Book news: Phil Jackson, Largehearted Boy, Goodreads ditches Amazon
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Former L.A. Lakers coach Phil Jackson is working on a memoir. Oh, he coached the Chicago Bulls too? Whatever. It’s a follow-up to his book ‘Sacred Hoops: Spiritual Lessons of a Hardwood Warrior’ and will be coauthored by the same writer, Hugh Delehanty. The memoir, about his championship seasons, will be titled ‘Eleven Rings’ and published by Penguin.
Happy 10th birthday to the books and music blog Largehearted Boy, creation of David Gutowski, which celebrated with an event at Brooklyn’s Word Bookstore. Electric Literature documented the festivities, and Book Bouroughing, a new New York literary events website cofounded by Gutowski, got backstage photos.
Do not steal these snapshots of beat poet Allen Ginsberg in his New York apartment in a tux, in red suspenders, and, at a pool with William S. Burroughs, in a bathing suit. But do check them out. (via WFMU)
New York Review of Books Classics brings forgotten books back into print. For the last few years, that’s meant bringing them alive as e-books, too. Which is one of the publisher’s strongest e-book sellers? Editor Edwin Frank says it’s ‘The Long Ships,’ by Swedish author Frans T. Bengtsson, first published in the U.S. in 1955. It has an introduction by Michael Chabon.
NBC tells Wired why its e-books will be better than other ebooks: video. The company has lots of it, knows how to shoot and edit it, and has clear ownership. Now all NBC needs to add is the books part. Right? Right?
Goodreads has stopped using Amazon’s data. The site that has most effectively combined social networking and books has decided that the world’s biggest online seller is not a good partner for its book listings. ‘Quality book information — such as titles, authors, publication dates, and cover images — is the life blood of a site dedicated to book discovery and literary discussion. Since its inception, Goodreads has relied on Amazon’s public API for much of this information,’ writes founder Otis Chandler, ‘and while Amazon data was free, it came with many restrictions. For instance, we couldn’t use their information for our mobile apps or link to competing bookstores.’ If I were a betting woman, I’d wager Goodreads will be rolling out some new local features very soon.
From the Atlantic, a listicle: contemporary authors’ favorite books, culled from the 2007 book ‘The Top Ten: Writers Pick Their Favorite Books.’
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-- Carolyn Kellogg
