September 2026

He won the Nobel Prize for literature--

If you're lucky, you can read his books

If there's an author whose novels are in most demand at Printed Page, it's John Steinbeck. Ironically, Steinbeck hated reading as a child, calling books "printed demons." That changed when an aunt introduced him to "Le Morte d'Arthur," sparking a lifelong love of storytelling.

Steinbeck attended Stanford University, but never completed a degree, spending six years intermittently at the school before dropping out in 1925. During college breaks, he worked on ranches and farms, experiences that informed his emphathetic portrayals of migrant workers and rural life novels. He also traveled across the U.S. as a manual laborer, getting firsthand insight into the struggles of ordinary people.

Like many writers, Steinbeck had his quirks. He would begin his writing day with 24 perfectly sharpened Blackwing pencils and a yellow legal pad. When a pencil dulled, he would put it aside and pick up a new one. When all were dulled, he called it a day.

With September being Banned Books Month, it's good to remind people that Steinbeck's masterpiece, "The Grapes of Wrath," was widely banned. (California farmers thought it was too sympathetic to migrant workers.) Some of the bans remain in effect. Other Steinbeck books challenged include "East of Eden," "The Pearl," "Of Mice and Men," and "The Short Novels of John Steinbeck."

Despite those bans, Steinbeck can't compare with Stephen King, currently facing 408 challenges to his books around the world.

Fall session of the Printed Page College of Biblio Knowledge

is slated for Saturday, September 19. Sign up to attend!

Our highly popular and riveting Saturday morning class all about books and book collecting will present its next session soon.

It's only an hour-and-a-half long, but stuffed into that interval,student attendees learn some of the complexities of books, book terminology, research tools, the economics of collecting, tips and tactics, book care, and where to find our bathroom. Best yet, it's free -- but you must act NOW! Send us an email to reserve your spot.

This month's Puzzler

On September 19, 1920, this man—often described as the greatest sportswriter of all time—was born in New York City. His mother was a Bryn Mawr graduate who began her career as a New Yorker writer and ended it as editor of the publication. His father was a Harvard College and Harvard Law School graduate who, after serving in WWI, became an influential New York City lawyer, and ultimately, president of the American Civil Liberties Union.

In 1929, after the divorce of his parents, his mother married E. B. White, an up-and-coming New Yorker writer who would go on to become a legend in literary history (think Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style and, of course, Charlotte’s Web). He lived with his father after the divorce, but remained close to his mother and ultimately developed a loving admiration for his step-father. After graduating from Harvard and serving in WWII, he worked at Holiday magazine before joining The New Yorker in 1956.

In 1962, after accepting an assignment to cover major league baseball’s Spring Training, he went on to raise American sportswriting to an art form, with articles that were collected into such books as The Summer Game (1972), Late Innings (1982), Season Ticket (1999), and Once More Around the Park (2023).

Who was this man?

(Answer below)

A bookseller's diary

June 20, 2026

I've noticed similarities among Saturdays at Printed Page.

-There are periods of quiet, punctuated by bursts of frenzy.

-Two o'clock is the witching hour. It is as if at that time, all the bibliophiles are set free, and they descend upon the store.

-And three o'clock is when a group of motorcyclists doing wheelies roar down Broadway racing toward their next traumatic brain injury.

I worry when it gets busy that I can't give customers the attention they deserve, but sometimes, that's unnecessary. Today was one of those times. There was a chemistry among today's visitors that resulted in them meeting fellow readers and striking up conversations -- talking about what they'd read, and what they'd recommend. I was just a bystander.

I did get to engage with some visitors. I asked one woman what she liked to read. "Romantacy," she said, which seems to be a hot new trend in publishing, and is, of course, a mash-up of romance and fantasy, like a woman finding true love with a dragon in Atlantis.

A visitor from Tennessee told me he had run a small press publishing business until it failed, so he decided to spend what money he had left buying books so he could start a used bookstore, thus demonstrating the lack of business acumen that is characteristic to most booksellers.

And another visitor asked me if we had any books by Herman Wouk. "We no longer carry woke books," I answered, and he laughed, thus demonstrating that he had the requisite sense of humor to be a bookseller.

I went home satisfied, and curled up with a mysterography. It's about a detective who helps people find things on maps.

-Dan Danbom

And finally....My Denver magazine did a lengthy story about us. You can read it here:

And don't forget...

We're on Instagram @printedpagebookshop, where you'll frequently see new arrivals. And we're on Facebook, too -- more Puzzlers there!

Puzzler answer

Roger Angel (1920-2022)

Thanks to Dr. Mardy Grothe for the use of his puzzler. Visit him at drmardy.com.

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