Older generations argue that young people’s insistence on equality in all things – including books – threatens to stifle free speech. But is that always true?I wouldn’t normally air my dirty literary linen in public, but here goes. When I finished writing my novel Putney, about a 13-year-old girl who has a “love affair” in the 1970s with an older man and realises decades later that it was actually abuse, my previous editor at Jonathan Cape chose not to publish it. The reasons emerged this year when he was interviewed in the Spectator. “If Lolita was offered to me today,” Dan Franklin said, “I’d never be able to get it past the acquisition team – a committee of 30-year-olds, who’d say: ‘If you publish this book we will all resign.’” He pointed to #MeToo and social media as fundamental factors: “You can organise outrage at the drop of a hat.”Fortunately, Bloomsbury’s acquisition team – overwhelmingly female and mixed aged – were brave enough to take on Putney, which was described in the Observer as “a Lolita for the era of #MeToo”. Whether there was any truth in his words or not, Franklin’s position reveals how much fear now exists in publishing. Related: Putney by Sofka Zinovieff review – a Lolita for the age of #MeToo ‘It’s only about not being an arsehole,’ my daughter said. ‘That’s not so difficult’ Related: Nabokov's Lolita: the latest thing millennials have apparently ruined Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2019-07-10 10:03:01 UTC ]
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Tomorrow was supposed to the day BlackBerry held a conference call and webcast to discuss its Q2 earnings, but the company has now cancelled this. Complete second quarter financial results will still be released tomorrow (Friday, 27 September) at 7:00am ET, but there will now be no public... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2013-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jonathan Lethem’s latest novel Dissident Gardens at first appears more grounded than his other works, trading supernatural elements for a more realist view of the world. But in Part 2 of his interview with Slate’s Jacob Weisberg, Lethem says to look closer. In his unflinching—some would say... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2013-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Our look at the week's web buzz including hotbutton issues around reader reviews, at questions of print vs. ebooks, and at Amy Tan's new book cover. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-09-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Marcel Reich-Ranicki was a living embodiment of so much of 20th century German intellectual life. Will the internet era ever produce as influential a critic? Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin has declined to comment on claims that a planned Morrissey autobiography has been... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harold and Sandra Darling founded Green Tiger Press in 1969 as a greeting card company whose products featured their collection of images from vintage pre-1940 children’s books, calendars, paintings, and posters. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-09-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It’s no secret that newspapers and magazine publishers have suffered steep declines in print circulation over the last decade, and that trend is just going to continue, according to a survey of 1,134 U.S. adults conducted by the Donald W. R ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Total revenue at Amazon rose 22% in the second quarter ended June 30, to $15.70 billion, while operating income fell 26%, to $79 million. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Serpent's Tail has acquired a new non-fiction book on the cultural history of tennis by... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Paula Deen was supposed to release "Paula Deen's New Testament: 250 Favorite Recipes, All Lightened Up" in October. But Ballantine Books canceled the release, even though it was already No. 1 in pre-orders on Amazon. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A visit to the Seoul Book Fair reveals publishers are still wary of ebooks and blame smart devices for the decline in reading, even as Korean culture has become hip abroad. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sales of Dan Brown's Inferno (Bantam Press) rocketed 48% week on week last week, sending the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The National Book Critics Circle recently surveyed reviewers about whether ethics guidelines are necessary for the industry. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bestselling author Dan Brown has told BBC Breakfast he gets "kicked around" by UK... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Several new high profile interactive fiction titles have been released so far this year, suggesting that publishers and readers may finally be ready for the medium. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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According to a new report by the Association of American Publishers, children's and young adult books experienced a sales jump driven by hardcover sales of Suzanne Collins' trilogy. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-05-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Arts Council England (ACE) has backed the speech culture secretary Maria Miller’s speech... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New entrants to the UK ebook market buy more books, but tend to buy more from Amazon, even for... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An American and an Italian crossed the language barrier to produce a gorgeous new children's book, Jemmy Button, along with a common language of creative co-production. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The National Book Critics Circle honored works such as 'Far From the Tree' by Andrew Solomon and 'The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson' by Robert Caro during their 2012 awards ceremony. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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