Sony plans a Kindle rival

Susie passed along to me an interesting link from the Chicago Tribune detailing Sony's plans to offer an e-book reader with the ability to wirelessly download books. The announcement is especially notable as it was held at the NY Public Library, underscoring that e-books will be available for "loan" from local libraries (unlike Amazon's Kindle which is not yet compatible with services such as MyMediaMall).

The new reader, just like Sony's current models, will be compatible with our MyMediaMall service.

Bite Me! (Or Don't) | Bitch Magazine

Bite Me! (Or Don't) | Bitch Magazine

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Top Selling Titles in Chicagoland for week ending 8/9/09

Top Titles in Chicagoland Last Week

The following were the bestselling titles at independent bookstores in the Chicago area during the week ended Sunday, August 9:

Hardcover Fiction
1. The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
2. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
3. That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo
4. Inherent Vice by Thomas Pynchon
5. The Amateurs by Marcus Sakey

Hardcover Nonfiction
1. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
2. Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
3. Fergie by Ferguson Jenkins
4. Dancing to the Precipice by Caroline Moorhead
5. Catastrophe by Dick Morris

Paperback Fiction
1. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
3. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
5. Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

Paperback Nonfiction
1. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell
2. My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud'Homme
3. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
4. When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
5. Ask Me About My Divorce by Candace Walsh

Disney & Mamet to Bring Anne Frank to Film

2009 Hugo Awards Announced

Attention Sci Fi fans---the best books and movies in science fiction have been recognized and awarded in Montreal.

I highly recommend The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman as a quick and entertaining read. It can be found in the 'Y' collection at Cook.

John Huges RIP

I didn't realize until his death, that almost all of my favorite movies had been directed by John Hughes (Planes, Trains & Automobiles; Ferris Beuhler; Breakfast Club, Uncle Buck and more). His movies always made me laugh out loud, yet they always seemed to have a warm heart and a strong positive message.

I ran across this blog today and it helped me see another part of this amazing and unconventional man.

The world without John Hughes will be colder and less funny.

NPR's Summer Reading List

In the category Better Late Than Never, here is NPR's picks for summer reading! They've selected some good ones!

Man Booker 2009 Long List released

Start your engines, readers! It's time for the Man Booker long list!

White Tiger into movie

Brief blurb in Variety announced that White Tiger by Aravind Adiga to be adapted for screen.

Ellen & Martha

LOL

Judy Blume signing at ALA

Still as fiesty and charming as ever!

Pix from ALA

Alexie Sherman signing at ALA. What a great smile!

Hunger Games & Catching Fire info

Apparently Suzanne Collins is also writing the screen play for the movie(s?) based on her Hunger Games trilogy. Check out this (unauthorized, but authoritative) website for more information!

Entertainment Weekly's new book blog

No longer do we have to torture ourselves by looking at the slick photos of gorgeous men and skinny, young women in the pages of EW just to get to the really important stuff--their book reviews. We can get it straight from the 'net now.

Frank McCourt Dead at 78

Frank McCourt, author of Angela's Ashes, died at age 78 from meningitis.

Frank McCourt Gravely Ill

Brief note about Frank McCourt's meningitis, from which he is not expected to survive.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

ALA 2009

ALA July 2009. Chicago IL. McCormick Place.

President's Keynote Address 8 a.m. Saturday
Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked, spoke about "Playing with Stolen Property", as he calls his technique of giving new life to characters familiar to all. He talked about playing Oz with his many siblings and giving the baby the role of the Wicked Witch and putting him by the edge of the house. That worked until the baby had wriggled himself under the front porch and started gagging on dirt....Mom's arrival to rescue the baby ended that game of Oz, but left Maguire with stories he needed to tell about Oz.

Maguire's newest project will be Matchless, a holiday retelling of the Little Match Girl, for NPR to be released this holiday season. Four stars.

Blogging and Books: Made for Each Other?
Panelists John Green, Kaite Mediatore Stover, Mary Burkey, and Nora Rawlinson held a lively discussion moderated by Keir Graff about the reasons they blog about books and audiobooks. Just looking at John Green would have been enough to make me happy, but he's also quite funny and articulate. Entertaining AND informative! Four stars.

Things That Go Bump in the Stacks: Paranormal Literature
Charlaine Harris, Marjorie Liu, and Charlie Huston spoke about the hottest new fiction trend and their own books, all of which have vampires in very different settings. The clear audience favorite on the panel was Charlaine Harris. Charlie Huston started writing out of desperation so he didn't have to continue tending bar and Majorie Liu, a very prolific writing about vampires in urban lit, clearly must be a better writer than she was a speaker. I did leave the session wanting to read at least one Sookie Stackhouse books to see what the fuss is all about. Three and a half stars.

President’s Program: Literacy Leadership and Librarian
Laurie Halse Anderson, Alan Sitomer and Jacqueline Woodson spoke about the booming field of YA literature and what impact it can have on its teen readers. Sitomer, who was California teacher of the year in 2007, has written several books inspired by his inner city students' lives. Woodson and Anderson both raved about the impact public libraries had on their lives, Anderson going went so far as to assert that they saved her life. Anderson had to leave the session early to receive the Margaret A. Evans award for her writing. She was wearing pink sneakers with I (heart) M.A.E. on them! Four stars.

Giving Maps a Second Life with Digital Technology
David Rumsey is an amazing man. After making a killing in the commercial real estate market in the 1990s, he now spends his time digitizing and making available to everyone anywhere his collection of 20,000 historical maps. He created a map island in Second Life where scholars and other map lovers can get up close to Rumsey's maps, many of which are real works of art as well as important historical documents. The fact that this man is spending so much of his own time and money to make these maps available to everyone for free is truly awe-inspiring. Four stars.

Can't miss the Parade of Bookmobiles, at which Cook and Julie Abbot did us proud. Here it is in front of McCormick Place: http://www.flickr.com/photos/libraryjournal/3716641659/

Random House Unveils "Lost Symbol" Jacket

Let the Dan Brown marketing drums begin!

Teen Fiction Plots Are Darker and Starker

Despite it's alarmist headline, this is a pretty good article about the current trends in YA literature.