EarlyWord: The Publisher | Librarian Connection

Jean Craighead George Dies at 92

Lisa Von Drasek — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:30:47 +0000

I know we are still reeling from the loss of Maurice Sendak, but now we have to report the sad news that another children’s book icon, Jean Craighead George has died (as reported on Twitter last night by her agent, via Publishers Lunch). JeanGeorge was THE author for reluctant readers. She invented the adventure/survival genre for middle grade [...]

DARK PLACES, The Movie

Nora Rawlinson — Wed, 16 May 2012 12:50:04 +0000

The Cannes film festival opens today. With all those Hollywood types hanging out on the Croisette, there’s bound to be a lot of deal making. The Hollywood Reporter has the story on one of the first. Amy Adams is in talks to star in an adaptation of Edgar-finalist Gillian Flynn’s 2009 novel, Dark Places. If negotiations go well, [...]

New CW Teen Series

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:47:50 +0000

The CW network, well-known for its teen series, several of which are adapted from books (Gossip Girl, Vampire Diaries and The Secret Circle) is adding a record five new teen series to their upcoming schedule, according to Deadline. Among them is a series based on The Carrie Diaries and Summer in the City (both HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray), Candace [...]

FIFTY SHADES At The Beach

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:42:29 +0000

Following the bidding wars for Fifty Shades of Grey (which began its life as Master of the Universe on a Twilight fan fiction site) and the sci-fi Wool, Hollywood continues its fascination with self-pubbed titles. Film rights to Tracey Garvis-Graves’ On the Island, a NYT E-Book Fiction Best Seller (currently at #9 after 4 weeks; down from a [...]

YA GalleyChat Tomorrow!

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 14 May 2012 23:02:29 +0000

Please join us for the fourth installment of YA GalleyChat tomorrow, May 15, beginning at 4 p.m. ET (come a half hour early, at 3:30, for a get-to-know-each-other social). Information on how to join here. Mark your calendars — YA GalleyChat is the third Tuesday of every month. Over 40 titles were brought up. There was [...]

The Sci-Fi FIFTY SHADES

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:41:15 +0000

Deadline reports that there has been “something of a stampede of bidders” for the film rights to a self-pubbed science fiction title, Wool, which, because it’s “an internet sensation” that attracted the interest of Hollywood, is being called “the sci-fi version of Fifty Shades of Grey.” Publishers Weekly reported on the book early last month, [...]

FIFTY SHADES of THE VIEW

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:07:42 +0000

When asked what she thought of some libraries removing Fifty Shades of Grey from their shelves on The View on Friday, the book’s author, E.L. James responded, “I think people should read what they like, providing it is age appropriate,” bringing applause from the audience. The studio audience went away with a copy of the book (as well as [...]

THE ART OF INTELLIGENCE

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:54:06 +0000

The man who led the CIA’s anti-terrorism efforts, Henry Crumpton, said in an interview on CBS Sixty Minutes last night that there are “more foreign spies in the US than ever before.” Crumpton writes about his experiences in The Art of Intelligence. The embargoed book is being released today. An excerpt is on The Daily Beast. The [...]

Remembering Maurice Sendak

Nora Rawlinson — Fri, 11 May 2012 11:41:53 +0000

Perhaps the best of all the tributes flowing in for beloved author Maurice Sendak, who died at 83 on Tuesday, is the fact that his books instantly soared up Amazon’s best seller list, with Where the Wild Things Are moving up to #14. Sendak’s irreverent wit was on full display in an appearance on the Stephen [...]

New Title Radar: May 14 – 20

Charlotte Abbott — Fri, 11 May 2012 10:18:26 +0000

Our list of eleven titles you need to know next week, includes Jai Pausch’s memoir about coming to terms with the loss of her husband, Randy, whose book, The Last Lecture, has been an enduring favorite. The author of Friday Night Lights writes a new book about traveling with his brain-damaged son. On our Watch [...]

Clip of THE PAPERBOY

Nora Rawlinson — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:41:46 +0000

Clips are beginning to arrive online for films that will premiere at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival. The one below is from The Paperboy (via Rope of Silcon), based on National Book Award winning author Pete Dexter’s novel (Random House, 1995). It stars Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, Matthew McConaughey and John Cusack and is directed by Lee Daniels (Precious). [...]

Chelsea Cain to TV

Nora Rawlinson — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:23:29 +0000

Beautiful demonic serial killer Gretchen Lowell may materialize in a TV series. According to Deadline, FX has put Chelsea Cain’s books, Heartsick, Sweetheart and Evil At Heart, into development. No cast has been named. On her blog, Cain says she is “over the moon” that the network responsible for Justified, American Horror Story and Sons of Anarchy has given the green [...]

More Libraries Withdraw FIFTY SHADES

Nora Rawlinson — Thu, 10 May 2012 12:11:36 +0000

An Associated Press story released late yesterday uncovers more libraries withdrawing a #1 NYT Best seller weeks after it first arrived in that spot, Fifty Shades of Grey. Earlier in the week, the Palm Beach Post published a story about Brevard County withdrawing their copies. The AP reports that three other libraries have removed their [...]

ON THE ROAD to Hit Theaters This Fall

Nora Rawlinson — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:34:16 +0000

Walter Salles’s film of Jack Kerouac’s Beat Generation classic On The Road is set to premiere at the upcoming Cannes film festival. Distribution rights have just been picked up, with plans to release it in the fall, which means it will be eligible for 2013 Oscar nominations. The film includes so many marquee names that it will [...]

Brevard County Pulls FIFTY SHADES OF GREY

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 08 May 2012 16:08:20 +0000

The Palm Beach Post reported Friday that the Brevard County, Florida, public library system has pulled all but “a handful” of copies of Fifty Shades of Grey from their shelves (via E! Online). That handful must have been withdrawn since; the library catalog currently shows none of the titles in the trilogy. Library Director Cathy Schweinsberg [...]

Buzz Building for New Bio of Obama

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:39:39 +0000

The cover of the June issue of Vanity Fair features a photo from a new book about Marilyn Monroe (Lawrence Schiller’s Marilyn & Me: A Photographer’s Memories, RH/Doubleday/Nan A. Talese), but buzz is building about the magazine’s excerpt of another bio, David Maraniss’s Barack Obama: The Story. It features “the untold story” of Obama’s post-grad romance with former girlfriend [...]

Maurice Sendak Dies

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:01:52 +0000

Beloved children’s author, Maurice Sendak, died today at 83. In tribute, NPR’s web site is rerunning an interview from Fresh Air (audio to be available at 5 p.m. ET today). His iconoclastic humor was on full display in a recent appearance on the Stephen Colbert Report: Part One: Part Two (in which Sendak calls Colbert an [...]

DR. SLEEP Coming in January (UPDATE: Biblio Info Added)

Nora Rawlinson — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:37:08 +0000

Stephen King's next book, Dr. Sleep, is the sequel to The Shining. It was just announced that it will be published in January.

2012 James Beard Awards

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 07 May 2012 16:18:22 +0000

The big winner in this year’s James Beard Cookbook Awards is a big book; Modernist Cuisine was named the Cookbook of the Year, as well as winner in the Cooking from a Professional Point of View category. Just before the announcement, several publications, including the Wall Street Journal‘s SpeakEasy blog, covered the news that, despite [...]

What Mom Really Wants

Nora Rawlinson — Mon, 07 May 2012 13:15:52 +0000

Top Ten Graphic Memoirs

Nora Rawlinson — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:16:36 +0000

To celebrate the release of Alison Bechdel’s Are You My Mother?, Time magazine offers a slide show of ten other “unforgettable autobiographical comics,” beginning with Art Spiegelman’s Maus. Several libraries are showing heavy holds on Bechdel’s title. Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama Alison Bechdel Retail Price: $22.00 Hardcover: 304 pages Publisher: Houghton Mifflin [...]

Nonfiction Radar: May 7th – 13th

Charlotte Abbott — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:32:59 +0000

Arriving next week are a father-son memoir from Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez, biographies of Clarence Birdseye by the author of Cod and Salt and foodie Craig Claiborne by Thomas McNamee, plus a wacky self-help book from Augusten Burroughs. Along the Way: The Journey of Father and Son by Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez (S&S/Free Press) is a [...]

Kids and YA Radar: May 7th – 13th

Charlotte Abbott — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:15:02 +0000

For young adults next week, there’s Andrew Fukuda’s would-be successor to the Hunger Games (with the added element of vampires). In children’s books, Patterson continues his middle school series and Stephen Colbert tries to rival Maurice Sendak. YOUNG ADULT The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda (Macmillan/St. Martins/Griffin; Macmillan Audio) is the first in a new vampire series that is on many lists of what to read after The Hunger Games. PW says, [...]

Fiction Radar: May 7th – 13th

Charlotte Abbott — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:51:13 +0000

Media attention is focusing on next week’s titles from long-time literary stars Toni Morrison, and John Irving as well as Hilary Mantel’s sequel to Wolf Hall. There’s also a hot debut romance with a touch of time travel from newcomer Beatriz Williams, another doggy bestseller from Bruce Cameron, and a prequel to The Godfather. Returning favorites include James Patterson and Maxine Paetro and Richard Paul Evans. [...]

THE SELECTION a YA Best Seller

Nora Rawlinson — Thu, 03 May 2012 16:15:42 +0000

Author Kiera Cash gushes on her blog today (time-stamped 12:02 a.m. — did she have to sit on the news until it was official?), You guys! I’m totally a New York Times bestselling author! The Selection made it to #9 on the children’s list [the 5/13 NYT Chapter Books list]. My whole world is upside down! Thank you [...]