You have checked and double checked, packed and repacked. You have been school shopping, grocery shopping and clothes shopping. You might even have a list that you will check again (that makes twice) before you take off for school. You’re all set. Except for when those pesky classes start and you actually have to learn.

Fortunately, all the information you will need for your classes has been conveniently bound into one location: textbooks. You are already paying an arm and a leg or two for tuition, and many find themselves surrendering both arms in the aftermath of textbook shopping. There’s no doubt that textbooks are expensive, but you can save yourself a little bit of money if you know what all your options are, and are willing to do a little leg work – assuming you still have both after paying tuition. Once you have all the information, you can decide what works best for you.
BookMarq is the university owned and operated bookstore located just north of the Annex on 16th Street, the same street that McCormick Hall is on. Textbooks are always in abundance, and the convenience of being able to order your books online is very appealing to many students. Bookmarq’s central location makes them very accessible to students on campus and if you order your books online, you can have them shipped to your home or pick them up at the store. The academic sections and books are well marked and easy to find.

BookMarq does not provide this level of convenience and ease for free; prices tend to be slightly higher than the alternatives. Students who choose the campus bookstore generally do so for convenience. “When I have to take my business to a campus bookstore, I take it to BookMarq because I can use my Marquette Cash there,” said Amanda Wolff, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. BookMarq’s number is (414) 288-7317.

Sweeney’s: If students are not willing to pay for that level of convenience, but do not want to look off campus, they generally head to Sweeney’s. Located on the corner of Wisconsin and 17th streets, Sweeney’s is campus’s independently owned bookstore. Prices are generally cheaper, but books are harder to find and not always readily available.

Sweeney’s tries to make their main customer the student and not the University, as they argue BookMarq does. Sweeney’s will be relocating after the fall semester to 14th and Wells streets, a location that used to be a Chinese restaurant, if any of you were curious about the pagoda over the front door. Their store hours for August are Monday-Friday 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. For more information about Sweeney’s or to order books online, click here.

Online Options: Many students are beginning to explore alternatives to campus bookstores. Online textbook shopping has exploded in the past couple of years, with more and more students trying to save any amount of money they can. Some popular sites include Amazon.com, half.com, textbooks.com, barnesandnoble.com and chegg.com to name a few. “[Chegg.com] has definitely become my favorite,” said Wolff. Chegg.com is a book rental site that rents books to students for the semester, then takes the books back with no return shipping charged. Many students, however, are weary to try online options because of the security risk involved; students are afraid that books will never be shipped or they might receive the wrong edition.

Whether you buy at BookMarq or Sweeney’s, Barnes and Noble or Amazon, almost everyone suggests shopping around a little bit before pulling the trigger. “Wait until after the first day of classes to buy your books,” said Andrew Schueller, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. “A few times a ‘required’ book wasn’t needed at all, so wait until your teacher personally hands you a book list and then buy those.”

So no matter where you buy from, it is important to explore all your options first, and hopefully buying books doesn’t have to be too painful.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Sweeney’s College Books, 1634 W. Wisconsin Ave., has been a cheaper alternative for buying textbooks since the fall of 2004. Soon, however, since Marquette University bought the property, it will no longer be able to do business in its current location.

Sweeney’s lease enables sales through the summer and fall 2008 semesters, but after fall sales end, the bookstore will move to its new location, 1400 W. Wells St. China Garden, a buffet-style Chinese restaurant that delivers, currently occupies this space.

Jun Mei, China Garden’s manager, said China Garden is not going out of business; he is still unsure of a moving date. The owner is currently looking for a new location close to campus.

Chris Zilvitis, Sweeney’s assistant director, said he does not believe Marquette’s purchase of the property was anything personal.

“A number of buildings from the one who owned this were bought,” he said. “It doesn’t have anything to do with us. The University has actually become more open [to Sweeney’s] over the past 3 years.”

Marquette purchased the property from Taxman Investment Company. Taxman also owned the Marquette Apartments, 1622-1634 W. Wisconsin Ave. The apartments, which are located above Sweeney’s, will be converted into suite-style residence halls.

Marquette University Student Government expressed its disappointment with the University for not renewing Sweeney’s’ lease, but Zilvitis said MUSG never contacted the store itself. He said Sweeney’s is not going out of business and he thinks the new central location will actually help the store’s sales.

“In bad weather, the students will have less distance to walk to save money,” Zilvitis said.

Sweeney’s will continue to offer the “no textbook left behind” deal, and Zilvitis said he believes it will be easier for students to sell books back at the end of the semester, especially if BookMarq does not buy back certain books.

Hannah Kalinowski, a sophomore in the College of Engineering said she has only eaten at China Garden a couple times, but will continue to shop at Sweeney’s, regardless of the location.

“I know that they were trying to find somewhere, but I didn’t know where,” Kalinowski said.

Sophia Jurgens, a sophomore in the College of Business Administration, said she never really bought books at Sweeney’s, but only because of the location.

“It would be better and more convenient for me if they moved,” she said. “The only reason I’ve bought books from BookMarq is because it’s closer.”

Autumn Botsch, a sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, said she is a loyal Sweeney’s customer.

“The prices are better and they have the stuff I need,” she said. “The new location will make it more convenient [to buy books].”

Sweeney’s will reopen in time for fall semester buyback, and the grand opening will be in time for spring semester book sales. It is still undetermined where China Garden’s new location will be.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Seven years before the first publication of Bram Stoker’s gothic novel, “Dracula,” Stoker wrote down on a piece of paper: “Young man goes out, sees girls one tries to kiss him not on the lips but throat. Old Count interferes – rage & fury diabolical – this man belongs to me I want him.”

This comes from a bad dream and later becomes a fictional journal entry of Jonathan Harker, one of the several characters in Dracula. Ironically enough, the events of the novel do resemble that of a horrific dream.

The novel begins with Harker’s travel to Transylvania, where he meets Count Dracula to discuss real estate transactions. During his stay in the Count’s castle, Harker encounters many strange things. One of them is the Count crawling “down the castle wall over the dreadful abyss, face down, with his cloak spreading out around him like great wings.”

As the story leaves Transylvania and travels to London, England, the protagonists, Harker’s fiancŽe, Mina Murray, Professor Van Helsing, Doctor John Seward, American-born Quincey Morris and Arthur Holmwood are introduced into the novel. Having lost Mina’s sister, Lucy, to the demonic ways of the Count, the protagonists set up a mission to save Harker from the Count and destroy Count Dracula forever.

In the revised edition of “Dracula,” Christopher Frayling, author of the preface, said that Stoker wrote his thoughts down on notepaper while “on a run in hotels, on trains, in libraries, and leaving from London’s Lyceum Theater,” where Stoker worked. This revelation presents theories on what could have given Stoker the idea to write the novel in an epistolary style, where he uses a collection of journal and diary entries, letters, newspapers clippings and telegrams to tell the events happening in the lives of the characters.

This style, however, does bring the reader right into the story. As Harker, Mina, Helsing and the others write down their thoughts in their journals, diaries or letters, because the reader feels what the characters feel, from confusion, sadness, anguish, anger and joy, at the same moment that the characters felt it. Because the story is presented this way, it gives the novel rawness and authenticity that can be lost in most fictional literary works.

Although the characters have witnessed strange things ever since the Count has settled in London, the reader can take comfort in knowing that the events have already happened.

While Mina, Helsing, Morris, Seward, Harker and Holmwood are diligently trying to figure out what it is that disrupts their peaceful lives, the reader uncovers the clues presented in the writing entries before the characters do because of the advantage the reader has in going back from past entries. Therefore, the reader is always a step ahead of the characters. The anticipation is in the waiting for the characters to come to the same conclusion that the reader has already come to.

With the many vampire novels on the bookshelves, it is easy to read Stoker’s “Dracula” knowing what will happen in each chapter. We even have the option of putting the book down to watch Francis Ford Coppola’s take on Dracula instead. That is if you want to be disappointed. But if you are interested in being terrified by a literary work, Stoker’s “Dracula” is an excellent choice. This book will have you checking to see what lurks behind you.

Here are some other books that will leave you wanting to keep the lights on for the night:

• “The Silence of the Lambs” by Thomas Harris
• “Interview with the Vampire” by Anne Rise
• “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson
• “It” by Stephen King
• “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley
• “The Turn of the Shrew” by Henry Jame

Popularity: 23% [?]

It’s fairly normal for people of all ages to carry stories with them throughout their lives. Wisconsin author Patrick Somerville created a collection of stories that he assembled into his first book of fiction, “Trouble,” released Sept. 12, which explores important moments throughout young men’s lives.Somerville introduces his collection with story layers, choosing not to focus on one event, but rather, allow one story to directly flow into another. The tone throughout the paperback is somewhat downhearted, which leaves the reader wondering if the author has experienced quite a bit of misfortune. However, the author does a great job of allowing the reader to feel emotionally connected to the characters.

Some readers aren’t particularly fond of writers who introduce a topic and immediately veer off in a different direction. It was refreshing to read a scenario and then have the paragraph end, only to have the new paragraph give more background. The balance of having to write from the viewpoints of several characters can become challenging as a reader may become bored with trying to follow the varying dialogue. When executed properly, however, the reader can become more involved and learn more background, which aids a scene; the reader can feel more connected to the story.

Somerville shares the experiences of young boys through adult-age in a manner that leaves the reader wanting explanation. In the first chapter, “Puberty,” Brandon seeks information on why he is changing from a child to a young adult. As he shares his attempts to fit in at school and stealing glances at a woman who lives down the street, a new layer is introduced: his parents. Brandon’s parents are extremely curious about the absurd behavior of their son. What could be bizarre ends in a discovery that their child has mistakenly been taking hormones that aren’t necessarily a treatment for strength, but, rather, menopause pills.

Throughout the story, Somerville drops connections to Wisconsin such as a dream of a young child wanting to play professional baseball for the Brewers, visiting a farm in Black Earth or images of Rollie Fingers. The voice is playful, serious at times, but sarcastic. In the sixth chapter, “English Cousin,” Terry must entertain a new-found relative, Bill, who comes to visit from across the pond, but instead talks him into climbing down his girlfriend’s chimney when he has discovered she is cheating on him. Somerville is able to transition from aggravation to pure excitement from another person’s pain. The writing keeps the reader interested because it is never clear who is going to speak next.

“Trouble” has no difficulty explaining several stages in the male life. Whether it is learning a deadly martial arts technique, living a life that is unsatisfying, growing up too fast or moving on from humiliating events, this book covers all areas. What Somerville does best is describe incidents in a way that feels as though he is talking to the reader in person.

Despite some slow moments in some of the shorter stories, “Trouble” is able to allow readers a behind-the-scenes look at what many young men experience. Although it may be challenging to determine where the author is attempting to go with a thought process, eventually the story unfolds, leaving the reader more educated and humored. People of all ages can relate to Somerville’s stories and perhaps walk away with a smile.

Popularity: 24% [?]

“Art does not need suffering, just a medium.” – Hoam Rowe
Written by a current Marquette student who self-published this year under the nom de plume Hoam Rowe, “Life Begins” is a 183-page collage of seemingly unrelated people and events that all tie together in one novel.

The dialogue, poignant and glib, well suits the often bizarre and fantastical circumstances of the characters throughout the book. It is not until the book’s conclusion that the reader receives an explanation for the strange series of events. A technology-driven adventure, “Life Beings” intertwines past and present events but is mostly set in the “near future.”

Ulysses, the high-school-aged son of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, is everything one would expect a spoiled “rich kid” of the stars to be and is exceptionally smart. At an advanced high school, he meets his closest confidant and friend, Thomas. The odd connection between the two boys highlights their differences as well as their similarities. In addition, the story involves a child prodigy named Hannah who is the delight and sometimes dismay of her professionally evangelical parents. The reader sees her understanding and education grow beyond her parents and others until she takes an unexpected path to self-discovery which leads her to the other characters. Not lacking in fascinating characters, the book introduces us to Mr. Noh, who is inexplicably rich and eccentric with no immediate relation to those people whose lives he incorporates himself into, including all the main characters. Among the most unique people whose life he interferes with is LeRoy Jones, a hit man with an eerie past and stranger future.

The author takes great artistic license with huge leaps in logic and plot line symmetry. The large, obvious holes in the story grow smaller as the book unfolds, but they do not disappear completely. “Life Begins” still maintains a level of equilibrium at the end in a very Matrix-esque way, making it an enjoyable yet surreal read. This is a great book for college students who need a break from textbooks, even if only for a few minutes. “Life Begins” is easy enough to follow and great for on-again off-again reading. You won’t find it in book stores yet. Go to shadyhousepub.com for an online copy.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Everyone hates buying textbooks. According to a recent government report, college students spend an average of $900 a year on books. After their first time plunking down five hundred or more dollars at BookMarq or Sweeney’s books, most Marquette students begin to look for other sources to purchase books from. Half.com, Amazon and DogEars are all popular internet sellers. After buying online this semester, I ended up saving about twenty percent over buying used book at either of Marquette’s physical bookstores. Continue Reading

Popularity: 14% [?]