The Paperback Exchange is one of the best bookstores in Reno. It was first opened in the early 1970s over on Vassar Street, and then moved to its present location, Vesta and Holcomb, sometime before the 1980s. It has been there ever since and has done very well for itself. It is probably the oldest independent bookstore in Reno, with the exception of Five Dog Books, owned by Manuel Simpson and the Book Gallery in Sparks, which has gone through several owners since it first opened as well as Sundance Bookstore.

I first started going to the Paperback Exchange back in the ’80s when I was a young lad. I had limited money but I had quite a few books so the Exchange was great for me. I read a swath through many sections, especially the Sci-Fi and Horror and I would always return the books and get new ones. For those with limited funds, the Exchange is great because you trade on the cover price of the books and pay the tax and handling for what you take. The price of a credit is 22.5¢ on the dollar, so a book that is $8 is 12 credits. There are many older books that are cheaper and really good deals if you want to read them. Besides that, most older paperbacks tend to have very cool and interesting cover art. You do have to pay 12¢ tax on each dollar, but that’s fine since that’s probably the best book and reading deal in town.

The main business at the Paperback Exchange is paperback fiction and romance novels. If you go there you’re bound to encounter people getting tubs full of romance, spy, war and mystery novels. I’ve read some of those, of course, but when I go there, I usually head for Horror, Sci-Fi and Literature. One of the best sections is the literature, in the back right side of the store, where you can find some real treasures from time to time. I found a copy of Antonin Artaud’s collected works there, traded 15 credits and a few dollars and I got it. I also found a very rare copy of Schwa there- a local artist and author named Bill Barker who created a whole universe about stick figures and aliens.

I’ve spent many hours wandering around the stacks in the Paperback Exchange and I’ve found lots of great books there. The people who work at the Exchange are very knowledgeable and friendly, they can steer you toward a book if you’re not sure what to read. I know each time I’ve walked in there, I’ve never left the place without a good read ahead of me.

So- check out the Paperback Exchange, bring some good paperbacks to trade I’ll guarantee you’ll find something new and interesting to read. The Paperback Exchange is located at 131 Vesta St in Reno. Their phone number is (775) 322-8822 and Lynn or one of the other friendly people there will be happy to take some of your old paperbacks that are in good condition to trade for some new to you reading.

1 Comment

A hell of  a shin-dig is approaching, and I think some of you should go see them:

My Flag Is On Fire - Click Here

The Casual Lust - Click Here

Shane Forster - Click Here

Joe Little - Give us a damn link!  *grin*

I am a pretty big fan of these guys, it’s some pretty brilliant music.  I’ve been much more interested in low-key shows considering my life is crazy and violent enough without drunken elbows being thrust at my nose in crowded basements.  Not that this kind of activity doesn’t have it’s charm…

… hope to see some of you there.

GR

0 Comments

God Hates Reno is embarking upon another first, and it’s something pretty important.

A book review.

I know we might not be put on the shelf (punny, indeed) along with the others as being “literary experts,” but I’m sure we’ve at least captured enough people that are interested in crassness along with multisyllabic finery for most to know our excellent flexibility in all fields.

GHR was asked by Turner Publishing recently (our humbleness to them) to check out a new book that has come out, “Historic Photos of Reno,” a pictorial and light text, chronologically-accurate view of Reno. Basically, a picture book all about our fair town put together by Reno’s own Donnelyn Curtis.

Donnelyn Curtis, a University of Nevada, Reno librarian, put together the bulk of the book, through historical photos and collections presumably donated or borrowed from other collectors. Her text additions read quite well, and personally, leave one wanting more story to go along with the photos.

The pictures are archived photos of Reno and surrounding areas of interest, some with more information than not. All black-and-white, they’re shots that I personally have never seen of Reno, and do enjoy seeing how much the town has changed in a few generations. The photographic quality is simply amazing, even though though there’s a disclaimer in the beginning of the book making a light apology of the imperfections that may have occurred due to lack of technology on period photographs. Anyone critical enough to snub the photos in this book should question their intellect and consider proper hobbies.

___________________________________________________________

Early photos show how tough it must have been, and how tough at one point we really were. This is Donner pass. Yes, that’s more than 10 feet of snow. Yes, it was hand-dug.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

Another photo showing a parade float for women’s suffrage, in front of a very recognizable courthouse on Virginia street.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

A 1920’s picture of what is now known as “Ross Manor,” on First St.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

The early Reno punk rock scene! Oi!!!

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

Amazing Virginia Street photo.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

The Mapes, underwater, 1950. See? It’s something that happens, folks. This one was the worst one that we know of.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

Reno, from the air, 1957.

(full size)

___________________________________________________________

There’s great pictures throughout of the first Masonic building, the venerable Granada theater (where now sits condos and a Starbuq’s on First and Sierra Streets), the actual carpentry of the Methodist church on First Street, flood photos, Reno day life, University of Nevada, Reno, photos and history, and famous faces, as well as more. It also gives nods to the birth of Reno’s dubious and questionable nature, wherein drinking, gambling, betting and nightlife became a playground for those looking for a bit more excitement from the doldrums of day-to-day living.

Turner Publishing has done a great job making a quality product. A reasonable size for a coffee-table type book (10″ x 10″), a fine gloss dust jacket and heavy pages that will keep this handsome tome readable and collectible for years.

Overall, the lack of feigned snobbery or tourist-trappishness [sic?], and the simple poise of this book will bring a smile to any Reno lover, history lover or Reno history lover. It’s a perfect book on a late afternoon with a cup of iced tea outside, a warm mug of hot cocoa next to a fire, or… well no, on second thought, let’s keep the cheap beer and the rowdy bar away from this book.

There was one last area I wanted to touch upon while talking about this book. The preface mentions that if you have archived photos, label them! Names, places and dates are important. As a huge fan of photography, and of questionable photographic talent myself, I can certainly say this is great advice. You never know who may find your shoebox of old photographs, or even your grandparents. Any information that can be added, even after the fact, would be helpful. Which reminds me about something not mentioned, digital photography. Be sure to date your CD-ROMS or DVD’s, even adding a numbered text file to the data, noting who and what was going on. I’m sure 100 years from now, a dusty stack of bargain DVD’s may be the only good record of history in someone’s basement, and like old photos today, with no notations, history is that much cloudier for the archivist.

For more information, or to purchase this very worthwhile Reno book:

Historic Photos of Reno - Click me & buy me!

Also to note, there will be a book signing of “Historic Photos of Reno,” by Donnelyn Curtis at our Barnes & Noble on Virginia, Saturday, June 14th, 2008 from 2:00pm to 4:00pm.

- GR

6 Comments

The Black Rock desert has both negative and positive connotations to people.  Some hate it because a huge, chaotic event occurs there that attracts freaks and artists.  Some love it because they are freaks and artists.  Others still don’t care about it one way or the other, and some like the area for it’s superb flatness and if you’re a dust lover, and from New York, well as they say, forgeddaboutit.

Black Rock Pizza Co. got it’s namesake from well, it being Nevada.  In fact, the owners are really into Nevada as a whole.  We’ll talk more about that later.

Dave and Linda Winchester own the joint, at 2855 N. McCarran Blvd #106, (a few doors east from the Raley’s in Sparks Mercantile center) and have done a fantastic job with it since it’s beginnings about five years ago.  It started out with an expansive menu, with plenty of Nevada-themed pizzas, or just strange toppings to begin with.  Sun dried tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, celery and dried cranberries just to name a few.  Tempting patrons with purely Nevada names and places like “Carlin Trend,”  and “Smoke Creek,” there’s no end to the Nevada worshiping you can do with your tongue.

Once you walk into the place you’re greeted with very friendly and professional food staff.  Heck, even Dave and Linda will probably be there, and have no problems with bussing the tables or interacting with happy guests.  Believe me, the guests are always happy.  In fact, the food staff is seemingly happy too, because the same faces seem to be there every time I go in.   That’s a rare thing in the foodservice industry.

The walls are hand-painted with a huge Tomato (sunrise/sunset?) atop Nevada hills, beaming a promise of something interesting, as well as other western-themed artwork.  It apparently has inspired other artists, for hung proudly around the kitchen are crayon representations of people trying their best to be a part of the western-action in Black Rock Pizza Co.

There’s fine pizzas that will tempt your palette, such as “Chicken Springs,”  and the “Red Headed Stranger,” offering wonderful combinations of the most interesting ingredients around.  If you want a real bizarre flavor, try the “Poker Brown,” which is a nod to Chinese/Thai flavors and has won some attention nationally very recently.

As far as gourmet pizza is concerned, Black Rock Pizza Co. is almost certainly top brass.

Pizza isn’t the only thing they do well there.  Among fine cheesecake for desert,  there’s a spinach salad that’s nothing short of amazing called “Warm Springs Salad.”  It consists of well, spinach of course, pine nuts, prosciutto, olive oil and aged Parmesan cheese.  The healthy simplicity of it all makes you only feel like you’re expanding your waistline.

Ask about their selection of fine beers on tap while you’re at it.  Drink them.

The other amazing thing that Black Rock Pizza Co. has going for it is it’s frequent visitor’s program known generically as “Royalty Rewards,” on a purple card.  The more you eat, the better stuff you get in the mail.  That includes free appetizers, even free pizzas.  It’s WELL worth it, because not only do they tempt you back, they tempt you with free stuff.  Postcards and mailers with fun games also are mailed to you, even funny emails telling you of the interesting things going on at the time.

My only complaint is there’s been no talk of expanding into an additional location around town.  Which may be a smart move, considering the owners like to hang out, more square footage means more time and effort.  Let me tell you though, I’d love to see one centrally located closer to downtown or south of town in the new developments towards Double Diamond.  That means where ever you are, work or play, you’re close to a great pizza.

Hours are Sunday through Thursday, 11AM - 9PM, and Friday and Saturday 11AM - 10PM, and you can order to-go by calling 356-1771.  They’ll also do a “Take and Half-Bake,” situation, where they undercook the pizza and let you cook the rest at home, since there’s separate licensing for actual take-and-bake pizza versus cooked (stupid legislators…).  Want web action?  Go here:  http://blackrockpizza.com/

I have had few pizza experiences better than Black Rock Pizza Co.   Appetizers, drinks and desserts are better than good, but their light way of cooking on thinner-crust pizzas with amazingly tasty and interesting ingredients are out of this world.  Prices can be a little higher, between $8 and $17 a pie, but it’s gourmet pizza, folks.  You want cheap crap?  Go to Dominoes.  Not that you would want to, right?

- Gay Rodeo

4 Comments

Many things are indestructible in Reno, Se7en Teahouse was not one of them. Though on the coolness scale, they’re second-to-none.

The recent earthquakes kind of gave them a rough ride.

All of their high-quality liquor and tea took a nosedive, and evidently, injured a worker.

On May 10th, 5pm to 11pm, there will be a fund raiser, and I’m pretty sure patronizing the place will help it’s recovery efforts. There will be entertainment and the ambiance and libations only Se7en can provide.

http://renopassport.blogspot.com/2008/04/se7en-teahouse-and-bar-update.html

See you there.

Gay Rodeo

1 Comment

Yeah yeah, it’s no big news. Reno’s been having earthquakes.

Besides the obvious fact that Reno is hated by every god, not just the “main one,” (whatever that means to you)…

…a lot of people aren’t aware that Reno and Northern Nevada as a whole really IS earthquake country.

I have overheard people in the last few days saying, “I moved here from the Bay Area to get away from this shit!”

Oh yeah? Go back to your city then.

The dynamic earth ain’t gonna quit just because your self-important ass decided to move here.

Geologists describe Reno’s seismic activity as “active,” Nevada being one of the top (#3?) seismically-active places in the nation. We sit surprising close to the major Pacific fault lines that give San Francisco, Los Angeles, Japan and Hawaii their movement. Yet their activity or the “Pacific Ring of Fire,” isn’t what’s causing us to shake.

Though no one really knows for absolute sure why the shaking is happening directly, it should come as no surprise. Reno is striated with hundreds of fault lines. Some of them aren’t even discovered as of yet. Combine that with Reno and the Truckee Meadow’s unstable soil situation, being backed up to huge granite mountains, and you’ll start to see exactly why we’re getting some shaking.
But to what end? Though the seismic activity has only been kept since about 1850, there’s evidence that this area has been shaken, and shaken hard in the geologic past. Reno is very capable of having a HUGE earthquake. An earthquake that no one can really predict, no suspect even with recent activity.

Though the news programs love showing shots of freaked-out geriatric churchgoers complaining of their curios and “Precious Moments,” figurines taking a facedive off the bookshelf, there isn’t much damage happening. Reno’s buildings are pretty robust, not to mention, required (as of sometime in the last two decades) to have more earthquake-mindful engineering than say, Las Vegas.
The most recent quake was listed as a 4.7-4.9 magnitude, centered somewhere around Mogul, April 25 at about 11:40PM. I was hanging out with a friend of mine in her shack-like two-story apartment off California Ave. Boy was that a boat ride. Of course we were all jazzed by the occurrence, because unlike other people, we just don’t freak out over shit like that. Evidently people from bars, movies and other social gatherings around town went home on a perfectly nice Friday night because of a little shaking. My question is, how the hell is that going to save you?

Regardless, if a little rumbling makes you upset, I hear the Dakotas are a nice place to be. Reno isn’t going to quiet down any time soon, that is for sure. In fact, I’ve done a good job of taking off heavy things from the shelves, and anything else that can fall over and break for a little while. It’s no guarantee that something won’t get destroyed, but I’d like to not curse Ma Nature so damn much if my precious lava lamp collection meets gravity the wrong way.

If you’re curious like I am, however, there’s a few sites you can report quake activity and see it almost real-time for yourself:

USGS Reno Quake Info: http://quake.usgs.gov/recenteqs/FaultMaps/120-40.htm

The Nevada Seismological Laboratory: http://www.seismo.unr.edu/

Enjoy Reno shaken, not stirred, everyone.

- Gay Rodeo

7 Comments