Little Pink Book

Then some days,  I learn something.    Yesterday I published a brief book review blog of Kate Matthews’  recently re-released cartoon collection  The Little Pink Book of (mostly) Cancer Cartoons.   I liked the book,  rather a lot in fact.   Though I have to confess that most of what I wrote was more by way of complaining that Amazon won’t pay me commissions on eBooks.   And I have believed for years now that that last statement was a fact.    But Ms. Matthews left a comment on that post that made me do just a bit further looking into it.    And while I was correct that eBooks can not be offered for sale in my Amazon hosted  “a-store”,   where for years I have been earning tiny commissions on the occasional sale of a print book I’ve reviewed.  it develops that I can link to products,  in copy on my web site (that is Not hosted by Amazon) and eBooks and anything else they sell  and they will pay commissions.   It was kind of a huge DOH moment for me.    (I will certainly be reviewing more eBooks,  just as soon as I wipe Homer Simpson’s expression off my face.)

The Little Pink Book,  while rather crudely drawn,  is both powerfully emotional and laugh-out-loud funny.   I am genuinely thrilled to learn that I can promote and sell this volume  (which will set readers back the tiny price of 99 cents should they choose to buy it) and receive a tiny little commission if anyone buys it from a link I have publicized.    I have to admit I’m genuinely embarrassed to have only discovered this rather simple distinction after many years of being a book reviewer and book seller,  and by a chance comment from a reviewed author.   To me it is almost a reminder that God works in mysterious ways,  His wonders to perform.

Part of me thinks the fair thing to do might be to go back and correct all of the posts I have made,  pissing and moaning about Amazon’s not paying commissions on eBooks  (when it turns out they just don’t let them be featured on a commission basis in their astores),  but honestly I haven’t the energy to track them all down.   And the fact is that any blog is continually evolving.    That the reality today is different than what I wrote about back whenever I have raised this issue in the past….well let’s just say I leave it to the reader to read as they will and hopefully this revelation to me will make it’s way throughout everyone’s reality.