The 10 best books of 2017 – Although we’re positively besieged with “best of” and “must buy” book lists at this time of year, I appreciate the levels of diversity in this list, and despite the Saunders book (YAWN), there are some entries that may deserve a bit more of ... more >
Australia decides: Live coverage of same-sex marriage survey – Just in case you haven’t heard the happy news already, marriage equality won in a landslide Australian survey, representing at least 80% of Australian voters (more than 12 million eligible voters). I intentionally linked to news.com.au, in large part because it ... more >
Penguin pinged $30,000 for publishing the recipe book of fake cancer survivor Belle Gibson – Penguin Australia published a cookbook written by a woman who faked a cancer diagnosis, apparently asking her for fact-checking details, but ultimately publishing the book without getting them. The publisher cooperated with the investigation by ... more >
Wattpad Wades into Hollywood with Wattpad Studios – We’re seeing more and more of these hybrid enterprises, demonstrating in part the way that stories are diversifying across media platforms, well beyond traditional books. Wattpad has been particularly ambitious in this regard, with initiatives like Wattpad Brands, which has Wattpad writers creating ... more >
The Hong Kong Bookseller Who’s Keeping ‘Banned’ Books On His Shelves – Despite the disappearance (and in a couple of cases, reappearance in mainland police custody) of five bookseller/publishers, some Hong Kong booksellers, including People’s Bookstore owner Peter Tang, are keeping mainland-banned titles on their shelves. It appears to be publishers ... more >
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play is a sequel set 19 years after the last book – The 8th Harry Potter book will be out in June 2016, and it will be disguised as a play. Written by Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, the story will pick up almost 20 ... more >