Jamie Byng: ‘Listening to letters being read out is quite something’

The Canongate Books boss on the success of Letters Live, performances of notable correspondence by leading lights of stage and screenJamie Byng, 46, son of the 8th Earl of Strafford, grew up in Hampshire and studied at the University of Edinburgh. After graduating he joined Canongate Books as an intern and bought out the struggling Edinburgh publishing house two years later, aged just 25. His successes include the UK publication of Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, which won the Man Booker prize in 2002 and sold more than 3m copies. In 2013 he set up Letters Live, “a celebration of the enduring power of literary correspondence” based in part on Shaun Usher’s Letters of Note books. Letters Live returns to London’s Freemasons’ Hall on Thursday 10 March.How did Letters Live come about?In 2013 we published two books about letters on the same day. One was Simon Garfield’s To the Letter, which is a history of letter-writing. The other, Letters of Note, grew out of Shaun Usher’s website, which compiles great correspondence throughout history. We decided to promote both books by getting people to read out letters in a live setting. Nick Cave had a letter in Shaun’s book and he’s a good friend, so it was very straightforward to call him up and say “How’s about it?” Gillian Anderson went totally nuts for a Katharine Hepburn letter to Spencer Tracy. Everyone I asked who was around – Benedict Cumberbatch, Matt Berry, Neil Gaiman, Bruce Robinson – said yes. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-03-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #nick cave #good friend #gillian anderson #benedict cumberbatch #neil gaiman

Other news stories related to: "Jamie Byng: ‘Listening to letters being read out is quite something’"


McKearney to step down at The Reading Agency

Miranda McKearney is to step down from her role as director of The Reading Agency in December.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #reading agency


Read 12 Pages of the Swashbuckling Comic Adventures of Delilah Dirk</em>

Tony Cliff's Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant has been delighting audiences online for years?garnering three Eisner nominations in the process?and at the end of August, it hits print as a 168-page full-color paperback from publisher First Second.     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-08-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Kindle for Android app updated with library sorting, keeps a watchful eye on remaining read time

Amazon's Android-flavored reading app is offering up a couple more of its own e-reader's features for those with Google-fied devices. Just like folks with Kindles have already encountered, the Kindle for Android app now keeps tabs on time remaining in both chapter and book should pace be of... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-08-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #google play #chief concern #android app #source link #mobile software


What Foreign Novelists are South Koreans Reading?

A poll by Gallup reveals South Korea's favorite foreign novelist was, surprise, French SF author Bernard Werber, followed by Murakami and Hemingway. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-08-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Reading Agency to release dyslexia help books

The Reading Agency has partnered with publisher Barrington Stoke to create initiatives that will... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #reading agency


Summer reading and the beauty of serendipity

Oh, the magic of finding a great book through the sheer power of chance! Is the summer the best time for that to happen?   Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #great book #summer reading


'Parapalooza' YouTube channel features people reading from their favorite titles

The new YouTube channel encourages readers to upload a video of themselves sharing a paragraph from a favorite book. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #favorite book #favorite titles


VIDEO: Music to read books by

The Bookshop Band write songs inspired by the books of visiting authors like The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry's Rachel Joyce. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-07-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #rachel joyce #harold fry #read books


'Committed' B&N hails Get London Reading festival

Jim Hilt, managing director of Barnes &amp; Noble's European ebook business, said the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #barnes noble


Brightest kids from poor backgrounds 'lose out in reading'

Some of the brightest children from disadvantaged backgrounds can have reading levels two and... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #disadvantaged backgrounds #reading levels


£1m donation to The Reading Agency

The Reading Agency is to receive a £1m donation from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. The gift... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #reading agency


Letter campaign for Canongate, signs Simon Garfield

Canongate is to launch a campaign in praise of letter writing, after signing two new books... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Teachers 'frustrated' over Reading for Pleasure

Teachers have a strong desire to teach reading for pleasure but feel frustrated by a restrictive... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Eurocrats “Get Caught Reading”

The Federation of European Publishers captured photos of more than 150 MEPs and heads of European publishers and writers associations posing with their favorite books. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #european publishers


AUDIO: Should adults read children's books?

Jennie Bristow, associate fellow at the University of Kent, says grown-ups read children's books because they feel 'disenchanted with adult culture'. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Culturally Hip Korea Blames Digital Devices for Decline in Reading

A visit to the Seoul Book Fair reveals publishers are still wary of ebooks and blame smart devices for the decline in reading, even as Korean culture has become hip abroad. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Into the River named top read at awards

A young adult novel about a dramatic journey that transforms an East Coast boy has taken out this year's New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards tonight. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #young adult


Penguin Books' First to Read program will give readers sneak peeks

Through First to Read, members will have the chance to get advance reading copies of Penguin Books before they are published. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-06-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #penguin books


Boys benefit from Read for My School

The free online library created for the Read for My School made children "excited" to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Schools reading contest: ebooks win

Nearly half the titles read by children in a national reading competition were consumed online, according to the charity Booktrust. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #charity booktrust #consumed online