Recently, a kind person made a comment on a Facebook post that she had requested her library to purchase a copy of my book on the career of actress Ann Blyth - - Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star. I am very grateful to her.
While many authors get a thrill from seeing their books on bookstore shelves, most bookstores around the country will not carry the books of self-published authors. Sometimes those in the minority that do will require a fee from the author above their cut of the sale just for giving the book shelf space.
But libraries, that most egalitarian bastion of learning in our society, do give self-published authors a place at the table. It is an even bigger kick for some of us to have our book on the shelf of a public library among older, established, even worn books, knowing they are joining the ranks of a literary heritage to which we aspire -- than to have them placed in competition with current best sellers. A competition most of us self-published authors lose.
These photos are books of mine to be found at the Springfield (Massachusetts) City Library. The Ann Blyth book is in the biographies section.
It's a kick to have three of them in a row.
I love libraries. It's humbling when they seem to love you back.
My deepest thanks to the Springfield City Library, and to any public libraries that carry my books.
Also available in paperback at Amazon.
It's a big book. It sticks out.
