THE SHORTEST NIGHT: WED 20 JUNE

On the shortest night of the year, Blackwell's will play host to two compelling writers.

The Shortest Night is part of a series of events across the UK to celebrate International Short Story Day on 20 June 2012. The Manchester leg of the Day will take place in our bookshop and will feature Claire Massey and Anneliese Mackintosh reading their work and discussing their love of short fiction.,

Litfest's Claire Massey is co-editor of Paraxis and has been published in The Best British Short Stories 2011, Murmurations (pictured), Flax, and has released two chapbooks on the excellent Nightjar Press.

Anneliese Mackintosh writes literary fiction, comedy, stage plays and much more, and has appeared in the Edinburgh Review, Gutter, Outside of a Dog, and has been broadcast on Radio 4. She's just finished her first short story collection.

Claire and Anneliese will read from their work and discuss their love of the short story form. It starts at 7pm this Wednesday 20 June and is free to get in. The Shortest Night is brought to you in association with Manchester's Comma Press and Cargo Publishing in Glasgow .

You can find more information on the Comma Press website.

SHOULD WE BAN KINDLES IN OUR SHOP?

Should we ban Kindles in our shop?

A second-hand bookseller in Hay-on-Wye wants a ban on Kindles and other e-book readers during the famous Hay literary festival.

He says, "Kindles have no place at this festival which is supposed to be a celebration of the written word - and books. Booksellers definitely want them banned… Kindles are just a phase and they won't last. They are our enemy."

The bookseller in question even has a window display of a picture of an e-reader next to a gravestone. As a contrast, the director of the festival thinks "Anything that encourages people to read in any format is fantastic."

Manchester has lost most of its bookshops as people abandon the 'shop local' mantra and embrace online shopping. We do get people scanning barcodes in our shop in order to shop online. Is technology a threat? Or do we embrace it because we're modern and we're cool and we sell e-books too?

There are several ways of looking at this. And yes, we're going to say 'Kindle' instead of 'e-reader' because we might as well call a hoover a hoover:

- One. Kindles are a passing fad and they'll fade away like Betamax and Tamagotchi;

- Two. People tend to buy different things on Kindle: they're a complement rather than a threat;

- Three. Books are technology too: bookshops need to understand this and move with the times;

- Four. Kindles are the final Apple-branded nail in the coffin of the bookshop;

- Five. The Kindle will one day rise up against its human masters and, firing apple-shaped grenades from its screen, will enslave all sentient beings in a thousand-year reign of terror (which happens to include flipping the world sideways if you cock your head 90 degrees).

We won't ban Kindles in our shop, obviously. But there's a fascinating shift in bookselling taking place at the moment.

What do you think? Would you put a picture of an e-reader next to a gravestone? What do you buy for your Kindle? Are you responsible for the destruction of the bookshop / of the book / of all known humanity?

Let us know in the comments.

JAWBREAKERS, ENOUGH AND BRAKING DISTANCE LAUNCH

Join us for an incredible triple-anthology launch on Friday 8 June.

In an evening brimming with talented short story writers, we will have readings from three brand new books:

- Jawbreakers, which was released to celebrate National Flash Fiction Day and features contribitions from Ali Smith, Ian Rankin, Tania Hershman, David Gaffney and Vanessa Gebbie;

- Enough, a collection of short stories from Bristol prize winner Valerie O'Riordan;

- Braking Distance, a new Salt Publishing anthology from National Flash Fiction Day's scribbler-in-chief Calum Kerr.

And that's not all. We'll have a smörgåsbord of super scribes reading too: Jenn Ashworth, David Gaffney, Dan Carpenter, Benjamin Judge, Sarah-Clare Conlon, Trevor Byrne and Rupan Malakin. We have the best fiction talent this side of Jupiter.

It all starts just after work at 6.30pm on Friday 8 June 2012, so there'll be plenty of socialising time afterwards. It takes place in our bookshop, admission is free and there will be refreshments.

MANCHESTER CENTRAL LIBRARY'S PULP FICTION (AND NON-FICTION)

Edit: Read the response from Neil McInnes, head of Libraries, Information & Archives here.

A year ago, the Manchester Evening News reported that a third of Central Library's books are going to book heaven. Sold, given away or pulped into mush.

There is a letter now circulating accusing the council of "cultural vandalism on an industrial scale". Melvyn Burgess has just posted the text on his Facebook page.

Now, us here in the book industry love and worship books, but we also have a slighly blasé attitude towards book pulping: we send books to be pulped all the time. It's how mainstream publishing works.

And we would assume the council is not destroying nineteenth century antiques. Is it?

However, the debate about austerity and the arts is still raging among those who mourn the Greenroom, while further south, Brent Council is under attack for its library-stripping.

Have a read. What do you think? Are books really that precious, or should we re-use the paper? Is it vandalism, or are people just afraid of change? Are you looking forward to the brand new library? Is Manchester losing something important? Leave your comments below.

Dear Lover of Literature,

We are writing to you because we recognise that you are somebody who cares about the written word and fully appreciates what Manchester Central Library’s book stock represents in terms of Manchester’s cultural heritage.

We are sure that you are aware that Central Library has been closed for a while for refurbishment. What you may not be aware of is that senior management at the library seriously miscalculated the shelf space needed to house the reference books when the library is re-opened in 2013. In an article in the Manchester Evening News (14/6/11) they admitted that they would be ‘weeding’ 300,000 books but claimed these would be replaced by the same number of ‘items’. This was complete spin. The ‘items’ they referred to largely represent the stock of the County Record Office, many of which are single sheets. The CRO is being amalgamated into the Library building when it re-opens.

The sad truth is that, as you read this letter, library staff are engaged in a continuing process of segregating for destruction a large proportion of the very thing that makes Manchester Central Library unique amongst British public libraries – its extensive and historic reference stock. It is probable that up to half the reference and lending non-fiction stock (up to half a million volumes) will have been destroyed by the time Central Library re-opens. These texts, which were housed in the old ‘stacks’ in Central Library, represented a storehouse of non-fiction reference volumes, many of which date back to the late nineteenth century. The criteria for the selection of books for destruction is unclear. The staff charged with responsibility for this job are not subject specialists, indeed many of them are not trained librarians. Many of them feel uneasy about what they are being asked to do, but they fear for their jobs, particularly in the current economic climate.

Once these books have been pulped (and many thousands of them already have been) there will be no record of them ever having existed, they will simply be erased from the system. There will be no way of knowing how many of them were rare volumes, or even unique. This is cultural vandalism on an industrial scale.

If you wish to voice your concerns over this matter, please contact:

Eamonn O’Rourke, Head of Community and Cultural Services
Vicky Rosin, Assistant Chief Executive (Neighbourhoods)
Cllr. Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council
Cllr. Mike Amesbury, Executive Member for Culture and Leisure

The above can all be contacted at Manchester Town Hall, Albert Square, Manchester, M60 2LA

and/or

Tony Lloyd MP Manchester Central, House of Commons, London SW1A OAA

Alternatively, why not initiate a campaign through social media asking the Library Service to come clean about what they are doing with the city’s heritage? Library staff are only custodians of these books – it is the people of Manchester who should be making the decisions regarding their future.

IS LITERATURE THE NEW POLITICS: MANCHESTER SALON THIS WEDNESDAY

Click the picture for embiggenation.

There are £3 concession tickets too. More information at Manchester Salon.

NATIONAL FLASH FICTION DAY

If you want an event that's a flash in the pan - but in a good way - then look out for National Flash Fiction Day hitting the streets of Manchester tomorrow.

In the evening, Bad Language will host the finals of their flash fiction competition at the wonderful 3 Minute Theatre. If you've not this treasure trove of a venue, then it's worth a visit: it's inside Affleck's Palace through the Oldham Street entrance.

And during the day, Manchester writing crew #Flashtag will flash-mob short stories at loads of iconic Manchester venues including Manchester Museum, Manchester University, The Cornerhouse and the People's History Museum.

It's up to you to try and find the #Flashtag gang: follow their Twitter feed during the day or their #flashtag hashtag.

Flashtag hashtag. Poetry in motion (literally (although it's fiction and not poetry (never mind))).

OUR NEW CAFE!

You may have a noticed a little change at our bookshop this week.

Our brand-spanking new cafe will open on Monday morning, May 14 at 8.30am. We've spent a long time in the planning process, so it's hugely exciting to be able to be serving coffee with our books again.

There were other options for the cafe space, of course:

- a ball pit.

- one massive aquarium. With real whales.

- an evil laboratory in which we built a lazer to destroy the moon.

- one of those hedge mazes you get at fancy stately homes.

- bouncy castle.

- a McSweeney's bookshop.

Thanks for your patience as we waited for our new coffee shop. As the saying goes, better latte than never*.

Do come and say hello to our new Starbuck's colleagues, and learn the fancy lingo for all the coffees. We sell books to help you speak Italian: all the words are probably in there.

* sorry