Last week my old friend Rick and I read the first four sentences of some of our favorite novels over the phone and made the other person grade them blind. Although the scores were in before the source of each excerpt was revealed, inevitably a few books were recognizable right away. There’s no mistaking the start of Dead Souls for . . .
The Smart Set is a weekly feature, compiled and posted by Lauren Cerand, that usually appears Mondays at 12:30 pm, and highlights the best of the week to come. Special favor is given to New York’s independent booksellers and venues, and low-cost and free events. Please send details to Ms. Cerand at lauren [at] maudnewton.com by the Thursday prior to . . .
When Clay Risen emailed recently to share the sad news that the Nashville Scene‘s books section was folding, I wondered how he thought local writers would be affected. Risen isn’t exactly a southerner, but he grew up in Nashville. He bristles when critics of the South traffic in caricature, and he’s dedicated to reading and nurturing the region’s literary talent. . . .
Will Google Book Search enable authors and publishers to make a little money from titles long out-of-print? Probably.
Sorry, nobody’s around to run the joint right now. I’m hanging out with my sister up in snowy Massachusetts, and whatever time I have left over for writing goes into the book or total frivolity. If you enjoy voting in or second-guessing award contests, take a look at the 2008 Weblog Awards nominees. For the second year running, MaudNewton.com is . . .