When you see a giant online place selling books at really big discounts you know what’s usually going on. They are selling stuff cheaper than what we even pay; it’s a cruel strategy to get your loyalty. Amazon has been clear about their goal to destroy small businesses, early on brazenly targeting indie bookstores specifically. (Yes, we take that personally and bristle every time friends and authors link to Amazon.)
The wholesale price and subsequent mark-up on books isn’t much so they often sell popular books below our cost. (Or at least they used to. Notice that increasingly, our BookNotes discount is better than theirs as they up their prices, now that they have so many hooked on their convenient process.) Early on they made their money on electronics and tires and jewelry and porn so they didn’t worry about losing money on books, as long as they captured the imagination and buying habits of consumers. With their huge tax breaks and government incentives and perhaps illegal workarounds they’ve damaged the economy, hurt the working poor, wrecked havoc on what people think about shopping and what they suppose books ought to cost, and, yep, Bezos has grown spectacularly rich while hundreds of stores have collapsed over the last decade. Their bazillion dollar greed has truly messed with the market.
Sometimes, though, a local bookstore owner goofs, stuck with too much inventory, and needs to sell stuff cheap. Occasionally, we find it more interesting to lose money by offering deep bargains to our customers rather than lose money by paying to return unsold merchandise.
So, we’re in a jam, here, with too many Lenten titles still on our shelves. We’d rather pass extraordinary savings on to you, our customers and friends, rather than have to pay to send stuff back as overstock. This isn’t a hurtful ploy but an earnest plan.
We are offering a few things at nearly our cost, the very best deal we can offer.
We’re calling it a three-day only flash sale. There are ten great seasonal titles going for 40% off. THIS OFFER EXPIRES WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2023. While supplies last.
We’ve highlighted them all before so won’t say much about them now. Click on the highlighted link at the bottom of the newsletter to use our secure order form. After Wednesday night (midnight, EST) they go back to our more conventional, already generous 20% off BookNotes discount. Happy book buying!
The Good of Giving Up: Discovering the Freedom of Lent Aaron Damiani (Moody Press) $12.99 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $7.79
This is a great, great read, explaining the history and importance of Lent by a former nondenominational guy who is now an Anglican. Very nicely done and very rewarding.
Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal Esau McCaulley (IVP) $20.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $12.00
Hopefully everyone knows how we esteem McCaulley, author of Reading While Black. This is a small hardback, the first in a series on the church year. It’s very good.
(We just got the new Pentecost one by Emilio Alvarez one in, which we will review soon. You can order it now at 20% off.)
Hearing God in Poetry: Fifty Poems for Lent and Easter Richard Harries (SPCK) $14.99 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $8.99
This book from the UK includes a fabulous array of poetry and helpful meditations on why the author selected them for the Lenten season. There’s a lot here, almost entirely from the broader British world with greats like Donne, Cowper, Yeats, Heaney, Hopkins, Auden. There’s Emily Dickinson and Bronte and Bonhoeffer, too. Highly recommended, apart from being seasonal.
Finding Jesus in the Psalms: A Lenten Journey Barb Roose (Abingdon) $17.99 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $10.79
Again, this is a solid study and would be worthwhile any time. She is a lively African American teacher and leader within the United Methodist church. A great introduction to this vital topic, finding Jesus in our day to day lives by way of studying and praying the Psalms.
The Art of Lent: A Painting a Day from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sister Wendy Beckett (IVP) $17.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $10.20
A well produced compact volume full of all sorts of paintings with great reflections on each. A fantastic little book — you should have this as a routine resource.
The Art of Holy Week & Easter: Meditations on the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Sister Wendy Becket (IVP) $17.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $10.20
A well produced compact volume full of all sorts of paintings with great reflections on each — hooray for this. Great for the art, great for the reflections.
A Way Other Than Our Own: Devotions for Lent Walter Brueggemann (WJK) $16.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $9.60
Brueggemann remains one of our favorite Bible scholars and preachers. This includes short, evocative pieces and good thought-provoking questions for discussion. Wow.
Lent recalls, this book notes, times of wilderness and wandering. How does all of this lead to our own journey as we walk the way of God’s grace?
A Just Passion: A Six-Week Lenten Journey Ruth Haley Barton, Sheila Wise Rowe, Tish Harrison Warren, Terry Wildman, and others (IVP) $12.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $7.20
This is a true gift, an amazing resource put together by the good folks at IVP. A creative editor scoured their spiritual formation and social justice books — they have a lot! —and found pages to excerpt that could be put into a Lenten reader. While they compiled it nicely as a seasonal resource, complete with some prayer and reflection prompts, it is a fabulous introduction to dozens of authors you may not know. Get this — you won’t regret it.
Fight Like Jesus: How Jesus Waged Peace Throughout Holy Week Jason Porterfield (Herald Press) $17.99 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $10.79
I know we didn’t sell too many of these when we promoted its release last year but I still am convinced it is brilliant, wise, useful. It examines the text carefully, offering new insights about Jesus’s nonviolence as shown during Holy Week. If you are unsure about questions of Biblical nonviolence or just want a provocative study of the Holy Week texts, this is a must. A good foreword by Scot McKnight
Praying the Stations of the Cross: Finding Hope in a Weary Land Margaret Adams Parker & Katherine Sonderegger (Eerdmans) $22.00 OUR THREE DAY SALE 40% OFF PRICE = $13.20
What a moving, artful, compelling hardback, a fresh way to consider praying during Holy Week, using the ancient motif, strengthening our awareness of God’s healing presence. This is a creative, collaborative project by Parker, the artist (whose excellent work is rendered in black and white) and Sonderegger, the preacher (and world class Episcopalian Bible scholar.) Blurbs on the back by Michael Curry, George Hunsinger, and Ellen Davis. Wow.
TO PLACE AN ORDER
PLEASE READ, THEN SCROLL DOWN AND CLICK ON THE “ORDER HERE” LINK BELOW.
It is very helpful if you tell us how you prefer us to ship your orders.
The weight and destination of your package varies but you can use this as a quick, general guide:
There are generally two kinds of US Mail options, and, of course, UPS. If necessary, we can do overnight and other expedited methods, too. Just ask.
- United States Postal Service has the option called “Media Mail” which is cheapest but can be slow. For one typical book, usually, it’s about $3.85; 2 lbs would be $4.55.
- United States Postal Service has another option called “Priority Mail” which is $8.50, if it fits in a flat rate envelope. Many children’s books and some Bibles are oversized so that might take the next size up which is $9.20. “Priority Mail” gets much more attention than does “Media Mail” and is often just a few days to anywhere in the US.
- UPS Ground is reliable but varies by weight and distance and may take longer than USPS. We’re happy to figure out your options for you once we know what you want.
If you just want to say “cheapest” that is fine. If you are eager and don’t want the slowest method, do say so. It really helps us serve you well so let us know. Just saying “US Mail” isn’t helpful because there are those two methods, one cheaper but slower, one more costly but quicker. Which do you prefer?
– DON’T FORGET TO LET US KNOW WHAT SHIPPING METHOD YOU PREFER –
BookNotes
SPECIAL
DISCOUNT
40% OFF
3 Days Only
+++
order here
this takes you to the secure Hearts & Minds order form page
just tell us what you want to order
inquire here
if you have questions or need more information
just ask us what you want to know
Hearts & Minds 234 East Main Street Dallastown PA 17313
read@heartsandmindsbooks.com
717-246-3333
Sadly, we are still closed for in-store browsing. COVID is not fully over; too many die every week. Since few are reporting their illnesses anymore, it is tricky to know the reality but the best measurement is to check the water tables to see the amount of virus in the eco-system. It’s important to be particularly aware of how risks we take might effect the public good. It is complicated for us, so we are still closed for in-store browsing due to our commitment to public health (and the safety of our family, staff, and customers.) The vaccination rate here in York County is sadly lower than average. Our store is a bit cramped without top-notch ventilation, so we are trying to be wise.
Please, wherever you are, do your best to be sensitive to those who are most at risk. Many of our friends, neighbors, co-workers, congregants, and family members may need to be protected since more than half of Americans (it seems) have medical reasons to worry about longer hazards from even seemingly mild COVID infections. Thanks for understanding.
We are doing our famous curb-side and back yard customer service and can show any number of items to you if you call us from our back parking lot. It’s sort of fun, actually. We are eager to serve and grateful for your patience as we all work to mitigate the pandemic. We are very happy to help do if you are in the area, do stop by.
Of course, we’re happy to ship books anywhere.
We are here 10:00 – 6:00 EST / Monday – Saturday. Closed on Sunday.