Overview

I AM NOT MY SO-CALLED ILLNESS This celebration of Samuel Laties braids his visionary and humorous fiction, poetry, and essays together with Andrew Laties' reminiscences--along with the tale of Andy's struggle to invest Sam's death with meaning by rescuing a legendary bookstore. In counterpoint, son and father explore mortality and redemption, mental illness and creativity, education and exploitation, morality and hypocrisy, and the transcendent power of imagination. SAMUEL LATIES was publisher of The Jeff's Class Tribune. He attended Near North Montessori, North Star Self-directed Learning for Teens and Holyoke Community College. ANDREW LATIES wrote Rebel Bookseller: Why Indie Businesses Represent Everything You Want to Fight For--From Free Speech to Buying Local to Building Communities, which won the Independent Publisher Award and is available from Seven Stories Press.

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9780997107197

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Reviews

Interlaced with the vivid imaginative writing Samuel Laties composed throughout his short life, Son of Rebel Bookseller is a testament to a father's love for his son and a chronicle of the search for meaning after devastating loss. It's also the story of a father's heroic efforts, despite the weight of grief, to save a bookstore and to create dynamic and memorable in-store performances for children. This poignant account testifies in support of one of the most profound ways we can cherish our children: by inspiring their imaginations. -Lee Upton, author of Visitation: Stories and The Tao of Humiliation: Stories. Few who have watched Andy Laties in a bookstore forget how well he describes books or engages with creators and customers. In Son of Rebel Bookseller, he brings his ability to speak to a wide audience as he tells the story of his son Sam's life and early death at the age of 23, often using essays that Sam wrote himself. In this fascinating melange of personal experiences, progressive politics, educational theory, and the highs and lows of running a bookstore, Andy manages to introduce a fascinating cast of character, including Julie Andrews and Hillary Clinton. Ultimately the book stands as a testament to the power of literature - and the healing that comes from doing creative work. Written for adults, the book can also be passed along to teens trying to find their own place in the world. -Anita Silvey, Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children's Book An extremely personal story of loss, transition and remembrance. -Esme Codell, author of Educating Esme and How to Get Your Child to Love Reading.

""Interlaced with the vivid imaginative writing Samuel Laties composed throughout his short life, Son of Rebel Bookseller is a testament to a father's love for his son and a chronicle of the search for meaning after devastating loss. It's also the story of a father's heroic efforts, despite the weight of grief, to save a bookstore and to create dynamic and memorable in-store performances for children. This poignant account testifies in support of one of the most profound ways we can cherish our children: by inspiring their imaginations."" -Lee Upton, author of Visitation: Stories and The Tao of Humiliation: Stories. ""Few who have watched Andy Laties in a bookstore forget how well he describes books or engages with creators and customers. In Son of Rebel Bookseller, he brings his ability to speak to a wide audience as he tells the story of his son Sam's life and early death at the age of 23, often using essays that Sam wrote himself. In this fascinating mélange of personal experiences, progressive politics, educational theory, and the highs and lows of running a bookstore, Andy manages to introduce a fascinating cast of character, including Julie Andrews and Hillary Clinton. Ultimately the book stands as a testament to the power of literature - and the healing that comes from doing creative work. Written for adults, the book can also be passed along to teens trying to find their own place in the world."" -Anita Silvey, Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children's Book ""An extremely personal story of loss, transition and remembrance."" -Esme Codell, author of Educating Esme and How to Get Your Child to Love Reading.

Author Information

ANDREW LATIES is the founder of Easton Book Festival and co-owner of Book & Puppet Company, an indie bookstore with a puppet theater. Laties has created seven bookselling companies in the past 35 years. He shared the Women's National Book Association's Pannell Award for his innovative community outreach work at The Children's Bookstore in Chicago. He holds a Masters degree from the School of Community Economic Development at Southern New Hampshire University. SAMUEL LATIES was publisher of The Jeff's Class Tribune. He attended Near North Montessori, North Star Self-directed Learning for Teens and Holyoke Community College.

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