This excellent cradle-to-grave biography of a much loved novelist who goes in and out of fashion captures her alarming habits and tormented love affairsIn 1971 the author Barbara Pym was at her day job at the International African Institute when she noticed “Mr C” laboriously attacking his lunchtime sandwich with a knife and fork. Pym made a mental note of the detail before asking herself ruefully, “Oh why can’t I write about things like that any more – why is this kind of thing no longer acceptable?” Ten years earlier, Jonathan Cape had dumped her after her sixth book on the grounds that her brand of anthropological observation of English social manners was old lady-ish, dull and didn’t sell. As an extra humiliation, no other publishing house had been interested in picking up Miss Pym: books built on “the daily round of trivial things” could hardly compete with Frederick Forsyth’s The Day of the Jackal or, if you were feeling fancy, Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude. Jonathan Cape had even published John Lennon (Pym liked the Beatles, but still). Clearly there was no place in contemporary literature for Mr C and his oddly formal way with a sandwich.There is nothing unusual about major minor novelists having a disappointing and disproportionate decline, followed by a posthumous flowering in reputation and sales. What’s unusual about Pym is that her phoenix moment came while she was still alive. In 1977 the Times Literary Supplement asked well-known... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2021-04-08 06:30:07 UTC ]
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Led by the news that Hugh Howey agent Kristin Nelson has signed self-publisher Barbara Freethy, who has sold 3 million books, the Ether looks at agent mystique. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bluewater President Darren Davis states that a 'Female Force’ comic book featuring Deen will be published this October despite recent controversy over alleged racial slurs made by Deen. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The media company that brought you comic books starring Martha Stewart and Hillary Clinton have announced they will release a comic book about embattled chef Paula Deen, after being urged by Deen fans. Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Novelist Jane Green has moved to Pan Macmillan from Penguin in a deal which will see her... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Paula Deen was supposed to release "Paula Deen's New Testament: 250 Favorite Recipes, All Lightened Up" in October. But Ballantine Books canceled the release, even though it was already No. 1 in pre-orders on Amazon. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Random House's Ballantine Books joined the ranks of the Food Network, Smithfield, Wal-Mart, and a bevy of other companies in ceasing its relationship with the self-proclaimed queen of butter. Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2013-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hogarth announces The Hogarth Shakespeare: new prose versions of Shakespeare's plays, retold by bestselling novelists from around the world. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Embattled chef Paula Deen has found an unlikely supporter in vampire novelist Anne Rice, who has gone on Facebook to defend the silver-haired (former) Food Network star.Embattled chef Paula Deen has found an unlikely supporter in vampire novelist Anne Rice, who has gone on Facebook to defend the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A highly publicized racism scandal has already cost celebrity chef Paula Deen her Food Network contract. Will readers still buy her cookbooks? Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperFiction has signed a novel from author Miranda Beverly-Whittemore following an auction.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Primatologist Jane Goodall and publisher Grand Central announced they will delay publication of Goodall's forthcoming book "Seeds of Hope" amidst accusations that certain passages were plagiarized. Primatologist Jane Goodall and publisher Grand Central have announced they will delay publication... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-03-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins Children's Books has acquired new science-fiction action-adventure series,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Osprey Publishing is launching a new imprint focussing on “the blurred lines where fact and... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Headline's UK and international sales director Aslan Byrne is moving to Random House as sales... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-11-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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J K Rowling has been overlooked in the nominations for the Literary Review’s Bad Sex award... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Collins & Brown is to publish a series of retro-styled craft books from designer Jane Foster... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers are "missing out" on ebook sales to schools because of the lack of a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pan Macmillan is adding a further twist to the erotica trend, acquiring a racy re-telling of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-06-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Because of the strange distortions of copyright protection, there are twice as many newly published books available on Amazon from 1850 as there are from 1950 Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2012-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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