After some (cursory) research, I still have no idea why books (not to mention albums and video games) are released on Tuesday. Is it because sales figures are tallied on Monday, making Tuesday the beginning of the retail week? Or is it because Tuesday sales are traditionally the lowest, and are therefore boosted by the purchase of new releases? The one website I looked to for this information couldn't say (I did say my research was cursory). However, there seemed to be a consensus between its forum members that a possible reason is "no one likes Mondays". Sure, why not.
The point is, buy my new picture book, Hand Book. It's available today, and here's what Kirkus Reviews, who gave it a star for merit, had to say about it:
Through simple drawings of hands in action, Newman deftly illustrates both the progress of a person’s life and the cyclical—and hopeful—nature of the human condition.
“One hand. / Two hands. / Two hands clap.” So begins this rhyming, universal tale about a child learning to live. He eats and swings, washes and waves, falls and gets up. As a teen, the boy studies and types; as a young man he soul-searches and job-seeks, feels defeat and accomplishment…and finds love. Newman’s two-word sentences, woven with his spontaneous, expressive drawings, lead to affecting phrasing that’s poignant and stirring. The line drawings, done in ink (or marker) with solid colors filling out the forms of the hands, are in an Al Hirschfeld– or Jules Feiffer–style of caricature or editorial illustration. Loads of white space allows the artwork to breathe; after one powerful pause, Newman returns to his opening lines, where childhood begins again, and the struggles and joys of life are reaffirmed.
A lovely tribute to growing up that will endearingly mature with its readers.
YOU: "Hey, that sounds pretty good. I think I'll go pick up a couple three."
ME: "No! It's too dangerous!"
YOU: "Trust me, doll."
ME: "You rogue!"
ME slaps YOU, storms off stage.
END OF ACT ONE
2 comments:
Hmmm... Something garbled my first attempt. Commence round no. 2:
Now THAT is a great review Jeff! I've been kicking around my own "hands" story idea for a year or so now, but I think you beat me to the punch - or something like that. By extension, I'm already in love with the concept. I look forward to checking out the book.
To enhance your data pool, my latest book was released on Tuesday, August 16th!
Cheers.
Hey Jeff!!
Honestly, no one seems to know for sure. It's more like a tradition with murky origins.
And it happens on Tuesday in the U.S. only — in the U.K. and France release dates are Mondays, in Germany it's Friday.
So if Tuesday isn't the universally accepted best day to offer new music to customers and there's no law or grand business wisdom about it, why does everyone put out albums on the same day?
One explanation is Billboard magazine, which publishes its charts on Wednesdays. If you release an album on a Tuesday, then you get the maximum seven days of sales counted toward your total (including a full weekend).
The other is inertia — distributors are all set up to shuttle stock out to stores over the weekend and on Mondays. Most only do runs a couple of times a week.
I forget the source of this info but I had it sitting in a workbook I had been working on about the music industry as a whole.
//Bryan
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