WHERE You Buy Your Books is Important

I've blogged about the importance of independent bookstores, most recently here. And I've blogged about the indie bookstores visited while on my Great Lakes Adventures. I've even mentioned bookstores encountered when I'm not hiking, like my recent visit to Chicago's awesome Sandmeyer's Bookstore on Printer's Row. 

For a time, there were predictions that most bookstores would close due to the rise of the eBook (the sales of which have now gone flat) and the ease of purchasing books online. 

These predictions were wrong.

Shelf Awareness reports:

"Some 43 independent bookstores opened in 20 states during 2013, including a dozen established stores purchased by new owners and six branches of existing businesses."

(full report here)

Many established authors recognize the role indie bookstores have played in getting their books into the hands of readers. Some of those authors are now giving back. 

James Patterson, the wildly successful author of thrillers and, more recently, children's books, has pledged to give $1 million to indie bookstores. 

James Patterson

These grants are now being distributed. Read all about it here. 

And Sherman Alexie proposed that authors work at indie bookstores on Small Business Saturday. 

Sherman Alexie, the man with the plan

His plan:

"We book nerds will become booksellers. We will make recommendations. We will practice nepotism and urge readers to buy multiple copies of our friends' books. Maybe you'll sign and sell books of your own in the process. I think the collective results could be mind-boggling (maybe even world-changing)."

Many authors partnered with indie bookstores that day.

I consider my relationship 
with indie bookstores to be a 
lifetime partnership. 

As an avid reader, I cannot imagine a world without bookstores. They are places of wonder for me, places to discover new works by favorite authors, or discover a new author who will become a favorite. I value the expertise of indie booksellers and trust that when they put a book in my hands, it will be a wonderful read. 

As a writer, I partner with many indie bookstores to purchase the books I need to illuminate the history, geology, and other aspects of our Great Lakes. I absorb this information and then weave it into my books about my Great Lakes Adventures.

As a published author, I am honored that so many indie bookstores have placed my books on their shelves and into the hands of readers. As a thank you to the indies, I pre-released my second book to a dozen stores so they would have it before Amazon.com. (Details here.)

Author and Indie Bookstore Partner, me, Loreen Niewenhuis

Remember:  Where you buy your books is important. Support your local indie bookstore, or find one in your region here.

And if you are a customer of Amazon.com, consider this article before you order from them in the future.

Ice on Lake Michigan

There have been many reports about the remarkable amount of ice coverage on the Great Lakes during this frigid winter. The highest recorded total ice coverage on the Great Lakes is 94.7% from 1979 (the most modern data set only goes back to 1973). 

On February 12, the Great Lakes were 87% sealed with ice. 

Ice builds around Chicago's water intake

A witness to the freeze on Chicago's Navy Pier

Check out the remarkable growth of ice on Lake Michigan over a 4-day period this month here. 

Prevailing winds from the west tend to break up Lake Michigan's ice and push it across the lake to the shores of Indiana and Michigan. Large stacks of ice form along the shoreline.

Ice builds around Navy Pier

Ice floe meanders up the Chicago River

The ice coverage will reduce the amount of water that the lakes lose to evaporation this spring. Heavy precipitation this winter will flow to the lakes and raise them up to 11" this year.

Chicago's Indie Bookstore

Chicagoooooo!

I am having a great winter in CHICAGO!

Recently, I stopped in at Sandmeyer's Bookstore in Chicago's historic Printer's Row. 

The owner, Ellen Sandmeyer, was there and we had a lovely chat. I met Ellen just before my first book came out and she was enthusiastic about my adventure. Both of my books are now on the shelves there!

Sandmeyer's Bookstore in Chicago's Printer's Row

 Chicago's annual Printer's Row Literary Festival takes place here on Dearborn street where this lovely indie bookstore is located. 

Inside the store with Ellen Sandmeyer!

 Remember: it's important WHERE you buy your books! Support your local indie bookstore, or any wonderful indie when you're traveling!

I picked up a copy of Donna Tartt's new novel!

To find indie bookstores wherever you may go, use the store finder on Indiebound.org

Audiobook Giveaway

I am giving away two copies of 

my new audiobook. 

Earn multiple entries to win 

a FREE downloadable copy below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway










jimmy jazz coupons

This event is listed at All Things Bloggy.

More than just a long hike...

Last year I completed about half of my current adventure exploring the ISLANDS of the Great Lakes. 

I am currently working on this portion of the manuscript so I can send it to my publisher.

If you've read either of my first two books, you'll know that they are much more than an adventure journal. I do interviews with experts and interesting people I meet along the way. 

And I do a lot of reading.

A LOT.

Part of My Great Lakes Library

I track down rare books with the help of great Indie Booksellers (thanks, especially, to Dog Ears Books in Northport, MI, Black River Books in South Haven, MI, and Novel Ideas in Baileys Harbor, WI). I buy textbooks to help me more fully understand subjects like geology and natural history.

Books and notes and research

I collect biographies of unique people associated with the Great Lakes. Recently, I acquired a new book about C.H. Thordarson. This man was born in Iceland, then his family came to America  when he was quite young. Thordarson was a fascinating figure -- an inventor, a Chicago businessman -- connected to the Great Lakes Islands. He owned Rock Island which is located near Washington Island in western Lake Michigan.

All of this research allows me to bring fascinating information and stories and people to my books and to share the very best of what I learn with YOU.

This year, I'll complete the second half of this adventure. I'll explore islands in Lake Superior, Lake Huron, and Lake Ontario. 

I'll also help with the Moosewatch Expedition on Isle Royale this May! Connecting with research going on these islands is a big part of this current adventure and will add a new dimension to the book.

A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure

will be released in 2015.

Until then, follow my adventures here and sign up for occasional e-mail updates:

Sign up here

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LISTEN to my Lake Michigan Adventure

My first book is now available as an 

AUDIOBOOK

Download through iTunes or Audible.com

Listen to a sample HERE

The Question of the Wolves

Clock tower in Chelsea, MI

 The National Park Service is holding public meetings around the Great Lakes to get input about what -- if anything -- should be done to save the population of wolves on Isle Royale.

I attended one of these meetings in Chelsea, Michigan. 

The ranger talks about Isle Royale

There is one pack of wolves currently on Isle Royale with 11 adults. 
This year they had at least 2 pups.

 The pack has lost genetic diversity over time, and there is a genetic skeletal deformation that has become prevalent in the wolves there. 

 These are three alternatives the NPS is considering:

1. No action

2. Bring a new pack to the island once current pack dies out

3. Bringing a few individual wolves to the island to increase genetic diversity and health of pack 

The Lansing State Journal did an amazing special report with gorgeous photos on this topic. It can be found HERE.

I have applied to assist with the moose-wolf study in May of 2014 as part of my current adventure exploring many of the islands of the Great Lakes. Isle Royale is a special place in the lakes, a jewel of a park and home to the longest predator-prey study ever done. Data for The Moose-Wolf Project has now been collected for over 50 years.

Input from the public is welcome. E-mail your comments to:  ISRO_wildlife@NPS.org

The Last Loop on my Book Tour

The South Haven Lighthouse

I had a wonderful time touring this year with my book:

A 1,000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK

November found me traveling to South Haven for the "Women's Only Weekend" where I gave a presentation at the Michigan Maritime Museum.

Books and Boots at the Michigan Maritime Museum, South Haven

A packed house at the Michigan Maritime Museum

I also gave a talk in Plainfield, Michigan, just NE of Grand Rapids. There were nearly 100 seniors and other citizens from that community who came out to hear about my adventure!

The Senior Center in Plainfield, MI

My last appearance for 2013 was out in Saugatuck, Michigan. I took some time to get to the edge of Lake Michigan and to feel the power of 

the waves and wind!

Wild weather at Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan!

My book tour is taking shape for next year. I will have a limited touring schedule since I will be on my Great Lakes ISLAND Adventure most of the year, but I am currently booking engagements for April and May, 2014.

The Problem of Invasive Species

I'm often asked what is the most pressing problem 

for our Great Lakes. 

My answer:

Invasive species.

When a new species is dropped into an ecosystem in which it has never existed, it often has a huge survival advantage and can toss the entire system out of balance for a time. 

As I've walked the shorelines of our vast inland seas, I've often seen evidence of the destructive power of invasives.

While vigilance and legislation (e.g. strict ballast water treatment laws) can help prevent transport of new species into the Great Lakes Basin, what can be done to control them once they have established a hold in the lakes?

INVASIVEORE.ORG has some ideas...

and recipes!

From their website:  

Our mission here at Invasivore is to be your one-stop guide for devouring Invasive Species, those organisms which have been moved around the world, damaging their new surroundings.  Think of it as reasonable revenge for the harm these species cause.  The word “invasivore” comes from combining “Invasive Species” with the latin for “devour” as in “carnivore”.  Thus invasivore = one who eats invasive species.

From prehistoric times, humans have had an amazing track-record of severely reducing the populations of species we eat.  Indeed, it seems that much of the time we can’t stop ourselves.  Can we tap that hunger to reduce the impacts of harmful invasive species?  We think the answer is Yes!

Alewife, an invasive species native to the Atlantic Ocean long established in the Great Lakes

Check out all the recipes on their site, including one for 

Alewife & Cucumber Crackers.