Book News and New Book Reviews

Just a sampling of our new materials (right side)!

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

NIELSEN: TECH-SAVVY TEENS REMAIN FANS OF PRINT BOOKS

MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT
| 12-09-2014
With today's rapidly evolving technology and ever-present social media changing the way consumers are connecting with the written word, it should come as no surprise that today's teens are finding and consuming content differently from previous generations. But while we typically associate these youthful consumers with being early adopters of new technology and digital content platforms, the reading habits of those aged 13-17 are a mix of old and new.
Despite teens' tech-savvy reputation, this group continues to lag behind adults when it comes to reading e-books, even with the young adult genre's digital growth relative to the total e-book market. While 20% of teens purchasing e-books, 25% of 30-44 year olds and 23% of 18-29 year olds buy digital copies. While younger readers are open to e-books as a format, teens continue to express a preference for print that may seem to be at odds with their perceived digital know-how. 

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Releases 400,000 Images Online for Non-Commercial Use

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has released a vast archive of 400,000 (mostly) hi-resolution digital images online that you can download and use for non-commercial purposes. From a 12-megapixel scan ofRembrandt’s 1660 self-portrait to over 18,000 photos spanning almost two centuries. Here are a few quick gems from the Photography collection, see also: Arms & ArmorModern and Contemporary Art, and otherhighlights. (via Kottke)
From the http://www.thisiscolossal.com/ web site.
(For the rest of the article click here).
(To go to the MET Collection click here).

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

PW's Picks: The Best Spirituality and Religion and Books of 2014

PW's top five spirituality and religion books for 2014 are from preachers and teachers, Christians and atheists, a grieving mother and a happily married pastor and his wife. The perspectives are varied, the voices fresh and eloquent

Learning to Walk in the Dark

Barbara Brown Taylor (HarperOne)

At home on a page or at a podium, Taylor always offers eloquent provocation to thought. The title conceit exemplifies how the Episcopal priest and theologian develops insights from unusual perspectives that lead to more enlightened living.

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

A Field Trip to America's Public Libraries

How they serve the needs of their communities   by  NOV 19 2014, 10:57 AM ET

As we’ve been crisscrossing the country visiting towns and cities for ourAmerican Futures project, I always look forward to stopping in the town's public library. Every town has one. They’re often lovely buildings. (Thank you, Andrew Carnegie!) They offer a first pulse of the town. (Are they vibrant and bustling?) The librarians are as knowledgeable as the newspaper editors and as welcoming as the Chamber of Commerce. Who wouldn’t love a library?


Saturday, December 6, 2014

Art of New York: An Assortment of New York Books for the Holidays

Have friends with empty coffee tables? Here’s a selection of New York holiday gift books.
“Art touches our souls because it comes from our souls,” Stanley Tucci, the actor, writes in the foreword to “New York’s Underground Art Museum: M.T.A. Art and Design” (Monacelli Press), by Sandra Bloodworth and William Ayres, an illustrated tour of the transit system’s public art program advocated by the former Metropolitan Transportation Authority board member Ronay Menschel.
“It has been said that this program is trying to save the soul of the subway,” Mr. Tucci writes. “In doing so it may be saving a piece of ours as well.” Works in this expanded edition range from Heins & La Farge’s 1904 terra-cotta beavers at Astor Place to Sarah Sze’s maquette for the new Second Avenue subway.
(Rest of the article)

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Nobel Prize Wins Raises Patrick Modiano Sales

According to Publisher's Weekly "When Patrick Modiano won the 2014 Nobel Prize for Literature on October 9, Yale University Press, which had been planning a February 2015 release date for his novella collection Suspended Sentences, bumped up publication to November 11. Since then, the book has sold 2,688 copies, according to Nielsen BookScan. That may not be enough to land a spot on our Trade Paper list, but context is everything. Sales of his next bestselling book, 2004’sMissing Person, have increased exponentially, from a release-to-date count of 482 copies to sales last week of 1,133. All told, about 75% of the author’s U.S. sales over the past decade are directly attributable to the Nobel win, which has made 2014 a better year for Mondiano than the previous 10 years—combined."