Wow. Pretty much all you could wish for in an overview of the ancient astronaut sub-genre of science fiction, which thrived in the U.S. in the 1960s and 1970s. Nathan Schneider’s detailed examination of the phenomenon, which often incorporates an element of technological apocalypse, includes discussion of the Hebrew Bible; Garrett P. Serviss’s Edison’s [...]
Tagged aliens, ancient astronauts, fantasy, science fiction, sitchin, sub-genre, supernaturalThe Fiction-L discussion list came up with these social networking sites that are useful for readers advisory — which means for finding books that might interest you, and for sharing books and the enjoyment of reading them with others.
Social LIbraries
aNobii (from Latin for ‘bookworm’): List books, share thoughts, meet People. Links to Amazon details and [...]
“Tony Hillerman, whose lyrical, authentic and compelling mystery novels set among the Navajos of the Southwest blazed innovative trails in the American detective story, died Sunday at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, The Associated Press reported.
“He was 83 and lived in Albuquerque.
“The cause was pulmonary failure, according to the AP report.”
Much more at the NYT. Also [...]
Tagged crime novels, deaths. western U.S., hillerman, mysteries, novelist, obituaries, tony hillermanCool idea. Santa Monica (CA) Public Library hosted the first U.S. Living Library event on Saturday. The Living Library concept, which started in Europe as a way to challenge prejudice and reduce violence, allows “library visitors to book half-hour meetings with individuals with special interests, beliefs, or experiences.” Organizers said that “all ‘the Living Books’ [...]
Reuters reports steady and increasing sales of books about finance, cookbooks, and mysteries and thrillers, as people struggle with money issues, make more meals at home, and seek an escape from difficult times. Among the titles mentioned are the new authorized biography of Warren Buffet, The Snowball, Stop the 401(k) Rip-off!: Eliminate Costly Hidden Fees [...]
Tagged economic downturn, finance, financial fictionOver on the Fiction-L list of librarians and others, there’s been discussion lately about how and why to use LibraryThing professionally as well as personally. Among the clever ideas:
Keep track of what readers are reading and talking about, using the group forum topics as a guide.
Keep up with library uses of LibraryThing via the group [...]
… as determined by a panel “of major and independent booksellers and representatives of reading groups, as well as World Book Day organisers.” The full list is in the Telegraph and includes a host of books I’ve never heard of. Might be a good reading group selection tool. You can vote for your favourite title.
Some [...]
As you can see, I’ve changed the format of this weblog. Hope you like it!
Shelf Awareness reports that “‘To satisfy the public’s craving for financial advice,’ Borders has created front-of-store displays in all its superstores that feature finance and personal-finance titles;” Barnes & Noble is doing something similar.
Borders’ business book buyer Michael D’Agostini lists these five as most popular with customers:
The Trillion Dollar Meltdown: Easy money, high rollers, and [...]
Slate offers a slideshow of children’s books for tough financial times (and a few TV shows, too), which includes The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew (1881) by Margaret Sidney, Ramona and Her Father (1977) by Beverly Cleary (Mr. Quimby loses his job), the American doll series featuring Kit, Barbara O’Connor’s young-adult novel How [...]