November 5, 2010
So did you watch The Walking Dead? I was excited as could be for the Halloween premiere of the TV show, based on one of my favorite current ongoing series. They did a remarkable job of preserving the quality and content of the comics series and transforming it onto the small screen. Carol and I emailed back and forth as we were watching; Carol’s never read the series, and she’s now intrigued enough to check it out. I think it further proves how diverse the comics-reading audience can be and how well-done representations of those comics (such as this TV show) can help the entire community at large reach out to new readers. I hope the trend continues.
This contest, Meanings of Hunger, asks students, no older than 18 years to get involved in exploring an aspect of hunger that interests them. The contest is simple but has room for a lot of creativity: students use the definition of hunger as inspiration to explore an aspect of hunger that interests them. Possible projects range from a poem or essay about hunger to a diorama of a refugee camp in Darfur.
Just last month The Man Booker Prize for fiction was announced and is now seeing a huge boost in sales as a result. And for good reason, The Man Booker Prize first awarded in 1969, promotes the finest in fiction by rewarding the very best book of the year. And with vetting like that, it only make sense that serious readers would take notice. So, if you're looking for ideas for book club over the next few months, consider this year's winner - or one of the other great titles that made the shortlist:
I think you should read today's guest blog post next. 'Nuff said.
There's no room for the underdogs on the bestseller lists these days! From top to bottom, it's practically a who's who of the bookworld, more or less. It certainly seems the big guns are being drawn for the holidays!
John Grisham holds the top spot nationwide with THE CONFESSION, followed in no certain order by David Sedaris, Vince Flynn, Ken Follett, Jan Karon, Elmore Leonard, John le Carre, Lee Child, Kathryn Stockett (still on the list!!!), and Stieg Larsson.
As a teen, I wanted to write books like the ones I loved to read, but I didn’t believe it possible. I grew up in the boonies of Maine! How could I ever get a terrific idea like having a spider rescue a runt who turns out to be SOME PIG?
Through the years, I've been a member of several reading groups. Unfortunately, they've rarely involved graphic novels (and when they did, it was at my suggestion). This is why I've always loved events like comics conventions: By and large, the vast majority of my friends and family do not read comics, so conventions were always a chance to meet with like-minded people.
Check out Bookreporter.com's Coming Soon list to stay up to date on all the latest titles as well as those coming in the weeks and months ahead!
On Sale This Week:
Flynn Meaney's debut novel, BLOODTHIRSTY, offers a refreshing new take on those fearsome fanged foes everyone has been head over heels for these days. In celebration of NaNoWriMo and Halloween, Flynn tells Teenreads about her Top 5 Scariest Aspects of Writing a Book.
