar Harbor, ME)

December 16: Book signing and wood carving demonstration at the Freeport Community Library at 6:30 p.m. (Freeport, ME)

December 19: Book Signing at L.L. Bean at 11 a.m. (Freeport, ME)

To find your copy of "Christmas in Maine," visit our bookshop. 

All photos of Blue Butterfield courtesy of Kevin Bennett Photography.

Halloween Reads

In Maine, late October brings an undeniable chill to the air. Winter is right around the corner and Halloween is our last chance to cling to fall and all of its glory — fiery leaves at our feet, pumpkins at the doorstep, and apples by the bushel. At Islandport, we're celebrating the last of weeks of autumn with some of our favorite fall reads. So grab a blanket, some hot cider and cozy up to these perfect-for-Halloween books.

"Mercy"

VOYA said it best: "Don't read this book alone at night. This is a classic horror story where every detail of Haley's life seems real and ordinary except for the smell of death and clay in Aunt Brown's house; a beloved cousin wasting away from an unexplainable blood disease; and an ancestor's glove that appears to have crawled out of its box. Haley is researching Mercy, an ancestor who died of tuberculosis in 1892. As others in her family died, hysteria grew in this small New England town, until someone whispered the word vampire. But did Mercy ever die or is she still feeding? Thomson sharply captures images in words the way her character Haley captures them with her camera." 

Why is it that being told not to read something at night always makes us want to do it anyway?

 

"Lies in the Dust"

This graphic novel is intended for teens, but packs a punch for any reader interested in the aftermath of the Salem Witch Trials. Artist Timothy Decker balances the dark reality of the time period with unforgettable illustrations. Written by Jakob Crane, the fascinating story is also a great introduction for first time readers of graphic novels.

 

"How to Cook a Moose"

"How to Cook a Moose" is in no way scary or spooky, but it's a great fall read. If you’re feeling unnerved by scary movie trailers on TV, pick this book up for comfort. The culinary memoir is perfect for those who follow the local, farm-to-table movement, or anyone who is considering a move to New England. 

What are your favorite books to read at this time of year?

PS: If you'd like the chance to win a copy of "Lies in the Dust," go over to Instagram and follow us there. All you have to do to enter is be a follower! The username is islandportpress (click here for a link to our page).