Loon calls linger - restless ripples fade to nought
I launched BookLoons as a millennial venture in Fall 2000. Intended to be 'a place for people to connect to books that interest them', it's five years old this month, and we've posted (aptly enough) well over 5,000 reviews (I was shocked to find I'd written over a third of them). While managing the site (and reading a lot of books), it's been my pleasure to meet many fellow loons, who love to read and to share that joy with others.
In particular, I've grown to know, if only by e-mail, close to thirty Reviewers who live all over the United States and Canada. I thank them for their friendship, support, and steady contributions to BookLoons reviews and columns. A particular thanks this year to those whose reviews number in the hundreds - that is Mary Ann Smyth, Martina Bexte, Josephine A. Kaszuba Locke, Melissa Parcel, G. Hall, Theresa Ichino, and Rashmi Srinivas.
My husband Serge continues to provide invaluable technical and graphics design help, as well as a few SF reviews which I twisted his arm to write. And all of us at BookLoons are grateful to the publishers, publicists, and authors who keep us well supplied with reading material, and with contest opportunities for our visitors. Last but never least, thanks to all of you who drop in to join us in web wonderland and to share our pleasure in reading.
The world of books is changing in all kinds of intriguing ways - we can look up excerpts and reviews online, listen to audiobooks on long journeys, and enjoy all kinds of genres in graphic novel format. Though no e-book device has yet won the market, more and more e-books are being sold and read on various handhelds. It will be fun and exciting to see how this evolves over the years, and we plan to keep talking about it in our columns.
As the holiday season looms large on the horizon once more, take a look at our past Holiday Roundups, and watch out for additional festive features and gift book recommendations in the coming weeks. In this busy time, all of us at BookLoons wish you and yours peace, happiness, joyful reunions with friends and family, and sacred celebrations, whatever your faith ...
Awake! Awake! The world is young, For all its weary years of thought: The starkest fights must still be fought, The most surprising songs be sung
(from A New Year's Carol by poet James Elroy Flecker)
Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons.
