It is generally assumed that the Culture Wars in the United States began in the Sixties. They did. In the 1860s."Licentious literature, which under cunning disguise or with fearless effrontery, circulates among us, defying all decency, sapping the morals of all classes, is doing Satan's work with most mischievous energy. That obscene books and prints are published, imported, and sold in our cities and through the country, is a fact which we are all familiar with…it is easy to estimate their evil potency…Bishop Bayley, in a late charge, gave very timely warning of this important theme. He well says: 'If...
Book Patrol Digest : Links From the Week, May 17-23, 2009
Toni Morrison's 'Song of Solomon' removed from high school curriculum in Shelby, MI after after "members of the community objected to its profanity, sexual references and violence."Romance writer Nora Roberts' opens B&B-style boutique hotel with rooms named after fictional couplesScribd adds e-book marketplace to combat piracy complaints. 80 percent of revenue to go to publishersSchool Library Journal's "Top 100 Picture Books Poll Results"Supreme Court rejects appeal from John Steinbeck's son over publishing rights."Misreading the end of literary culture" Robert McCrum debunks 5 myths.Forrest Smith pleads guilty to book fraud. Forged authors signatures and sold them on Ebay.'MillionDollarPoetryBash' Spoonbill & Sugartown...
ABC’s of Book Collecting : Advance Copy
ADVANCE COPYDuring the last century, publishers extended the practice of circulating advance copies of a new book to reviewers, chosen booksellers, judges of book-clubs, etc., besides those provided to their own travellers ‘subscribing’ it to the trade. Such copies are normally either final proofs or the first sheets to be gathered of the main run. They are often put up in plain or printed wrappers. But they may be bound; and if so the binding may occasionally retain a feature discarded in thepublished edition, or lack some final detail, or even be of a different colour or material (see trial...
Alibris Hopes to Expand Distribution Business
Alibris will announce on Tuesday "a new book-fulfillment solution" for booksellers. The new program, called Alibris Distribution Services(ADS), will provide full cataloging and distribution services for booksellers who have "exceeded their operations capacity, have more inventory than they’ll ever catalog, or want to liquidate large amounts of new and used books."Participating booksellers will receive 70% of the price realized less 99c per item accepted into the program.Almost sounds to good to be true. Send all that excess inventory to Alibris, let them catalog it and deal with the shipping, warehousing etc. I've rarely meet a bookseller who didn't have space...
Behaving at the Library
The Seattle Public Library wants to get a little clearer about what's cool and what's not when you visit.Reading the press release one is reminded that today's urban libraries are as much social service centers for their communities as they are breeding grounds for literacy.Here are few of the proposed rule changes that will be decided on next week:-Sleeping has always been prohibited but now "appearing to be sleeping" will get you a warning.-You've never been able to come into the library barefoot. Now they want make sure you don't take your shoes off once your inside.-Raising the maximum exclusion...