Upcoming Book Signings at Azizi Books

It's June, finally the skies seem to be clearing up after some of the extreme weather we have had here in the south suburbs of Chicago. At Azizi Books we are gearing up for our summer of book events.

First up, Earl Sewell will be coming to our store Saturday June 14, 12:00- 2:00 PM. Earl will be signing his latest release, If I Were Your Boyfriend. This book is part of the Kimani Tru collection for young adult readers, he is also the author of Keysha's Drama. Earl is a resident of South Holland, another south suburb of Chicago, not to far from us here in Matteson.






Kimberla Lawson Roby will be coming to Azizi Books on Saturday June 28 2:00-3:30 PM to sign her latest release, One in a Million. For those of you who missed Kim Roby in our store in January, when she signed her novel from the Curtis Black series, Sin No More, come early, you don't want to miss her again!






Finally, L. A. Banks will also be coming to Azizi Books on Saturday July 12 from 3:45 - 4:45 PM to sign her latest books in the Vampire Huntress Legend series, The Shadows and The Darkness. She will also be signing Bad Blood, the first book in her latest series, the Crimson Moon Novels. L. A. Banks is the Essence Literary Award winner for Best Story Teller of the Year.






For more up to date information on upcoming events and book signings please visit the Azizi Books website at www.azizibooks.com

The Bump That Rocked The News

It happened this morning, two days after Barack Obama became the presumptive democratic presidential nominee. I was watching the news and I saw a picture of Barack and Michelle Obama giving each other the fist bump. "What was that they just did?" the world asked. My first thought was, really is there nothing more to report? Nothing about the "Fist Bump" seem special to me. I was watching when Obama walked to the podium to make his speech on Tuesday, and thought nothing of it. Then I thought, oh wait, this is news to many because mainstream society has never really witnessed this (hard to believe but quite possibly true). Throughout the day news sources kept buzzing. Yahoo has reported that the "Fist Bump" has sparked big interest from major news sources trying to figure out and analyze the moment, and searches for pictures and video clips of the Bump soared.

I say, take a minute to consider.... what is next.

Barack Obama is the very first African American to make it so far in a presidential election. People are looking into Barack Obama's life with determination unlike the way they have looked at any African American's life. I mean, they are really paying attention because that is what you do to politicians, especially presidential ones. In doing so they are going to see aspects of African American culture that the mainstream Caucasian may have never noticed. So, I wonder, what is next? What is the next staple of African American culture to be noticed and analyzed by the masses.

Am I overreacting? Maybe. But I am not the one who took time out of the morning news to report this story. I am not the major news sources that had to ask MTV what the fist bump meant. So, maybe, I am not overreacting. Our society could be on the verge of a shift of cultural awareness. Only time will tell.

A Presidential Fist Bump

Book Signings

So, you want to do a book signing at Azizi Books?

I was listening to the Michael Baisden on the radio today and he had a guest, Dan Poynter from Para Publishing, that gave some advice to authors about book signings and I just had to repeat it. He said, "all the bookstore is supplying is a roof." I then heard heavenly chimes in my head. Somebody finally said it! At Azizi Books we have done a fair amount of book signings, about 2 -3 a month since we opened, and I am amazed at how many authors expect us to do promoting on their behalf while they do little or nothing. Usually the first thing they ask is how we are going to promote. Now, we do want signings to be successful, and we do have a newsletter and a website where we post our upcoming events and signings, but that is not really promotion. We tell authors that promoting is up to them, and our most successful book signings are the ones where the author has done a lot of promotion on their own. So, thank you Dan Poynter for giving that advice on the radio. He also gave great advice about book covers and ideas about successfully selling poetry books.

Million Blog List

Azizi Books is # 714

Azizi Books has been added to the Million Blog List! So, once again we are on our way. The Million Blog List is an experiment to see how long it will take to register one million blogs in a list. There are over 70,000,000 blogs out there, so how long will it take to get to one million? Well, Azizi Books is listed as number 714. I read somewhere that it would take 50 years to get to a million if they keep going at this rate. It's a very interesting effort, though. With some more excitement and publicity, I'm sure that list can be filled before I'm 73!

Add your blog to the million blog list

The Buck Really Does Stop Here.

This information comes from a bookmark that we got from the ABA (American Booksellers Association) as a part of their Buy Local First campaign.

For every $100 a consumer spends....
*Local businesses give $68 to their local economy.
*Chain stores give back only $43.
Local booksellers are members of your community. They care and they contribute. (So true!)

Consumer Quick Quiz
Q: How many in-store author appearances did Amazon stage in your town last year?
A: None. I'd like to point out that since opening in November 2007, Azizi Books has had 15 published authors appear in our store, most of which are local to the Matteson area.
Q: How many people did Amazon employ in your town last year?
A: Zero!
Q: How much did Amazon donate to your local community organizations last year?
A:$0
Q: How much did Amazon collect in sales tax and pay to support schools, social services and public agencies last year?
A:$0

So in conclusion, buy local first! Before you run to Wal-mart to buy food, check out the local grocery store or farmers market, before you run to Amazon or Borders come to Azizi Books or order from blackbooksdirect.com. Stop sending your money to China and India or some other far away land! Supporting local and independent businesses where you are is good for us all.

Lincoln Mall Up and Coming

Many people have asked us why we chose Lincoln Mall in Matteson as a location for our bookstore. It's no secret that this mall has fallen on hard times; foot traffic has suffered, but the main reason we are here lies in one thought. Potential. When I was in junior high, Lincoln Mall was one of the best hangout spots. With all the great stores and a movie theater across the street, what more could young teen girls want? Other people must have thought the same way, because Lincoln Mall was always packed with customers. Well, then something happened. The movie theater closed, and some major retailers left the area. Lincoln Mall lost some of its excitement, and it stayed that way for a few years as people started going to other shopping outlets. But, things are changing. Now, only a few years later, I'm back from college, and Lincoln Mall is coming back as well. Everyone hasn't figured it out though, which I believe is why we get the, "why Lincoln Mall?" question. Maybe they don't believe the new management company can really turn it around into the super shopping experience it once was, but we don't think so. Have a little faith! The Southtown Star wrote an article about the redevelopment happing in Lincoln Mall. Azizi Books isn't the only store that sees potential here.

Read the Southtown Star article here
Lincoln Mall ready for shopping rebound

A note from Kevin . . .

On my mind...

While listening to the words of Senator Barack Obama, the candidate, during his Tuesday speech about race, I am both filled with pride and fraught with anxiety about that which is and that which might be. We still have so much more to do. Sincere appreciation of our history, of the bravery and selfless works of our predecessors compels us to define what becomes our destiny. However, we can't determine where we are going unless we know where we've been. Pride in our culture and our history should make us proud about our future.

-Kevin Roberts