"The Snowdrop Garden" - my new book, out soon.

[KentGardener]

You read faster than me John.

Anthony,  I have a one hour on the train to London each morning and one hour on the train home each night and an empty house when I arrive back in Kent - so not necessarily a fast reader.... 

[Maggi Young]

I was spurred on by reading John Finch's post earlier today to take up "The Snowdrop Garden".... which has been waiting patiently for me to get my reading glasses on for  longer than it deserved.
Tootled off with it at teatime and finished in time for "Have I got more news for you?"
It was just the ticket for a spot of time off; I don't get much time for reading fiction in fact I have a tough time remembering the last novel I read....

I have very much enjoyed reading Martin's book .......I will not say much about it, since I would not wish to spoil the story for others who have yet to read it....    
An absolute MUST for all Galanthophiles, but amusing for us normal folks too.....I rather think  Martin has "cracked it" with this tale of romance, snowdrops derring-do.... and slovak cuisine!!!!!
I thoroughly recommend that you seek it out  and enjoy it for yourself. I rather think it would make a super gift for any gardening chum, too, because they will find the galanthophilia fun and non gardeners will be amazed.......I wish you terrific success with the book, Martin..... I enjoyed it immensely!

[Anthony Darby]

I tried coffee 'Slovak style' last week. Haven't been able to sleep since!

[Martin Baxendale]

I tried coffee 'Slovak style' last week. Haven't been able to sleep since!

[gote]

Martin,
Is the 2£ postage OK also for mail to Sweden or what will it be?
Cheers
Göte

[Anthony Darby]

Göte, if it costs £2 to post in the UK it will be cheaper to post to Sweden, and that is no joke!

[Martin Baxendale]

Martin,
Is the 2£ postage OK also for mail to Sweden or what will it be?
Cheers
Göte

I've sent you a pm, Gote.

[Martin Baxendale]

Maggi, thank you for the super review. I'm blushing! 

[Anthony Darby]

Maggi, thank you for the super review. I'm blushing! 

I didn't know (diddly dum, diddly dum)
that Maggi (diddly dum, diddly dum)
could read (diddly dum, diddly dum)
so fast (diddly dum, diddly dum)
or is it (diddly dum, diddly dum)
that she (diddly dum, diddly dum)
couldn't (diddly dum, diddly dum)
put the (diddly dum, diddly dum)
book down(diddly diddly diddly dum)
(got to the point eventually).

[Martin Baxendale]

I've had emails and pms from some forumists asking why they haven't seen my novel, The Snowdrop Garden, in bookshops. I've replied to those who've enquired, but in case anyone else looks for the book in the shops, doesn't find it and wonders why - it's a b****y disaster!   

The distributors who were supposed to be marketing and selling the book into the book trade shut down their marketing and reps department just days after the book was published, as an economy measure!  That's left the book with no marketing and no reps selling it into the chains and independent bookshops. I'm rushing around like a blue-bottomed fly trying to do what I can to rescue things and get the book into some shops, but it's an impossible task for one person on his own. I'm also trying to find another publisher, with decent marketing and representation, to take it over but that's not an easy task in the middle of a recession!

Anyway, enough of my moaning. Such is life! The long and the short of it is, if anyone was thinking of picking up a copy on a visit to the local bookshop (as some forumists contacted me to say they were going to do, but couldn't find it) then I'm afraid chances are you won't find it, at least not yet. But you can order it from any bookshop, and of course from Amazon and the other online book sellers.

I'm also hoping to be selling copies at the galanthus gala in February.

Isn't life just wonderful? I heard a joke today that just about sums up my mood right now: After a holiday in the Orient, a man finds his willy has come out in green and purple spots. The doctor tells him it's a rare Mongolian willy disease and it'll have to be amputated. The man decides to seek a second opinion and goes to see a Chinese medical specilaist who says "Western doctors! They're always in too much of a hurry to suggest surgery." The man's very relieved. Until the Chinese doctor adds "Leave it a couple of weeks and it'll fall offf on its own."   

[Martin Baxendale]

Sorry to keep banging on about my novel, but could I ask UK forumists for a favour - if any of you come across a review of my first novel, The Snowdrop Garden, in newspapers or magazines (including gardening magazines) could you send me a message or post details here.

Someone told me last night that they'd seen a review a while back but couldn't remember if it was in a newspaper or a magazine, let alone which one! A lot of review copies went out so it could have been in just about anything. I don't have a clipping service and should probably investigate that possibility but I imagine such services are not infallible, so if people could let me know if they see any reviews, that would be very helpful.

I need some good reviews to help get the book into more shops, given the sudden demise of the distributor's marketing department and team of reps who were supposed to be pushing the book into the shops (see previous post for major moans about that!)

Thanks, and sorry again for going on about this. The unexpected lack of representation and marketing for the book is so frustrating and making so much extra work for me.

[mark smyth]

Maybe there should be a new thread to discuss coffee. Yes I'm a coffee snob. How does Slovak coffee differ from Czeck or anyone elses coffee. I couldnt get enough of Czech coffee from a small coffee house in Beroun. I think a cup of coffee was about 30p. I tried Turkish coffee in a hotel in Praha 6 but couldnt drink it. Lithuanians at my last job drank Turkish coffee

[Paul T]

Mark,

Oh dear, you'll stop liking me once you here this..... I don't drink coffee!!    Or tea for that matter (except for lemon and honey on occasions).

[Martin Baxendale]

The only real difference with Slovak coffee is how incredibly strong they often make it - many heaped spoonfuls in the bottom of the cup, stirred and stirred and left to stew until it's inredibly high-octane and blows your head off!  I used to drink a lot of coffee, and had one of those old French aluminium espresso pots, but had to stop after I drank the eqiuvalent of a couple of dozen espressos in a morning, following a heavy night involving a bottle of red wine, and started to get incredibly anxious. 

[mark smyth]

Do they use ground coffee? I can recommend Lavazza Italian coffee from Tesco or the coffee shop just outside arrivals at Stansted.

Paul I dont like instant coffee now that I have got on to the real thing