The draft cover for Meghan McCain‘s forthcoming book, Dirty Sexy Politics, starring an elephant named Thai, is a lot less dirty and sexy than we expected. But I guess she is a senator’s daughter with an image to uphold … [Hyperion Books] Keep reading »
Earlier this week marked the 50th anniversary of the classic novel To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. In the past half-century, Scout, Jem, Atticus and, of course, Boo Radley have charmed millions of readers (if not necessarily high school English classes) with their tale about coming of age, family, and racism in the South. I can’t be the only one who was inspired as a kid by spunky Scout and her wild imagination! This summer, libraries and book clubs around the U.S. and Canada are celebrating the 50th anniversary, so be sure to check out events in your area.
WIN THIS! We’re giving away one copy of the special 50th anniversary edition of To Kill A Mockingbird, plus a new companion book, Scout, Atticus, and Boo: A Celebration of 50 Years of To Kill A Mockingbird, a collection of interviews with famous authors on how Harper Lee’s novel influenced their own work. But you have to work if you want them! In the comments, tell us which was the most memorable book you read in high school English class and why by 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, July 22. We’ll pick our favorite response and announce the winner Friday, July 23. You must live in the U.S. or Canada to win. Good luck!
[Images: Barnes&Noble/Harper Collins] Keep reading »
Anne Frank‘s hormones are not the first thing that comes to mind when one remembers the world’s most famous teenage girl. But Sharon Dogar, a young adult author, has made it so in a fictionalized version of Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl. Annexed is an allegedly a “racy diary” about Anne’s relationship with Peter Van Pels, who hid from the Nazis alongside the Frank family in an Amsterdam office building — including a story about the youngsters having sex. Keep reading »
When I’m feeling down there are three books I turn to: Matilda by Roald Dahl, Alice In Wonderland by C.S. Lewis Lewis Carroll, and Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion. This has been pretty consistent throughout my life. When I was 14 and all my friends decided they didn’t like me in one of those ways that only needs to happen to you once to scar you into thinking that large groups of girls are terrifying, I locked myself in my moodily painted deep purple room and read each one of these in a row. When I was 18 and my boyfriend dumped me three days before prom to go with another girl, I once again turned to these books. When I was in college and I walked in on a guy I thought I was in love with having sex with another girl (his argument was because he didn’t know her name it didn’t matter), the first place I went to was the library. And now, once again, I’m turning to these books to help me through a breakup. Keep reading »
I feel bad for Emily Gould. Next week, the former editor of gossip blog Gawker.com will publish her first book, a collection of personal essays called And The Heart Says Whatever. And when I think about what’s going to happen to her, I just want to shield my eyes.
You see, almost two years ago exactly, Emily Gould landed on the cover of The New York Times Magazine for an article published in it, “Exposed: Blog Post Confidential.” If people hated her article (several thousand words about how her sometimes nasty blogging for Gawker complicated or ruined her personal relationships), they hated her cover photo even more: Gould lying on her bed in a tank top, staring up at the camera. The types of internet comments her piece provoked included cyberbullying-ish put-downs like “narcissists,” “narcissistic pipsqueak,” “immature,” “intellectual midget,” “navel-gazing,” “idiots with big mouths,” “undiagnosed psych disorder,” and “Now I understand the timeless appeal of public stoning.” Yeesh.
As another young female writer, watching this scared the crap out of me. I should probably be old enough to know better than to get rattled by all that haterade, but I worry about the young female writers in high schools across the country who see that and then learn, “This is what will happen if I write about myself.” Keep reading »
“Beverly Hills 90210″
“The Hills” Keep reading »
A is for Anarchy
there’s really no rules,
If you’re a punk rocker
you think this is cool
This is the first page of Never Mind Your P’s and Q’s: Here’s the Punk Alphabet, by Paul McNeil and Barry Divola — it’s an alphabet book where each letter teaches kids about punk rock-ery, like Sid Vicious, the Sex Pistols and mohawks. Hey, I’m totally behind any book that encourages children to think outside the box and cultivate originality! But methinks this “children’s book” will mostly be popular with the very, very large children who buy their reading material at Urban Outfitters. [Soundscreen Design] Keep reading »
There have been a few books in recent years that have evoked such strong emotions that people pretty much love them or they hate them. One is Twilight, of course, and another is the memoir Eat, Pray, Love. Even if you have never read Eat, Pray, Love, you probably know the plot already: After a divorce, journalist Elizabeth Gilbert takes a year of her life off to travel, spending three months each in Italy, India and Bali. Gilbert eats good food, quiets the anxiety within her, and falls in love. It’s travel porn for those of us chained to our laptops in perpetuity, but in an utterly unique way, it’s freedom porn, too. Who amongst us hasn’t wanted to do what Gilbert did: secure a book advance, leave the ex-husband/boyfriend behind, and go to three of the most beautiful places in the world in an attempt to lift our depression?
But Eat, Pray, Love the book (and soon, “Eat, Pray, Love” the movie, starring Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem) has turned out to be a lightening rod of controversy in the most disappointing of ways. The negative reactions to “Eat, Pray, Love” show just how resentful, bitter, contradictory, and quite frankly, hate-filled we are towards a woman who does something for herself. Keep reading »
Whenever I’m going through an existential crisis, reading a great book usually helps. Clearly, 46-year-old Nina Sankovitch of Connecticut understands the profound satisfaction that can be found from sitting down with a good read. She’s close to finishing a mission to read one book every day for a year and blog about it. Yes! Every. Single. Day. Even holidays. She may be my new hero. Keep reading »
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