Cosy crime, cookbooks and a surprise hit: what we’ve really read in the pandemic

It was a chance to finally get around to Tolstoy or Proust, but the charts tell a different story. Which books did we actually turn to in the lockdowns? • Let us know in the comments what you were reading Back in spring 2020, when it became clear that coronavirus wasn’t going away, book lovers spied an opportunity for a rare, government-mandated reading holiday. Here, at last, was a chance to have a go at Tolstoy’s War and Peace and Proust’s In Search of Lost Time. Robert Macfarlane reported that he was working his way through the great Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh. Ali Smith urged readers towards Boccaccio’s Decameron. Diana Evans’s thoughts turned “heavenwards” by way of Homer’s Odyssey. I downloaded 27 hours of The Brothers Karamazov audiobook in anticipation.All lovely ideas. With 20 months of hindsight, however, which books did we actually end up turning to? The bestseller lists from the three different lockdowns may not tell you the contents of Britain’s soul, but then again, the numbers do not lie. We read: The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. Sophie Hinchliffe’s Mrs Hinch: The Little Book of Lists. Lots of David Walliams, who topped the Lockdown 1 and Lockdown 2 charts with Slime and Code Name Bananas respectively. JK Rowling: the first three Harry Potter books steadily rose up the charts through the pandemic. Joe Wicks. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. A Pinch of Nom, plus spin-offs. Sally Rooney’s Normal People. Reni Eddo-Lodge’s Why I’m No Longer... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-12-11 09:00:06 UTC ]

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Skip Hogwarts Legacy and watch some Harry Potter-style D&D instead

Hogwarts Legacy comes out next week. It is, bar none, the biggest video game to ever use the ever-popular Harry Potter license. A Dragon Age-style open-world RPG, made by Warner Bros. Games and Avalanche Software (recently of the scuttled Disney Infinity), it’s kind of a huge deal. The... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2023-02-03 15:30:00 UTC ]
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Trump Sues Bob Woodward, S&S Over 'Trump Tapes' Audiobook

The former president's $49.8 million lawsuit alleges that Woodward and Simon & Schuster breached his copyright interests by publishing an audiobook based on interviews recorded for Woodward’s 2021 book 'Rage.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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Exclusive: The makers of a Harry Potter smart wand claim Warner Bros. took their IP

The co-founder of Kano says that a new Harry Potter wand includes his technology; Warner Bros. disputes the claim. In 2018, Warner Bros. made waves when it announced a partnership with Kano, a U.K. kid-friendly coding firm, to release a Harry Potter coding wand that brought the magical world of... Continue reading at Fast Company

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NBA All-World hands-on: Taking basketball video games back to the streets

Niantic has created some of the most popular augmented reality games like Ingress and Pokémon Go. But this week the company is launching a new title called NBA All-World that might be the best application of its location-based tech to date.For people who have played one of Niantic’s previous... Continue reading at Engadget

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Prince Harry’s Spare is fastest-selling nonfiction book since UK records began

First week of the controversial memoir’s sales breaks official UK records reports Nielsen, Guinness World Records and WaterstonesPrince Harry’s Spare has sold almost half a million copies in the UK in its first week on sale, making it the fastest-selling nonfiction book since records... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-01-17 16:13:57 UTC ]
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Bookwire Expands Its Text-to-Speech Audiobook Offer with Google Play Books

The Frankfurt-based Bookwire has entered a partnership with Google Play Books for broader automated production of audiobooks. The post Bookwire Expands Its Text-to-Speech Audiobook Offer with Google Play Books appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

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Digital Book World 2023: The Future of AI Writing and Audio

According to multiple presenters at the Digital Book World conference, ChatGPT has potential to remake the way people write and streamline production and editing, while AI voice replication promises affordable audiobook adaptations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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Digital Book World 2023: The Future of AI Writing and Audio

According to multiple presenters at the Digital Book World conference, ChatGPT has potential to remake the way people write and streamline production and editing, while AI voice replication promises affordable audiobook adaptations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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This Week's Bestsellers: January 16, 2023

Holly Black has the #6 book in the country with the YA high fantasy 'The Stolen Heir.' Plus adult romance author Talia Hibbert makes the move to YA with 'Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute,' and January book club picks hit the bestseller lists. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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Trying to Read More in 2023? These Things Can Help.

From audiobook subscriptions to bullet journals to reading lights, here are some things that can help you meet your 2023 reading goals.- Clare Barnett Continue reading at Book Riot

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Nope, I do not like these AI audiobook narrators one bit.

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Apple's new audiobook narration service uses AI voices

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Why AI audiobook narrators could win over some authors and readers, despite the vocal bumps

Apple and Google’s AI turn in a booming market may sound less than human and raise the ire of voiceover actors, but it has cost benefits For the first few seconds, the narrator of Kristen Ethridge’s new romance audiobook, Shelter from the Storm, sounds like a human being. The voice is light and... Continue reading at The Guardian

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The best sci-fi movies, books and shows to consume over the holidays

If you need a break from the hustle and cheer of the holidays, there’s nothing better than the ultimate escapist genre: sci-fi. This year has been a good one for those who like their entertainment off-planet or otherwise removed from our reality. We finally got a Predator sequel that isn’t... Continue reading at Engadget

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Apple's AirPods Pro fall to $200, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals

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How a Great Audiobook Narrator Finds Her Voices

Robin Miles was looking for stage and screen roles when she began reading books for the blind. She’s become one of the country’s most celebrated narrators. Continue reading at New Yorker

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‘Marvel's Spider-Man 2’ arrives on PS5 next fall

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'Hogwarts Legacy' delayed for Nintendo Switch, PS4 and Xbox One

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China Bestsellers: History, Awards, Humor

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