Last week, Ruth Rendell claimed that reading novels is a dying art. Sadly, she might have a pointNo one can say precisely why John Williams's novel Stoner has become a bestseller almost 50 years after its first publication. After all, plenty of books, "forgotten" or otherwise, are recommended by word of mouth and yet most will not go on to sell more than a few hundred copies. And it's hard to know in what ways, if any, its story – a young man falls in love with literature and thus a new world is revealed to him – might have touched people. Many of those who rushed to buy it will not yet have got around to opening it and some will never read it. Stoner will languish on their shelves, its spine unbroken, just like Jung Chang's Wild Swans, the non-fiction hit of 1992.But still, it has given us something to think about, this dusting down of so plangent and substantial a novel. On Radio 4 last week, Ruth Rendell, the novelist and Labour peer, suggested that Stoner is a book for our times, her argument being that we live in an age when reading is for most an alien pastime, just as it is to William Stoner until he has an epiphany. (Asked to elucidate a poem by a professor, he is unable to say anything except: "It means... it means..." and yet, in this moment, everything changes; the verse, whether he understands it or not, has touched him on some powerfully deep level.) "We are told that it isn't happening," said Rendell. "But it is. Reading is no longer something that everybody... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
Transworld is publishing a collection of Jack Reacher short stories in June 2017, set to be the first time all Lee Child's shorter fiction featuring Jack Reacher has been collected into one volume. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Here are the ten most popular stories about graphic novels and comics published on publishersweekly.com in 2016. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Report in the Australian says property portal is buying ad space on pornographic and illegal download websites to inflate its audience figuresFairfax Media has accused News Corp of gutter journalism after the Australian claimed the company placed advertising for its property portal Domain on... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2016-12-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The next-generation television company may be in your pocket. Snapchat, once pegged by the public as a social-messaging app and recently self-declared camera-based platform, is actually starting to look more and more like TV for young viewers who prefer smartphones over flat screens, industry... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2016-12-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author and illustrator Nicholas Allan, whose books include as Father Christmas Needs a Wee and The Queen's Knickers (Red Fox), is donating his entire archive to Seven Stories, the National Centre for Children’s Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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To get you ready for the weekend, we've rounded up some of our best stories this week: Twitter is falling out of favor with publishers as a reliable driver of traffic. It doesn’t have the audience scale, visual storytelling tools and ad products that Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook do. On... Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2016-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hutchinson has acquired world rights in Self-Care for the Real World, a debut lifestyle book from yoga teacher Nadia Narain, and her sister, health food "pioneer" Katia Narain-Phillips, to be co-written with Brigid Moss, health director of Red magazine. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Reading Agency's chief executive Sue Wilkinson on how the organisation is revamping World Book Night. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Reading Agency has announced a new "targeted approach" for World Book Night 2017 with giveaway titles including authors such as The Bookseller's contributing editor Cathy Rentzenbrink, Polari Prize-winner Paul McVeigh and colouring-in bestseller Millie Marotta. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Audible is giving away a short story by Philip Pullman to help London commuters deal with the Southern and TfL strikes. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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OK, it's not exactly Dickens. But how about a great story delivered to you by text message? Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2016-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James Whatley, planning partner for innovation at Ogilvy & Mather, kicked off the Futurebook Conference 2016 with a keynote speech highlighting the importance of video in a fast-moving, consumer-orientated world. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A story collection smuggled out of North Korea - and translated by Man Booker International Prize-winner Deborah Smith - has been selected to receive a PEN Translation award from English PEN. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Literary agent Andrew Wylie delivered a keynote at the Guadalajara Book Fair and shared stories from his storied career. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The public vote for the 2016 Costa Short Story Award is now open and three shortlisted stories, selected from over 1,000 entires, are now available to read and listen to from the Costa Book Awards website. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Instagram has recruited seven colleges to use Instagram Stories as part of a new initiative to show the behind-the-scenes atmosphere on game days through the rest of the college football season. For the program, Instagram is also providing training and insights on Instagram Stories. The approach... Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2016-11-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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When Jayne Ann Krentz decided to take her 19th century Amanda Quick mysteries into the 20th century, the look of the novels needed a thoroughly modern update. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-11-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sheikha Bodour Bint Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, founder and c.e.o. of Sharjah publishing house Kalimat Group and founder of the Emirates Publishers Association, tells Benedicte Page about some of the latest initiatives taking place in the United Arab Emirates, including the new national... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The number of children taking part in the Summer Reading Challenge fell 4% this year, although percentage of under-4s participating rose 12%. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Books by Maggie O’Farrell, Kit de Waal, Kate Tempest and Francesca Simon are among those shortlisted for the 2016 Costa Book Awards, in a strong year for women writers. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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