Man Booker longlist 2009

The longlist for the Man Booker prize 2009 has been announced.

Britain's best book borrower?

The Guardian reports that a 91-year-old library member in Scotland is probably Britain's most prolific book borrower. Staff noticed that she was up to her 25 000th loan! She now reads about 12 books per week, mostly romance, and first borrowed in 1946.

The Pearls of reading

Nancy (BookLust) Pearl’s approach to helping people find books they like, is to elucidate from readers the characteristics they find especially appealing about books they already know. She delineates these “appeal characteristics” as:

· Character Example: A Prayer for Owen Meany
· Setting Example: The Shipping News
· Story Example: The Pelican Brief
· Language Example: Possession
Embracing all four (the blockbusters) Example: Lonesome Dove

http://www.nancypearl.com/

By looking at these examples and other books you have read, people can delve within themselves to determine what characteristics they find most appealing. Of course, different people respond in distinct ways, loving certain books for totally unique reasons. Many are surprised when they analyze their reading pleasures in this manner.

A little exercise to try –
Write down your all time five favourite books.
Look at what is common to all of them – is it the story line, characterization, the setting or the way it is written?
Is one different? If so consider what type of mood you were in when you read this. Sometimes your mood may change what most appeals to you at that time.

Happy Reading!!

- Fran

Library-a-go-go!

The Contra Costa County Library in California has launched a 'library-a-go-go' service. It is like a vending machine, but it lends library books.

Definitive list of novels everyone must read

The Guardian reports that they have compiled a 'definitive' list of the top 1000 novels that everyone should read. I'm sure there are people who might find something missing from the list, but 1000 is a lot of books. They're handily split into genre types. Although 'War and travel' seems strange combination. In any case, I'm sure you'll get some good suggestions from the list.

Man Booker shortlist announced

The shortlist for the Man Booker Prize was announced yesterday. Included in the six finalists is Australian author Steve Toltz for his first novel A fraction of the whole.

Americans flock to libraries

As times get financially tougher in the United States libraries are experiencing increased circulation figures. According to a press release from the American Library Association libraries have clocked up a 10% increase in both items borrowed and library visits since the last economic downturn in 2001.

ALA President Jim Rettig said, “During tough economic times, people turn to libraries for their incredible array of free resources, from computers to books, DVDs and CDs, for help with a job hunt or health information. The average annual cost to the taxpayer for access to this wide range of resources is about $31, the cost of one hardcover book. In good times or bad, libraries are a great value!”

Worst writing of 2008

The annual Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest awards prizes for the worst writing of the year. Named after the infamous author whose novel began: 'It was a dark and stormy night...' contestants submit the opening scentences of imaginary novels. This year's top honours went to Garrison Spik for his steamy opener comparing love to a New York street:

"Theirs was a New York love, a checkered taxi ride burning rubber, and like the city their passion was open 24/7, steam rising from their bodies like slick streets exhaling warm, moist, white breath through manhole covers stamped 'Forged by DeLaney Bros., Piscataway, N.J."'

Best of Booker goes to Rushdie

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie has won the 'Best of Booker' award. The book originally won the Booker prize in 1981 and was selected as one of the six finalists for the Best of Booker. Over 7800 people from around the world voted online and via SMS and gave Midnight's Children 36% of the vote. To view availability and place your hold on this title (or others by Rushdie) please visit our online catalogue.

The science of fiction

The New Scientist 28th June issue reports on the mental benefits of reading fiction. Keith Oatley, a professor emeritus of cognitive psychology, has conducted research which shows that people who read more fiction may find it easier to discern the thoughts and feelings expressed by people's eyes. He likens fiction to a simulation that runs on the software of our minds, and may help us when negotiating the complexities of social life.

Miles Franklin award winner 2008

This year's Miles Franklin Award has gone to Steven Carroll for his novel The time we have taken. Set in suburban Melbourne of the 1970's the novel is described by the judges as a 'moving and indelible in its evocation of the extraordinary in ordinary lives'.

Carroll said of the award:

"It's instantly recognisable so hopefully these things help you and kick in
and help you in your writing career and make sure it doesn't go bum."

Here's the link to the ABC news story.
Manly Library has several copies of the book. To check availability and place your hold please visit our online catalogue.

LibriVox

LibriVox is a site that hosts audio book versions of books that are in the public domain. They are read and recorded by volunteers and hosted on the site for download. They just reached 1500 titles in the collection.

We’ve had a pretty extraordinary May. We cataloged our 1,500th book, James Baldwin’s children’s history book, Four Great Americans, which was a great accomplishment. (Considering seven months ago we were at 1,000). But we also had an impressively productive month: we released 115 (!) audiobooks into the public domain, almost four per day. Our previous record for monthly production was 77, reached in July 2007.

Book sculpture

If you're anywhere near Mandurah in Western Australia you should get along to the Falcon Library to check out Graham Hay's book sculpture.

Based on the idea of creating a shaped stack of the books a person could read in a lifetime, all the books are for sale, with proceeds going to the Save the Children fund.

Goodness knows what would happen if you wanted the one on the bottom.

http://www.grahamhay.com.au/200805Falcon.html

Books that changed the lives of scientists

New Scientist magazine recently interviewed a number of scientists about the books that changed their lives. Some interesting selections and most I have not read. Science fiction classic Do androids dream of electric sheep? by Philip K. Dick was selected by Chris Frith, a neuroscientist. One of the key themes of Dick's writing has influenced Frith throughout his work on schizophrenia: how can I be sure that you are hallucinating while what I experience is reality? Interesting thought.

- Anne

Book Crossing

Book Crossing is a catch and release community for books around the world. Books are tagged with a Book Crossing ID, and are registered on the site. Then they are released into the wild - sometimes with clues to their location. The next person who finds the book can log in to the site and review the book before releasing it again! The book might have traveled around the world, and it's progress can be followed.

On Tuesday I came across a Book Crossing book in a phone booth. It was a cold and stormy night and the label on the front said 'Take me home!' so I could hardly refuse. It's chicklit, which I'm not really into, but I'm going to give it a go.

To hunt for active book releases in New South Wales check this page.

- Anne

Putting a figure on it

For a few years now I’ve spent three or four hours a day commuting to and from work by public transport. This gives me plenty of time to read, and I get through several books a week, mostly fiction, sometimes history or biography or current affairs. But we’re on a tight budget, so I don’t buy many at full price. Sometimes they’re books I’ve picked up in op-shops or jumble sales, but on the whole the place that supplies most of my reading material is Manly Library.

I did the sums recently. Say five or so books a week for ten years: that amounts to 2,500 books. Given that they’re mostly new or recent hardbacks, paying full price for them from the shop at, say, $40 each would come to $100,000. This doesn’t take into account other stuff that I borrow for the family, such as children’s picture books, DVDs, CDs or magazines. Over my reading lifetime, to my amazement, I find that the total so far must amount to something like half a million dollars! And my eyes aren’t worn out yet! And I’m in no danger of exhausting the Library’s resources, because there are still so many great books to read.

It’s not as though I’m a particularly heavy user of the Library, either, because we know there are borrowers out there who go through a couple of books a day. All I know is, I owe a huge six-figure debt to all the public libraries I’ve ever belonged to, and I know my imagination would be much the poorer without the inspiration libraries have provided.

- John MacRitchie

Elvis' library card for sale

Elvis' earliest known signature was found on a library book slip he signed in 7th grade in Tupelo Mississippi. The book was English Fairy Tales by Flora Annie Steel. Apparently the bidding started at US$45 000.

Ann Skea interviewed

Fantastic and prolific contributor of reviews to Novel Ideas, Ann Skea, was interviewed on Wednesday's Radio National Book Show on ABC Radio. She discusses the poetry of Ted Hughes. The audio is available to stream and download here: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookshow/stories/2008/2175268.htm

Books clean up at Academy Awards

Movies based on books have scored well at the Oscars this year. Cormac McCarthy's No country for old men adapted by the Coen Brothers won four Oscars including best picture. Robert Ludlum's Bourne Ultimatum scored three, and the adaptation of Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass took the visual effects prize. There will be blood, which was based on Upton Sinclair's Oil, blood won for best cinematography.

Word is that the Coen Brothers are looking to do Michael Chabon's The Yiddish policemen's union next.

Dawn of the eBook?

The Times reports that two of Britains largest publishers: Random House and Hachette, are all set to offer dozens of bestsellers in eBook form in the coming months. Two rival eBook readers are being released soon - Sony's 'Reader' and Amazon's 'Kindle'. These new generation eBook readers offer a more paper-like screen with chemical 'eInk' which forms and reforms letters. Previous eBook readers had a back-lit display.

Read more in the article.

(P.S. this is Novel Ideas' 100th blog post. Woohoo!)