http://www.dibsblog.com early buzz on upcoming books Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:18:32 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I've been reading Norman Ollestad's memoir Crazy for the Storm, which Starbucks has chosen for its latest featured book. As a preteen in 1979, Ollestad survived a small-plane crash that killed his beloved father, an adventurous child star-turned-lawyer who had taught the author to surf and ski when the younger ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=427 Virginia Woolf's novel To The Lighthouse was inspired by a real-world beach -- which sold for £80,000 at an auction today. According to the Daily Mail, "The 76-acre Upton Towans beach in Gwithian, Cornwall, overlooks the lighthouse situated on the headland at nearby Godrevy Island. Virginia Woolf spent many holidays ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=424 Boris Yeltsin was an impassioned reader, and the new Boris Yeltsin Presidential Library opened in St. Petersburg on Wednesday. "The idea of a library unifying the country’s information and archival resources was first suggested in 2007. The then-president Vladimir Putin signed a decree to found such a library. He also ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=420 In the early pages of Glen David Gold's new novel Sunnyside, Charlie Chaplin is sighted in more than 800 places at the same time on November 12, 1916. One of these places is on "a small boat bobbing in the swells" off the Northern California coast within sight of a ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=418 A Pennsylvania art-and-frame-store owner plans to write a book about his latest undertaking, in which 1,041 rusty old hubcaps are being transformed into "canvases" by 1,041 different artists. Thanks to Ken Marquis and his Landfill Art project, some use oil paint or acrylic paint, but others weld or glue or ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=416 What is it with Sweden and mysteries, eh? And it's not just Henning Mankell. (Btw, I found the English-language televised version of Mankell's mysteries, Wallander -- which debuted last weekend -- a bit disappointing.) Other Swedish authors just keep pumping out dark, dramatic, literary page-turners populated with unforgettable characters. One ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=414 So it's happy news all around for 50 Cent. According to Chartattack, the rap star formerly known as Curtis Jackson will have two books out this year. After much delay, Before I Self Destruct is set to arrive at music retail outlets in June. And a full two years after its planned publication ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=408   Saturday, May 2, is Free Comic Book Day. This means that comic-book stores all over the nation will literally give books away. The annual promotion, which began in 2001, was launched by comic-book publishers and distributors to bring more people into the stores. Among the freebies at participating stores are titles ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=402 Beachcombing feels romantic and random. But actual science applies to beachcombing, as it does to nearly everything. In his new book Flotsametrics: How One Man’s Obsession with Runaway Sneakers and Rubber Ducks Revolutionized Ocean Science, oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer and maritime writer Eric Scigliano detail Ebbesmeyer's research on currents and "gyres," the ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=397   Sooner or later, most books leave the hands of their original purchasers and enter the secondhand (or thirdhand, or zillionthhand) realm. Nonetheless, even though it's inevitable, most authors find it a bit painful to imagine their books for sale at thrift shops and yard sales. Minnesota author Leif Enger told ... http://www.dibsblog.com/?p=391