Trivia time: Do you know who wrote more James Bond books than originator Ian Fleming? Fleming wrote a mere 12, this author wrote 14. According to an August 29 article in The New York Times*, “Though the reaction of critics was mixed, the novels were embraced by all but the most orthodox Bondians and appeared regularly on the New York Times best-seller list. Among Mr. Gardner’s Bond titles are “License Renewed” (G. K. Hall, 1981); “Win, Lose or Die” (Putnam, 1989); “Brokenclaw” (Putnam, 1990); and, most recently, “Cold Fall” (Putnam, 1996).”
The author was John Gardner, who died August 3 near his home in Basingstoke, England. He had written more than four dozen books in a prolific career that surpassed 40 years.
*May require log-in to New York Times Select
Monday, September 03, 2007
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Your Cell Phone Can Call, Text, Take Photos, and … Now … Order Books?
Today’s cell phones can do a thousand things it seems, including now quickly order books. That is, if you order through ShopText. According to Publishers Weekly, “The Manhattan company ShopText, founded in 2005, lets people buy products instantly using SMS (i.e., Short Message Service, or cellphone text message), and has just started selling books.”
It’s actually a little more complicated than that. Here’s the scenario as explained by blogger DigitalSolid: “You’re paging through a magazine or newspaper, or you encounter an out-of-home ad (even, perhaps, a digital billboard), and you decide you simply must have that product. You type a six-digit short code into your cell phone, send the number a text message with a keyword, and after a verifying second text is received and replied to, your product has been ordered.”
Imagine sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic or on the commuter ride home and you remember you want to order a book you saw in an ad. You don’t have to wait to get to the bookstore or go online to find it, you simply take out your cell phone and send a text message. And, of course, it applies to more than books: music, artwork, all kinds of cool merchandise and impulse buys. It’s even an easy way to donate to charities!
This is just the beginning. My bet is, some day we will even be able to text message the milk and bread for pick up on the way home or -- in the best of all worlds -- pick up on the doorstep as we arrive home!
It’s actually a little more complicated than that. Here’s the scenario as explained by blogger DigitalSolid: “You’re paging through a magazine or newspaper, or you encounter an out-of-home ad (even, perhaps, a digital billboard), and you decide you simply must have that product. You type a six-digit short code into your cell phone, send the number a text message with a keyword, and after a verifying second text is received and replied to, your product has been ordered.”
Imagine sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic or on the commuter ride home and you remember you want to order a book you saw in an ad. You don’t have to wait to get to the bookstore or go online to find it, you simply take out your cell phone and send a text message. And, of course, it applies to more than books: music, artwork, all kinds of cool merchandise and impulse buys. It’s even an easy way to donate to charities!
This is just the beginning. My bet is, some day we will even be able to text message the milk and bread for pick up on the way home or -- in the best of all worlds -- pick up on the doorstep as we arrive home!
Where Would the Book Be Without Its Jacket?
Where would the groom be without his tuxedo jacket? Where would the book be without its cover jacket? In the same straights I’m afraid: just a guy with a shirt and tie, just a book with a cover and spine. That’s why jackets are important, both to grooms and books! That’s why a new weblog on Publishers Weekly is worth a read.
Called Jackets Required, this blog is a weekly column by Fwis, a design group that critiques book jacket design. The articles are short and pithy, but they offer a designer’s perspective on the artistic side of jacket design. If you’ve ever wondered what thought goes into creating a book jacket, this column will give you some interesting insights. And like any good blog, there’s a place for comments, so you can add your two cents or ask your daunting question to people who should have an educated opinion.
Why should you care? Think about how many books you’ve picked up off the display table because of what you saw on the jacket. Think about the ones you didn’t pick up. What made the difference? Maybe Jackets Required will discuss it and you can say, “Yeah, I thought so, too.”
This week’s Jackets Required column is on the book Loving Frank: A Novel.
One of Fwis’s project websites is called Covers and its tagline reads: “Covers is dedicated to the appreciation of book cover design.” They feature other articles including one on bookshelves that caught my attention. Those are some pretty wicked looking bookshelves! Take a look.
Called Jackets Required, this blog is a weekly column by Fwis, a design group that critiques book jacket design. The articles are short and pithy, but they offer a designer’s perspective on the artistic side of jacket design. If you’ve ever wondered what thought goes into creating a book jacket, this column will give you some interesting insights. And like any good blog, there’s a place for comments, so you can add your two cents or ask your daunting question to people who should have an educated opinion.
Why should you care? Think about how many books you’ve picked up off the display table because of what you saw on the jacket. Think about the ones you didn’t pick up. What made the difference? Maybe Jackets Required will discuss it and you can say, “Yeah, I thought so, too.”
This week’s Jackets Required column is on the book Loving Frank: A Novel.
One of Fwis’s project websites is called Covers and its tagline reads: “Covers is dedicated to the appreciation of book cover design.” They feature other articles including one on bookshelves that caught my attention. Those are some pretty wicked looking bookshelves! Take a look.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Fall Book Festivals Coming Soon
Publisher’s Weekly just published their fall book festival schedule saying, “Fall’s coming, and so are book festivals around the country which will celebrate authors, community, creativity and literacy.” They’re a great time to see what’s new in books and speak with some of the authors. The article includes a list of 42 locations including city, dates, website information, and contacts for publishers and booksellers. Here are just a few of the earliest sites:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Decatur Book Festival
Atlanta, Georgia – Aug. 31 to Sept. 2
Central Coast Book and Author Festival
San Luis Obispo, California – Sept. 8
Montana Festival of the Book
Missoula, Montana – Sept. 13 to 15
Wyoming Book Festival
Cheyenne, Wyoming – Sept. 15
Brooklyn Book Festival
Brooklyn, New York – Sept. 16
Fall for the Book Literary Festival
Fairfax, Virginia – Sept. 23 to 28
West Texas Book & Music Festival
Abilene, Texas – Sept. 25 to 29
Baltimore Book Festival
Baltimore, Maryland – Sept. 28 to 30
Georgia Literary Festival
Blue Ridge, Georgia – Sept. 28 to 30
South Dakota Festival of Books
Deadwood, South Dakota – Sept. 28 to 30
National Book Festival
Washington, D.C. – Sept. 29
Santa Barbara Book & Author Festival
Santa Barbara, California – Sept. 29
The Latino Book & Family Festivals
Houston, Texas – Sept. 29 to 20
Los Angeles, California – Oct. 12 to 14
Chicago, Illinois – Nov. 10 to 11
Orange County Children's Book Festival
Costa Mesa, California – Sept. 29 to 30
West Hollywood Book Fair
Los Angeles, California – Sept. 30
See the Publishers Weekly article for the rest of the locations and festival details.
Neopets Gets New Line of Books in 2008
Good news for anyone like my daughter who loves Neopets! According to The Book Standard, “HarperCollins Publishers has teamed up with Neopets, an online pet site for tweens, to create a new line of books based on the company's virtual world of Neopia where users create and care for a "Neopet." According to Neopets, there are more than 40 million registered members of the Neopets website worldwide.”
Their first works will include illustrated novels, puzzle and game books, a how-to-draw book, and a field guide to Neopets, all with links back to the Neopets website. It all debuts in the fall of 2008.
I honestly didn’t think Neopets would last long, coming on the heels of the Pokemon and Digimon fads, but they continue strong today in the online world. It makes a lot of sense for them to expand beyond the Internet into traditional publishing. Neopets fans are dedicated and they spend a long time collecting their favorite Neopets and interacting in the Neopet world. This will help them extend that.
Their first works will include illustrated novels, puzzle and game books, a how-to-draw book, and a field guide to Neopets, all with links back to the Neopets website. It all debuts in the fall of 2008.
I honestly didn’t think Neopets would last long, coming on the heels of the Pokemon and Digimon fads, but they continue strong today in the online world. It makes a lot of sense for them to expand beyond the Internet into traditional publishing. Neopets fans are dedicated and they spend a long time collecting their favorite Neopets and interacting in the Neopet world. This will help them extend that.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Two More Translations of War and Peace Coming This Fall
Just what the world needs, two more translations of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace! According to Publishers Weekly (PW) there are already at least a dozen English translations, and “Just last year, Viking published a translation by Anthony Briggs that PW called ‘the most readable version on the market.’" Now Ecco (Harper Collins) will publish a version coming out September 4 and Knopf (Random House) will publish another one coming out October 16.
Why add two more to the confusing list of tomes? Says PW, “Ecco is calling its edition, translated by Andrew Bromfield, War and Peace: Original Version. It is essentially Tolstoy's first draft. Knopf contends that Ecco’s version is not the finished classic readers know. Ecco maintains its edition is more reader-friendly than Knopf's, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, because it is shorter and more ‘narrative.’"
Really now, how can one choose a version to read? That's just too many choices without an educated speculation or someone's highly educated recommendation. I wouldn't know which to read, which represents a lot of pages to get bogged down in if I've made a poor choice. What's the value in adding two more volumes? Anyone knowledgeable enough about these two authors to know what they add to the story that already exists on War and Peace?
Why add two more to the confusing list of tomes? Says PW, “Ecco is calling its edition, translated by Andrew Bromfield, War and Peace: Original Version. It is essentially Tolstoy's first draft. Knopf contends that Ecco’s version is not the finished classic readers know. Ecco maintains its edition is more reader-friendly than Knopf's, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, because it is shorter and more ‘narrative.’"
Really now, how can one choose a version to read? That's just too many choices without an educated speculation or someone's highly educated recommendation. I wouldn't know which to read, which represents a lot of pages to get bogged down in if I've made a poor choice. What's the value in adding two more volumes? Anyone knowledgeable enough about these two authors to know what they add to the story that already exists on War and Peace?
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Amazon’s Second-Quarter Earnings More Than Tripled!
Just when you thought pre-selling 1.6 million Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows books was as good as the news gets for online retailer Amazon.com, along comes second quarter earnings figures.
According to MSNBC.com today, “Amazon.com Inc.’s second-quarter profit more than tripled, boosted by strong sales of books, music and electronics worldwide. Earnings for the three months ended June 30 climbed to $78 million, or 19 cents per share, from $22 million, or 5 cents per share during the same period last year, the company said Tuesday.”
The Book Standard today quoted Amazon.com founder and CEO explaining, "Our strong revenue growth this quarter was fueled by low prices and the added convenience of Amazon Prime. More and more customers are taking advantage of Amazon Prime and we're pleased with the acceleration in subscriber growth this quarter." They have more details on the earnings figures, too.
Second quarter earnings don’t take into account the phenomenal sales of the final Harry Potter book, which actually occurred in the third quarter and are expected to bring in approximately $3 billion in sales.
Amazon.com seems to be doing everything right. Although I’ve heard grumblings from some quarters that Amazon’s service isn’t always on par with the local bookstore, I’ve never had anything to complain about. Used properly and intelligently they are like any online retailer that allows you to maximize the searching and shopping power of the Internet and home delivery of products you don’t need immediately. When I know what I want and I don’t need it right at that moment, I order it on Amazon.com. Or if I don’t know what I want but I know what to search for, I find it on Amazon.com. Where I find most value in the local bookstore is browsing or putting my hands on something now. Plus, the valuable assistance of an experienced bookseller helping me find something in his or her section.
Of course, if you’ve had a bad experience with Amazon, you can always order on one of the multiple other online bookstores: Alibris, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Powell Books, etc. They all give you the power to be your own bookseller.
According to MSNBC.com today, “Amazon.com Inc.’s second-quarter profit more than tripled, boosted by strong sales of books, music and electronics worldwide. Earnings for the three months ended June 30 climbed to $78 million, or 19 cents per share, from $22 million, or 5 cents per share during the same period last year, the company said Tuesday.”
The Book Standard today quoted Amazon.com founder and CEO explaining, "Our strong revenue growth this quarter was fueled by low prices and the added convenience of Amazon Prime. More and more customers are taking advantage of Amazon Prime and we're pleased with the acceleration in subscriber growth this quarter." They have more details on the earnings figures, too.
Second quarter earnings don’t take into account the phenomenal sales of the final Harry Potter book, which actually occurred in the third quarter and are expected to bring in approximately $3 billion in sales.
Amazon.com seems to be doing everything right. Although I’ve heard grumblings from some quarters that Amazon’s service isn’t always on par with the local bookstore, I’ve never had anything to complain about. Used properly and intelligently they are like any online retailer that allows you to maximize the searching and shopping power of the Internet and home delivery of products you don’t need immediately. When I know what I want and I don’t need it right at that moment, I order it on Amazon.com. Or if I don’t know what I want but I know what to search for, I find it on Amazon.com. Where I find most value in the local bookstore is browsing or putting my hands on something now. Plus, the valuable assistance of an experienced bookseller helping me find something in his or her section.
Of course, if you’ve had a bad experience with Amazon, you can always order on one of the multiple other online bookstores: Alibris, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Powell Books, etc. They all give you the power to be your own bookseller.
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