A new collection of rejigged tales gets much closer to the spirit of these stories than the ‘traditional’ versions we’re force-fed There’s a book called Politically Correct Bedtime Stories, written by James Finn Garner, which used to be on my parents’ shelves, and is now on mine. Published in 1994, it was a massive bestseller in its time, satirising changing social attitudes and acting as an amusing corrective for the holier-than-thou: Little Red Riding Hood, for example, finds the wolf’s suggestion that it isn’t safe for a little girl to walk through the woods alone “sexist” and “offensive in the extreme… ” but, she says, “I will ignore it because of your traditional status as an outcast from society, the stress of which has caused you to develop your own, entirely valid, worldview”. It also stands as a reminder that the so-called culture wars, all that rightwing fury at the “tyranny of woke”, are simply the political-correctness-gone-mad wars of yesteryear rebranded for a new, digital age.Right-on children’s books have had a resurgence, as demonstrated by the success of series such as Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This autumn, children have been gifted four rejigged fairytales in the form of Vintage Children’s Classics’ new Fairy Tale Revolution series, which sees Bluebeard, Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel and The Ugly Duckling revisited by Malorie Blackman, Rebecca Solnit, Jeanette Winterson and Kamila Shamsie respectively. They are all just lovely: sweet and funny... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2020-11-04 09:00:13 UTC ]
News Corporation announced Wednesday that it was buying Unruly, a video ad technology company, in a deal worth up to $176 million that underscores the publishing company’s continued push to remake itself for the digital age. Fou ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Book Doctor goes right back to beginnings of YA and teen fiction in the 1950s and 1960s to investigate whether author age has anything to do with reader experienceI saw several really young writers at the Young Adult Literature Convention (Yalc) who seem to know just what their readers are... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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John Spurling has won the £25,000 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction for his novel set in imperial China, The Ten Thousand Things (Duckworth), a book which is said to have been rejected 44 times by publishers. Spurling beat off competition from Martin Amis, Helen Dunmore, Hermione... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Brenda Gardner, publisher at Piccadilly Press, is stepping down from her role after 43 years in the industry. Gardner set up Piccadilly Press in 1983 and has published many well-known children’s authors, including Anne Fine, Helen Cresswell, Malorie Blackman and Louise Rennison. The publisher... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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‘If a man wants to write about gender and the pitfalls of masculinity, they’re met with sneers,’ says the bestselling author, who disputes criticism that he is antifeministThe author Matt Haig found himself “crucified” online after suggesting that his next non-fiction title could be a book... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-06-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Small press And Other Stories will produce no books by men in 2018 in answer to Kamila Shamsie’s call for direct action to beat gender bias in publishingSmall press And Other Stories has answered author Kamila Shamsie’s provocative call for a year of publishing women to redress “gender bias” in... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-06-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author and illustrator Chris Riddell has been revealed as the new children’s laureate. Riddell was crowned at a ceremony at BAFTA headquarters in London today (9th June) and is the ninth UK children’s laureate. He takes over from Malorie Blackman, who spent two years in the role. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Malorie Blackman has urged the next children’s laureate to speak their mind, despite describing her "surprise" at the “vitriolic reaction” she had received to some of her own campaigns. Blackman is coming to the end of her two-year stint in the role and the new laureate will be announced next week. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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David Remnick, the longtime editor of The New Yorker, recently recounted a meeting during the early days of online publishing when the veteran sports essayist Roger Angell said he would always “want to be able to describe, in English, how t ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google's new initiative will pay news outlets to dig into digital journalism.American tech companies have set their sights on the news business. A month after Facebook announced that it wants news outlets to publish content within Facebook, and a mere day after Snapchat poached acclaimed CNN... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2015-04-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Just before the London Book Fair, Spain-based Dosdoce.com released an English-language version of its latest report, “New Business Models in the Digital Age.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors including Joanne Harris, Malorie Blackman and Neil Gaiman have joined the council of the Society of Authors (SoA). Other new members are Roger McGough, Ian Rankin, Anne Sebba and Sarah Waters. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Five writers on the six-strong shortlist for this year’s Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction – Rachel Cusk, Kamila Shamsie, Ali Smith, Anne Tyler and Sarah Waters – have all been shortlisted for the award before. The sixth novelist, Laline Paull, is shortlisted for her debut The Bees (Fourth... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Spain-based Dosdoce.com this week released an English language version of its 2014 report “New Business Models in the Digital Age.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Meg Cabot, Sophie Kinsella, Malorie Blackman, and Dav Pilkey were among the authors celebrating new books and meeting international publishers in Bologna. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It has become a rite of passage for new authors in the digital age to obsessively check Amazon to track book sales and tweet positive reviews in the hopes of picking up new readers. But for one author, whose book was on the New York Times best-sellers list for three weeks, this isn’t possible.... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2015-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Leading YA authors such as Cassandra Clare, Malorie Blackman and Patrick Ness are taking part in this year’s Young Adult Literature Convention (YALC), which will run alongside the London Film and Comic Con (LFCC) in July. The line-up for this year’s event, announced today (12th March) by... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children’s laureate Malorie Blackman and most of the YA Book Prize shortlisted writers are taking part an online event for teenagers, organised by World Book Day (WBD). For WBD TeenFest, which will take place on the 4th and 5th March between 6 and 8pm, WBD will host interviews with YA authors... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Books unveils a clever interactive site, inspired by the iPod's clicking wheel, to accompany the release of 80 classic e-books.Penguin Books turns 80 this year. To celebrate its birthday, the British imprint of the world's largest publishing house is releasing a new series of 80 books,... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2015-02-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Charlie Hebdo is printing 7 million copies of its "survivor's issue," published one week after terrorists attacked the magazine's Paris office Jan. 7, killing 12 people. To print the additional copies, Charlie Hebdo, which usually puts out 60,000 copies per issue, received financial help from... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2015-01-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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