Cosy Christmas Evening

Our annual Christmas evening is usually a cosy affair - much more pleasant than most Christmas shopping experiences! Homemade mincepies & cakes, steaming mugs of hot drinks, relaxing background music, friends and chat... you get the idea. Oh, and of course, there are the book deals! We're excited to be offering 'Wonders of Creation', the new coffee table book from Day One, at a 'you-won't-find-this-cheaper-anywhere' price, plus Helen Roseveare's new 'Count it all Joy' alongside a 3 for 2 on children's books. We've even sneaked in a few Martin Luther's - yes, we couldn't resist the Playmobil Martin Luther figure, so we have a few 'lil Luther's in the shop for you to pick up as stocking fillers!
We look forward to seeing you on Monday 27th, or if you really can't make it but you don't want to miss out on one of the offers, just give us a call to make your order (we draw the line at sending out mincepies though 🙂).

Pre-order your Carine Mackenzie signed books...

For all of you out there who aren't going to make it to our author event, don't think that you are going to miss out.  Order any Carine Mackenzie title before she comes and we can arrange for her to sign it with an inscription of your choice. We will despatch the signed books to you in the week beginning Nov 23rd.  Don't delay because we want to make sure we have the books you want in stock.

Don't forget that these three titles are being sold at special prices just for this event...

 Lorna

News...

Wow, time is really flying this month.  And so are the Christmas cards & calendars.  We are selling Christmas Cards in aid of Savannah Education Trust again this year.  Please have a look at their website and find out about the work that is going on in the Christian schools they have set up in Ghana.
Follow these links to browse our Christmas cards & Calendars...
Charity Christmas Cards
All Christmas Cards
2015 Calendars & Diaries
Printable PDF of all Christmas cards and calendars

To keep up to date with all our news regularly please subscribe to our monthly eBulletin.  At this time of year there is always lots going on and we would hate you to miss out!  Have a read of our October eBulletin - we have a great deal on the wonderful Christian Biographies for Young Readers series plus advance notice of some events going on at the shop during November...

We also have bookstalls planned in various places so keep an eye on our Events details on Facebook (you don't have to log in to Facebook to access our page, just scroll down the page and the events are shown on the left).
Keep in touch!
Lorna

What's your style?

Everyone shops differently, but most of us do get caught up in the Christmas shopping experience - for better or worse!  We have planned two very different Christmas shopping events to suit all types.  If you prefer shopping with the family, pop in on Saturday 16th November.  We will happily entertain your children with Christmas crafts & activities while you are free to browse our special offers.  Alternatively, if you prefer to shop in peace & quiet pop along on the evening of Monday 18th November.  We will be opening late for a relaxed evening of browsing and extra discounts.
Please note... the special offers & discounts are ONLY available at these events...  also the usual free refreshments will be available with added mince pies!

Ladies Night

No sooner is one event done, than another one is being planned!  This time we are working towards a ladies evening event (next week Thursday 16th, from 7:30pm for anyone wanting to join us) and I'm reading up on lots of 'ladies' books.  I don't really approve of dividing books up into ladies & mens, but I also can't really ignore the fact that certain books are much more often purchased by women rather than men.  It seems that publishers are becoming wise to this too. 

So here's a preview of some of the books I have been reading.  I couldn't possibly give away what I think of them... you'll have to turn up next week to find that out!
Lorna

Breathing more freely again...

Wow, it's been a crazy couple of weeks! Out of shop bookstalls, evening events, hosting school groups, baking for the events, re-organising the shopfloor to highlight special offers and talking books, books, books! I can't say I don't enjoy it, but I don't think I could quite keep up this pace all year round! (and I don't think I could expect all our loyal helpers to either - thanks everyone!) Now that I'm breathing a little more freely I have realised that the website has been badly neglected and is quite out of date. Apologies. We have had a ton of new books in to add to the chaos and I am desperate to get them on the site so that you all know about them... here's a few as a taster...
This Little Church had None by Gary Gilley, the third title in his 'This little Church' series is apparently a must-read. I really must find the time...
Amazing Conversions by John Ashworth is a reprint of his 'Life and Strange Tales', originally published by Gospel Tidings. Over the years many customers have asked for this title and it had become very scarce. So it is nice to see it available again in a nice quality hardback done by Tentmaker Publications.
Matthew Henry's Daily Readings edited by Randall Pederson. Published in a lovely quality leather bound gift edition. Matthew Henry's portions have been lightly edited and the ESV is used (which sadly I suspect may put many of Matthew Henry's fans off).
Douglas Bond's latest novel The Betrayal is based on Calvin and by all accounts is not only a good read from a fiction point of view, but a profitable read because of the amount of original content from Calvin's own works. Jeremy has been recommending this to anyone prepared to listen to him!
Who Made God? by Edgar Andrews is another one that has been flying off the shelf and is next on my own reading list. The publishers claim that it is 'a really effective riposte to the "new atheism" of Richard Dawkins and others - gently humorous, highly readable, deeply serious, razor sharp, and written by an internationally respected scientist'. I have heard many positive reviews and look forward to getting my teeth into it.
Our 3 for 2 offer on children's books has been running this week and we have decided to extend it another few weeks or as long as stocks last. Have a look at our children's catalogue, there really are some great children's books around at the moment.
Don't forget to get your orders in for the AV Block Calendar, it is selling fast this year and stock levels are getting low.
Lorna

Your Caption Please!

Storeroom or children's indoor gym? The answer is both! For a while at least, before we sent this 19 box consignment out to America. It was a little cramped in there to say the least, awkward for us, but an excellent opportunity for early honing of climbing skills for Euan and Alex. I only wished I was their size...I wouldn't have to dream of a trip to the Black Cuillin of Skye...

Back to reality. The books have now been shipped and last heard of en route in Chicago. We have dusted ourselves down and started back on regular duties (like blogging!)

This week we are hosting two evenings of special spring sales. A 3 for 2 promotion is at the core of this, which will also extend through to the end of April. If you don't receive one of our email notifications soon, then put 'subscribe' in the subject line of an email and send it to lorna@christianbookshopossett.co.uk

She will be happy to send you the details of titles on the 3 for 2 deal. Unfortunately you won't be able to have 3 for 2 on the massive array of cakes which have been made this week unless you turn up at 7pm'ish on Thursday 26th. They just don't retain their quality after being handled by Royal Mail.

Jeremy

Overtime Reflections

Slogging doesn't make for blogging! Hence the lack of them during our Special Sale week last week. I know I've used a negative word, but it rhymes better than the others, and certainly we had a full programme. Our generous sell-off was noticed! I felt the evening opening times were a fair success. Two local pastors in particular did a bit of arm twisting, and so got a few to turn out. Monday's weather was so bad that this was amazing in itself. I don't think we could sustain 7pm - 10pm every week: it isn't easy on the family, and I do far too much washing up of customers' coffee cups! However more creative thought needs to be given to the issue of being open for people at the time when they want to shop...
Jeremy