Turning literature into a numbers game makes some sense for the book trade, but none for readersWe may be halfway through January already, but the spirit of new year is still in full swing over in San Francisco, where the 2014 Goodreads Reading Challenge goes from strength to strength to strength. More than 240,000 of Goodreads' 25 million members have already committed to reading more than 14m books this year, pledging to get through them at an average of more than a book a week. And many fans of books will say hurrah for that. I reckon I'm pretty much in favour of books and literature, too, but the Goodreads Reading Challenge just sets my teeth on edge.It starts right there in the name. Since when was reading any kind of challenge? Isn't it supposed to be fun? Maybe not for children still learning to differentiate their Perfect Peters from their Horrid Henrys, or for the one in six UK adults who still struggle with literacy, but Goodreads is a site for people who are already "readers" . I don't think they have schoolchildren in mind when they suggest you should "raise your reading ambitions" and it certainly doesn't look like a scheme designed to help adult learners "make it to the final chapter". All this talk of pledging, of targets, of tracking your progress, is just another step in the marketisation of the reading experience, another stage in the commodification of literary culture.We know that literacy correlates with better social outcomes, that literary fiction... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
Oh, the magic of finding a great book through the sheer power of chance! Is the summer the best time for that to happen? Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The new YouTube channel encourages readers to upload a video of themselves sharing a paragraph from a favorite book. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Bookshop Band write songs inspired by the books of visiting authors like The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry's Rachel Joyce. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-07-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Under the Carib Sun author Ro Cuzon's essay describes journey to becoming a novelist and his experience in the agency-created Rogue Reader self-publishing program. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jim Hilt, managing director of Barnes & Noble's European ebook business, said the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After years of struggle, Colombia's independent comics and graphic novel scene is starting to flourish, with new publishers and a traveling comics festival. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Some of the brightest children from disadvantaged backgrounds can have reading levels two and... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Reading Agency is to receive a £1m donation from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. The gift... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Teachers have a strong desire to teach reading for pleasure but feel frustrated by a restrictive... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Federation of European Publishers captured photos of more than 150 MEPs and heads of European publishers and writers associations posing with their favorite books. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judge Denise Cote seemed inclined to rule for the Department of Justice at the beginning of the trial, but her remarks as the case closed seemed to indicate a shift towards Apple's side. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In what is being called "an unprecedented show of solidarity," hundreds of Europe's leading publishers have joined forces to call on European Commission Vice President Joaquín Almunia to reject outright the draft measures offered by Google to end their abusive practices. Continue reading at Media Week
[ Media Week | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jennie Bristow, associate fellow at the University of Kent, says grown-ups read children's books because they feel 'disenchanted with adult culture'. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A young adult novel about a dramatic journey that transforms an East Coast boy has taken out this year's New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards tonight. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A visit to the Seoul Book Fair reveals publishers are still wary of ebooks and blame smart devices for the decline in reading, even as Korean culture has become hip abroad. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Through First to Read, members will have the chance to get advance reading copies of Penguin Books before they are published. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-06-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The free online library created for the Read for My School made children "excited" to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nearly half the titles read by children in a national reading competition were consumed online, according to the charity Booktrust. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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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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Trade publishers contacted by the Society of Authors over the issue of ebook lending are using a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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