Genre Fiction

There’s a fun magnetic poetry-style book title game passing around the book blog world. I read it on the Publishing Insider, who heard it from Shelf Awareness, who saw it when Boing Boing pointed readers toward Nina Katchadourian who reinvigorate 1993’s Sorted Books project.

Okay, now that we’ve cleared up the trail, what is this fun word game that people are playing? The Sorted Books project reorganizes piles and shelves of books whose titles, when carefully arranged, create phrases, poems, and conversations.

Care to play along? Here are some of my creations - some in photo form, others typed out. Click on any of the sites mentioned in the first paragraph to see others’ musings.

Beloved
Atonement
On Wings of Eagles
Falling Angels
Deliverance

The Iceman Cometh
On the Road
Tomorrow
The End

Last Friday, on her talk show, Oprah Winfrey announced her newest selection for her famous book club.

The mogul with the Midas touch has chosen David Wroblewski’s debut novel The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. Oprah raved about Wroblewski’s writing, calling it the “best novel [she's] read in a long, long, long time,” and comparing it to the workd of John Steinbeck and Harper Lee. Edgar Sawtelle, which was just published over this summer, has already been climbing the New York Times’ bestseller list, but with the addition of the “Oprah’s Book Club” seal it is sure to soar higher and faster.

Oprah is known for picking reads that heart-wrenching, gripping tales about down-and-out characters who struggle through, and ultimately overcome, extraordinary hardships. And The Story of Edgar Sawtelle has all the makings: Disability? Check - born mute. Tragedy? Got that - his dad dies. Crumbling life, bullying antagonist, and only one true friend and ally? All there with a bonus: the ally is a dog.

Connect with other readers, learn about the author, and find a readers’ guide at Oprah’s Book Club online (site requires flash player). Click on the cover photo shown here to read an excerpt at MSNBC.

Next week, September 27 to October 4, publishers, readers, and authors alike will be celebrating Banned Books Week. It’s a time to celebrate our freedom to read whatever we please, regardless of what public libraries and schools tell us.

According to the American Library Association (ALA), more than 400 books were challenged in 2007 for profanity, slang, sexuality, violence, bigotry, and other controversial hot topics.

Here are the ten most challenged books of 2007, both new and old, according to the ALA, and why people want them banned:

1. And Tango Makes Three (2005) by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2. The Chocolate War (1974) by Robert Cormier
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence

3. Olive’s Ocean (2003) by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language

4. The Golden Compass (1997) by Philip Pullman
Reasons: Religious Viewpoint

5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) by Mark Twain
Reasons: Racism

6. The Color Purple (1982) by Alice Walker
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language

7. TTYL (2005) by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

8. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969) by Maya Angelou
Reasons: Sexually Explicit

9. It’s Perfectly Normal (1996) by Robie Harris
Reasons: Sex Education, Sexually Explicit

10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (1999) by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

Read more about books being banned or challenged and then find a display or event near you during Banned Books Week. Shop RandomHouse.com now through the end of Banned Book Week and save 15 percent on all banned books by entering code “BANNED” at checkout.

Here’s an original idea: write a novel series for teen readers where some of the characters are … wait for it … vampires!

How original by now. Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga, Charlain Harris’s Southern Vampire Chronicles, and the dozens of other teen vampire books available now apparently weren’t flooding the market enough because now there’s another one.

Kimberly Pauley’s Sucks To Be Me: The All-True Confessions of Mina Hamilton, Teen Vampire (Maybe) hit bookstore shelves a few weeks back.

Mina is not a vampire, but her parents are. It’s her decision whether or not she becomes a vampire too. What a decision to have to make, all while dealing with keeping a secret from your BFF (best friend forever) and flirting with cute boys that you have crushes on!

While I am bored of hearing about new vampire books, at least Pauley’s sounds less dramatic then the others. It seems as if she has taken the vampire character trend, and blended it with girly, pre-teen topics (maybe).

While working on word puzzles today (I’m a puzzle editor by day), I came across one about Pulitzer Prize winners for fiction work. Surely, I thought, I’ve read at least one Pulitzer-winning author or book. But, alas, I am apparently lacking in my Pulitzer knowledge, as I have not read a single winning novel. And it’s not much compensation that I have heard of most of them, nor that one is on my “to read” list.

Here are some of the more recent and the more well-known winners of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, listed alongside the year that they won. Have you read any?

* 2008: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (currently #2 on independent bookstores’ bestsellers list)
* 2007: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
* 2006: March by Geraldine Brooks
* 2005: Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
* 2004: The Known World by Edward P. Jones
* 2003: Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
* 2002: Empire Falls by Richard Russo
* 1999: The Hours by Michael Cunningham
* 1994: The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx
* 1991: Rabbit At Rest by John Updike
* 1988: Beloved by Toni Morrison
* 1983: The Color Purple by Alice Walker
* 1982: Rabbit Is Rich by John Updike
* 1961: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
* 1955: A Fable by William Faulkner
* 1953: The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Hmm … now that I think about it, I think I sort of read To Kill a Mockingbird when I was forced to write about it as a child, if that counts.

Listening to the radio this morning I caught the end of an interview with author Chuck Palahniuk, whose book Choke is coming to movie theaters.

I didn’t hear much, but I did learn that I have been pronouncing his last name incorrectly. Rather than the Pal-i-nyuk pronunciation that I have been saying, the author’s surname is said like two first names: Paula-nick.

Sticking with the independent theme, I’ve found a bestsellers list for independent bookstores across the U.S.

Here are the top ten trade paperback fiction books sold in U.S. indie bookstores for the week ending September 14, accoding to Indie Bound:

1. The Shack by William P. Young
2. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
3. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
4. Run by Ann Patchett
5. Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
6. Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo
7. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
8. In the Woods by Tana French
9. The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold
10. Away by Amy Bloom

As it just so happens, number 7, Water for Elephants is the novel that I started reading this weekend. I’m not too far into it, but I can already tell that I am going to like it. It’s a histoical fiction novel - my fave, and is well written. Coincidentally, Water for Elephants is about a man’s involvement with the circus during the Depression; Burning Bright, which I just finished, also had a local circus storyline. The circus … is it a new trend?

Borders certainly has its appeal - Starbucks coffee, a vast selection, good bargains, and big name author events. But did you know that if you “spend $100 at a local [bookstore,] $68 of that stays in your community. Spend the same $100 at a national chain, and your community only sees $43″?

This, and other facts about supporting local, small business, is just one facet of Indie Bound. Through this online, independent book community you can discover upcoming and best-selling indie books, find an independently owned bookstore near you, and connect with other indie book fans. The site even rewards members, through a point system, for participating in the community!

So go, find a new favorite book or store, and support small businesses around your town.

The picture shown is Indie Bound’s logo. Click on it to check out the Indie Bound site.

Hollywood superstars aren’t the only overly wealthy folks that find productive, charitable causes to lend their fortunes to. Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling has donated $1.8 million to Britain’s Labour Party, which she praised for their fight against child poverty.

Rowling has strong feelings about struggling families and believes that vulnerable families will fare far better under the Labour party than the Conservative one. Herself a rags-to-riches story (she was a single mother living on welfare when she began writing), Rowling is passionate about helping others come in to their own means of paying for day to day life and feels that the tax practices of the Conservative party would hinder struggling parents.

This is not the first time J. K. Rowling has made such charitable steps. In fact, Time magazine named her the 2007 Person of the Year, citing her moral, political, and social actions. She has supported causes: Comic Relief, a British organization started in response to famine in Ethiopia; One Parent Families / Gingerbread, two nonprofits that have merged to speak up as an advocate for single parents’ needs and rights; and the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Great Britain.

Rowling can afford to be so giving: she is one of the richest and most successful authors in the world. Forbes magazine named her the first person to become a billionaire (in U.S. dollars) from writing books, the second richest female entertainer, and the 1,062nd richest person in the world. So now, when you are spending $15 on a Harry Potter book, or $10 on a movie ticket, you can know your money is likely supporting good causes.

I’m fairly obsessed with seeing books portrayed in live-action films and shows, and thus stay pretty on top of the book-to-screen transactions happening. So when I found out today that not one, but two movies made it all the way to theaters before I took note, I was surprised.

* Towelhead tells the coming-of-age story of 13-year-old Arab-American Jasira as she struggles with developing early, moving to a new city, adjusting to a new home situation, facing racism, and having an unusual romantic feelings (such as towards her bigot, army reservist neighbor).

The book, by Alicia Erain, was published in 2005. Alan Ball wrote a screenplay and directed a film version that he first titled Nothing Is Private for its initial debut at the Toronto Film Festival. Under the same name as Erain’s novel, the film is now in select theaters. While a newcomer - Summer Bishil - plays Jasira, viewers will recognize some of the people around her: Maria Bello, Aaron Eckhart, and Toni Collette.

* Chuck Palahniuk wrote the 1996 novel behind 1999’s Fight Club starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton. He is also a cult favorite author, with a widespread following of fans (though I recommend avoiding Haunted at all costs). Now his book Choke (2001) is releasing in theaters next Friday, September 26.

Choke lays out the juxtaposition of Victor’s childhood against his current life as a 20-something. As a child, he was in foster care and frequently kidnapped back by his mother. Now, as an adult, he becomes a conman to earn money in order to take care of his mother. Sam Rockwell stars as Victor, and Anjelica Huston plays his mother.

What came before Sex and the City? Why Carrie Bradshaw’s teenage years, of course!

SATC author Candace Bushnell, who also wrote Lipstick Jungle, has just received a two-book deal with Harper Collins Publishers for The Carrie Diaries. The teen series will take a look back at Carrie growing up: How did she decided she wanted to be a writer? Who held her heart in high school? What clique did she hang out with?

Bushnell has expressed excitement about getting to re-explore such a dynamic character. “Carrie in high school did not follow the crowd–she led it,” says Bushnell. “It was there that she began observing and commenting on the social scene.”

Although it’s aimed at teenagers with its high school setting and less mature themes (let’s hope there less sex in her teenage city), I’m sure fans of all ages will gladly read every word of The Carrie Diaries … but we will have to wait to see. The first book is not expected until fall 2010.

**In other Candace Bushnell news, Lipstick Jungle is now available in paperback.**

For the love of all good books, please, I beg you, don’t fold down the corner of a book to mark your current page! Especially if the book is shared, a library’s copy, or one you intend to trade in at a used bookstore, but even if it is solely you who will ever read the book: treat it with respect.

For those who are not a fan of conventional bookmarks, try folding your own corner marker that gives the illusion of a folded corner without the wear and tear.

The photograph here is from Folding Trees, a Web site all about origami and paper folding techniques. Click on the picture to get directions for folding your own origami book corner marker. Please, the pages in your books are begging you.

When I see that an author like Debbie Macomber has written over 150 novels, my first instinct is to assume: either the name is a pen name for multiple ghost writers, or the books stink.

But I can’t verify either of these assumptions for Macomber. In fact, she is a best-selling author, winner of multiple fan- and industry-selected awards, and one of her books - This Matter of Marriage - became a made-for-TV-movie. All of that screams success to me.

Debbie Macomber is a determined writer whose life speaks wonders for doing what you love regardless of your circumstances. She struggles with dyslexia, did not attend college, and was a stay-at-home mom to four children. After five years of rejected manuscripts, she turned to freelance magazine work, which allowed her to save enough money to attend a writers’ conference. Her work was torn apart there by Harlequin Enterprises and recommended for the trash can. With her unfailing determination, Debbie sent this same piece of work - Heartsong - to Harlequin’s rival, Silhouette. It went on to become the first romance novel ever reviewed by Publisher’s Weekly.

**Contest Alert!**

To honor Debbie, and the success of her Cedar Cove series, her hometown of Port Orchard, Washington will be emulating the fictional town of Cedar Cove from August 26 to August 30, 2009. Although Cedar Cove was loosely based on Port Orchard, when fans were showing up in the real life town, they were disappointed to see that it was not the fictional one. So for these few days, the real town will bring to life the fictional town’s characters, places, and more.

And one lucky reader can win a trip to visit Debbie during this unique experience!

Click here to enter the contest. Be prepared to write 75 words about your favorite character.

If you’d like to read more about Debbie Macomber and her incredible journey, check out her comprehensive page on wikipedia, or head directly to her official Web site. Discover all the details of the event, dubbed Cedar Cove Days, at the Cedar Cove Association Web site.

Abunga.com, a family-friendly, Christian-affiliated online bookstore, has announced the results for its first Kids’ Choice Book Awards. The honors were decided upon by an online poll of school-age children from pre-k to 12th grade. The store was pleased with the number of kids that reported reading and loving a lot of books this summer.

The kids’ picks for best book were as following, by age category:

* Pre-kindergarten through 1st grade: I’m Invited to a Party! by Mo Willems. The book is part of the Elephant and Piggie series. Willems has previously written acclaimed series for youngsters including Knuffle Bunny stories and the Pigeon series (e.g. Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!

* 2nd through 3rd grade: Nancy Drew and the Quest of the Missing Map (1942) by Carolyn Keene. I’m not sure why exactly this Drew mystery is a resurging favorite, but I’m all for classics making a popular comeback.

* 4th through 5th grade: My Life as a Supersized Superhero … with Slobber by Bill Myers. Best known for children’s series McGee and Me, and the older pre-teen series the Forbidden Doors, Myers has created 28 “My Life as a…” books since 1993.

* 6th through 8th grade: Christy Miller Collection by Robin Jones Gunn. The entire 12-book series is a favorite here. After following the once-shy Christy as she moves to California and gains confidence, readers can move on to Gunn’s next series - Christy and Todd: the College Years.

* 9th through 12th grade - Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations by Alex and Brett Harris. I’m going to let this one’s title speak for itself.

I wasn’t sure I wanted to tackle John Grisham in respect to counting up the number of books that he has written. But someone has to do it, because it seems like he’s been around forever and always on the bestseller lists.

He’s best known as a legal fiction writer, but has also spent time as a politician and an attorney. In 1989, he wrote his first book, and in the past 20 years he has published 19 more fiction reads, with number 22 ready to go in 2009. And on top of it all, he, or his work, has been a part of 11 different movies.

Here’s the fiction novel countdown:

* A Time to Kill (1989)
* The Firm (1991)
* The Pelican Brief (1992)
* The Client (1993)
* The Chamber (1994)
* The Rainmaker (1995)
* The Runaway Jury (1996)
* The Partner (1997)
* The Street Lawyer (1998)
* The Testament (1999)
* The Brethren (2000)
* A Painted House (2001)
* Skipping Christmas (2002)
* The Summons (2002)
* The King of Torts (2003)
* Bleachers (2003)
* The Broker (2005)
* Playing for Pizza (2007) - currently on the New York Times’ list of best-selling mass market fiction novels.
* The Appeal (2008)
* The Associate (due out January 27, 2009)