Philip Roth wins his third PEN/Faulkner award for “Everyman”

Portnoy isn’t complaining, and there’s no plot against this American author. Philip Roth has again proven his literary Superman status with Everyman, which won the 2007 PEN/Faulkner award for fiction this week. It’s the third time he’s won the PEN/Faulkner—this time for a 192-page novel that looks backward at the life of a 70-year-old “everyman” […]

“Tenderness of Wolves” wins Costa Book of the Year award

It used to be the Whitbread Book Awards. Beginning this year, it’s under different sponsorship as the Costa Book Awards. Whatever you call it, it’s a major literary award in the United Kingdom—actually a series of awards that recognizes the top books in different categories and then names the best of those bests as the […]

Author David Eddings burns down his office

We all make stupid mistakes, right? But sometimes a simple lapse in judgment can be devastating. Would you, for instance, toss a lighted match onto a pool of gasoline inside your garage in order to see whether it’s still flammable? No? That’s ridiculous? A little crazy? You may be right, but that’s essentially what science […]

ALA presents Newbery, Caldecott, and other children’s book awards

The American Library Association (ALA) has announced its 2007 awards honoring the best of children’s literature. The full list of award winners is long and varied, and we’ve highlighted our favorites below:

Newbery Medal: The Higher Power of Lucky, by Susan Patron
Caldecott Medal: Flotsam, by David Wiesner
Carnegie Medal: Mo Willems (author/illustrator)
Geisel Medal: Zelda and Ivy: The […]

Browse the bookplates of the famous, infamous, and unknown

You’re a serious reader if you have your own bookplate. Or you’re a book collector. Or a dignitary. Or maybe you’re someone with a lot of time on your hands. But most bookplate users basically boil down to folks who love to read and want to brand their beloved books as their own. It’s pretty […]

King, Rowling, Grisham: top guilty pleasures

What do Stephen King, J.K. Rowling, and John Grisham have in common? They’re all authors we’re ashamed to read. Well, at least in public. And at least in the U.K. The Guardian Unlimited reports on a survey of guilty reads—the top authors readers turn to for pleasure reading. King topped the guilt-ridden list, with Rowling […]

“Watching the World Change” continues to remember September 11

Weeks ago, I finished The Looming Tower, the acclaimed book by Lawrence Wright about the modern history of people and events leading to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It is an expert account of the escalating fanaticism of the religious zealots that perpetrated the mass murders and destruction on that now-hallowed day. Over […]

Book blogs for bibliophiles to pore over

In the last several months, I’ve taken to exploring the blogosphere again, discovering new-to-me and uncharted book sites that are enjoyable, entertaining, and informative. The owners and authors of these sites enjoy books, and that joy is reflected in their writings. These sketches are simultaneously humorous, opinionated, biting, and articulate, and they encompass a wide […]

IMPAC Dublin Award: A literary prize that spans the world

The International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award has a really long name, apparently because it’s got some sort of Texas complex. Maybe everything is bigger in Dublin too. After all, this award (which stems from that Irish capital’s city council) presents the world’s biggest book-oriented cash prize, welcomes author submissions written in any language, embraces literature […]

Stephen King lists his favorite audiobooks

In his “The Pop of King” column in the November 3 issue of Entertainment Weekly, author Stephen King has a lot to say about books that talk—audiobooks, I mean. The entire column can be boiled down to “audiobooks, while imperfect, are a good thing” (my words, not his). I agree. For book lovers, audiobooks allow […]