News & Notes is a weekly Saturday post featuring book- and publishing-related news, links to interesting articles and opinion pieces, giveaways on this and other blogs, and other cool stuff.
Books & Ebooks in the News:
- “Authors Guild Appeals Google Ruling” to the Second Circuit Court. (Publishers Weekly)
- “DOJ, States Slam Apple’s Bid for a Stay” of some provisions of the ebook price-fixing ruling. Specifically, Apple is unhappy with the actions of the court’s monitor, Michael Bromwich, while the DOJ and states’ attorneys feel Mr. Bromwich is acting within the limits of his authority. (Publishers Weekly)
- Doctors in Britain prescribing books for depression (The Boston Globe)
- Shia Labeouf faces legal trouble for repeated plagiarism. (Publishers Weekly)
- Overdrive says 6 library systems checked out more than 1 million ebooks in 2013 (GalleyCat)
- “Brain Function Boosted For Days After Reading a Novel” (The Independent)
- “Kate DiCamillo Named Next National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature” (Publishers Weekly)
- “Sherlock Holmes Now In the Public Domain” according to a judge’s ruling in the case brought by editor Leslie Klinger against the Conan Doyle estate. Most of the original short stories and novels featuring Holmes were already in public domain in the U.S., but the estate argued that because several stories were still under copyright, the characters of Holmes and Watson could not be used without its permission. (GalleyCat)
- Smashwords CEO Mark Coker posts about 2013 growth and 2014 plans on the Smashwords blog.
Worth Reading/Watching:
- Journalist Ann Morgan read 1 book from every country — and blogged and vlogged about it.
For Writers & Bloggers:
- 5 Ways Writers Can Get the Most Out of Goodreads (Writer’s Digest)
- Best Writing Music of 2013: A Spotify playlist plus several lists of great instrumental music to write to. (Jason Boog, GalleyCat)
- 2013 TED Talks from Writers (GalleyCat)
Book and Movie Announcements:
- First Divergent clip released (see video, above)
- Other upcoming films based on books include Labor Day (Joyce Maynard); The Invisible Woman (Claire Tomalin), about Charles Dickens’ midlife affair with an 18-year-old actress; Winter’s Tale (Mark Helprin); Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters (Richelle Meae); and In Secret (Emile Zola). (Publisher’s Weekly)
Really cool:
- Neil Gaiman appeared on the children’s cartoon Arthur, giving advice to a young graphic-novel writer.
- A Harry Potter fan has created a Ministry of Magic website.
Just for fun:
- Neil Gaiman reads from Dickens’ only surviving “prompt script” for A Christmas Carol.
- Ben Stiller reads “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty“ (listen free on SoundCloud, or download free from Audible.)
Bookish Quotes:
That’s it for this week!
I’m always on the lookout for interesting articles, lists, and links for News & Notes, so please let me know if you see (or write!) anything that might be good for this feature. You can leave me a comment or send me an email — my address is on the About/Review Policy/Contact page.
Bea
I am not surprised that brain function is boosted after reading a novel but I’m happy to see it being proven and publicized.
Happy New Year!
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
Same here! Have a great week and stay warm!
Pamela D
Thanks for all of the interesting links. I had wanted to read more about the Sherlock case but then I forgot. This post came at the perfect time.
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
Glad to be of service! I was glad I happened onto that article, because I had been following the case earlier, and lost track of it with everything else that was going on in my life.
Lindsay
What a fun post idea to collect everything bookish! I already have some of those book-based movies on my Netflix queue for when they come out, and I’ll drag my husband to see Divergent at the theater. Thanks for checking out my blog! I’m now a follower of yours.
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
Thanks for the follow! I forgot to mention in my comment on your blog that I’m following you now, too. How can I not — you blog about knitting AND books!
Cheryl @ Tales of the Marvelous
I was delighted to see that doctors are prescribing books for depression…though a little disappointed to click into the article and find out it’s self-help books. Personally, I always self-prescribe Terry Pratchett for blue days. 🙂 More seriously, it would be fascinating to find out if more general reading has any measurable effect on depression…
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
I usually turn to an old favorite on blue days, but Pratchett would be a good choice, too! I suspect reading fiction can affect depression, but I would suggest that people in a depressed state steer clear of gloomy books and go for the lighter ones — with happy endings.