Time – it’s the 4th July already, and it appears the time pixies have run off with half of the year. As half-years go, it was perhaps the one we’ll not miss, on reflection, they’re welcome to it. But here’s to the second half, the half with opportunity, the half in which a dial can be re-set, the half with a more thoughtful direction and speed of travel – there is work to be done, it is time to crack on.
A.E. Housman’s ‘Reveille’ is the perfect poem for when you need a boost, to put a spring in your step, the nudge to make the most of the day, for when you need to crack on!
Wake: the silver dusk returning
Up the beach of darkness brims,
And the ship of sunrise burning
Strands upon the eastern rims.
Wake: the vaulted shadow shatters,
Trampled to the floor it spanned,
And the tent of night in tatters
Straws the sky-pavilioned land.
Up, lad, up, ’tis late for lying:
Hear the drums of morning play;
Hark, the empty highways crying
“Who’ll beyond the hills away?”
Towns and countries woo together,
Forelands beacon, belfries call;
Never lad that trod on leather
Lived to feast his heart with all.
Up, lad: thews that lie and cumber
Sunlit pallets never thrive;
Morns abed and daylight slumber
Were not meant for man alive.
Clay lies still, but blood’s a rover;
Breath’s a ware that will not keep.
Up, lad: when the journey’s over
There’ll be time enough to sleep.
Our Coles Signed Editions include wonderfully illustrated editions of the Robin Hobb’s first two Farseer titles (the third is sure to follow); author Chris Beckett travels far into the future to look back on the present time in ‘Two Tribes’ – is this how history will regard us?; we look on the lives of two artists, MacDonald Gill and Emmanuel Cooper; Jehnny Beth, singer with the Mercury nominated band Savages, explores some intimate stories; film director Oliver Stone’s forthcoming memoir will be a tour de force of a driven man whose films include Platoon, Midnight Express and Scarface; for something a little more pastoral, we head into National Trust country with John Sales; fans of David Cassidy will find delight in Louise Poynton’s ‘Cherish’, a homage to a musical icon and for the ultimate in Skincare, what better than advice from bestseller Caroline Hirons.
And finally, we’re working towards offering all our books online very soon, every single book from the shop, both signed and unsigned – in advance of that, we’ll be showcasing a few un-signed books from time to time in this Newsletter, titles which are in the news, titles which have been popular with our customers, titles which are unique to independent bookshops like Coles – they’ll all be shipped in the same robust and re-cyclable packaging we use for our Signed Editions, and some will have special prices!
As always, thank you for opening and reading this email and thank you for supporting ‘Independent Bookselling’ at Coles Books.
Very best wishes from us all,
Nigel, Caroline and the team at Coles Books
