Happy Sunday, bookworms! It’s finally nice here in Boston – hope the weather’s good for you too.
- The cover of Dan Brown’s new book, The Lost Symbol, has been released. The latest Robert Langdon book will take place in Washington, D.C. judging by the picture. Apparently mysteries surrounding our Founding Fathers are all the rage these days.
- The National Book Foundation is celebrating 60 years of awarding books the National Book Award by finding the best NBA fiction book. It’s essentially a battle of the titans, though voting will be open to the public. The top six books will form a short list and the winner will be announced in November.
- The U.K. newspaper, the Guardian, has compiled it’s list of the 50 best summer reads ever – timeless novels that evoke a sense of the exotic, perfect for any summer day. (Be sure to check back later for a more complete post about the multiple summer reading lists floating around the Internet.)
- Don’t cry for me, Argentina. Mark Sanford has lost his book deal. Sentinel, a conservative imprint of Penguin, was set to publish his book about “fiscal conservatism” before his extra-marital affair was revealed. There’s no word yet about any liberal publisher willing to publish the tale of Sanford and his mistress.
- Happy 105th birthday, Pablo Neruda! On this day in 1904, the Chilean poet was born. I’m a fan of Neruda’s, but I didn’t know it was his birthday until I visited Today in Literature – a fabulous website that ties together history and literature. You have to subscribe to get all the good stuff, but the price is reasonable for all of the troves of information you receive. I highly recommend it.
- Children’s book author Kate Messner posted a defense of summer reading on her book blog. The post defends reading for fun – and not because schools require it. Her position is simple: schools require enough reading during the year. Summer should be the time when children (and adults) read whatever they want for fun. Because reading should be fun and sometimes we forget that. A great look at the importance of reading, just because.
