Old book, new look: why the classics are flying off the shelves

Sales have risen 10%, thanks to TV adaptations and clever marketing. As four publishing houses unveil new looks, John Walsh investigates the battle for new readersImagine you have a sudden burning desire to read David Copperfield, Charles Dickens’s favourite of all his novels. Thanks to Project Gutenberg, you could read it for nothing online but, correctly reasoning that it would be tedious to scroll through 600 pages on a screen, you go to a bookshop. There you find that David Copperfield is available as an Everyman Classic hardback, a Penguin Classic paperback, an Oxford University Press paperback and a Vintage Classic paperback, all designed in pleasing formats, heftily branded and with paintings or artful imagery on their covers, along with introductory essays by university professors, a chronology of Dickens’s life and a scholarly trove of explanatory notes.Which do you choose? Why that one? Because it has the most beautiful cover? Because it looks more “collectable” for your library shelf at home? Because the colour scheme matches the decor of your living room? Because the introduction is by Professor John Sutherland, say, rather than Norman Carpet from Nowheresville? Think carefully before you choose, because British publishers are putting lots of money and energy into guessing what the new generation of classics buyers wants. This year, the four major contenders – Penguin, OUP, Everyman and Vintage – are experimenting with radical new looks, designs and branding... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #living room #british publishers #putting lots

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Old book, new look: why the classics are flying off the shelves'


Old book, new look: why the classics are flying off the shelves

Sales have risen 10%, thanks to TV adaptations and clever marketing. As four publishing houses unveil new looks, John Walsh investigates the battle for new readersImagine you have a sudden burning desire to read David Copperfield, Charles Dickens’s favourite of all his novels. Thanks to Project... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #living room #british publishers #putting lots


Books about the Trump White House are flying off the shelves at Barnes & Noble

2018 is the year people wanted to read about politics. Barnes & Noble reported a 57% surge in sales of political books compared with last year. The sales spike was driven by books that have been selling like wildfire all year long, from Michael Wolff’s "Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sales spike #year long #barnes noble #michael wolff


Classic Book Covers Get Charming Redesigns for the E-Book Age

750 artists redesigned the covers of classic books. Now 50 of them are going on tour. The post Classic Book Covers Get Charming Redesigns for the E-Book Age appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2016-01-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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6 books to get you started with Black horror, classic and new

Black horror pioneer Tananarive Due helps us pick 6 great books from the genre, from a Toni Morrison classic to a new anthology by Jordan Peele. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-10-26 10:00:53 UTC ]
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'Empty shelves with absolutely no books': Students, parents question school board's library weeding process

Several Peel District School Board students, parents and community members are concerned about a seemingly inconsistent approach to a new book weeding process intended to ensure school library books are inclusive, but that appears to have led some schools to remove thousands of books published... Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2023-09-13 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Censorship or context? Australian book industry wrestles with how to refresh outdated classics

Australia has a history of removing controversial elements from children’s texts, but the question of whether they should be edited is not easy to answerGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe news this week that some works of bestselling children’s author... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-02-25 23:00:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestselling children #absurd censorship #guardian australia #free morning #free app #original versions #chocolate factory #book industry


Penguin to publish 'classic' Roald Dahl books after backlash

Publisher Penguin Random House says it will publish “classic” unexpurgated versions of Roald Dahl’s children’s novels, after criticism of cuts and rewrites intended to make the books suitable for modern readers Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2023-02-24 14:04:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #roald dahl #rewrites intended #books suitable #modern readers #publisher penguin


Penguin to publish 'classic' Roald Dahl books after backlash

Publisher Penguin Random House says it will publish “classic” unexpurgated versions of Roald Dahl’s children’s novels, after criticism of cuts and rewrites intended to make the books suitable for modern readers Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2023-02-24 14:03:22 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #roald dahl #rewrites intended #books suitable #modern readers #publisher penguin


Roald Dahl publisher announces unaltered 16-book ‘classics collection’

Series will be released alongside controversially amended versions to leave readers ‘free to choose which version they prefer’A collection of Roald Dahl’s books with unaltered text is to be published after a row over changes made to novels including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-02-24 13:26:39 UTC ]
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10 New Historical Fiction Books Hitting the Shelves

Whether you love spy fiction, romances, sprawling sagas, or even horror, there’s a new historical fiction book for you on this list, like In the Upper Country by Kai Thomas. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-12-21 11:36:00 UTC ]
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Stephen Colbert Trolls GOP Candidate With Raunchy Makeovers For Classic Books

The "Late Show" host looks into Tudor Dixon's claim that some children's books are "pornographic." Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2022-10-27 08:02:56 UTC ]
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How do you organize your books? 9 authors share their favorite shelves.

Shelfies by Elin Hilderbrand, Diana Gabaldon, Garrett Graff, Vanessa Riley, Emma Straub, Hernan Diaz, Jennifer Weiner, Chris Bohjalian and Christopher Buckley Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-07-28 11:00:58 UTC ]
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At 10, ‘Dragons Love Tacos’ is Still Flying Off Shelves

Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri teamed up on a picture book about imaginary creatures and hot salsa. It took on a life of its own. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-06-23 09:00:15 UTC ]
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If Classic Books Were Written for Babies

A dream reading list for all the budding intellectuals out there — and their parents. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-05-07 13:46:01 UTC ]
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What Books Adriana Trigiani Keeps on Her Shelves and by Her Bed

“Everything she wrote then matters now,” says the novelist, whose latest book is “The Good Left Undone.” “The great writers can see into the future.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-04-28 12:20:08 UTC ]
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The smallest library in Maine is stocking its shelves with banned books.

If you’ve been paying attention to local news, you know the wave of book bans sweeping the nation isn’t slowing down—but people are pushing back. PEN America continues to speak out against censorship; a professor has offered to teach Maus to all students affected by its ban; the Authors Guild... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-03-17 15:55:49 UTC ]
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Walter R. Mears, Pulitzer-winning reporter featured in classic book on campaign journalists, dies at 87

He was featured in Timothy Crouse's "The Boys on the Bus," about the 1972 presidential campaign, then won a Pulitzer in 1977. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-03-06 00:22:57 UTC ]
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When the Times Book Review Panned the Classics

Some of today’s best-loved books — think “Catch-22,” “Tender Is the Night” and even “Anne of Green Gables” — had a rocky reception in our pages. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-09-29 09:00:26 UTC ]
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11 Must-Have Classic Cocktail Recipe Books For Your Home Bar

The past year has turned us all into at-home imbibing experts, but these books prove we still have much to learn. Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2021-07-23 09:45:09 UTC ]
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The titles agencies expect to fly at the virtual London Book Fair

While a lot of the usual LBF rights-trading focused on agencies’ and publishers’ own online ‘fairs’, there are a still a number of hot titles around this summer’s digital event  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-07-03 12:02:21 UTC ]
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