August 26, 2013 On the Shelf New Salinger, and Other News By Sadie Stein We like this slideshow of images from the Hargeisa International Book Fair, but are somewhat confused by the headline “Somaliland goes crazy for books.” According to the upcoming Salinger documentary, the famous recluse instructed his estate to publish at least five posthumous books, starting in 2015. When he was a carpenter, Harrison Ford worked on Joan Didion’s beach house. Says she, “I was happy with his work—and even happier with his presence in the house because he was a great moral force.” He’ll present her with a lifetime achievement award at the PEN Center USA dinner in October. Here are all of Elmore Leonard’s opening lines.
August 23, 2013 On the Shelf Ancient Vintage, and Other News By Sadie Stein At various points, the FBI suspected William Vollmann of being the Unabomber, the anthrax mailer, and a terrorist training with the Afghan mujahideen. “Reviewers have the right to rate a book however they feel like, with absolutely no justification what so ever. Get over it princess.” A young writer accuses Goodreads of a culture of bullying. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a big fan of Victor Hugo. Italian archaeologists are growing grapes with an eye to crafting an ancient-style wine according to techniques described by Virgil.
August 22, 2013 On the Shelf A Kerouac Muse Dies, and Other News By Sadie Stein Beatrice Kozera, the real-life inspiration for “Terry, the Mexican girl” in On the Road, has died, at ninety-two. Apparently she only learned of her involvement a few years ago. Monica Ali is one of the new faces of Marks and Spencer. “In a sign of the times, aspiring astronauts were asked to write a Twitter post, a limerick or a haiku as part of their NASA applications.” A good sign? Reports of the Nook’s death were greatly exaggerated. Is Edward Snowden really Thomas Pynchon?
August 21, 2013 On the Shelf This Book Is Controversial, and Other News By Sadie Stein Labeling it gay propaganda, an official in the Saratov region of Russia has called for the removal of LGBT history book Gays: They Changed the World (pictured above) from bookstore shelves. “When you meet somebody who bores you, you have to put up with him until he leaves. But when you meet a boring character, you turn the page.” In memory of Elmore Leonard, Esquire runs the “What I’ve Learned” feature the author did in 2005. Meanwhile, the New York Times gives us a compendium of the vast number of adaptations spawned by Leonard’s work. Rob Sheffield, author of karaoke memoir Turn Around Bright Eyes, suggests appropriate song choices for Gertrude Stein, James Joyce, and others. Bookshelfies—in which people take self-portraits in front of their bookshelves—is both a word and a thing.
August 20, 2013 On the Shelf Mark Twain Designed His Own Notebooks, and Other News By Sadie Stein Twain’s notebooks, Plath’s pens, and other preferred writing paraphernalia of famous authors. Via the minds at McSweeney’s, an invaluable Field Guide to Uncommon Punctuation. An elaborate, book-themed proposal involving a custom children’s book, a library, and a lot of planning. The Today Show has reanimated its book club, and kicked off with The Bone Season, by twenty-one-year-old Samantha Shannon. (“The next Rowling?” asks Today, unfortunately.)
August 19, 2013 On the Shelf Heartless Thief Steals Books on Bikes Bicycle, and Other News By Sadie Stein Shocking, shocking: a Seattle thief has stolen the Books on Bikes librarian’s bicycle. Thankfully, the trailer of books was not attached. “Sixty percent of the thirty-six books recommended for four-to-eight-year-olds feature animals, or are in other ways concerned with nature. For the nine-to-twelve age group, it’s just over fifty percent.” Why are children’s books so preoccupied with fauna? Casual sex: a great way to get book recommendations! By contrast: an interview with the author of the best-selling The Art of Sleeping Alone: Why One French Woman Gave Up Sex. (This is, obviously, the English title; French people are presumably less obsessed with French women than are anglophones.) Behold: the trailer for C.O.G., adapted from David Sedaris’s Naked! Read More