Poet whose outlook spanned anarchism, ecology and small business, as founder of the City Lights Bookstore in San FranciscoLawrence Ferlinghetti, poet, artist, activist and founder of San Francisco’s famous City Lights Bookstore, who has died aged 101 of interstitial lung disease, was the least “beat” of the Beat Generation. In addition to a political commitment that blended anarchism and ecology – he loathed the motor car, calling it “the infernal combustion engine” – he had an instinctive business sense, founded on the philosophy of small is beautiful. City Lights, which he started in partnership with the magazine editor Peter Martin in the early 1950s, is still among the most welcoming of shops, with its tables and chairs, sheaves of magazines, and signs saying: “Pick a book, sit down, and read.”Ferlinghetti discouraged interviewers and seekers of personal information. “If I had some biographical questionnaire to answer, I would always make something up,” he once said. Different reference books give different dates of birth, and one published story had it that he wrote his doctoral dissertation on the place of the pissoir in French literature. For many years, he listed his dog, Homer, as City Lights’ publicity and public relations officer. The poet recalled that Homer Ferlinghetti received regular mail, but that his public relations career stalled when he peed against a policeman’s leg. For this act of citizenship, he was immortalised by his master in the poem Dog.... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2021-02-23 22:42:13 UTC ]
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Prolific children’s author Betsy Byars, winner of the Newbery Medal and National Book Award, died on February 26 in Seneca, S.C.; she was 91. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Prolific author of fast-paced thrillers, including Raise the Titanic!, featuring the adventure hero Dirk PittThe prolific and popular novelist Clive Cussler, who has died aged 88, combined adventure and technology into fast-paced thrillers. Ubiquitous and easily recognisable on airport... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-02-27 16:45:35 UTC ]
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My son Piers Jones, who has died aged 47 from cancer, worked as a digital publishing expert at the Guardian for eight years before becoming the first chief digital officer at the Natural History Museum in London.In various roles at the Guardian from 2008 onwards he helped to make it possible for... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-01-03 12:22:41 UTC ]
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Da Chen, whose memoirs for both adults ('Colors of the Mountain') and young readers ('Girl Under a Red Moon') chronicled his experiences growing up during China's Cultural Revolution, died of lung cancer on December 17 in Temecula, Calif.; he was 57. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-01-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Linda Cannon, co-owner of Parson Weems’ Publisher Services and a longtime bookseller and sales rep, died on December 5 following a brief illness. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The pioneering underground and queer cartoonist and author of the acclaimed queer/civil rights graphic novel 'Stuck Rubber Baby,' died November 26, from lymphoma. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-03 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Prolific children's author Andrew Clements, best known for his popular middle grade novel 'Frindle,' died on November 28 in West Baldwin, Me., following an illness; he was 70. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-03 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Sarah Catherine “Sally” Lindsay, formerly v-p of merchandising and marketing at Koen Book Distributors, died at her home in Rockville, Md., on November 27. She was 70. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Tom Spurgeon, author, editor, comics critic, blogger, and executive director of the Cartoon Crossroads Columbus comics festival, died of unknown causes in Columbus, Ohio, on November 13. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-11-15 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Ernest J. Gaines, award-winning author of the acclaimed novel 'The Autobiography of Jane Pittman,' and a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant recipient, died of a heart attack at his home in Oscar, La. He was 86. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-11-06 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Legendary children’s book publisher, editor, and author Richard “Dick” Jackson died on October 2 from complications of multiple myeloma at his home in Towson, Md. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-10-04 04:00:00 UTC ]
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My friend George Richardson, who has died aged 94, spent most of his working life at Oxford University, including as chief executive of Oxford University Press (OUP) from the mid-1970s to the late 80s.He was born in Cricklewood, north London, to Christina, a homemaker, and George, a businessman.... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2019-09-26 16:53:02 UTC ]
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My friend John Sansom, who has died aged 82, was a prolific art book publisher who made a huge contribution to the post-1970s culture boom, during which modern British art went from being overlooked and somewhat provincial to having high international standing.His Bristol-based Redcliffe Press,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2019-08-21 13:58:41 UTC ]
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Four publishing industry figures pay tribute to and share their recollections of acclaimed author and the first African-American Nobel Laureate, Toni Morrison. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-08-15 22:10:49 UTC ]
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Patrice Lawrence, Joy Francis and Elizabeth Bananuka are among the mentors leading the first round of training sessions for BookTrust Represents, a project to help promote and develop children's authors and illustrators of colour. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-08-15 07:38:47 UTC ]
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