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 ]
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A Leadership Book Author On Why You're Better Off Reading Fiction For Lasting Lessons

Craig Chappelow has written about how leaders can be more successful. But he'd crack One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest before the latest business book any day. Here's why he thinks you should, too. Read any good leadership books lately? Me either. It seems like popular books about leadership... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SIBA's 'Code Read' Off to Successful Start

In order to better gauge social media success, and help usher foot traffic into bookstores, SIBA has launched the marketing initiative, "Code Read.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-06-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James fundraises for The Reading Agency

Bestselling crime writer Peter James is fundraising for The Reading Agency as he publicises his... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stars to take part in children's reading event

Celebrities including actor Rupert Everett [pictured] will read to children in London’s... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lampard pushes Summer Reading Challenge

England footballer Frank Lampard has become a champion of The Reading  Agency’s Summer... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin and WHS partner on charity summer reading campaign

Penguin and W H Smith have partnered for a new summer reading campaign, which will raise money... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children reading more on screen than print, NLT finds

The growth in children’s digital reading is an “opportunity for publishers rather... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An App That Turns Digital Reading Into A Social Activity

Dotdotdot imagines its users as one big book discussion group, with everyone wielding the same highlighter. Instapaper and Readability have both found success offering a simple, core interaction: save an article online to read somewhere else later. With both you can also follow what friends... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-05-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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NLT evaluates Reading Stars scheme

More than half of the pupils taking part in the National Literacy Trust's Premier League... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-Reading Rainbow: Hachette to bring entire ebook catalog to public libraries

If you're still balking at the cost of download-to-own ebooks, and would rather stick to the tried-and-true library lending system, then this Hachette news is for you. Come next Wednesday, the entirety of Hachette's ebook catalog -- over 5,000 titles -- will be made available to nonprofit... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-05-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New York Times' Google Glass App Reads Stories to You

The New York Times is one of the initial major publishers to unveil a Google Glass app, which will allow the currently scant number of users of the wearable device to access stories on the go. The app's audio component reads headlines and story summaries aloud and provides breaking news alerts. ... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2013-04-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Egypt’s Ibrahim Issa on Reading and Writing After the Arab Spring

Egyptian journalist and bestselling author Ibrahim Issa believes the Arab Spring has added religious oppression to the existing political hardships of the region. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-04-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Are you as well read as a college sophomore?

Based on the pre-college reading lists, freshmen syllabi, and core programs of more than 100 US colleges and universities, here are 60 books the experts believe that you should have read by sophomore year of college. How does your own literary experience stack up? Take our quiz and find... Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-04-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stop Saying That Men Don’t Read Women

It has become a truism that “men don’t read women.” The assertion is taken as self-evident by feminist publications like Salon (“while women read books written by men, men do not tend to reciprocate”) and shown anecdotally by blogs. It is also perpetuated by male bastions like Esquire, which... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2013-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Survey: Squeeze on children's reading for pleasure

Parents struggle to create time to read at home and view reading largely as a skill rather than... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Trade figures launch Read Petite digital venture

A new venture to offer digital short stories and long-form journalism to readers through a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Reading agency launch library exploration game

Libraries across the country are taking part in a high-tech treasure based on Simon Mayo’s... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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TES poll reveals teachers’ favourite reads

A list of teachers’ favourite books compiled by the Times Educational Supplement (TES) has... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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StorEbook reads children's books, even does the funny voices

We've come a long way since an IBM 704 first croaked its way through Daisy Bell. Now we've got Siri copping an attitude when we ask a stupid question and Google Now feeding information in an incredibly realistic sounding voice. AT&T has its own initiative, dubbed Natural Voices. At this... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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