 BiblioBuffet grew out of the collapse of a weekly newspaper where I freelanced as book editor. My column was entitled “Reviews & Reflections”; it incorporated book reviews, profiles, interviews and essays on the literary life. I loved it. When the proposed column was accepted, I suddenly found myself immersed in the professional end of a world that had long fascinated me. Books and publishers’ catalogs poured in. If I missed picking up my mail one week, the pile grew alarmingly high. I could soon spot a press release at ten paces. Publicists’ names became familiar. When, three years later, the newspaper ran into financial problems and had to cease publication, I saw it as the opportunity to share my love of books and reading with a wider audience. BiblioBuffet is the result. It’s been quite a change. What hasn’t changed, though, is my commitment to honesty, integrity in my judgments, excellent writing—writing, in fact, worth reading—that are present in every contributor’s efforts. BiblioBuffet is for readers with independent minds who want to use their reading time well, who are not averse to trying something new, who demand quality regardless of genre. Specifically, we review for those who want to learn about first-rate books. We also talk about our lives as readers, sharing thoughts, opinions, ideas and feelings about all things literary. We are different in many ways from other review sites for several reasons: We focus on well-written books from small and medium-size publishing houses. These are books you may not have heard about—until now. But, oh, how you are going to love getting to know them. We do not limit our reviews to new books. Instead, we look for what excites us regardless of when it was released. If it is out of print, we will suggest places you can find it. If it is on a publisher’s backlist (meaning the book is available to order, but no longer on bookstore shelves), we’ll tell you that too. We will even reach far back into time to bring you books we feel are worth reading now, and we’ll tell you why. As readers ourselves, we share common traits with many of you. Some are funny, others tender, some quirky and a few irritating to the non-readers in our lives, but all are gist for our essayists. Behind great writing are talented writers. We feature them in eloquent conversations about their lives and their work. Bookmarks are more than just a way to hold your place in a book. These tiny slices of history capture the essence of culture. Join us in a weekly tour of these bits of ephemera. Literary Amusements is a daily posting of facts and quotes that will amuse, intrigue and perhaps occasionally annoy you. There are two parts: Literaria Du Jour is where you will find an array of offbeat literary facts. Reading Remarks features a wide variety of comments on books and the reading life. Links are provided—as usual. What is unusual about our links is that we have sought out atypical sites you may not yet know about, but which provide good value for the time spent. I invite you to sit down and sample our fare. I promise you a bounteous feast of tasty biblio-cuisine. Lauren Roberts |