Here at ANZ LitLovers, we’re very fond of Mark Rubbo and the Readings Bookshop. Members as far afield as Longreach in Queensland get the catalogue and all of us find the range of books and the service excellent. You can order online, by mail or by phone, and they are open late so you can ring and place an order ridiculously late at night – even up to 11 pm on Saturdays!
Well, today I read in Jason Steger’s column in The Age today about a free lunch for Mark Rubbo if Readings can sell 3000 copies of Lovesong by Alex Miller. (I went to the launch at Readings in Hawthorn a fortnight ago, but neglected to blog about it). It seems that Rubbo told Miller that he had set himself a target to sell 1000 copies of Lovesong because he wanted to sell more than he had of Landscape of Farewell. Miller thought he should be more ambitious, and upped the ante to 3000, with a promise to shout Rubbo a splendid lunch if he achieved it.
Here are some ideas to help Rubbo get his free lunch:
- buy a copy for yourself
- buy it as a Christmas gift for every booklover you know
- hassle every booklover you know to buy a copy for every booklover they know
- hassle your library to buy a copy, and borrow it incessantly so that they have to buy another one
- buy a copy and donate it to a library that needs it – maybe a school library or a community library like the one in Maldon
- buy a copy and donate it to a hospital or nursing home
- buy a copy, wrap it up in Xmas paper and give it to one of those retailers who collects Xmas gifts for the needy e.g. Ray White the Real Estate agent.
Go to it!
ANZ LitLovers LitBlog 
Oh dear, my f2f group nearly scheduled this for our next 6 months but it’s still only hardback and so we are waiting until the second half of next year when we hope it will be in paperback. (I have one of those uncorrected proof copies to read but, shame on me, haven’t read it yet). If there’s not a time limit we will eventually help out!
BTW I thought you’d go to the launch and was looking out for your blog on it….
LikeLike
By: whisperinggums on November 29, 2009
at 10:02 pm
We have the same problem with ANZLL – we’ve chosen it for our schedule for 2010, but have had to leave it till late in the year so that it’s available in paperback – and it looks like I’m going to be overseas and miss the discussion – oh woe!
PS I don’t think there’s any time limit on the 3000!
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on November 29, 2009
at 10:47 pm
Oh the ethics of scheduling. I’m the one who puts my f2f schedule together – the group discusses and makes the selection and we usually jointly agree on the summer read (Wolf Hall this year) but then I usually make up the rest. I ponder and ponder and ponder what to put on for any meetings I expect to miss (I try to avoid missing them but can’t always avoid the occasional offspring birthday or OS trip can you?) We tend to do two schedules a year – the first 6 months, and then the second 5 months (with no book in December).
LikeLike
By: whisperinggums on November 29, 2009
at 11:28 pm
I consider myself lucky that one ANZLL’s members has taken over responsibility for scheduling for me:)
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on November 30, 2009
at 5:50 pm
Good for them!
LikeLike
By: whisperinggums on November 30, 2009
at 5:58 pm
Lisa
Just read this and I did order it from Readings last week. a) because I love Alex Miller’s books and b) because as you know I am READINGS’ biggest fan from western Queensland!
Go Readings, You rock!
Chris
LikeLike
By: Chris on December 8, 2009
at 10:25 am
Excellent! MR will be very pleased *grin*.
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on December 8, 2009
at 7:17 pm