Book News: Witchcraft, Bookish Movies, & a Library Boycott of HarperCollins



A book that seems to be everywhere this week (and even prior to this week) is Deborah Harkness's The Discovery of Witches. I've seen many bloggers who were practically drooling over receiving it in the mail. Since its release, it seems to be on every bestseller list, and Harkness has been interviewed all over the place. Sounds like a must-read (or at least, a must-add-to-the-to-read-list). Although it's historical fiction -- and supernatural, on top of that (two genres I don't necessarily like) -- if that many people think it's fabulous, there must be something to it.

NPR just wrote a story on upcoming 2011 book-to-movie releases which is pretty interesting. If you're like me, and you love both reading and watching movies, it's always exciting to see the books you loved come to life. The trick is that if they're good, they're very, very good -- but if they're bad, they're horrible. Since NPR seems like a trustworthy source, I'll take their advice rather than spending big bucks at the movies to see terrible renditions of the written word. My top picks? The Lincoln Lawyer and Water for Elephants, and possibly The Help (although I haven't read it yet, it's in my Audible.com cart!) and We Need to Talk About Kevin (even though I just couldn't read the book).

In an effort to ensure sales of ebooks, publisher HarperCollins placed a restriction on libraries purchasing ebooks by forcing them to re-purchase ebooks after 26 checkouts. Their main point is that libraries have to periodically replace print books due to wear and tear. They, therefore, placed a limit on the number of checkouts allowed for their ebooks -- in essence, forcing libraries to pay for the ebook again and again (as they allegedly would have to do with a print book). An Oklahoma library has boycotted the publisher (in ebook format only) and released a statement this week detailing its decision. The library examined print books after various numbers of checkouts and argued that some books are checked out 100 times before they must be replaced.

Upcoming hot new book releases:

• 11/22/63 by Stephen King, Fall 2011: An alternate universe look at Kennedy's assassination. The NY Times ArtsBeat blog calls it a "what if" history.
• Not Afraid of Life by Bristol Palin, Summer 2011: Palin writes a memoir about her life, so far. ArtsBeat says it will detail her time on Dancing With the Stars, her goals, and her faith.
• Tilly the Trickster by Molly Shannon, September 2011: Call me shallow, but I just love a good children's book written by a celebrity. Madonna, Jamie Lee Curtis, Bill Cosby -- you name it, I like it. Entertainment Weekly writes this week about the former SNL star's upcoming book and interviews her.

Right now I'm enjoying Brady Udall's The Lonely Polygamist, and it is really reminding me of both Big Love and that reality show Sister-Wives. Which makes sense, I suppose, seeing as they are all about modern polygamy. Also, I'm making a trip to the library this afternoon for some additional books. Happy weekend reading!