Blog

The first week of February is Children’s Authors & Illustrators Week. To mark the week, This House of Books is calling attention to our local and regional children’s book authors and illustrators who are member/owners of our bookstore. We plan to wrap up the week on Saturday afternoon, February 10...

A native of Billings, Kristin Logan Mayer developed her appreciation of photography at an early age as she poured over National Geographic magazines.

As she grew, her parents supported her interest. Jim Logan, her father, was her photography teacher. He pushed her to develop her own eye and...

"We wanted some kind of logo item for This House of Books," explained Carrie La Seur, Board President for This House of Books. "The vast sea of Made-in-China this and that didn't seem to match the character of a community-owned bookstore, prompting us to look around for what could be made locally...

All this month, you have a chance to win! For every cup of tea you purchase between January 1 and January 31, 2018, you will get a chance to win a free cup of tea each every month for the rest of the year.

The drawing will take place on January 31. Purchase more cups of tea, get more chances to...

Citizens Ununited is a work that I think many people would like if only they knew about it. Citizens Ununited is Billings author P.R. Oliver’s first novel. In the genre of mystery thrillers, it is an action story with lots of gun battles and chases. The book is not heavily political, but it does...

I love Indian tea, particularly fully oxidized tea made from the Camellia sinensis var assamica plant. I adore the rich tastes and brisk mouth-feel of teas grown in Assam and Darjeeling. However, now I am experimenting with pu-ehr teas from the Yunnan Province of China.

I am delighted and intrigued...

I had a chance to take a closer look at Jack Ballard's book on photographing wildlife. This is really a good book on the subject. 

Actually, it is a fine book on photographing outdoors and particularly the natural environment. There are so many things that can go wrong, but the challenge of...

Good News!

Our holiday catalogs are out! Actually, they've been here for a while, but we wanted to wait until folks had a chance to completely celebrate Thanksgiving before we announced it.

Independent bookselling is enjoying a renaissance! Customers are seeking out and supporting local...

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Tea tasting can be simple. When you are deciding which tea to buy, there are just a few things to consider.

• Does the tea smell good?
• Does the tea look good?
• Does the tea taste good?
• Does the tea feel good in your mouth?

On the simplest level, do you like it? If you like it, it is good.

We have pages...

First selection: Assam

Second selection: green yerba maté

Third selection: rooibos-based blend

There was a lot of interest for our first ever tea-tasting event. Not knowing what to expect, we were happily surprised with the number of people who turned out.

Gustavo, our general manager and tea blender...

Welcome to This House of Books inaugural book club! Every month in 2018 we’ll be featuring a member-owner’s new or recently published book – mostly fiction, with perhaps a few surprises. If there’s no member-owner new release, we’ll look for a great regional author to feature that month.

The list...

 New Montana Voices, an anthology of poems, fiction, essays, and photos is accepting submissions for publication. There are cash prizes to the students from grades 9–12 for the best submissions in each category.

Furthermore, there is an annual cash prize for the teacher or librarian who best...

A Darkness Lit by Heroes by Doug Ammons is a compelling story that does not have any villains, only heroes. It is the story of one of the worst mining catastrophes in history, the 1917 disaster at one of the biggest mines on the “richest hill on Earth,” the Granite Mountain-Speculator Mine. 

As...

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I am tossing this into my blog simply because it amused me when I stumbled into it.

I was researching William B. Matson's book about Crazy Horse and found this. A popular book, I'd say.

Posted on the TraumFänger Verlag Facebook page.

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I just finished reading Sandstone, the anthology published as a fundraiser for This House of Books. Sandstore has 30 contributors and I can say that the quality is amazing. It immediately struck me when I jumped into the first story, a beautifully described story of misadventure set on the northern...

At the time of our first anniversary, I wanted to collect this information from the dusty archives of files that are now scattered among many websites, FaceBook pages, Google Docs vaults, emails, and other locations. I want to recognize the efforts of some of the earliest participants who helped...

This opportunity to double your investment in This House of Books lasts through October 22. You purchase a Preferred Share and the board will invest another $500. Act now!

From Carrie La Seur

Volunteer Billings Bookstore Cooperative board chair

I'm your volunteer Billings Bookstore...