In the age of Corbyn, is the time right for another Road to Wigan Pier?

It’s no surprise that the Left Book Club is being relaunched now, with the imprimatur of the Labour leader and Ken Livingstone. It began in the anxious 1930s, a decade that has all too many parallels with the current oneAiming to “set the agenda for a new age of political debate”, the Left Book Club was re-launched this week at a meeting at the Conway Hall in London. The Left Book Club last published a book in 1948. Jeremy Corbyn had yet to be born. Nevertheless the Labour leader has generously endorsed the revival as “a terrific and timely idea” that will give “intellectual ballast to the wave of political change sweeping Britain and beyond, encouraging informed and compassionate debate”. He added that he had a large collection of Left Book Club titles, some bought new by his parents and others that he acquired second hand. I speculate that the memory of these books in their plain red or orange covers – their flash upon his inward eye – must have provided Corbyn with a rare pleasurable moment in the past few weeks: the thought of them on his shelves having same kind of heart-filling effect that the daffodils had on Wordsworth.My own collection isn’t so large. In fact, it runs to just one book, Orwell’s The Road to Wigan Pier, and I didn’t inherit it. I bought it 20 or 30 years ago because I liked the idea of having such a fine book in its cheap and original form – seeing the words and photographs as its first readers must have seen them. Published in 1937, the year after... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Announcing the Sunday Times PFD Young Writer of the Year Award shortlist

From meditations on the d/Deaf experience to short stories blurring the mythic and the gothic with the everyday, from mixing the personal and political to a young woman uncover the truth about her family’s past – four outstanding writers have today been named on the shortlist for The Sunday... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2019-11-04 12:55:09 UTC ]
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A decorated Marine, badly injured in Afghanistan, shares his hard road to recovery

In his memoir, says Medal of Honor winner Kyle Carpenter, he wants to offer hope. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-10-31 21:42:22 UTC ]
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Publishers Are Missing the Point: Private Browsing Isn’t a Roadblock, It’s a Road Map

The publishing industry was up in arms over the summer when Google officially closed the loophole in its Chrome browser that allows website owners to detect whether a visitor has enabled Incognito mode to view their site. The complaint? It effectively undermined publishers’ efforts to prevent... Continue reading at Publishing Executive

[ Publishing Executive | 2019-10-31 16:47:22 UTC ]
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For the first time, Polar Express Train Ride will come to L.A.

Tickets are on sale for the holiday ride based on the popular children's book by Chris Van Allsburg, who will also appear for signings of "The Polar Express." Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-10-30 13:00:45 UTC ]
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Tom Brokaw Recalls His Time Covering Watergate

The broadcast journalist and best-selling author talks about his new book, “The Fall of Richard Nixon.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-10-30 09:00:01 UTC ]
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Just in time for Halloween, the best horror fiction of the year

The genre is experiencing a renaissance with quality novels and short stories from new and established authors. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-10-29 18:17:37 UTC ]
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Refinery29 Brings in Ex-Nylon Editor, TIME Makes 3 More Hires | People on the Move

[caption id="attachment_127941" align="alignright" width="150"] Gabrielle Korn[/caption] Refinery29 hired Gabrielle Korn as fashion and culture director, responsible for building the young women's brand’s voice in style, culture, identity, and world events, while also growing its digital... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2019-10-24 20:12:19 UTC ]
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'New York Times Book Review' Adds Excerpts to Digital Reviews

The 'New York Times Book Review' will now add excerpts from the first chapter of books being reviewed to a select number of reviews it publishes digitally. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-10-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Meredith Sells Money Magazine Brand, Nearly Two Years After Time Inc. Merger

Meredith Corp. has sold the Money magazine brand to Ad Practitioners LLC, a three-year-old Puerto Rico-based media and advertising startup behind the product review site ConsumersAdvocate.org, both parties announced Tuesday morning. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. One of a handful of... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2019-10-22 16:06:17 UTC ]
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Tributes paid to 'inspiring' Deborah Orr after death aged 57

Tributes have been paid to "inspiring" author and journalist Deborah Orr after she died of cancer at the age of 57. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-21 07:10:47 UTC ]
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Bernardine Evaristo: 'These are unprecedented times for black female writers'

The first black woman to win the Booker prize argues that a revolution is sweeping through British publishing. But can it lead to lasting change?Chidera Eggerue, AKA The Slumflower, is a social media star, south-east London homegirl and feminist. She first came to prominence in 2017 when she... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-10-19 07:00:24 UTC ]
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Dark Books for Dark Times

Read these spine-tingling works of science fiction and fantasy at your own risk. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-10-18 19:00:09 UTC ]
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To Sell More Books, S&S Hits the Road

The S&S Selects PrePub Tour sends authors of books due out next season from Simon & Schuster’s five adult imprints across the country to schmooze with literary tastemakers around the country. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-10-18 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Two Roads lights up Glasgow for Billy Connolly campaign

Two Roads has lit up Glasgow with images of Billy Connolly to mark the launch of Tall Tales and Wee Stories. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-17 02:57:12 UTC ]
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Aging Gently, Messily: On Elizabeth Strout’s “Olive, Again”

SEQUELS IN LITERARY FICTION are rare. There’s a risk in returning to characters whose arcs have been resolved or purposely left in ambiguity. A second book may rob readers of the pleasure of imagination, thus undoing some of the magic of the original novel. But sometimes a character so compels... Continue reading at Los Angeles Review of Books

[ Los Angeles Review of Books | 2019-10-16 17:00:57 UTC ]
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Ali Wong’s hilarious oversharing continues — this time in book form

The comedian’s “Dear Girls” supplies the same kinds of shocked laughs as her Netflix specials. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-10-14 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Here’s How Harry Potter Used 51 Times Square Ads to Create One Immersive Theater

Visiting Times Square at night can be a pretty overwhelming experience, in part because of the visual chaos of so many massive digital ads vying for your attention. But would it be even more overwhelming if all the ads came together to tell one immersive story? The producers of Broadway's Harry... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2019-10-10 20:54:51 UTC ]
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HQ has the time of its life with Katy Brand publicity stunt

London Bridge station was brought to a standstill at lunchtime today when a professional dancer dressed as "Dirty Dancing's" Johnny Castle performed the iconic ‘(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” lift from the finale of the 1987 classic film with a London office worker, in a HQ publicity stunt to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-10 16:41:08 UTC ]
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ICv2 Insider Talks 2019: Comics in the Age of Streaming

This year’s Insider Talks, ICv2's annual conference on comics and pop culture trends, will feature presentations by Graphix publisher David Saylor, ComicHub v-p Atom! Freeman, Comixology CEO David Steinberger and others. The event will be held Oct. 7 at Pace University. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-10-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple News+ Launches in the UK with The Times and Hearst on Board

Apple has rolled out its publisher subscription service, Apple News+, to the U.K. some six months after announcing it in the Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2019-10-01 19:00:00 UTC ]
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