‘I didn’t think it was possible to be a novelist’: Julian Barnes on literature, loss – and his late friend Martin Amis

The Booker winning author talks about how his most recent work was inspired by Hilary Mantel, and the way the books world has changed since his debut was published more than 40 years agoToo many people have been dying lately,” Julian Barnes reflects over the phone from his home in north London. He has muted the Test match, he tells me, so he won’t be tempted to shout at the screen. This is a follow-up conversation to a meeting earlier this year to discuss his latest novel, Elizabeth Finch, in which, although unnamed in the book, Hilary Mantel, who died aged 70 last September, played a key part. Barnes’s great friend Carmen Callil, founder of Virago Press, died a month later. “I did adore her,” he says now. And, since we last spoke, Martin Amis has also died, in May.“I knew he didn’t want me to ask him how he was,” Barnes says of his final communications with Amis, who moved to New York in 2011. “So we had a kind of football email exchange: ‘What do you think of Arsenal this season?’ and so on. At the end, I got an email saying, in effect, ‘Look after yourself, old friend.’ I took that as it was intended, which was ‘Goodbye.’” Barnes didn’t email him again. “He did it stylishly, as you would expect,” he says. “Stylishly and privately.” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-09-16 08:00:25 UTC ]
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Borders closes remaing Australian stores, 315 job losses

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 02/06/2011 - 09:20 Borders stores in Australia will cease to exist in two weeks as the remaining stores were given their final death knell yesterday when administrators announced no buyer could be found. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Two novelists win first Pratchett prize

Publication Date: Thu, 02/06/2011 - 07:30 Two novelists have been chosen as the winners of the inaugural Terry Pratchett Anywhere But Here, Anywhen But Now Prize. David Logan’s Half Sick of Shadows and Apocalypse Cow by Michael Logan (no relation) were chosen as joint winners by six judges... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble Announces New Nook; Amazon Responds with Cheaper 3G

Barnes & Noble CEO William Lynch announced the new Nook, aimed at "those turned off by buttons." Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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John Malone Explains Barnes & Noble Bid

John Malone, the chairman of Liberty Media, explained why his company made a buyout bid for Barnes & Noble valuing it at $1 billion. The decision came down to Liberty's bid for Sirius and his outlook for Nook, he said. “You might look at the experience we've had with Sirius XM,” Malone told... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Liberty Media Bids for Barnes & Noble [Voices]

Barnes & Noble Inc. said that Liberty Media Corp. has offered to buy the bookseller in a deal valuing it at about $1 billion. Barnes & Noble shares were up 20 percent in after-hours trading Thursday on the news, matching the $17-a-share offer price from John Malone's media empire. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Liberty Media makes offer for Barnes & Noble

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Fri, 20/05/2011 - 10:11 US bookseller Barnes & Noble has received an offer for the company from Liberty Media, a private investment group. The deal values the business at about $1bn, but Liberty said it expected to spend $500m on the acquisition... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Liberty Media Bids for Barnes & Noble

Barnes & Noble Inc. said that Liberty Media Corp. has offered to buy the bookseller in a deal valuing it at about $1 billion. Barnes & Noble shares were up 20 percent in after-hours trading Thursday on the news, matching the $17-a-share offer price from John Malone's media empire. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The late Tom Bingham awarded Orwell Prize

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Wed, 18/05/2011 - 09:18 The late lord chief justice Tom Bingham has been awarded the Orwell Prize for political writing for his book The Rule of Law (Penguin). Bingham, a former master of the rolls, lord chief justice, and senior law lord, died in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The late Tom Bingham award Orwell Prize

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Wed, 18/05/2011 - 09:18 The late lord chief justice Tom Bingham has been awarded the Orwell Prize for political writing for his book The Rule of Law (Penguin). Bingham, a former master of the rolls, lord chief justice, and senior law lord, died in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble Updates NOOK for Android OS

Barnes & Noble is giving publishers another option to distribute digital periodicals, announcing Friday that its 140 newsstand brands will be available to Android-powered tablet devices. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Titchmarsh to launch novelist contest

Publication Date: Fri, 06/05/2011 - 15:43 HarperCollins has teamed up with ITV1's "The Alan Titchmarsh Show" to find "The People's Novelist". The competition to track down a new commercial fiction talent was launched today (6th May) on the afternoon show and will run through to the autumn.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble Plans New E-Book Reader [Voices]

Barnes & Noble Inc. will unveil a new electronic book reader later this month, the bookseller told analysts and investors on Wednesday, according to a federal filing released after the close of trading. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-05-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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St. Martin's Prepares for Run on Book by Bin Laden's Killer

Three weeks shy of a year ago, St. Martin's Press signed up a book by a Navy SEAL Team Six sniper, chronicling how he became an elite warrior and the battle that nearly cost him his life. Today, with news of Osama Bin Laden's death reverberating around the world, SMP is getting ready for a rush... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-05-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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St. Martin's Prepares for Run on Book by Seals

Three weeks shy of a year ago, St. Martin's Press signed up a book by a Navy SEAL Team Six sniper, chronicling how he became an elite warrior and the battle that nearly cost him his life. Today, with news of Osama Bin Laden's death reverberating around the world, SMP is getting ready for a rush... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-05-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With Update, Barnes & Noble's Nook Color Gets More Tablet-Like [Mobilized]

A free update is bringing the ability to install various paid and free Android apps, though only those that Barnes & Noble approves. The new software also offers improved browsing, the Froyo version of Android and support for video content within books. Even with the update, the Nook Color... Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble Moves Forward With Plans To Allow Android Apps on Nook [Mobilized]

The bookseller is proceeding with plans to open its own Android app store for the Nook Color, announcing new tools for developers and promising they will get a 70 percent cut of revenue. The first apps and store are due out with a major update to the Nook software due out this spring. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-04-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Blackwell Group halves losses within a year

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 09:14 Blackwell UK hopes to become profitable in two years, after nearly halving its operating losses to £5.6m. The academic bookseller’s year-end results to 26th June 2010 show the company has narrowed its operating losses from... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ACE literature funding to rise 9.9%

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 09:10 Arts Council England (ACE) portfolio funding for literature organisations will rise 9.9% in real terms compared to the previous funding period, the government claims, as ACE revealed its new national portfolio of arts... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Self-Publisher Signs Four-Book Deal With St. Martin's

Amanda Hocking, the 26-year-old author who shot to fame by selling more than a million copies of her self-published books, has signed a deal with St. Martin's Press. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Changing copyright laws could "stifle" literature, report finds

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 11/03/2011 - 08:50 Changing copyright laws in the UK could strike a blow to investment in literature, a report has found. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) has produced the document for the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA), which reveals that out... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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