sal and cook and rest of the entourage downstairs and he's still struggling to get us one step closer to spirit manifest in the laws of the universe. but the soup is getting cold. thank you all. thank you. thanks. [applause] thank you. thank you so much mr. isakson and audience if you would like to have a book autoimraffed, you may do so on the other side of the elevators. right on the floor thank you so much once more. >> thank you very much.

booktv live coverage the miami book fair continues -- you've been listening to walter talk about his most recent best selling biography on leonardo da vinci coming up we've got -- chris matthews taking calls on the bio, katy tur, gold star father will also be speaking, and it's a beautiful day down here in south florida. and question we have a booktv se middle of the festival, and as we do a couple of 250eu78 p time when is we've been down here we invite mitch kaplan to speak withdo us cofounder of the miami book fair. and hemi owns the books and chan down here inn south florida. mitch kaplan have you already

read it? >> i haven't actually but selling it by the bushel i can't keep it in stock so grab one for myself. every time i take one home i have to bring it back for another customer. it is -- it is a phenomenon. you know as walter does he's struck a cord you know again -- and what he's done with this book will open up a educational tool for those who don't note story of leonardo. >> would you just say walter isakson has a new book coming out top pick pbd and would it sell? beginning to happen i think it is actually case. people have so much come to admire him and there are few writers like that doris is one. david is another -- but certainly walter isakson is

now developed a trust with his readership that they'll read anything that he puts out really. sm well we've checked out books in books best seller list prior to -- sitting down with you here. we discovered books on there isakson and grant -- chris matthews book -- absolutely on rfk is the best seller. what happens -- did you read what happened? >> you know, you're embarrassing me but i did not read what happens. i didn't want to relive what happened. [laughter] personally it shall i kind of felt i knew what happened. but it has an honest excerpt on it but honest pour primarily of her five in terms what happened during the election. >> another best -- best seller for book and books has donna brazil book hacked. >> she was here.

we were there and she was in conversation with anna -- and that was quite an interest -- prvelg obama administration official right? >> no, she was -- is a republic and anna is on cnn and she's -- anti-trump cnn reportser. not reporter but carry spokesperson and they became friendsre on the set. it's clearly done is telling her side of the story and she has a lot of, a lot of raw emotion while she was still there. the book is pretty raw. >> it is. it is. it lay it right out there. she really does. you know she feels rightfully so that she should be able to tell her story as she sees it. obviously there's been some pushback people said that's not

exactly the way i saw it but that's why books are written been able to create dialogue in the town square. smg now if you've watched our conch in years miami you met mitch keep plan over years as cofounder of the miami book fair owner of books and books but last couple of years we've taken advantage of him and invited him on to talk about -- books so what makes this segment so much fun for us is when you are call many to talk about books that you're reading why you're reading them. et cetera, et cetera, numbers are up on the screen go ahead to dial in. want to hear from you 202 is area code for those of you in east and central sometime zone 7482 for those of you in pacific time zone and get to calls in a u few minutes so we're asking our viewers but mr. kaplan what are you reading? >> there's a number of different books that i've resonated with

me recently and some i've gone back to in terms a marvelous novel called exit west, exit westst tells the story of immigrants basically. it's a novel. and it's about a young man and young woman who have to flee the middle east and they're educated and -- technique where you go through doors and instead of roads you go through and find the magic doorro an you end up out of your country and you may be in don and piengsd out what happened in thosebe countries to an immigra. so in essence getting 60 degree kindim of view of immigration ad all of these different countries. as well -- really, really well.

that's hamid previous book was called reluctant fundamentalist really, really well done. she's one of miami treasured positions. she's such a remarkable writer. she writes fiction she writes memoir, this book is a little bitt of both, i mean, not fictin but a little bit of literary history, as well as memoir. she kind of takes off with the art of at the time and she takes published by gray wolf. and she takes off where she got very, very sick and ends up dying so she writes about personal experience with death but also death in d literature. so shee takes you through somef the greatest scenes of people dying in literature at the same time. very slim book but it has

really -- art of sere rei what is that? >> a series that gray wolf does. and it is art of a number of different things and -- art of death is most recent ?awls. >> neil amusing ourselves to death. >> neil that's an old i don't know -- every person in the media ought to be reading that now. that's a bock i read when i was a young scholar many, many years ago and the subtitle is serious discourse in the age of show business. that sub title itself tell you what had book sb is about but he was with the fact that there was a cnn that that was diluting you know serious discourse, and if we were alive now --

and i begin towns a little bit more about what's happening in the media today. giving our political climate. >> mitch kaplan the fact that you live in the area -- and you're at your bookstore every day does that make a difference in what you stock and what you -- rng oh, sure we're a general bookstore, we believe, we believe i always believe and independent book sellingers anywhere around country when they do is they serve their community. so we carry books to reflect interestf of the community and not book that we wouldn't carry, and we have books in spanish and for the creole community we have lots of different kinds of books. but we specialize in the beginning and photographer bock

time we open in 198 before the -- before the internght. couldn't find those books anywhere. you couldn't look them up and google so people could come in the store to see what leat architecture book or o art book or that sort of thing. >> you said this before on the air but jebou bush is one of yor regular customers. jeb bush is one of our early customers before we moved to tallahassee he's a nice guy, and, in fact, one of his i think his -- chief of staff or someone veteran close to him opened a marvelous bookstore? tallahassee so come to from a bookish family and early l was barbara bush and laura bush has done great things with a national book festival, texas bock fair and all of that.

>> bush daughters were here this week per the -- >> very charming and -- yeah writing about their life. their play you're you can tell i have twins and i hope my twins will be as close as they are. my twins are fraternal as well. skt mitch kaplan with a national conversation, and issue that we're having with -- sexual assault or sexual -- you know however yowpght to phraset it. doest, that reflect in sales ata bookstore necessarily? ents well, you know it whats so quickly. in tomorrows how it is in our consciences so there will be books written that we haven't seen yet. thatn will help explore probably a little bit more just about what has gone on certainly there were books that have been writtenf about that memoir -- and other things. but this moment of time seems so

unique to me you know this my life. that it seems like there's a sea change going on, and i think that book is yet to be written. that really capture what is that is. it doesn't depress book sales. but i just don't know that there is that kind of bock yet about all of this that has been written. let's hear from views and vincent calling from irvine, california you're onbook tv with mitch kaplan. >>hi there i used to love krrk span but seems to me that c-span is reallye drifted far to o the left. i mean guest is, obviously, a man of the left. but even programming very -- programs coming from the right on c-span they just seem like -- every gueste now on c xan is person of the left and it is very disappointing is really, really love c-span because of

the even handedness i have to tell you i don't see it. i appreciate that tell us what you'rere reading. >> new book called american -- aboutn u.s. grant and his life, very, very god. >> is that robert mary's new book -- american -- i know there's been a couple of grant books. >> i knew you were beginning to ask me i can't remember who author is. but it's called american about u.s. grant and it basically take you through his whole life. growing u up in ohio. >> thank you for your comments and thank you for sharing that book with us. mitch kaplan there's been a couple of books out on that grant. >> one we're selling a lot is ron's book which he is another one like walter that ron now -- his name on topic people want to read anything that ron wright such a good writer.

est that what really -- is very -- heartening. is that readers really do refund to really good writing. and particularly when they're learning something at the point and time. it's's like a perfect storm if u get a really fine writer, shows a really are interesting topic maybe topic that people don't know a lot about. .. guaranteed to be something that would be a big seller. but i just want to defend c-span a little bit. i watch c-span booktv all the time, and i can say that you guys have done a very, very good job of presenting people from all spectrums. in >> >> certainly there is no more publishers on the right but it depends on when you

watch if you watch it and you just happen to be watching from one particular perspective but i know you work very hard to have a very broad spectrum and that is what we love in that is what i love about c-span booktv. >> you shall titles? do they sell in coral gables?. >> moderate i have to admit south florida was a blue part of the state even though the state went red south florida is pretty liberal. we do carry them and when there is one that is popular people will buy it. >> would be reading? thanks for holding. >> caller: [inaudible]

>> we don't have scott so we have to say goodbye. let's try oklahoma good afternoon. >> caller: i just got it yesterday a librarian's love letters i of the retired librarian so this was of interest to meet and then also from the 50 shades of gray. i will hate you forever for that. [laughter] i am also reading be osage murders. ad is from osage oklahoma

where i live. >> guest: he is actually at the fair. >> host: and a finalist. >> guest: he writes remarkable nonfiction and. >> host: is she still on the line? tell us about your career as a librarian and where do you get your books from? online or a bookstore. >> guest: a was a public library in 30 years. a small branch manager and a large branch manager also with the selections of the books purchased for the library system. i get the books from all different places. the library, i buy from

independent bookstores with nike and and we also go to as many as we can across the country but out and about to make a point to stop at an independent bookstore. >> guest: come on down. >> host: ask for new chaplain. >> rochester new york bin afternoon. >> caller: how are you? i.m. reading here's what happened.

it is an interesting book. so i have ami question for mitch. i am curious to know what are your thoughts on the digital books? i like the feel of paper books a lot better going down to the bookstore but to me i have never had akn problem not they have never dropped a book in the bathtub before. >> i feel is a perfect

entity for what it is. if you have technology was a problem is that solving? but the book is so good you don't need a new technology to take itsni place. so what is happening is it is actually losing steam actually sales have gone down. i amlo very squirrel island of the field level book and the beautiful object of the book when i read on the screen it is like work. with the book i can just take a deep breath. as long as i am around malaise be selling books.

you can buy electronic books but that is that something we have a lot of papers on. but the book iss paramount. >> did the e-book dirty your sales?. >> initially by now publishers don't have the revenue from e-book so or hurts them as well. very similar with what happened with the dvd then they wouldld sell it after the film came now. >> host: new york. what are you reading. >> caller: good afternoon.

[inaudible] >> host: you seem to be on an agenda. 't>> caller: [laughter] and then what theyan have done with the hedge fund. bin from the caribbean originally so that is my focus. >> so i and just curious. and what those techniques are that he uses.

>> host: we did talk to the author of the second book here. to business books do well. >> guest: they do. and is just people like the caller that feel better people better looking feeling they can learn something and that is right of the alley. we have books on buying real estate in that sort of thing. people are looking for aspirational type of books and then move their own lives for word. >> as we continue take calls year on booktv from miami what are you reading?. >> they book called

auschwitz. it is the rubinstein story. i was a presenter in colorado a couple of months ago it is so wonderful story those that survive that camping payback to colorado and still live. >> joe rubinstein. >> it is a variety of interest. it is pretty amazing. i don't know very much about it.

the variety of interest over a couple of hundred thousand published books every year. no one bookstore can carry all of them that is the democracy from those different stores because each has its own hearing your callers i am thrilled there is a variety of interest. >> and with self-help. >> host: has anybody got a book to you that you saido yes. >> guest: we actually published a book. with the of booklovers guide.en

in this is phenomenal. and after very serious reviews it was called one of the best gift books for ago it was amazing. it was really, really great. and also doing something else to?. >> i have a film production company that partners and i have some presents for you. >> host: i am cheap enough to take them. >> guest: this is the of book edition is the original

story written by a charles dickens. in the screenwriter is in the wonderful world is to have financial issues in the pressure was on him. so christopher columbus so actually christopher plummer appearss to rightabout scrooge with this wonderful

funny interplay between screw did dickens there is a line in the film that i l loved no one is useless in this world to wyden as the burdens of another. that is the generosity of spirit and pulling people up all of those things that we need to day in our climate when we feel at odds with one another. and i have a bumper strip. [laughter] coming out across the countrys it will be held november 22nd from the man who invented christmas.

>> host: riverside california please tell us what you are reading. >> caller: i am enjoying this so much. theen book is the forgotten one. i just love this book. >> host: historical fiction?. >> caller: yes. the family is intertwined david is also a mystery. >> doesn't actually take place during the war?. >> part of that does.

>> guest: they give for sharing that. >> host: thanks for calling. we want to continue to hear from you. so with historical fiction inil the trilogy. >> we do so lot of architecture books but it is remarkable that he could do

what he t did with that trilogy. but historical a fiction is when it is well but you are just transported back. >> mashing against nonfiction but when that happens the taken interest?. >> i do but the difference of these two is that both of them were selling very, very well. so this just added a supercharges to it. they are both fine remarkable books. >> host: we appreciate you coming over to chat with our viewers in the movies. >> guest: keep up with what you do it and is keeping both the live.

>> host: books and books and co-founder of the miami book fair. we will get him out of the chair. chris matthews is coming now to take your calls from his new biography of robert kennedy. but to continue to hear from you. calling in from maryland the go-ahead. >> caller: i guess we do not have her. >> yes you do. you have me. i am about to read james mcbride. i read most of his other books i would like to know

if he will be at the miami book fair mr. kaplan has left but i wanted to know he sold a lot of his books because i have enjoyed every one. >> host: heg is stating right here. i wouldnt ask him that currently he is in conversation from another speaker. the caller just asked if james mcbride. he was just here wednesday night. he says if you get the chance to hear him speak jump on it. >> caller: i did and he is

wonderful and he played his saxophone and. >> host: we will take one more call from south carolina. >> caller: our you? i always have five or 10 books by wanted to do, walter isaacson. one of his books the innovators was so wonderful to and giving them the credit for the computers. he is wonderful i tried to read everything he has written's. >> host: it is good to hear