Blog
E-books and self-publishing
15 March, 2011
Amanda Hocking. I am fascinated by this author. She is 26 years old and has self-published her books. Her sales are in the hundreds of thousands (various sources quote numbers from 185,000 to 500,000) and the overwhelming majority of these sales are e-books. Film rights have been optioned for her Trylle series and she is […]
Uncomfortable with the notion of women who kill?
14 March, 2011
A new series Snapped: Women Who Kill starts tonight on the Crime and Investigation Network chronicling the lives of seemingly ordinary women who suddenly became killers. Looking at various cases such as Tracey Andrewes, who stabbed her fiancé thirty times with a pen-knife after an argument whilst driving home, and Lady Sarah Ferguson’s aide who […]
Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Get Carter
11 March, 2011
Today marks the start of a weekend of events in Newcastle to celebrate 40 years since Get Carter, the novel by Ted Lewis, was immortalised on screen. It has become one of the most iconic films in British cinema, starring Michael Caine in the lead role of Jack Carter as he goes on a rampage […]
War and Peace: A Summary (Book Six)
10 March, 2011
My summary of War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy continues… Book Six In Book Five, as you studious little blog-followers no doubt remember, quite a lot of good ink was spilt telling the tale of how Pierre sought to pull himself out of the mire adulterous Helene had sunk him in. Well, you’ll be happy […]
Wednesday Cover Story: Win a commission to create a Vintage Classics cover
9 March, 2011
I love it when the public is asked to take part in competitions to showcase their creativity – giving a voice to so many talented individuals that might otherwise go unnoticed. So for today’s Wednesday Cover Story, I am delighted to flag up the fact that Vintage Classics are sponsoring The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition […]
Snippets from World Book Night
8 March, 2011
There were hundreds of articles, programmes and events celebrating World Book Night on Saturday but here are just a few that caught our attention for one reason or another… THE EVENT A&B’s editorial administrator, Georgina Phipps, attended the World Book Night event at the Royal Festival Hall featuring readings from various authors and here are […]
Flipping heck…tomorrow is Pancake Day!
7 March, 2011
Ah, Lent approaches, so we’ll all be clearing out the rich food and other indulgences then? Well, maybe not, but in a nod to past traditions there will certainly be pancakes aplenty chez Crooks tomorrow night – to celebrate Shrove Tuesday, aka Pancake Day! And if pancakes weren’t great enough, chuck doing-some-good-for-charity into the batter-mix […]
Vote for the Diagram Prize for Oddest Title
4 March, 2011
Voting is now open for the The Bookseller’s Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year. Esteemed diarist of The Bookseller, Mr Horace Bent, has whittled down no doubt a long list of contenders to a very deserving shortlist including the following: 8th International Friction Stir Welding Symposium Proceedings Various authors (TWI) The Generosity of […]
Playing with Blue Suede Shoes
3 March, 2011
A new exhibition is opening tomorrow at the Apthorp Gallery at artsdepot entitled Blue Suede Shoes by a group of artists who go by the collective name Gumbo. “Using the well known phrase ‘Blue Suede shoes’ as a starting point, these artists played a game of ‘pass it on’ to produce a sequence of new […]
Wednesday Cover Story: The ever-changing face of the paperback
2 March, 2011
There was a very interesting programme on book cover design on BBC4 earlier this week – part of the series The Beauty of Books. This particular episode, entitled Paperback Writer, examines how the paperback format ‘democratized reading in the 20th century’ and how cover design became an essential tool for selling books to the mass […]
An evening with Ayckbourn
1 March, 2011
I was about fifteen the last time I came across an Alan Ayckbourn play. GCSE Drama had many highlights (playing with sound effect tapes, silly drama games, a trip to see Saturday Night Fever with afro wigs all stand out in my memory) but I did thoroughly enjoy a performance we did from Ayckbourn’s Confusions […]
Save Oliver Twist’s Workhouse!
28 February, 2011
Our office is just down the road from one of the few remaining Georgian workhouses in London – the Cleveland Street Workhouse. However, it is currently under threat, as plans are in place to have it demolished. University College London Hospital wants to knock it down and erect an 11-storey modern building in its place. […]
To invest or not invest in Art?
25 February, 2011
Today, on my usual lunch-time wander, I passed the Rebecca Hossack Gallery on Charlotte Street. who happened to be having a one-day sale of some of their artists’ work. The display included a few pieces from Adam Barrow‘s limited edition Letters and Months series – quirky collages made up of postage stamps and iconic images […]
War and Peace: A Summary (Book Five)
24 February, 2011
My summary of War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy continues… Book Five (A time for slow reflection) Being the observant little pumpkin that he was, Tolstoy could not help but notice the tendency of couples rendered asunder to recover from their sundering in very different ways. We consequently have Helene, abandoned by chubby hubby Pierre […]
Films and Books – do the kids rule the roost?
22 February, 2011
Apparently Hollywood films are being dumbed down. For every Black Swan or The King’s Speech that makes it to our screens there are far more Meet the Fockers, Twilight sagas or Toy Story empires. Kids (teens especially) make up a huge number of filmgoers (and they often go and see something more than once) so […]
Crowdfunding – what project would you pick?
21 February, 2011
While washing up one evening last week (not glamorous I know, but occasionally one has to take time out from the giddy social whirl) my ears perked up while listening to Radio 4’s Front Row. No, Mark Lawson was not hilariously upsetting any more touchy Hollywood stars as he memorably did last spring, instead some […]
How to Bag a Prince
18 February, 2011
As much as it pains me to recommend another publishers’ book, I have to give credit where credit is due. In amongst all the awful tat that is circulating with the run-up to the Royal Wedding (dishcloths, commemorative china – ho hum) Penguin has outdone itself. Introducing the Royal Wedding: William and Kate Dress-up Dolly […]
War and Peace: A Summary (Book Four)
17 February, 2011
My summary of War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy continues… Book Four In Book Four, it is 1806, and Tolstoy’s military menfolk return from their thrashing by Bonaparte at Austerlitz to a hero’s welcome (no severe denial syndrome there), and soon find themselves thrown into a whole heap of troubles, poor darlings. Pierre’s new bride […]
Wednesday Cover Story: A page of book covers…
16 February, 2011
Anna Jacobs, author of Cherry Tree Lane – the first book in her Wiltshire Girls series – has just launched her new website. Amongst the features on the website is a page simply displaying all and only her book covers – a most colourful array of book covers I might add. Check out Anna Jacobs […]
Close, but no cigar
15 February, 2011
There’s something a bit unnecessary about life-time achievement awards, or am I the only one who thinks that? A few weeks ago, Bruce Forsyth picked up a special recognition gong at the National Television Awards, which seemed to do nothing but more firmly cement to his ‘national treasure’ tag. Great actors and writers don’t always […]
I Was Here (reading…)
14 February, 2011
I am back from a fabulous week of skiing and snowboarding in the Dolomites. But it wasn’t all about speeding down the slopes, hitting the Sella Ronda circuit and trying not to stack it on the way down the piste. There was also time to relax and enjoy the mountain setting… I Was Here reading […]
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