The Malaysian Insider :: Books

Norway crime novelist talks his way to live interview record

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:34:40 GMT

OSLO, May 24 — Defying the stereotype of the tight-lipped Scandinavian, popular Norwegian crime writer Hans Olav Lahlum set the world record for the longest interview yesterday after spending more than 30 non-stop hours chatting in an online broadcast. Lahlum (picture), who rarely paused for more than a few seconds, discussed topics ranging from ...

First edition of ‘Great Gatsby’ to be sold at auction

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:42:10 GMT

NEW YORK, May 24 — A first edition copy of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece, “The Great Gatsby,” will be up for sale next month and could fetch up to US$150,000 (RM450,000), Sotheby’s said yesterday. The book, which once belonged to the critic and author Malcolm Cowley, will go under the hammer along with a group of Fitzgerald’s letters and an ...

Short-story writer Davis wins Booker International Prize

Thu, 23 May 2013 08:45:32 GMT

LONDON, May 23 – US writer Lydia Davis, best known for her unconventionally short stories, yesterday claimed the prestigious Man Booker International Prize at a London ceremony. The New York based author beat off competition from the nine other authors who made the shortlist to win the award, which honours “achievement in fiction on the world ...

Top Chinese literary couple’s letters on auction

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:36:33 GMT

BEIJING, May 23 — Around 100 letters and manuscripts by one of China’s top literary couples are to go under the hammer next month, a Chinese auction house said Yesterday, amid reports of a row over privacy. Qian Zhongshu died in 1997 but remains a household name in China for his novel “Fortress Besieged”, about late-1930s middle-class Chinese ...

Reading ‘Readings’ again

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:27:00 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 ― For reasons I’ll only divulge over coffee, I haven’t gotten involved in anything related with Readings since 2011. But is the latest release of Readings from Readings 2 that bad? Not really. Collective camaraderie Local poet, writer, and lecturer Bernice Chauly founded Readings about eight years ago. The “live” reading ...

Amazon launches fan-fiction publishing platform

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:14:06 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO, May 23 — Kindle Worlds gives fans with literary aspirations the chance to publish and sell their works based on their favourite books, comics, TV shows, music and games, free from legal reprisals. Described by Amazon as “the first commercial publishing platform that will enable any writer to create fan fiction based on a range of ...

Rare ‘Harry Potter’ first edition fetches record auction price

Wed, 22 May 2013 02:10:34 GMT

LONDON, May 22 — A unique first edition of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” annotated by author J.K. Rowling has sold for a record £150,000 (RM686,364) at a London charity auction, Sotheby’s said yesterday. The 1997 book, featuring handwritten notes, 22 original illustrations and a 43-page “second thoughts” commentary by the author, ...

Celebrity chef Curtis Stone says son inspired latest cookbook

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:30:55 GMT

NEW YORK, May 21 — Celebrity chef, author, entrepreneur and television personality Curtis Stone said fatherhood provided some of the inspiration for his fifth cookbook, “What’s for Dinner? Delicious Recipes for a Busy Life.” “I’m a new Dad,” said Stone who has appeared on TV shows including “The Biggest Loser” and “Celebrity Apprentice,” among ...

Book Talk: Preparing for Asia’s golden age

Mon, 20 May 2013 04:09:38 GMT

BEIJING, May 20 — There is a new gold rush in the Asia-Pacific: rising incomes and consumer spending by Asia’s fast-growing middle classes that is generating unprecedented opportunities for multinational firms. If western firms recognise those opportunities in markets for consumer and luxury goods, travel and other services, their strategies will ...

US psychiatry gets makeover in new manual

Sun, 19 May 2013 03:49:15 GMT

WASHINGTON, May 19 — The latest makeover to a massive psychiatric tome honoured by some, reviled by others and even called the “Bible” of mental disorders is being released Saturday with a host of new changes. The first major revamp in more than 20 years of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-5, will be unveiled in ...

‘Harry Potter’ first edition annotated by author up for auction

Sat, 18 May 2013 02:38:46 GMT

LONDON, May 18 — Ever wondered what went through author J.K. Rowling’s mind when she wrote the first “Harry Potter” novel? Fans of books about the boy wizard will have a chance to bid on a unique first edition of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” annotated by the author, at a charity auction this month, the English PEN organisation said ...

Four Nigerians among five shortlisted for writing prize

Thu, 16 May 2013 23:19:11 GMT

JOHANNESBURG, May 17 — Four of the five writers shortlisted for this year’s Caine Prize for African Writing are from Nigeria, a first for the prestigious award, organisers revealed Wednesday. The fifth contestant is from Sierra Leone, according to a list released on the Caine Prize website. The five were chosen from 96 entries from 16 African ...

Book Talk: Of apes and atheists - is empathy evolution?

Thu, 16 May 2013 10:20:09 GMT

JOHANNESBURG, May 16 — For biologist Frans de Waal, a peaceful species of great ape in Africa is a mirror of humanity and a living argument that empathy and cooperation are far from unique to mankind. "The Bonobo and the Atheist: In Search of Humanism among the Primates", argues that both traits may be evolved behaviours based on his studies of ...

Jeff Kinney, VlogBrother win Children’s Choice Book Awards

Wed, 15 May 2013 00:12:06 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 15 — The author of the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series, Jeff Kinney, has been named the 2013 Children’s Choice Book Award author of the year for “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel,” while YouTube star John Green won the Teen Book of the Year category with “The Fault in Our Stars.” Kinney has seen a total of nine “Wimpy Kid” ...

Premio Planeta winner ‘Riña de Gatos’ published in English

Tue, 14 May 2013 04:50:06 GMT

MADRID, May 14 — Eduardo Mendoza’s “Riña de Gatos” [lit. “Cat Fight”], 2010 recipient of one of the world’s richest literary prizes, the Spanish-language Premio Planeta, is now available to anglophone readers as “An Englishman in Madrid.” As befits its title, it’s London-based publisher MacLehose Press that has picked up Mendoza’s €601,000 (RM2.34 ...

Dan Brown’s ‘Inferno’ in hot demand ahead of release

Mon, 13 May 2013 23:42:30 GMT

LONDON, May 14 — Booksellers are predicting that “Da Vinci Code” author Dan Brown’s latest title “Inferno” will become the biggest-selling book of the year, ahead of its release today. Sales of the book, which sees the return of fictional symbologist Robert Langdon, have already reached the highest level of customer pre-orders at retailer ...

When he was a kid…

Mon, 13 May 2013 00:39:15 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 — Childhood stories. Most people wrote theirs; fewer have drawn theirs. But one thousand words is not easy to write, and a picture does not have to be too detailed to tell a good story. Boey Cheeming’s collection of hand-drawn childhood stories, When I Was A Kid is an example of how simple lines and words are all you need to ...

UK education minister lashes out over ‘Mr Men’ history lessons

Sun, 12 May 2013 03:22:32 GMT

LONDON, May 12 — British Education Minister Michael Gove criticised the use of the popular “Mr Men” cartoon figures to teach 16-year olds about Adolf Hitler, saying such play-based learning infantilised students and led to a culture of low aspirations. In a speech delivered on Thursday, Gove lashed out against an online resource for history ...

Book Talk: ‘The Last Train to Zona Verde,’ Paul Theroux’s African signoff

Thu, 09 May 2013 14:42:09 GMT

BOSTON, May 9 – Paul Theroux said his literary goodbye to Africa at a train station in Luanda, Angola, five decades after he first visited the continent as a Peace Corps volunteer. In his new book, “The Last Train to Zona Verde: My Ultimate African Safari,” Theroux describes a journey through South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Angola that ...

Hacker leaks draft of new book by ‘Sex and the City’ author

Thu, 09 May 2013 02:30:28 GMT

BOSTON, May 9 — A hacker released part of an unfinished draft of an upcoming novel from “Sex and the City” author Candace Bushnell after breaking into an email account that she used to share the work with her publisher. The hacker, who goes by the name Guccifer, released some 50 pages of the draft, which is tentatively titled “Killing Monica”, ...

New book teaches children ABCs of Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway

Wed, 08 May 2013 14:14:26 GMT

OMAHA, May 8 – Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc invests in dozens of businesses, and a new book tries to explain it all to young readers, from A to Z. Two Omaha residents, author Nancy Rips and illustrator Tom Kerr, have teamed up on “My First Berkshire ABC” to teach children about one of the world’s best-known companies, and a little about ...

Latin American cookbook wins James Beard award for book of year

Tue, 07 May 2013 02:06:44 GMT

NEW YORK, May 7 — In a sign that points to the next big culinary trend to shake up the food scene in the US and abroad, a cookbook that explores the complex, rich flavours of Latin America has been named cookbook of the year. Chef and restaurateur Maricel Presilla’s book “Gran Cocina Latina: The Food of Latin America” took home the coveted title ...

The best food writing of 2013 in the US

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:40:47 GMT

NEW YORK, May 7 — The best in food writing was honoured at an event known as the Oscars of the food world in the US Friday, giving top nods to a cookery book that explores the geographical and culinary scope of Latin American cuisine. Here are some of the major winners of the James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards which was ...

Author Murakami makes first Japan public appearance in 18 years

Mon, 06 May 2013 13:43:04 GMT

KYOTO, May 6 – Japanese author Haruki Murakami made his first public appearance in his homeland in 18 years today, describing his newest novel, which was an instant-best seller, as a story that takes place in the real world, unlike many of his other novels. “Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage” has attracted positive reviews, with ...

Author Murakami sends message to Boston

Sat, 04 May 2013 10:40:54 GMT

BOSTON, May 4 — Japanese author and keen runner Haruki Murakami sent a “personal message” to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing and said he also felt wounded by the attack on his favourite race. “So, even from far away, I can imagine how devastated and discouraged the people of Boston feel about the tragedy of this year’s race,” he wrote ...

Barnes & Noble slashes its UK e-reader prices

Fri, 03 May 2013 15:51:59 GMT

LONDON, May 3 — Barnes & Noble is touting its latest price cuts as part of campaign in support of the Get London Reading initiative, suggesting that the offer will run for a limited time only, but it is yet to give a cut-off date. The Nook Simple Touch e-reader is now only £29 (RM137) — a £50 saving, while the Nook Simple Touch Glowlight is £69. ...

‘The Hit’ soars to top of US bestsellers list

Fri, 03 May 2013 10:05:34 GMT

NEW YORK, May 3 — David Baldacci’s new book, “The Hit”, soared to the top of the US bestsellers list yesterday. The list is compiled using data from independent and chain bookstores, book wholesalers and independent distributors nationwide. The list below, with previous ranking in brackets, recommended retail prices in US dollars: Hardcover ...

‘Catching Fire’ seeks fans for book trailer

Thu, 02 May 2013 23:26:28 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 3 — Fans of “Catching Fire” have two weeks to submit a clip for a new US book trailer for the second in Suzanne Collins’ “Hunger Games” trilogy. With May 15 set as a final deadline, each contestant must submit a video completing four THG-centric sentences, and in doing so explain what’s so great about “The Hunger Games” and ...

Tale of a twin sister left behind in Iran

Thu, 02 May 2013 06:28:29 GMT

TOKYO, May 2 — Mystery shadows “A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea”, a novel about a girl growing up in rural post-revolutionary Iran while dreaming about her identical twin sister and the wonderful life she must be leading in the United States — if she is alive at all. Crowded security lines at Tehran’s airport, shouting, a girl chasing her twin as a ...

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo signs deal for 2014 book

Wed, 01 May 2013 05:45:57 GMT

NEW YORK, May 1 — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, considered a possible Democratic contender for the US presidency in 2016, has signed a deal to write a biography that publisher HarperCollins said yesterday would be a “full and frank” look at his private and public life. The publisher said it has acquired world rights to the as-yet untitled book, ...

Book lovers in India lap up myths with a makeover

Wed, 01 May 2013 05:35:19 GMT

NEW DELHI, May 1 — Mriganka Dadwal knows everything about the Ramayana, the ancient Hindu epic that tells the story of warrior-god Rama and the abduction of his wife Sita by the powerful demon king Ravana. But the journalist-turned-entrepreneur says she would love to read the epic from the point of view of the vanquished Ravana — and now she ...

Beastie Boys memoir due 2015

Wed, 01 May 2013 00:15:18 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 1 — Michael “Mike D” Diamond and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz are teaming up with hip-hop scribe Sacha Jenkins to pen a memoir of the Beastie Boys’ musical history. The Beastie Boys formed in 1981 and by April 2012 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but vocalist and bassist Adam Yauch passed away in May, having been ...

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo signs deal for 2014 book

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:37:03 GMT

NEW YORK, April 30 — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, considered a possible Democratic contender for the US presidency in 2016, has signed a deal to write a biography that publisher HarperCollins said on Tuesday would be a "full and frank" look at his private and public life. The publisher said it has acquired world rights to the as-yet untitled ...

Feminist author Mary Thom killed in NY bike crash

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 03:04:14 GMT

NEW YORK, April 29 — Renowned feminist and former women’s magazine editor Mary Thom was killed in a motorcycle crash over the weekend in Yonkers, New York, friends and colleagues said. Thom, 68, a former editor of Ms Magazine, crashed her motorcycle on the Saw Mill Parkway on Friday evening, said Eleanor Smeal, publisher of Ms. Magazine and a ...

Disney star Bella Thorne writing high school series ‘Autumn Falls’

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 23:12:47 GMT

LOS ANGELES, April 28 — Due in the summer of 2014 is the first in a series of novels from 15-year-old Disney star Bella Thorne of the “Shake It Up” TV show. Co-written with Elise Allen, who assisted Hilary Duff with Elixir, Devoted and True, Thorne’s Autumn Falls follows a 14-year-old high schooler whose life takes an unexpected and magical ...

Libyans find old treasures at Tripoli book sale

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 23:30:22 GMT

TRIPOLI, April 26 — Flicking through an old book about Libyan history he never imagined he could buy under Muammar Gaddafi, Ashraf Hussein points to a picture of Tripoli’s main square in the 1920s. “This is where we are standing now, Martyrs Square. Back then it was called Piazza Roma,” the 31-year old history masters student said, referring to ...

Jason Segel becomes children’s author with ‘Nightmare!’

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 23:27:12 GMT

NEW YORK, April 26 — Star of “How I Met Your Mother,” writer and co-star of “The Muppets” 2011 outing and “The Five-Year Engagement” Jason Segel is segueing into fiction with children’s story “Nightmare!” due in fall 2014. “Ultimately, it’s a story about learning that we can accomplish anything, as long as we are brave enough to try,” he explained ...

Roddy Doyle’s ‘Commitments’ finally made into musical

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 23:23:08 GMT

LONDON, April 25 — Irish author Roddy Doyle’s bestselling novel “The Commitments” is finally being made into a musical, more than 25 years after the heart-warming tale of a group of aspiring soul musicians was first published. The Booker Prize winner’s 1987 story about young working class Jimmy Rabbitte’s efforts to form the “finest soul act in ...

Gulf expat’s tale wins International Prize for Arabic Fiction

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:00:19 GMT

LOS ANGELES, April 24 – Saud Alsanousi’s “The Bamboo Stalk” has won the US$50,000 (RM152,449) International Prize for Arabic Fiction, making its 30-year-old author the youngest ever recipient. As the story goes, Kuwaiti-Filipino man Issa visits his mother, who has been working in Kuwait as a housekeeper, but Issa soon discovers that his partial ...

Nora Ephron’s last play ‘Lucky Guy’ part of October book

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 01:36:19 GMT

LOS ANGELES, April 24 — The last play from the writer of “When Harry Met Sally,” “Julia & Julia,” “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail” will form part of October 29 hardback release The Most of Nora Ephron. “Sleepless in Seattle” co-star Tom Hanks made his Broadway debut last year playing real-life Pulitzer Prize winner Mike McAlary in ...

Ireland’s John Banville wins Austrian literature prize

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 23:02:23 GMT

VIENNA, April 24 — Irish author John Banville is to be awarded the Austrian state prize for European literature in July, the government said on Monday, praising the novelist’s “unconventional” style. Banville “is an unconventional author who always surprises us with his themes and his complex characters,” fitting into the “tradition of great ...

‘Penmanship’ is now ‘handwriting’ as state removes bias in statutes

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 07:22:08 GMT

WASHINGTON, April 23 — Washington state’s governor signed into law yesterday the final piece of a six-year effort to rewrite state laws using gender-neutral vocabulary, replacing terms such as “fisherman” and “freshman” with “fisher” and “first-year student.” Lawmakers have passed a series of bills since 2007 to root out gender bias from ...

LA Times Book Awards celebrate Boo, Fountain, Atwood

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:53:06 GMT

LOS ANGELES, April 23 — Ten category winners and two lifetime achievement awards in the LA Times Book Awards were announced over the weekend, with Katherine Boo’s portrayal of Mumbai slum living in Behind the Beautiful Forevers, Ben Fountain’s fictional satireBilly Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk and Margaret Atwood among those upheld. Readers on the ...

Children’s author E.L. Konigsburg dies aged 83

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:13:12 GMT

NEW YORK, April 22 – Award-winning author E.L. Konigsburg, who wrote or illustrated some 20 children’s books spanning 45 years, has died aged 83. Konigsburg, whose best-known title “From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler” won the prestigious Newbery Medal in 1968 and was subsequently made into a 1973 Ingrid Bergman film, died on ...

China Nobel laureate releases new book

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 00:58:48 GMT

BEIJING, April 21 — Chinese Nobel literature laureate Mo Yan released a new book Friday charting his experience receiving the award in Sweden last December, state media reported. The book, titled “Grand Ceremony”, is his first to be published since he won the 2012 Nobel Prize, Xinhua news agency said. It was released at a national book fair. Mo ...

Prada launches creative writing contest

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:27:26 GMT

ROME, April 19 — Milan-based luxury brand Prada is teaming up with Italian publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Editore for a new international writing contest called Prada Journal. “What are the realities that our eyes give back to us? And how are these realities filtered through lenses?” That’s the question posed by Prada as the theme of this ...

New Murakami book print run hits 1m in week

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 23:22:24 GMT

TOKYO, April 19 — The Japanese publisher of the new novel by Haruki Murakami said yesterday it had ordered one million copies of the book, less than a week after it went on sale. Bungeishunju Ltd said “Shikisai wo Motanai Tazaki Tsukuru to Kare no Junrei no Toshi (Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage)” is likely to become one of ...

Russia’s oil riches gained and lost as wheel of fortune turned

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:42:45 GMT

MOSCOW, April 18 — Some of the world's biggest fortunes were made and lost when the fall of the Soviet Union threw together a motley gang of brash young tycoons, hard-bitten oilmen and KGB veterans to scrabble for riches amidst the rubble of the Soviet oil industry. "The iron curtain did not go down, Russians like to say, it went up," says ...

Britain’s Hilary Mantel tops women’s fiction prize shortlist

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 04:15:21 GMT

LONDON, April 17 — British novelist Hilary Mantel’s “Bring Up the Bodies” tale about Thomas Cromwell will take on five challengers in the Women’s Prize for Fiction award in 2013 as she attempts to add to her groaning trophy cabinet. The historical bestseller set in Henry VIII’s court has already won the Man Booker Prize for Fiction and the Costa ...

Rembrandt’s dark genius shines in new graphic novel

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 04:01:30 GMT

LOS ANGELES, April 17 — A new no-holds-barred graphic novel biography of Rembrandt strives to fill in the often dark, drunken and erotic gaps in the tragic life of one of the most famous of Dutch artists. “Rembrandt” by comic book artist Typex shows the painter as you’ve never seen him before: cantankerous, obsessive and unfaithful. Rembrandt’s ...