August 2, 2013
Customers in a Belgian bookstore were treated to the aroma of chocolate, and as a result, according to researchers and this NPR post, were “40 percent more likely to buy romance novels and cookbooks, and about 22 percent more likely to buy books in other genres.” Belgian researchers, concluding that the smell of chocolate boosts […]
August 1, 2013
After J.K. Rowling admitted she wrote The Cuckoo’s Calling, the NYT asked some other authors to choose a pen name and a genre they would write. One of my favorite’s is Carl Hiaasen who said his pen name would be Rick O’Morits and his genre fantasy: “I envision a series of vampire-romance novels set at […]
July 30, 2013
Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22, wrote a story that is just being published this week by The Strand magazine. “Almost Like Christmas” centers on racism in the American south. Heller wrote the piece most likely in the late 1940’s or early 1950’s. In it a white man is stabbed and the prime suspect is […]
July 30, 2013
Last week New Yorkers were able to take part in the Harlem Book Fair. Many seminars and activities were featured ranging from infant education to home design to publishing ebooks. T-Mobile, C-Span, and Columbia University served as corporate sponsors. Shira S.
July 26, 2013
This quirky story on NPR today prompted me to ponder what other materials are out there for us to borrow. Need a fishing pole? Get it from the Erie County Library, PA. Working on home repairs? The Oakland Public Library is just one place to borrow a large assortment of tools for DIY. If you need a musical […]
July 25, 2013
…or, rather on the money. And, Charles Darwin is off. The Bank of England announced that starting in 2017, the image of Jane Austen, one of the world’s favorite authors, will grace the 10-pound banknote. This was in response to a huge outcry when one of the few women other than the queen to be […]
July 24, 2013
Thirteen diverse novels have been nominated for this year’s Man Booker prize, Britain’s most prestigious literary award. Robert MacFarlane, the chairman of judges, said the books “range from the traditional to the experimental, from the first century A.D. to the present day, from 100 pages to 1,000 and from Shanghai to Hendon.” The winner will […]
July 18, 2013
In today’s Chicago Trib Business section, Mugambi Mutegi reported on the closing of O’Gara & Wilson, a fine old Hyde Park institution that has served the local community as well as the University of Chicago faculty and students since the 1960s. Doug Wilson (who apprenticed with founder Joseph O’Gara and later became co-owner) and his staff are currently […]
July 17, 2013
I love these stories about different book venues! Here’s another one: a pop-up bookstore under the train tracks in Brooklyn at Metropolitan Ave. What an improvement over donuts, chotchkes, sports items, etc. (Nothing wrong with these items, but bookstores are special!) This shop offers independently printed materials, so it aims to fill a niche. The down side– it’s only […]
July 15, 2013
The secret’s out: The Cuckoo’s Calling, a debut detective novel published in April under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith turns out to have been written by J.K. Rowling. The Sunday Times of London uncovered the truth by doing its own detective work, finding similarities with Ms. Rowling’s earlier novel The Casual Vacancy. You can read the […]
