Books Left Behind: The Travelodge 20 August 28, 2013 – Posted in: Miscellany

22,648 books were found left behind by Travelodge guests in the last year in the UK. Luckily, they were all tallied and once again E. L. James takes home the top prize. Last year the winner was Fifty Shades of Grey and this year it is the third volume in the best-selling series, Fifty Shades Freed. “Over the last three years our annual books left behind study has shown a decline in celebrity biographies but…

Wendell Berry wins the Dayton Literary Peace Prize August 12, 2013 – Posted in: Miscellany

“In a time that spends so many words and dollars upon conflict, it is encouraging to be noticed for having said a few words in favor of peace,” Wendell Berry. The 2013 Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award has been awarded to Wendell Berry. Full press release: DAYTON LITERARY PEACE PRIZE TO HONOR WENDELL BERRY WITH RICHARD C. HOLBROOKE DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Influential novelist, essayist, poet, farmer, and activist to be honored at Dayton ceremony on November…

Found: Harry Houdini’s Long Lost Spiritualism Scrapbook July 24, 2013 – Posted in: Miscellany

An antique dealer in Southern California has unearthed a long lost scrapbook belonging to Harry Houdini. Labeled as “IMPORTANT SCRAP BOOK – MISCELLANEOUS CLIPPINGS,” the book is “jam-packed with newspaper clippings about Spiritualism and Houdini’s own spirit busting activities. Many of the clippings have annotations in Houdini’s own hand. The majority of the material is from 1925 with a few clippings from early 1926.” The content of the scrapbook focuses mostly on Houdini’s anti-spiritualism crusade and…

Let the Books Fall Where They May: Seattle Public Library Breaks Book Domino Record June 4, 2013 – Posted in: books, Miscellany

[youtube]http://youtu.be/Np450xMSncE[/youtube] 2131 Books 27 Volunteers 112 Slices of Pizza and after seven hours and five tries – 1 world record. Congratulations to all involved. Seattle Public Library Press Release

Holy Book Club Batman!$#!& – Introducing the Topless Pulp Fiction Club May 12, 2013 – Posted in: Miscellany

They meet in the parks of New York City to read mid-century pulp fiction. They also don’t wear any tops. They are The Topless Pulp Fiction Club. Nothing wrong here, it is all legal and fair. Simply a group of women who like to read and desire to enjoy the same freedom as men. Reading about a Brooklyn street gang in Harlan Ellison’s 1958 novel Web of the City Clearly they are committed, for they meet…