F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Gatsby House Hits the Market

By Dianna Dilworth on May. 27, 2015 - 9:15 AM

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s former home in Great Neck, the location that inspired his classic novel “The Great Gatsby,” is for sale. The seller is looking to fetch $3.9 for the Long Island home.

According to the real estate listing, Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda rented the home for two years in the early 1920s. Check it out: "Zelda called it “our nifty little Babbit-home at Great Neck,” and it became their base for parties and visits to even more luxurious homes in the vicinity, which eventually became the class-conscious West Egg and East Egg of “Gatsby.”"

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Super Heroes, super fans: Comics see local resurgence

Kevin Phelan, LoHud The Journal News12:59 p.m. EDT May 17, 2015
It wasn't long ago that comic book enthusiasts were largely perceived as basement-dwelling fanatics, confined to obscure hobby shops, annual conventions or dank arcades.

But now, comics — and comic fans — are finally getting the spotlight.

Nearly half of last year's highest grossing filmsworldwide were based on comic properties; "Avengers: Age of Ultron" alone made nearly $1 billion in its first weeks of release. And the 2014 New York Comic Convention drew more than 150,000 attendees to the Javitz Center over a four day period for an annual celebration of all things comics.

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Best Summer Books 2015

We've waited a long time for this summer, and with its approach comes our annual selection of the season's books that we're most looking forward to reading and anxious to share. Summer's a time to catch up with old friends, like Stephen King, whose Finders Keepers, a new crime fiction novel, follows last summer'sMr. Mercedes. Haper Lee's second book, Go Set a Watchman, arrives after 55 years with all the usual suspects from her eternal blockbuster; and Judy Blume tackles the early 50s with In the Unlikely Event, her first adult novel since 1998. Things that go bump in the night are always fitting summer fare and The Decagon House Murders, a Japanese mystery by Yukito Ayatsuji, will have you locking your screen doors. And how about learning something this summer? Dig into the art world with Grayson Perry's Playing to the Gallery, or figure out today's dating world with comedian Aziz Ansari. But for pure sensation, pick upNew Yorker writer William Finnegan's memories of the beach, Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life. Just try and keep the sand out of your book …and out of your sandwich. -Louisa Ermelino, Reviews Director 
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BiblioTech: Why Libraries Matter More Than Ever in the Age of Google

The future of libraries is filled with potential, according to Palfrey, the former director of the Harvard Law School Library and founding chair of the Digital Public Library of America. His new book carves out a strong and exciting vision for libraries in the 21st century, one that maintains the core activities of librarianship (“ensuring access to and preservation of information”), by combining the virtues of the library as a public space situated in a community with the vast networking capabilities afforded by the digital era. Palfrey, a passionate advocate for libraries, underlines their importance—but make no mistake, his book is not so much an ode to libraries as a stark wake-up call. The question that looms throughout is whether libraries will even continue to exist. To that end, he paints a harsh reality of the crisis currently facing libraries as they “awkwardly” straddle the analog and digital spheres: “on the one hand, the public sentiment that the digital era has made libraries less relevant, and on the other, the growing number of expectations we have for libraries, stemming in no small part from the very digitalization that the public assumes is making them obsolete.”
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Why I Read the Most Controversial Books in Print Today

By Mike Harvkey | 

May 08, 2015  Publishers Weekly

The last time I saw my best childhood friend, we got in a fight over a book. We were standing around outside the community center, taking a break from the high school reunion I’d flown back to Missouri to attend. I’d long known that my friend was an extremist. He was the first of us to drink, to smoke weed, snort crank; he wanted everything, in heaping helpings. While most of us dabbled, he dove, hard head first. Being his wingman through high school and for a few years after was dangerous and fun. By the time of this reunion, though, he’d beat all of his addictions with God—for starters. Standing in the cold so he could smoke (his only remaining vice), he wanted to convert me, and his secret weapon was a book. But it wasn’t the Bible.

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Booksellers, Librarians Push for Passage of USA Freedom Act

By Rachel Deahl | 

May 12, 2015

The coalition of booksellers, authors, readers and librarians that make up the Campaign for Reader Privacy has pressed the House Judiciary Committee to pass the bi-partisan USA Freedom Act of 2015. In a statement about the group's support, the coalition said the bill will "restore some privacy safeguards to the government’s surveillance activities."   In addition to curtailing some surveillance efforts by the government, the CRP added, the legislation would also, and most importantly, end the collection of data under Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. The group has long been seeking to, it explained, "change the standard under which the government can seize sensitive records under Section 215 from one of 'relevance' to an ongoing terrorism investigation to an individualized standard of suspicion."

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Audiobooks: Where They’ve Been & Where They’re Headed

Audio Publishers Association executive director Michele Cobb on the future of the audiobook industry.   April 2015 By Michele Cobb, Executive Director, APA

I always refer to audio publishers as digital pioneers. Long before the rise of the ebook we sat in stuffy conference rooms and discussed the importance of good metadata and the best methods for file transfers or website downloads or digital sampling. With the turning of the 20th century and the introduction of this funky little device called the iPod the audiobook world was revolutionized. Suddenly, audiobooks stopped taking up physical space. People could carry 20 audiobooks wherever they went. And they did.

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Most Parents Prefer Print: INFOGRAPHIC

By Maryann Yin on May. 1, 2015 - 3:00 PM
First Book has created an infographic to show that “Parents Value Printed Books.” According to the company’s blog post, “a recent study by the Pew Research Center shows that 9 out of 10 parents of children under 18 say it’s important to them that their children read printed books.” We’ve embedded the entire graphic below for you to explore further. To learn more about kids and reading, check out Scholastic’s “What Do Kids Want in Books?” piece and BookUp’s “Reading Among Teenagers in Decline” piece.

When it comes to books, libraries and publishers should be in it together, argues a leading marketing expert

By David Vinjamuri | 

Apr 03, 2015   for Publishers Weekly

Publishers are running out of space. Not in their headquarters, some of which are larger and more imposing than ever, but in retail. The number of booksellers has been dwindling since the demise of Borders, and the largest book retailer today is Amazon, which has no physical space at all. So the question is, where can publishers showcase new books? If only there were a space dedicated primarily to reading that hundreds of millions of Americans visit annually. If only there existed a trusted space, free of the revenue pressure that necessitates displaying lightly pornographic books of debatable quality. If only there were a space largely inhabited by active readers, where publishers could showcase new authors or shine new light on talented mid-listers.
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Baltimore Libraries Stay Open Through Riots, Because ‘The Community Needs Us’

All library locations, including those at the epicenter of the riots, are welcoming patrons today.  by kat rosenfield 4/28/2015

You can find more than books at the Baltimore public library today, as all branches remain open and fully staffed in the wake of protests and riots that have rocked the city. With a state of emergency declared and schools closed citywide Tuesday morning, the Enoch Pratt Free Library has chosen to stay open, providing a hub of comfort and community to all Baltimore neighborhoods, including the ones most affected by the mayhem.

“It’s at times like this that the community needs us,” library Director of Communications Roswell Encina told MTV News. “That’s what the library has always been there for, from crises like this to a recession to the aftermath of severe weather. The library has been there. It happened in Ferguson; it’s happening here.”

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RHCB Ups First Print Run on New Seuss to 1 Million

By Clare Swanson | 

Apr 20, 2015    (Publishers Weekly)

Random House Children’s Books has increased its first printing on What Pet Should I Get?, a new picture book by the late Dr. Seuss, from 500,000 to 1 million. The book, which goes on sale July 28, was first announced in February, after the unpublished manuscript was rediscovered by Seuss's (given name, Ted Geisel), widow, Audrey Geisel, and his longtime secretary and friend, Claudia Prescott, in fall 2013.
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Rally around reading: Scholastic study shows how to get kids to read more, and why

  More Content NowBy Melissa Erickson
Posted Apr. 7, 2015 at 10:15 PM 

Studies show that the more kids read, the better they read and the more pleasure they get out of reading. So how can you get your kids to read more? Scholastic recently released the fifth edition of the Kids & Family Reading Report, and it offers insight on how to get students reading and some surprising facts.

Encouragement

Providing encouragement and time “both in school and at home for children of all ages to enjoy books they choose to read will help them discover the power and joy of reading,” said Francie Alexander, chief academic officer at Scholastic. “These tactics will also help to motivate kids to read more books, which will improve their skills and open a world of possibilities for them in the future.”

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10 tips to learn from a creative writing lecturer

Some people enjoy writing for the sake of it, while others want to develop and improve. If you fall into the latter category then read this. A creative writing lecturer and published author with a new novel The Dark Light out in July 2015, Julia Bell is one of the UK’s foremost authorities on creative writing. Here, she shares with us the top ten pieces of advice she gives her students at the start of each year.   Sometimes as a teacher you feel like you’re trapped in a groundhog day, repeating the same pieces of advice every year, just to a different cohort of students, although as I get older and more forgetful perhaps I’m just repeating myself and students are being too polite to call me on it. In any given year these are the pointers about writing good prose – novels and stories – that I find myself saying over and over, but they are also in themselves, light bulb moments from my own practice as writer.   (Read the Rest)

Top 10 historical fiction titles for youth

Booklist Feature Article Books For Youth - Fiction - Historical Fiction Top 10 Historical Fiction for Youth: 2015. Cooper, Ilene (author).   FEATURE.  First published April 15, 2015 (Booklist). This year’s top 10 historical fiction titles will transport young people from ancient times to 1960s America, with stops in different countries and centuries. All were reviewed in Booklist between April 15, 2014, and April 1, 2015.  Black Dove, White Raven. By Elizabeth Wein. 2015. Disney/Hyperion, $17.99 (9781423183105). Gr. 8–11. Deftly weaving in details about the 1935–36 Italo-Ethiopian War, Wein uses the essays, journal entries, and flight logs of teens Teo and Emilia to help tell the stunning story of their attempt to flee Ethiopia. (See our starred review on p.00.)

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Harper Lee Declared Fit to Publish

By Rachel Deahl,  

Apr 06, 2015

After the press jumped on reports that Harper Lee might not be mentally sound enough to have signed off on the publication of her forthcoming second novel, Go Set a Watchman, the state of Alabama has made the call. Over the weekend the New York Times, and other outlets, released the state's finding that Lee was not manipulated into signing a contract to publish the book. 

As the Times noted, state officials began the investigation after an anonymous complaint was filed claiming that Lee, who resides in an assisted living facility in the town of Monroeville, was coerced into the publishing deal forWatchman, which Harper acquired in February.

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The Case For Libraries

By David Vinjamuri, 

Apr 03, 2015 in Publisher's Weekly

When it comes to books, libraries and publishers should be in it together, argues a leading marketing expert. Publishers are running out of space. Not in their headquarters, some of which are larger and more imposing than ever, but in retail. The number of booksellers has been dwindling since the demise of Borders, and the largest book retailer today is Amazon, which has no physical space at all. So the question is, where can publishers showcase new books? If only there were a space dedicated primarily to reading that hundreds of millions of Americans visit annually. If only there existed a trusted space, free of the revenue pressure that necessitates displaying lightly pornographic books of debatable quality. If only there were a space largely inhabited by active readers, where publishers could showcase new authors or shine new light on talented mid-listers.

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50 Books to Read Before You Die

This is a list of books that can be found on a stainless steel bookmark available in most book stores. A great gift item for the book lover in your life. Fifty classic literary works from the world's great writers listed on a stainless steel bookmark. The only decision left to make is which order to read them in!

Source: barnesandnoble.com · Added by Krzysztof Dąbrowski

 79,269 users ·  442,687 views

How many have you read?

(Click here to go to the site and the list)

The Great 2014 Reading Habits Survey: The Results

(From the Book Riot Website -- BY REBECCA JOINES SCHINSKY   MAR 26, 2015)

In our first reader poll of 2015, we got all kinds of curious about your reading habits last year. 2511 awesome Riot readers responded, and it took us a while to dig through all the juicy data. And we’re still going! This post presents the reading and spending habits of the Riot readers who responded to the survey.

Before we dig in, it’s important to know that we have now way of knowing how representative (or not) the readers who opted in to this survey are of the general Book Riot audience, and no way of verifying these self-report numbers. But we trust our readers and have no reason to think they would lie in an anonymous survey, so. Let’s do this!

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B&N Execs Tout Promise of Retail-Digital Combination

When the spin-off of its college division is completed later this year, Barnes & Noble plans to sell both print and digital books, B&N Inc. CEO Mike Huseby told analysts during a conference call last week to discuss third-quarter results. Huseby said B&N remains committed to supporting Nook products and that executives believe Nook’s best chance for success comes from leveraging its connection to B&N’s retail stores.  B&N’s trade stores and Nook have “naturally overlapping customers and business partners” that focus on reading, Huseby said. B&N has no plans to sell Nook, and its current plan is to offer customers print and e-books, Huseby elaborated.

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Doing All Right: Taking the Temperature on Six Indie Bookstores

By Judith Rosen | 

Mar 20, 2015

Although the economics of operating an independent bookstore have improved since the end of the Great Recession, running a new store still poses challenges. For the past few years, PW has checked in annually with half a dozen bookstores from across the country that have been open for two years or less to see how they’re faring.

All the stores we surveyed this year are doing well. One factor in their success is that several of their owners have previous experience. Naomi Chamblin, co-owner of Napa Bookmine, in Napa, Calif., brings many years of experience to her new venture. She honed her bookselling chops at the largest used bookstore (55,000 sq. ft.) in northeast Florida: Jacksonville’s Chamblin Bookmine, which was founded by her father, Ron Chamblin. Brian Lampkin, majority owner of Scuppernong Books, in Greensboro, N.C., is also an experienced bookseller. He founded Rust Belt Books in Buffalo, N.Y., which he sold before heading south.

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Toni Morrison: Write, Erase, Do It Over

Interview by Rebecca Gross

Talking to Toni Morrison about failure is a bit like talking to Einstein about stupidity: it’s incongruous, to say the least. At 83, Morrison is one of the world’s best-known and most successful novelists, her awards list crammed with the heavyweights of literary prizes: among them, the 1988 Pulitzer Prize and American Book Award for Beloved; the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993 (the last U.S. author to receive it); the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012; and most recently, the Ivan Sandroff Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Book Critics Circle. As these accolades piled up, Morrison continued to work full-time as an editor or a professor of writing and literature—she wrote her first novel, The Bluest Eye (1970), while teaching at Howard University and raising two young sons on her own. Since then, she has written ten more novels (God Help the Child will be published later this year), several children’s books, two plays, and a number of nonfiction works. In all her projects, her words are at once incisive as a knife and poignant as a lullaby, weaving mesmerizing narratives that probe the complexities of the African-American experience. - 

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James Patterson to Donate $1.25M to Libraries

By Clare Swanson | 

Mar 09, 2015   Publisher's weekly

As part of a new initiative designed to raise awareness about the state of school libraries in the U.S., James Patterson announced that he will make a $1.25 million donation to school libraries across the country this year. Scholastic will match each dollar donated with bonus points, which teachers can use to acquire books and other materials for their classrooms, at every school that receives an award.

The program will launch with $1.25 million in grants that will be awarded on a rolling basis throughout the year. As of March 9, those interested in participating will be able to nominate a school for a donation by filling out a form with their school’s information and a short description of how their school library would use the money. All schools in the U.S. that serve students pre-K through 12th grade are eligible to win a grant; donations will range from $1,000 to $10,000 per school.

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