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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A Summary and Analysis of J. G. Ballard’s ‘Having a Wonderful Time’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) I’m often surprised by how little serious critical attention some of the work of J. G. Ballard (1930-2009) has received. ‘Having a Wonderful Time’ is a good example. Like many of the short stories from the 1982 collection Myths of the Near Future,... Continue reading at Interesting Literature

[ Interesting Literature | 2024-04-03 14:00:45 UTC ]
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‘Babar’ Heir And Author Laurent De Brunhoff Dies At Age 98

Laurent de Brunhoff, who revived his father's popular picture book series about an elephant king, has died. Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2024-03-23 20:35:30 UTC ]
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London: Tom Crewe Wins the Sunday Times’ Young Writer Award

Jury comments about the Sunday Times Young Writer-winning debut, 'The New Life,' call Tom Crewe's book, a 'tenderly sensual account of masculine sexuality.' The post London: Tom Crewe Wins the Sunday Times’ Young Writer Award appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-03-20 12:50:02 UTC ]
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Gerald Levin, the former Time Warner CEO who engineered a disastrous mega-merger, is dead at 84

Gerald Levin, who led Time Warner Media into a disastrous $182 billion merger with the internet provider America Online, has died at the age of 84 Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2024-03-15 09:02:35 UTC ]
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‘Dragon Ball’ Creator Akira Toriyama Dies Age 68

His popular manga inspired numerous television, film and video game adaptations, reaching fans far beyond Japan’s borders. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2024-03-08 10:51:56 UTC ]
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Crain's 20 In Their 20s showed promise at a young age. They're living up to the hype

Brad Weekes was 25 years old and working as a senior associate at public affairs firm Kivvit when Crain's named him to the 2020 class of 20 In Their 20s. The East New York native's goal at the time: Pressure lawmakers to make positive changes.In many ways, Weekes was already doing just that. At... Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2024-03-06 20:37:04 UTC ]
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Endnotes: ‘The Age of Magical Overthinking’ by Amanda Montell

We take a look at the publication process for the ‘Cultish’ author’s latest book. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
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UK: The Sunday Times Young Writer 2024 Shortlist

Praising 'their attentiveness to the world,' the 2024 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year jury names four authors to its shortlist. The post UK: The Sunday Times Young Writer 2024 Shortlist appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-02-27 17:20:22 UTC ]
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A poet's novel of utopia shows less an ideal than, perhaps, a road map

Are utopias becoming a trend in fiction during this dystopian era? The debut novel from Phillip B. Williams, 'Ours,' embraces magic without ignoring reality. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2024-02-24 11:09:13 UTC ]
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U.K. Publishing Spotlight: Michael O'Mara's Many Roads to the U.S.

Michael O'Mara's U.S. sales and marketing director describes the company’s strategies for engaging the U.S. market, which includes mining a niche for books about the royal family. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Raja Shehadeh, Yiyun Li and Maria Bamford among L.A. Times Book Prize finalists

The L.A. Times Book Prizes honor 66 works in 13 categories celebrating exceptional writing from authors at all stages of their careers. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2024-02-21 13:00:41 UTC ]
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Lifeway Rebounds from Rocky Times

CEO Ben Mandrell tells PW the turnaround strategy was to refocus on the original mission—serving pastors and church leaders. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-20 05:00:00 UTC ]
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What’s Next for Max Lucado? An End Times Book

‘What Happens Next,’ coming from Thomas Nelson in August, is the first book on the biblical end times by bestselling author and pastor Max Lucado. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-20 05:00:00 UTC ]
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‘Time-efficient foreplay’: inside the funny, filthy world of erotic podcasts

From fan fiction about Disney cartoons having sex to raunchy shows from Hollywood stars, pornographic audio is podcasting’s hottest new trendHave you ever stood at the school gates, waiting to pick up your six-year-old, while secretly listening to fan fiction about Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-02-12 16:32:24 UTC ]
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Jonathan Escoffery: ‘I was trying to write novels aged nine’

The If I Survive You author on the suspense of the Booker ceremony, Americans’ warped view of the Caribbean, and writing his next novel on the roadJonathan Escoffery, 43, was born in Texas and lives in Oakland, California. His debut, If I Survive You, about a second-generation Jamaican in Miami,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-01-27 18:00:42 UTC ]
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Open Road Integrated Media Has ‘Transformational’ Year

More titles, publishers, and services led to record revenue in 2023 at the digital marketing company, said CEO David Steinberger. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-01-24 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Elton John Says ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ on the Page

Elton John will publish ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road: Memories of My Life on Tour,’ with Disney Publishing Worldwide imprint Hyperion Avenue, on September 24. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-01-24 05:00:00 UTC ]
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UK-US: Open Road’s Bloodhound Books in Audiobook Deal With Dreamscape

A UK-US deal, the Open Road-owned Bloodhound in the UK is to see Dreamscape produce at five audiobooks from its list monthly. The post UK-US: Open Road’s Bloodhound Books in Audiobook Deal With Dreamscape appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-01-19 20:47:58 UTC ]
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Call of Duty didn’t top the yearly sales charts for one of the first times since 2009

Just like death and taxes, you can usually rely on a Call of Duty game to top the sales charts each year. The various entries in Activision’s warfare simulation franchise have mostly done just that, going all the way back to 2009. This year’s a bit different. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III has... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-01-18 19:16:41 UTC ]
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Katherine Min was ahead of her time. Four years after her death, her second novel proves it

Katherine Min's Korean American debut novel was ignored. After she died in 2019, publishers worked to put out her second novel, 'The Fetishist.' Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2024-01-18 11:00:57 UTC ]
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