Man Booker prize judge Colin Thubron has complained this week that star endorsements bully readers into admiring books, but it’s long been standard practiceSetting cats among pigeons has long been an unofficial part of the contract for judges of the Booker prize. Remember Chris Mullin’s insistence on “zip–along” novels, or, way back in 1992, AN Wilson’s condemnation of the prize itself as “essentially trivial”? This year’s flurry of fur and feathers was provoked by a tirade from Colin Thubron on celebrity endorsements. Some blurbs, said the veteran travel writer, “almost blackmail” readers into feeling that “you’re either intellectually or morally incompetent if you don’t love this book or you’ve failed if you haven’t understood it”. Some people, he felt, “seem to earn their living … saying: ‘This is the most profound book of our generation.’”Starting our Iris Murdoch bookclub with this '69 @PenguinUKBooks edition - you don't find blurbs like this any more! pic.twitter.com/P2XUvgtKAM Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2017-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sales have risen 10%, thanks to TV adaptations and clever marketing. As four publishing houses unveil new looks, John Walsh investigates the battle for new readersImagine you have a sudden burning desire to read David Copperfield, Charles Dickens’s favourite of all his novels. Thanks to Project... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2016-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Canadian author WP Kinsella, whose book Shoeless Joe became the hit film Field of Dreams, dies aged 81 in a doctor-assisted death. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2016-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Royal National Institute of Blind People and HarperCollins have announced a new three year partnership to grow Talking Books' library by 15% to 28,500 titles. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nation Books signs a memoir from a Black Lives Matter founder, a Boston Globe columnist sells a debut YA novel to HMH, Derek Jeter’s imprint strikes a deal with Arun Gandhi, and more in this week's notable book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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What publishers are doing ahead of new Labor Department regulations that will expand the number of employees eligible for overtime pay. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Books, the e-commerce giant’s seemingly incongruous bricks-and-mortar venture, is now open in San Diego. The store marks the company’s second foray into offline retail. The 3,500-square-foot shop at a mall in the University City neighborhood premiered with little fanfare Sept. 7 and is... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2016-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Paula Hawkins and Jojo Moyes once again dominate the upper echelons of the Weekly E-Book Ranking with The Girl on the Train and Moyes’ After You respectively. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Athens has been named World Book Capital 2018 by the director general of UNESCO, Irina Bokova. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For most news publishers, their audiences increasingly prefer visiting them on mobile devices. Forbes faced this problem acutely, with half its audience coming to it on mobile devices. So it created card-like formats to replace text-based stories. The financial news publisher said its new... Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2016-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An outpouring of support from bestselling authors to raise money for a children's bookseller with cancer led the Nashville store to hold a larger auction to support the Book Industry Charitable Foundation. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After the first 10 chapters, we fancy ourselves scientist-philosophers, theorizing about aliens, humans, and the nature of the universe. The post WIRED Book Club: The Secret Behind Three-Body Problem's Ticking Clock appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2016-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Reading charity BookTrust is giving out 700,000 free copies of Kitchen Disco, a picture book by Clare Foges and illustrated by Al Murphy (Faber Children’s), to every reception age child in England this month. The giveaway will take place up to the end of October as part of BookTrust’s Time to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Little, Brown has won an auction for a book about the extremes of human ability by Rowan Hooper, the managing editor of New Scientist magazine. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Art book lovers head for the Tokyo Art Book Fair, which has a new award program from Germany's Steidl Verlag, plus a Brazilian partnership. The post Tokyo Art Book Fair This Week: Works ‘Lovingly Crafted’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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International publishing rights agent Stephanie Barrouillet of Tel Aviv describes the effects of a short-lived fixed-price law, just repealed by Israel. The post Israel’s Short-Lived Fixed-Price Book Law: A Rights Agent’s Viewpoint appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Six days before the announcement of the winner of the 2016 Man Booker Prize, Frankfurt Book Fair will have three events in recognition of its international influence. The post The Man Booker Prize Gets a Triple Highlight at Frankfurt Book Fair appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Booksellers Association is set to launch a new book prize to coincide with the annual Books Are My Bag campaign, asking readers to vote for their favourite books of the year across five categories. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Among the titles heating up abroad are a Swedish thriller set in Russia and a Korean novel about masterminds who invent assassination plots for the government. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The book business hasn't experienced disruption as dramatic as that of industries, says Jacob Dalborg. The 'core publishing activities of acquiring, editing and publishing stories' are resilient. The post Bonnier Books CEO Jacob Dalborg: ‘Digitization Is Not Necessarily Evil’ appeared first on... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As someone on the go, I have always craved the ability to listen to audio books in my car. Whenever I research getting them, however, the high prices always scare me away. Look, I understand a lot of time and effort goes into creating versions of books that are read aloud, but with current... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2016-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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