Why serious literary fiction like Ishiguro’s is vital in times like these | Alice O’Keeffe

In our digital age, Kazuo Ishiguro’s Nobel prize is a reminder that it is still novels that ask the biggest questionsIt’s always entertaining to observe the interaction between the news media and a writer who has just won the Nobel prize. The all-time best was obviously Doris Lessing, who when doorstepped simply rolled her eyes and snorted “Oh Christ”, before turning around to pay for her taxi. Bob Dylan studiously ignored the whole thing, while Kazuo Ishiguro had clearly emerged from solitary confinement in his study on Thursday (he is in the middle of writing a novel), to face a barrage of questions and photographs. Blinking and bewildered, he described the themes he has spent his life thinking about and painstakingly unpicking: “The way countries and nations and communities remember their past, and how often they bury the uncomfortable memories from their past.” Related: George Saunders and Mohsin Hamid lead a daring Man Booker shortlist Parents push their young children towards books, while they themselves spend every moment of leisure time plugged in Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-10-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #news media #doris lessing #solitary confinement #george saunders #young children

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Why serious literary fiction like Ishiguro’s is vital in times like these | Alice O’Keeffe'


The Amazon vet who is bringing order to Time Inc.’s tech sprawl

Heritage only goes so far these days for traditional publishers. That's why Time Inc. is betting big on technology -- and its new CTO Colin Bodell -- to reverse its print woes. Bodell, an Amazon vet, is looking to a mix of paywalls, e-commerce and shared databases to jump-start growth. “If I... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2015-04-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #traditional publishers #betting big #presidential election


Yiyun Li wins Sunday Times short story award

Chinese-American author Yiyun Li is the first female winner of the £30,000 Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award for her story "A Sheltered Woman". Director Richard Eyre presented Li with her winner's cheque at the Stationers’ Hall this evening (Friday 24th April). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sheltered woman


'A Wrinkle in Time': A cut passage is published

Fans of the classic science fiction novel recently got a look at a section of the book that was taken out before publication. 'Wrinkle' won the Newbery Medal. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-04-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #newbery medal


Non-fiction book club for Radio 2

A new non-fiction book club on Claudia Winkleman's weekly BBC Radio 2 "Arts Show" is to launch this autumn, as part of The Reading Agency partnership with the station. The book club follows on from the Radio 2 Book Club on Simon Mayo's show, and a children's writing competition called 500 Words... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #claudia winkleman #book club #simon mayo #chris evans


Time 100 adds Haruki Murakami to list of world's most influential figures

Japanese novelist is joined by Nigeria’s Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in famous ranking of the people ‘shaping the future’Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami has been named one of the world’s 100 most influential people by Time magazine, backed by Yoko Ono as “a valuable voice for peace” as Japan’s... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #influential people #time magazine #yoko ono #kanye west #kim jong- #hillary clinton


Radio Times launches book-centric festival

Radio Times magazine will host an annual festival celebrating the links between books, radio and television. The inaugural festival will take place at Hampton Court Palace from 24th–27th September. The festival aims to raise awareness of the fact that many TV and radio programmes are based on... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #inaugural festival #27th september #raise awareness


LBF Emphasizes Mexico’s Under-appreciated Literary Heritage

The London Book Fair underscored how Mexico — the 2015 Market Focus — offers a 'treasure trove' of writers barely known to the English speaking world. The post LBF Emphasizes Mexico’s Under-appreciated Literary Heritage appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-04-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Horobin to join Bonnier Publishing Fiction

James Horobin, previously group sales, marketing and publicity director at Simon & Schuster, is to join the recently launched Bonnier Publishing Fiction division as executive director with responsibility for sales and marketing. Horobin, who left S&S last month, will take up his new... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #james horobin #publicity director #simon schuster


Thrillers, killers, spillers: Aussie pulp fiction of the 40s and 50s – in pictures

Passion! Mystery! Crime! After the Australian government banned the import of American pulp magazines at the onset of the second world war, publisher Frank Johnson stepped into the market with a flurry of crime, adventure and romance novels. Drawn from his archives, a collection of cover art,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #world war #romance novels #cover art #south wales


Literary Agent Isobel Dixon’s Passions Span Africa and Beyond

Isobel Dixon of the Blake Friedmann Literary Agency has helped bring a wide array of authors to a global audience, including many from South Africa. The post Literary Agent Isobel Dixon’s Passions Span Africa and Beyond appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #isobel dixon #helped bring #wide array #global audience #south africa


Facebook–Times Partnership Affirmed by Magazine Editor Jake Silverstein

The New York Times has kept mum about a March 23 report in its pages that suggested that the Times, among other news organizations, was in talks with Facebook about hosting some of its journalism on the social media platform.   "The Tim ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ward joins HarperCollins as fiction art director

HarperCollins has hired Claire Ward as fiction art director, joining from Transworld where she has worked for 25 years. Ward, who will begin at HarperCollins in July, has designed covers for titles such as Before I Go to Sleep, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, The Book Thief and The Girl... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fiction genres #harold fry #book thief #including women


Entrekin's new literary culture website

New York-based independent publisher Grove Atlantic and non-profit site Electric Literature have launched a new website celebrating literary culture, with support across other literary publishers.    Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London’s Literary Platform on A Half-Decade of Digital Change

The founders of the UK's Literary Platform reflect on the changes they've seen in digital publishing over the 5 years since launching their consultancy. The post London’s Literary Platform on A Half-Decade of Digital Change appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post london #literary platform #digital change #digital publishing


Booker Prize Literary Director Ion Trewin Dies at 71

The Booker Prize Foundation has announced the death of its literary director, Ion Trewin. He passed away on Wednesday, at the age of 71. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary director #ion trewin


Murakami shortlisted for Indie Foreign Fiction Prize

Authors Haruki Murakami, Erwin Mortier and Daniel Kehlmann have made the shortlist for the 2015 Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. Also shortlisted for the £10,000 award are two writers whose work has been translated from Spanish into English for the first time: Tomás González and Juan Tomás... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #murakami shortlisted #25th year


Men 'most reviewed' in literary magazines

An annual study of the gender balance in reviewers and authors in major literary magazines has found that both are skewed heavily towards men. American organisation VIDA (Women in Literary Arts), looked at publications including the Times Literary Supplement and the London Review of Books in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publications including #male authors #literary magazines #annual study #gender balance #literary arts #london review


Male writers continue to dominate literary criticism, Vida study finds

Women buy two-thirds of books sold but magazine reviews are centred on male authors and critics – though picture is beginning to changeThe continuing bias towards men in the British and American literary establishment has been confirmed by a study released on Tuesday.Vida, a US organisation... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-04-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #books sold #favourite books #male authors #study released #wide range #london review


BuzzFeed Launches Emerging Writers Fellowship: An Interview with Literary Editor Saeed Jones

BuzzFeed is going literary. The ever-growing media company launched BuzzFeed Books in December of 2013, and this year it is launching several projects under new Literary Editor Saeed Jones. First up is the BuzzFeed Emerging Writers Fellowship pr ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Online book shopping overtakes in-store for first time

Print book sales showed "continuing resilience" in 2014, with overall spending on print and digital titles increasing across the year. Meanwhile, online book buying overtook in-store book buying for the first time last year. In 2014, sales of print and ebooks stood at £2.2bn, up 4% from the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #nielsen book #annual conference