December 28, 2010
Robin Young, host of “Here and Now,” interviewed Bill Bryson about his latest work, At Home: a Short History of Private Life. Bryson lived with his family for many years in England and this book uses his historic home as a springboard to discuss many aspects of everyday life. To my mind, Bryson represents the […]
December 23, 2010
Hail, Santa, King of the Elves! Gift wrapped from McSweeney’s comes this clever collection of letters to Santa written by Shakespeare characters including Hamlet, Ophelia, Macbeth, and Falstaff. Who new Romeo and Juliet were such big Taylor Swift fans? A Cult Writer’s Cult Writer The life and works of reclusive True Grit author Charles Portis are examined in […]
December 23, 2010
An analysis of book buying behavior indicates that 20% of consumers are interested in buying e-readers compared to only 10% last year. This article offers many facts about the public’s attitudes toward digital reading and a few graphs to demonstrate the changes. It also mentions the impact on print books. Shira S.
December 22, 2010
This Book Trailer of the Week is in belated celebration of the great Jane Austen’s 235th birthday on December 16th. Selected as one of 2009’s best book videos, the hilarious clip is for Ben H. Winters’ contribution to Austen mash-up mania, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. So, enjoy the trailer, check out the Quirk classic, and don’t forget about […]
December 20, 2010
Library of America, which publishes classic American literature, has announced that it will offer e-books starting in 2011. It will have 30 titles available for the Kindle, the Nook, and the Sony Reader. The list of titles will be available on LOA‘s website in January. Additionally, LOA will publish Six Novels in Woodcuts by Chicago-born artist Lyn Ward […]
December 18, 2010
Adored by generations of children, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer was originally written in 1939 as a poem by Evanston native Robert L. May. A copy writer for Montgomery Ward, May wrote the story for Santa to give away to children visiting the Ward stores. Wards gave away 2.4 million copies of the story, but […]
December 16, 2010
Adam Ross has had quite a year. Back in June, the Nashville-based author saw his powerful debut novel Mr. Peanut published to rave reviews after months of increasing word-of-mouth buzz. Inventive and deeply moving, Mr. Peanut tells the unsettling tale of David Pepin, a video game designer and wannabe novelist who fantasizes continuously about killing his wife Alice. When Alice turns up […]
December 16, 2010
Former NPR commentator Juan Williams has signed on with Crown Publishers for a 2 book deal. He will focus on the difficulty of discussing sensitive topics in our society. The untitled book is due in the summer. (Williams was fired immediately from NPR a couple of months ago for expressing concern regarding boarding planes with […]
December 15, 2010
Our latest Book Trailer of the Week is this cinematic clip for T.C. Boyle’s Wild Child: Stories. A 2010 NY Times Notable Book and Boyle’s ninth short story collection, Wild Child showcases its acclaimed author’s astonishing range and imaginative muscle in 14 superb tales. Focusing on man’s relationship with nature and what it means to be human, Boyle’s stories are […]
December 14, 2010
Almost 30 years ago two men bought a story from Roald Dahl for $200.00 in the interest of collecting work by famous people that they could develop into story starters for children. It never was completed and now “The Eyes of Mr. Croaker” is being auctioned on Ebay. Dahl died 20 years ago and is […]
