Everyday Carry Books

Books are not the most things right now--not by a long shot. But if reading English-language fiction brings you some comfort, visit www.everydaycarrybooks.com to see the best collection of contemporary English-language fiction in Israel. The curated collection includes limited quantities of highly sought after books like James McBride's "The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store", Lauren Groff's "The Vaster Wilds" and Claire Keegan's "So Late in the Day". The shop also includes curated collections of young adult and children's fiction, science fiction and an extensive collection of Japanese fiction. Not sure what you might like? Phone consultations are available to help select the right book for you. Free delivery (over 75 NIS) is available to many areas in Jerusalem.

As noted in a previous post, Everyday Carry Books was on hiatus this summer while I was in the US visiting family, friends, and ordering new book collections. I look forward to reopening this Friday (August 18) in my usual spot in First Station. You can preview the entire book collection at www.everydaycarrybooks.com and message if you want me to hold a book for you or deliver it personally if you live nearby.

My summer reading included the following titles:

“Leave the World Behind” by Rumaan Alam
“Alone with You in the Ether” by Olivie Blake
“Writers and Lovers” by Lily King
“Kindred” Octavia E Butler
“Providence” by Anita Brookner
“Oona Out of Order” by Margarita Montimore
“The Road to Dalton” by Shannon Bowring
“Sea of Tranquility” by Emily St. John Mandel
“The Vegetarian” by Han Kang
“Drive your plow over the bones of the dead” by Olga Tokarczuk
“My year of rest and relaxation” by Ottessa Moshfegh
“Yellow Face” by RF Kuang
“Siddhartha” by Herman Hesse (reread)
“Hello Beautiful” by Ann Napolitano
“Small Mercies” by Dennis Lahane
“The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland (in progress)

Let me know your thoughts about any of these novels.

Everyday Carry Books A Jerusalem, Israel bookshop featuring curated collections of English-language books, gifts, and every day carry items. The shop is located in the First Station complex, near all major hotels.

As a teacher and bookshop owner, I value my summers as a time to plan, recharge, travel, and read. And read and read and read. I look forward to returning to Israel and reopening the shop on August 18 with some incredible titles. I have included pictures of recent acquisitions. Please leave a comment with books that you are currently reading and/or want the shop to carry.

There is something for every reader in the latest arrivals. For young children, "Orange Pear Apple Bear" is a must have board book. For early readers, there is a "Pete the Cat" box set. For tweens, there is a beautiful edition of Judy Blume's classic "are you there god? it's me margaret". For adult readers, first time additions to the shop include Rebecca Makkah's "The Great Believers" and Yoko Ogawa's fabulous "The Housekeeper and the Professor." And for those in the know, I have two copies each of Jacqueline Harpman's "I Who Have Never Known Men" and Marlen Haushofer's "The Wall". None of these copies are likely to last long, so if you want me to hold any for you, please message me on WhatsApp or at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you and/or seeing at the shop on Friday. www.everydaycarrybooks.com

Recent additions (below) to the shop have kept me busy reading.

"Asymmetry" by Lisa Halliday
"Come Rain or Come Shine" by Kazuo Ishiguro
"Five Tuesdays in Winter" by Lily King
"Foster" by Claire Keegan
"Tides" by Sara Freeman
"The Promise" by Damon Gadget
"The Light of Day" by Graham Swift
"Checkout 19" by Claire-Louise Bennett

I invite you to stop by the shop on Friday at First Station to talk about these or any of the other books (both fiction and nonfiction) at Everyday Carry Books (www.everydaycarrybooks.com). Also keep in mind that I am happy to deliver a book to you if you live in a neighborhood close to the German Colony. I am often able to deliver the same day.

After a very busy few days at the beginning of Chol HaMoed, Everyday Carry Books did not open yesterday (Monday) or today due to inclement weather. If you want to purchase a book or books before the shop reopens on Friday, I offer free same day delivery (over 75 NIS) to neighborhoods around First Station. Visit www.everydaycarrybooks.com to see what is available. Use WhatsApp if you have any questions.

Everyday Carry Books A Jerusalem, Israel bookshop featuring curated collections of English-language books, gifts, and every day carry items. The shop is located in the First Station complex, near all major hotels.

Everyday Carry Books is ready for the Pesach Chol HaMoed crowds with some wonderful new titles, including "Tides" by Sara Freeman, "Checkout 19" by Claire Louise Bennett, "Love Marriage" by Monica Ali and "Foster" by Claire Keegan. For those who enjoy nonfiction, there are copies of Matti Friedman's "Who By Fire: Leonard Cohen in the Sinai, Jing Tsu's "Kingdom of Characters" and "Seven Games" by Oliver Roeder. Visit www.everydaycarrybooks.com to see the entire collection. I hope to see you at First Station during Chol HaMoed Pesach. Chag Sameach to everyone!

My apologies to anyone who came to First Station last week hoping to visit the shop but I did not open after the Dessert Festival was postponed. Weather permitting, the shop will be open this week from 15:00-22:00 on Thursday during the rescheduled Dessert Festival and on Friday from 10-16:00. In addition to great new additions like "Sorrow and Bliss" by Meg Mason and "Panenka" by Ronan Hessian, the shop will feature a special collection of novellas by Ishiguro, Gaitskill, Keegan and Cynan Jones. You can preview the collection at www.everydaycarrybooks.com

Due to the Jerusalem Marathon, Everyday Carry Books will open on Thursday (March 16) afternoon/evening instead of Friday. Thursday is also another dessert festival at First Station so there is even more reason to visit! Check out www.everydaycarrybooks.com for reading inspiration.

Everyday Carry Books A Jerusalem, Israel bookshop featuring curated collections of English-language books, gifts, and every day carry items. The shop is located in the First Station complex, near all major hotels.

Very happy to receive three wonderful titles at the shop: Barbara Kingsolver's Demon Copperhead, a contemporary retelling of David Copperfield; The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land by Omer Friedlander, an award winning collection of stories set in and around Jerusalem and Blood Child by Octavia Butler, one of the best science fiction writers of the last 30 years. These titles are available at www.everydaycarrybooks.com and at the shop, which is open on Fridays at First Station. Please note that the shop will be closed on March 3rd!

I was disappointed that the bad weather did not allow me to open the shop on Friday. I did, however, run into a regular customer who told me that she had recently finished "Hotel Silence" by the fantastic Icelandic author Audur Ava Olafsdottir. That inspired me to finish it as well and we heartily recommend this quirky novel about a suicidal, middle aged man who develops a renewed interest in living after visiting a worn torn nation. The book is very well written (the author also wrote the excellent "Miss Iceland") and often funny. Please share your thoughts about "Hotel Silence" or let me know if you want me to reserve a copy for you.

Also, please come and visit the shop on Friday!

Having a “curated” bookshop means that I select every book that I sell. Although it is not always possible to read every book, I learn as much as I can about the author and novel so that I can help people select wisely. Most of my reading is in contemporary fiction, but I also enjoy “soft” science fiction and classics. I am plot ambivalent, but I require compelling characters and great writing. My TBR and shop inventory comes from a combination of literary websites/applications, booktube, and word of mouth, particularly from customers. I recommend two of my more recent reads: “I Who have Never Known Men” by Jacqueline Harpman and “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” by Gabrielle Zevin. These are very different novels, as “I Who…” is a dystopian novel while “Tomorrow…” takes place in the nascent gaming culture of the 1990s and early 2000s, but both address fundemental questions about friendship and love. Please post your thoughts below if you have read either, or stop by the shop on Fridays to talk. There is never any pressure to buy.

PS: I have exactly one copy of Siddharta Mukherjee”s fabulous non fiction book “The Story of the Gene”. If you know that you want it but can’t make it to the shop on Friday, you can buy it (or any other book) on the website and I will either hold it for you or I will deliver it personally if you live in the area.

Just a quick reminder/announcement that the shop will be closed today (Friday, January 27) as I am on a brief, much needed vacation. The shop will be back next Friday with some great new titles, including “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” by Gabrielle Zevin (One of my favorite recent reads). If you need a book before next week just let me know and I will do my best to get it to you. Shabbat Shalom

People at the shop often ask me about my favorite book(s), which is so subjective that it is not usually very useful when helping people find the right book for them. Instead of trying to find the best book ever, I try to guide people to really good reads. A few books written in the past few years that I often recommend are "A Lover's Discourse" by Xiaolu Gou, "A Separation" and "Intimacies" by Katie Kitamura, "Checkout 19" by Claire-Louise Bennett and "Cold Enough for Snow" by Jessica Au. All are modest in ambition but wonderfully written and insightful. Feel free to post below about the "smaller" books that have stayed with you, or better still, stop by the shop on Fridays to share in person.

Young Adult Literature (YAL) not only spans multiple genres and styles, but it often attracts readers beyond the tween/teen age group. A few recent titles will likely appeal to those of us who grew up with Judy Blume and Lois Lowery. "Orphan Island" by Laurel Snyder is particularly compelling for adult readers, while "My Jasper June" (also by Laurel Snyder) and "The Wild Robot" by Peter Brown are books that any parent would want their tweens and early teens to read. Visit Everyday Carry Books at First Station on Fridays or everydaycarrybooks.com to find a copy of these and many other quality YAL titles.

There is no easy answer to the question of when literature is"feminist literature", but Everyday Carry Books has several titles that are wonderful and powerful whether you think they are feminist or not. Three standout titles include Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982" by Cho Nam-Joo (South Korea), "I Who Have Never Known Men" by Jacqueline Harpman (Belgium), and the classic Egyptian novel "Woman at Point Zero" by Nawal El Saadawi. They will stay with you long after you finish reading.

Short story collections should be a part of your regular reading rotation as they offer pleasures that novels do not. The best short stories are often subtle and beautifully written; and who doesn't like the satisfaction of finishing something in under an hour. Everyday Carry Books offers short story collections by Alice Munro (perhaps the greatest living short story writer), the great 20th Century Modernist, Richard Yates; and for science fiction lovers, Ted Chiang (one of Barack Obama's favs). Visit the bookshop at First Station on Fridays, or order a book for pickup or delivery at everydaycarrybooks.com .

Just in time for Hanukkah, Everyday Carry Books has an extensive collection of classic American children's books, including titles such as "Make Way for Duckings", "Blueberries for Sal", "The Little House" and "Goodnight Moon". We even carry an oversized copy of "Pat the Bunny". Who doesn't love "Pat the Bunny"?

Visit Everyday Carry Books at First Stations on Fridays and every afternoon and evening during Hanukkah.