Book igloo

It is awful to think of all of the books that get discarded, burnt, destroyed. It is only going to get worse I imagine. That's why I love book art!!

Miler Lagos creating a book igloo! From here

Pages come alive

More lovely book art.

Just amazing!!

From here.

Scholarly journals

Found via the Glasgow School of Art Library blog.  Cool poster. I am such a librarian geek.

The word made flesh

The Word Made Flesh - book trailer from Tattoolit on Vimeo.

Man Booker Prize

The longlist has been announced for this years Man Booker - can't wait to start reading them.

Peter Carey Parrot and Olivier in America (Faber and Faber)
Emma Donoghue Room (Pan MacMillan - Picador)
Helen Dunmore The Betrayal (Penguin - Fig Tree)
Damon Galgut In a Strange Room (Grove Atlantic - Atlantic Books)
Howard Jacobson The Finkler Question (Bloomsbury)
Andrea Levy The Long Song (Headline Publishing Group - Headline Review)
Tom McCarthy C (Random House - Jonathan Cape)
David Mitchell The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet  (Hodder & Stoughton - Sceptre)
Lisa Moore February (Random House - Chatto & Windus)
Paul Murray Skippy Dies (Penguin - Hamish Hamilton)
Rose Tremain Trespass (Random House - Chatto & Windus)
Christos Tsiolkas The Slap (Grove Atlantic - Tuskar Rock)
Alan Warner The Stars in the Bright Sky  (Random House - Jonathan Cape)

John Irving

I didn't really enjoy Wide Sargasso Sea. Maybe I should have read Jane Eyre before hand to prepare for the prequal as I couldn't relate the two books (story or characters). I found the book dark, vague and it was very short. I guess any book about madness and family tragedy will be dark but I wasn't able to empathise with or understand the characters.

So now I am back to a long favourite author - John Irving. He is the author of Hotel New Hampshire, The World According to Garp and many other great books. Set in New Hampshire in the US the books have the most interesting and bizarre stories and characters.

I borrowed this book off my mum earlier in the year when I was ill. Last night in twisted river is what I expect from Irving and I am finding it difficult to put away at night.

iPhone

Last week I bought an iPhone. I needed to get a new phone but was planning on getting a basic Nokia and an iPad. I spend a lot of time on the bus and thought it would be good to use the iPad as a book reader and to check e-mail. Then I saw the cost of the 3G plans and had a rethink. Anyway, I am happy with my iPhone, I have had a play and added apps etc. So, I can read books, check e-mail, listen to music and play games on the way to and from work, I don't need another internet plan and can get rid of my iPod. Cool. Can anyone recommend good apps?

Have a look at this historical timeline feature from the British Library
From the site: It includes a diverse combination of texts: those that allow glimpses of everyday life (handbills, posters, letters, diaries), remnants of political events (charters, speeches, campaign leaflets), and the writings of some of our best known historical and literary figures.