Egad! A new Bookbits? You thought they’d died, didn’t you… Well, for a longish space (i.e. vacation + NaNoWriMo*) they did. But that doesn’t mean I don’t love them, and so here’s a new batch:
R. I. P. Journalist and travel writer Geoffrey Moorhouse, author of The Fearful Void, died last Thursday, aged 77; obituaries here and here. Robert Holdstock, fantasy writer of Mythago Wood, died yesterday, aged 61; only obituary so far on Neil Gaiman’s blog.
- Novel-T, a t-shirt company in the US, has brought out a series of literary shirts. The theme is baseball, and the team is made up of authors or literary characters. Poe plays nr. 13, and has a raven on the front; Thoreau is, of course, an outfielder, and has a cabin as logo. Quite fun, though I couldn’t find anything about overseas shipping.
- Ah yes, end of year lists! Here is BoingBoing’s take on fiction, comics/art, kids’ books and nonfiction. The Times picked their 50 best paperbacks of 2009 (although they make you wait for the top 11, so you’ll have to check back now and again, cheeky buggers). The NY Times Book Review goes 50 better, and has 100 lined up for you. Please send us your favorites of the past year; we’d love to read all about and share them!
What with the advent of cell phones, some of the old red phone boxes in the UK are finding a new purpose – as libraries.
- Books are bad for you. He has a point, even though it’s limited to politicians.
- Awards! The Bad Sex Award goes to Jonathan Littell for The Kindly Ones. Philip Roth, John Banville, Paul Theroux and Nick Cave can breathe a sigh of relief. Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book has won another award, it being the Booktrust Teenage Prize this time.
- My better half can often be found on stumbleupon.com (Warning! Very. Addictive. Site), and keeps sending me literary links to share here. How about 5 great science books to expand your mind? Or Merged Book Contest Winners? Or the 25 best fantasy books? And, finally for now, Required Reading for graphic novels?
*I won again! Yay! And so did Em! Also congratulations to all blog readers who participated, whether you won or not. 