Something interesting is happening: the Brattle’s traditional demographic of bookish older men (No offense! We love you!) is being edged out by younger, more diverse, and dare we say, hipper customers. Why? Our photogenic outdoor sale lot has become popular on Instagram, creating a cycle of visits, alfresco shopping selfies, likes, organic advertising, and more visits. We’ll talk about the ways that this social media-driven shift is changing the shop, and the irony of an ultramodern communication network luring people back into the arms of dusty old books, on this potentially viral #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #109 - Where's Ken's Book? (audio fixed)
Edit: Sorry about the technical difficulties! The episode should work now.
Ken tells great stories, and he’s around books all day, so people sometimes ask him, “Why don’t you write a book of your own?” It’s a nice idea, but, unfortunately, being good at selling books doesn’t necessarily translate to being good at writing them. Jordan, on the other hand, has just published a memoir: ON-AIR: My 50-Year Love Affair with Radio, which he wrote with the help of an editor friend (learn more about Jordan’s book here: https://www.jordanrich.com/book.shtml).
Today we’ll talk about the mysteries and difficulties of the writing process, how hard it is to stay focused when writing feels like a chore, and why the funniest story in the world can come out so flat when you put it down on the page. Think of this episode as Ken’s séance for ghostwriters: Are you out there? Can you hear us trying to summon you?
Brattlecast #96 - The Grisham Conspiracy
Today we’re talking about Ken’s surprising appearance as a villain in John Grisham’s rare books heist thriller, Camino Island. Well, not Ken exactly, but someone very much like him. Oscar Stein is the fictional proprietor of the three story Old Boston Bookshop on West Street in downtown Boston, a shop that was founded by his father, Loyd Stein. Sound familiar? The only problem is that Oscar Stein is also a thief, his bookshop is failing, he’s weary of the book trade, and would rather pop pills in his cluttered office than run the shop. After reading Camino Island, Ken, baffled and understandably concerned about the possible damage it could cause to his reputation, does some investigating of his own, ultimately leading to a phone call from Grisham himself.