New Year

Item #: UA7282
Price: $18.95
These lovely letterpress cards reflect the hope with which we face each new year. Two snowbirds--juncos, in fact--perch close together on a silvery branch, crowned by Rilke's simple invocation. The message inside each 5"x7" New Year's card reads, "May you find happiness throughout the coming year." An ideal way to greet friends overlooked in the Christmas rush; also great for thank-you notes. Set of ten cards, with envelopes.

Item #: UD7072
Price: $12.00
Best known for the "laws of planetary motion" that bear his name, brilliant seventeenth-century astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler was also a philosophical soul. In 1610 (or thereabouts), Kepler composed a wonder-filled treatise to accompany the unusual New Year's gift he selected for his friend and benefactor, Lord Matthäus Wacker von Wackenfels. The perfect present, Kepler decided, as he walked to Von Wackenfels's home for a visit, was the little "nothing" of a snowflake. In The Six-Cornered Snowflake, the reader is treated to an enlightening glimpse into Kepler's scientific--and witty--mind as he contemplates why crystals always possess a sixfold symmetry. This newly published paperback edition also includes snowflake illustrations, a snowflake-shaped poem, and thoughtful introductions to Kepler and his enthusiastically intellectual essay. What an inspired gift for modern scientists and philosophers!

Item #: UE8042
Price: $16.99
The quotation above, from Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, kicks off this mini journal on January first, every January first, for half a decade. Below the date and quote are a few blank lines for you to fill in year after year--just jot down whatever Austen's words bring to mind, and watch how your thoughts evolve. Every page features a tidbit of wit or wisdom culled from Austen's beloved novels and personal correspondence to fuel your own quips and insights. How fun to "collaborate" regularly with Jane!

Item #: UE0892
Price: $8.95
Let the brilliantly impressive plumage of peafowl add a touch of colorful extravagance to your home or office via our Peacock Seven-Year Pen and Peacock Magnets. The vibrant teal pen, decorated with a single feather and two sweet peacock profiles (in all white), writes in smooth black ink and lasts (like all the Seven-Year Pens) for, well, seven years (or 4,343 meters of writing, whichever comes first). The powerful magnets--set includes one each of four designs shown--offer a flamboyant peacock parade of blue, green, and pink. What lovely and practical accessories!

Item #: UE0212
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5452
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5462
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5472
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5182
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5172
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE0152
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5482
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5162
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE0172
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE5332
Price: $23.99
When Nina Sankovitch's oldest sister died of cancer, the grief was devastating. Exhausted and overwhelmed, the former attorney made a drastic decision: She would strip her daily routine down to the bare essentials to allow herself the time to read a book a day, every day, for one year. Such a radical shift in priorities was no easy task; after all, being a stay-at-home mother to four sons amounted to a full-time job. Yet her escape into books--novels, memoirs, and short stories, classic as well as contemporary volumes--offered her a much-needed opportunity to reinvigorate her passion for life, her interest in the world, and her devotion to her family. And by the end of the year, she was able to finally "come up whole again." Should you be inspired to tackle your own book-a-day (or perhaps book-a-week) "year of magical reading," this introspective journal culminates in an alphabetical list of the books Sankovitch read. It is an impressive to-do list, bluestocking-style!

Item #: UE7662
Price: $32.95
The editors at Food and Wine thoroughly tested more than 150 cookbooks published in 2011 to find the twenty-five most interesting, flavorfully enticing, and well-written ones. This unique and potently delicious "best-of " cookbook shares more than 100 tantalizing recipes from those top-tier books-- including chipotle-glazed baby back ribs from Rick Bayless's Fiesta at Rick's; ginger peach muffins from Kim Boyce's Good to the Grain; fried fish with pickled vegetables from Alice Waters's In the Green Kitchen; baked red peppers filled with four-cheese soufflé from Katie Caldesi's Cook Italy; and so much more. Put on your apron and prepare to impress!

Item #: UD8132
Price: $16.99
The Q&A a Day Journal asks you one question a day (see the examples above), and then asks it again exactly one year later, for five years. Just jot down your daily response and, half a decade later, you'll have a fascinating chronicle of "you"-the changes, the constants, the big events, the little nothings. What a unique and clever diary!

Item #: 12BASBLEU
Price: $30.00
•Free shipping and processing (standard delivery, one address per order) •15% discount on most regular-priced books and other selected items. Look for the BBS symbol •Gift-wrapping at half price •Special offers via e-mail •A membership card to flaunt your bluestocking status •100% satisfaction guaranteed: You may discontinue your membership at any time and receive a refund of your annual fee, less the value of discounts used.

Item #: 12BBSRENEW
Price: $30.00
•Free shipping and processing (standard delivery, one address per order) •15% discount on most regular-priced books and other selected items. Look for the BBS symbol •Gift-wrapping at half price •Special offers via e-mail •A membership card to flaunt your bluestocking status •100% satisfaction guaranteed: You may discontinue your membership at any time and receive a refund of your annual fee, less the value of discounts used.

Item #: UE8842
Price: $8.95
We'd be drawn to these colorful writing utensils even without knowing what makes them so extraordinary. But their incredible longevity makes them absolutely irresistible. You see, the Swiss-made metal-and-plastic retractable ballpoint pens, which write in smooth, steady black ink, have a long-lasting tip and an extra-large ink cartridge, so one pen will write six and half feet a day for seven years! With so many fun designs to choose from, you're sure to find a new favorite pen for everyone on your list!

Item #: UE9922
Price: $24.00
Tracey Lawson first visited Campodimele as a British journalist investigating foods that might promote longevity. The residents of this idyllic Italian mountain village were becoming known among scientists and doctors as some of the healthiest and longest-living people in the world. Lawson fell in love with the villagers and their way of life and ended up moving to Campodimele. A Year in the Village of Eternity is a delightful collection of stories (with lots of charming photographs!)--about the people, the village, and, oh yes, the meals--gathered during her time in Campodimele. Plus, Lawson presents more than one hundred wonderful local recipes (by month), so you can bring some of the healthy rural rhythms and delicious fresh foods of the "Village of Eternity" home to your own kitchen.

Item #: UD4962
Price: $24.99
When To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960, the remarkable tale of Scout and Atticus Finch, Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson became an instant bestseller. Harper Lee's first (and only) novel would go on to win the Pulitzer Prize, be adapted into an Oscar-winning film, and become required reading for generations of American schoolchildren. A half-century later, it continues to sell nearly a million copies annually. To celebrate the novel's fiftieth birthday, documentary filmmaker Mary McDonagh Murphy interviewed journalists, novelists, members of Lee's hometown community, cast from the 1962 film, and other notables, and collected their reflections in Scout, Atticus, and Boo. The interviewees discuss the novel's impact on both their individual lives and the national psyche during the tumult of the civil rights movement. Their words serve as an eloquent and stirring testament to the enduring power of literature. We're also offering two beautiful fiftieth-anniversary editions of To Kill a Mockingbird--a hardcover volume and a large-print paperback.