I can't explain the book/word/art collaboration known as Round Robin, but Grain Edit can. Book Products
Bookplates from Mac & Ninny Paper Co.
Get a painting of your favorite books on your own bookshelf here at Ideal Bookshelf. Beautiful work!
Children's Books
Remember the children's book Stephen Colbert wrote during the Maurice Sendak interviews I posted a couple of weeks ago? Well, surprise, surprise, it's getting published.
"From the retrotastic typographic signage to the beautiful vintage color
schemes, these storefronts are priceless time-capsules of an era as
faded as their paint coats, haunting ghosts caught in the machine of
progress." Read more in this article.
William Blake is one of my favorite poets. This Brazilian short film was inspired by his poem The Tyger.
(Shout out of thanks to Chelsea for turning me on to this!)
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art.
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
Each week I round-up all the (mostly book-related) articles/blog
posts/book reviews/websites/videos that entertained me during the week.
Enjoy!
Articles
The New York Times offers a slideshow of "Books as a Way to Grace a Room" - if you can stomach how much money people spend on the personalized service hired here, it's worth the look.
Book Trailer of the Week
Thank you to Publishing Perspectives for turning me on to this book trailer for "La agenda del fin del mundo
(Diary for the End of the World), an irreverent 2012 almanac and agenda
featuring anecdotes, sound bites and trivia that topped Amazon Spain’s
bestseller list." I wish I could get my hands on one!
Children's Books
The appropriate follow-up to the Colbert/Sendak interviews regarding Colbert's proposed children's book, I am a Flag Pole, and So Can You. From Melville House.
Milk + Bookies is a "non-profit organization that exposes young children to how great it
feels to give back while celebrating the love of a good book."
Introvert or Extrovert? Take the informal quiz at NPR's interview with the author of Quiet, Please. I'm apparently split right down the middle - what does that mean?
Video
An absolutely mesmerizing and magical 15-minute film, nominated for an Oscar, all about the power of books.
This IS a UK-based site, so I don't know how applicable it will be to most of the readers of this blog, but this is an idea I've been in support of for a long time - smaller, quicker reads for commuters, non-readers, and anyone else looking for a small, quick read. QuickReads
For all other English language enthusiasts, I stumbled across this site: English Language & Usage (and no, I'm not promoting it solely because they use my ampersand tattoo as their and symbol). "This is a collaboratively edited question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It's 100% free, no registration required."
Okay, okay, THIRD Flavorwire article of the week: "10 Legendary Bad Girls of Literature" (I had to include it, especially as I think they did a much better job on this list than the previous 10 Legendary Bad Boys of Literature).
I have never been to this bookstore, but if I ever find myself spending time in LA (doubtful), you can bet this will be my first stop. This is the article that got me interested. The sentences that sold it for me?
"The Last Bookstore lets you hold a new or used book in your hands in a
chic-vintage, one-of-a-kind interior. The store is decorated with things
like elephant tusks and mannequins. Even when you go to the checkout,
you will see that the counter is made up of books. It’s like an Amoeba
Records meets Best Buy meets Borders meets Goodwill, decorated by
someone’s hipster sister."
How could you not want to go see a store like that?
Dr. Seuss was almost never published! But a chance street encounter led to the fateful publication of And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. NPR relates "How Dr. Seuss Got His Start 'On Mulberry Street'".
Want to know what district you'd live in, if you were in Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games? Check out this map of Panem. I'd be living in the Wilderness which I'm pretty happy about.
"20 Heroic Librarians Who Save the World" - and yes, I've seen all THREE The Librarian films (though whether I'm proud or ashamed of that, I haven't figured out yet). Also, you must read that Garth Nix series if you haven't already. Lastly, HUGE crush on Giles, even though I'm not a Buffy fan.
Feeling both betrayed and excited: former librarian and independent bookstore advocate, Nancy Pearl, presents Book Lust Rediscoveries, a series published by Amazon.com (ew.).
Amazing idea of the week! Weller Books is doing a huge "book drop" around the city to advertise their grand re-opening. Read about it here.
Obviously this travel bookcase is what I'll be taking on my next vacation. Ms. Crowe - is this how you do it?
"We all read in the Yellow Trolley Bus" in Bulgaria. This cool public library housed in an old trolley bus on a deserted city street is right up there with the Book Barge in the UK for its unique idea and brilliant execution.
Publisher's Weekly reports on Chicken House - the children's publishing company begun by the man who discovered JK Rowling's Harry Potter in the UK - expanding to the Netherlands in "Chicken House Goes Dutch".
Contests
It's that time again! (I say that like I've done this before. I haven't.) "It is time to announce the contestants, judges, and brackets for the
original, one-and-only, full-combat,
oddly-predictive-of-the-Pulitzer-Prize, eighth annual TMN Tournament of
Books, coming March 2012, presented by Field Notes." Don't know what I'm talking about? Check it out here.
Libraries
Moment of silent appreciation for the Kansas City Public Library.
And while we're at it, Fabulous Web has a round-up of "Trendy and Stylish Bookshelves Designs" (a lot of which you can see at the side of this blog in my "Porn for Booklovers" section).
I happen to be Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham. Could be worse.
You’re the imperious, aristocratic head of your family who (almost)
always gets her way, and you don’t suffer fools gladly. Though you’re
often bossy and arrogant, you’re surprisingly adaptable and
exceptionally loyal to the people you love. By the way, you also get all
the best lines, so we hope you’re ready for immortality. But you should
really look up the definition of “weekend.”
David Foster Wallace showcases his early writing talents in a response to a fellow Amherst College student's Letter to the Editor back in the 80s: "Stick Them In Your Ear"
Suggested Chanukah romance novel titles, to compete with the onslaught of Christmas romance novel titles (sadly none of these actually exist): "Love Among the Latkes"
Okay, okay, I know - two weeks in a row of something not entirely book related, but I think I should just add "cartography" to the list of "other" things that might be mentioned on this blog and be done with it.
Thanks to Molly over at Adventures of a Blonde Librarian for recommending this quiz: Famous Female Heroines (in children's books). I got 9 out of 10, having never read the final book on the quiz. Obviously now I'll have to pick up some Robin McKinley.
ReadIt1st is a website where you can sign up to receive newsletters about what movies coming out are adaptations of books. You can pledge to read the book first or read the book whenever you want, but either way, read the book and get the news about the movies.
BookSneeze is a way for bloggers to receive free books in exchange for a book review. While not for everyone, it IS another way to get some free books. The catch is you have to blog your review, whether good or bad, stating that you received it from the publisher, and you have to post it on a commercial site, and send these links back to BookSneeze. Lots of Christian/Religion/Spirituality-focused books, just FYI.
For New Yorkers: NewYorkBoundBooks.com is a new website dedicated to bringing you "all things New York for readers and writers". I'm not entirely sure what that means, but it's the online offshoot of the former brisk & mortar in Rockefeller Center, as well as the online stomping grounds of Barbara Cohen, former owner & operator of said bricks & mortar.
The English Spelling Society. I want to be supportive, but reading over the site, I'm more than a little confused what exactly it, ya know, does. Maybe it's just me, but I was actually a little put off by its aggressive, almost anti-English, tone. Or perhaps I was oddly sensitive the day I discovered it.
Each week I round-up all the (mostly book-related) articles/blog
posts/book reviews/websites/videos that entertained me during the week.
Enjoy!
Articles
Publishing Perspectives talks about transmedia (no, not media about trans folks, publishing across platforms), as in what is it, who should use it, and when.
The Guardian hosts a series in conjunction with Hive Network that allows the average customer to ask hard-hitting book industry questions of independent booksellers. Fantastic, and so much to read through/listen to.
Cheating a bit with this, as it's not even remotely book-related, but it was too funny to not share. Besides, it's my blog and I'll post about maps if I want to. :)
Children's Books
Publisher's Weekly covers the conversation between four picture book authors who discuss writing funny.
The Banksy of Book Sculpting: The full story of The Library Phantom who left 10 book sculptures all over Edinburgh, Scotland. If only we could convince her to come to the States.
Taschen publishes absolutely lovely coffee-table art books. The Selby features photographs of the house of and a brief interview with Angelika Taschen.
A really fascinating run-down of one book publication journey, from a self-published author with an agent. He rates himself on how well he did at each step. Gives you a lot to think about.
GalleyCat features directions on how to make a secret door out of a bookcase. Someday when I have my own...something (apt? house? building), that has to happen.
Children's Books
100 Scope Notes features a really lovely interview between Caldecott-winning illustrators Jerry Pinkney and Erin E. Stead.
BrainPickings showcases their list of "The 11 Best Illustrated Children's and Picture Books of 2011" and I don't disagree with them. These books are gorgeous. Though I would add a couple more to the list like Goliath from the Leviathan trilogy and anything Lane Smith has put out in the past year.
A fascinating article about an Indian publishing company
that specializes in illustrated books for the adult market (not
adult-content, just adult non-fiction). I'm a huge fan of the actual illustrated
book (you'll see a lot of what they publish have photographs), both
fiction and non-fiction for adults, and would love to see publishing
companies doing more of that.
Articles
