Apropos of Mark O’Connell‘s contemplation of the Kindle is this piece by The Guardian‘s Sam Leith on what to expect if the Kindle truly does supplant the printed book.
The Kindle World
Best Book Covers of 2009
Amazon has 60 books in 10 categories up for a vote for “Best Book Covers of 2009.” There’s plenty of literary eye candy in the mix.
Appearing Elsewhere
Park Slopers, I’ll be reading tonight at 7 p.m. at The Community Bookstore on 7th Avenue, with our former guest contributor Joshua Henkin and some other folks, in celebration of the long running literary magazine Glimmer Train. It would be lovely to see some familiar faces, or new ones.
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Dostoyevsky, Babel, Brodsky, Pussy Riot?
In their closing statements, Russian dissidents du jour Pussy Riot cited the authors who inspired them and placed themselves in Russia’s rich history of imprisoning their artists. Also check out Carol Rumens’s excellent translation of the song that landed Pussy Riot in hot water.
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Library Extension
A simple web browser extension will tell you if the book you’re reading about online is available at your local library. Currently a Chrome version is available, and Firefox is on the way.
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Conversations and Connections
Conversations and Connections is a Philadelphia conference offering editors, writers and publishers a chance to meet one another in a “comfortable, congenial environment.” The full day’s events are organized by Barrelhouse, and this year’s keynote speaker is The Odds author Stewart O’Nan.
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Charter Schools
Diane Ravitch takes on the documentary Waiting for Superman in the “Myth of Charter Schools” for The New York Review of Books.
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