A charming French novel about an old-school publisher trying to get to grips with the digital ageAt more than one point in this novel I found myself asking: could this be any more French? Early on we meet a character described thus: “She used to be incredibly good-looking and now at thirtysomething she is creditably handsome.” Sorry? What the narrator, an ageing male publisher, looks like, or how creditably or uncreditably good-looking he is, we don’t find out. Another woman leaves the room “in a wiggle of buttock” – I dropped my annotating pencil when I read that line. “Artichokes require a degree of elegance” – there’s another drop of essence of Gallic for you.But there is more to Dear Reader, and what kept me going was that one of the subjects exercising our narrator is the issue of electronic readers – Kindles or, as our hero Robert Dubois has it, the “dear reader” of the title. This book is an elegy for a dying world: that of the printed book and, that death’s darker corollary, the reader who is still interested in, or has the attention span for, the long-form narrative. (I always thought these things were arranged better in France, with no Net Book Agreement and tax breaks for bookshops, but apparently not.) In the world of Dear Reader, there has been a general collapse of cultural understanding: the interns point out to Dubois the remarkable coincidence that the publishing house they have landed in has the same name as him. Meanwhile, Dubois cannot quite get to... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News an unpublished novel by Harper Lee is to be released more than 50 years after To Kill a Mockingbird causes a "trade frenzy" and concern over how it has come to be published. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2015-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Draft2Digital is a self-published ebook platform offering about 40,000 titles and adding more than 3,000 titles a month. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Got books to digitize and plenty of patience? Amazon's Kindle Convert software will let you scan them at home. As spotted by The Ebook Reader, Kindle Convert is a $50 PC application that turns printed pages into Kindle ebooks. It should work with most scanners, provided they support at least... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The government has relaxed the prison book ban, but said inmates can only receive parcels from four named booksellers – Waterstones, Blackwell’s, Foyles or WH Smith. The prison book ban was relaxed from 31st January, The Bookseller understands, following a High Court ruling that the ban,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Centre Lane Partners has taken over the role of general partner of the investment funds that supported Perseus LLC, the parent company of the Perseus Books Group. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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One of iTunes' earliest slogans was "Rip, Mix, Burn," encouraging us to digitize our CD collections and recording custom playlists that were about as third as romantic as a mixtape. At some point, you've probably wished that you could do the same for... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The French culture ministry’s National Book Centre (Centre National du Livre, CNL) will overhaul its system of financial support for the book industry in order to simplify and update it. The reform, which was approved by the CNL’s board last week, reduces the number of interest-free loans and... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Octopus Publishing Group’s Cassell Illustrated has commissioned a book on the rebel heroes of popular music by Fun Lovin’ Criminals frontman and DJ Huey Morgan. Commissioning editor Hannah Knowles acquired worldwide rights from Sam Gregory at Wise Buddah Group. In Huey Morgan’s Rebel Heroes,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The mother of murdered soldier Lee Rigby has written a book, to be published by Simon & Schuster. Senior commissioning editor Kerri Sharp bought UK and Commonwealth rights to Lee Rigby: A Mother’s Story by Lyn Rigby from Robert Smith of Robert Smith Literary Agency. Lee Rigby was killed in... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This week, a cult classic waiting to happen, God's bankers, and an early bid for best graphic novel of 2015. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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More than 80 writers will participate in the Tuesday and Wednesday evening author receptions (February 10 and 11). Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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We Love Books! is an exhibit within the second edition of the inspiring Graphic Arts Festival taking place in Paris until March 4th. The post Paris Exhibit Praises the World of Book Covers appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Drawing on her panoramic reading and her experiences of the authorly life cycle, Atwood surveys her trade with a mix of seriousness and gentle fun“You may find the subject a little peculiar,” warns Margaret Atwood, before she discusses the writer’s relationship with mortality. “It is a little... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Anderson family, which controls 58% of the stock of Books-A-Million, is offering $2.75 a share to acquire all the shares of the bookstore chain that it does not already own. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For many, the tragic events in Paris have highlighted the importance of free expression. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Matthew Goodwin and Robert Ford’s Revolt on the Right: Explaining Support for the Radical Right in Britain (Routledge) has won the top honour at the Paddy Power Political Book Awards. Academics Goodwin and Ford won the Political Book of the Year honour at the award ceremony in London last night... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While January can suffer from a post-holiday publication lull, it's a great time room for cooler, less conventional reads. The post New Fantasy Writers and Internet-Haters Dominate Our Favorite Books This Month appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Txtr will continue to operate its ebook retailing operations while it restructures and seeks a buyer for its assets. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Festival de Bande Dessinée has opened and will award a Charlie Freedom of Speech prize among other honoursThe celebrated Angoulême comic book festival opened on Thursday to laughter and tears three weeks after some of France’s best known cartoonists were gunned down in a terrorist... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital distributor Trajectory has an algorithm it claims can extract a book's 'personality' in order to offer better recommendations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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