Saturday Summary #4

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If anything, the last week has been mostly dominated by one book, and a book not yet even released. One thing's for sure: Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee will be the biggest release of the year on Tuesday. No surprise then that Foyles has a 'midnight event' planned (see you there?).

Blackwell's Oxford is offering - to us - a slightly less enticing "first person in the queue gets a free copy" set-up, but then we're more London night-owls than Oxford early birds perhaps.

Keeping with fiction, and Paula Hawkins The Girl on the Train saw it's 20th week at number one in the Original Fiction charts, topping 800,000 units in all formats in UK and Ireland and besting the 19 of Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol.

A good week too for Carys Davies, who won the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award. She took home €25,000  for  The Redemption of Galen Pike. Everyone, including Davies publishers, was happy for her...!

https://twitter.com/saltpublishing/status/619039093360599040

One award changed for the better, we'd say, with the new Man Booker International Prize, and Namwali Serpell showed wonderful generosity in winning the Caine Prize and sharing her winnings (bravo!).

Far less lovely, the revelations of Joanne Harris (sexism) and Nikesh Shukla (book world diversity ignorance) but necessary revelations and fully supported by us.

On a musical note, this week we've seen Johnny Marr and Sir Paul McCartney book details revealed. Plus news Tom Delonge, of Blink 182 front-man notoriety, is seeing his sci-fi novel Poet Anderson… Of Nightmares released on October 6th by Simon & Schuster.

What else? A new app in the works to help find your next read, and a tasty 10% discount on books? See here (at the bottom).

A very happy, well-read, Saturday!

Conversations With McCartney - 'intimate portrait' arrives in September

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Conversations with McCartney, the title inspired by Paul Du Noyer's interviews with music legend Sir Paul McCartney, will be released in September, The Bookseller  has reported. We mentioned yesterday that Johnny Marr's autobiography will be one for the music fans, and...well, this one most certainly doubles the wish-list!

Du Noyer, a respected music journalist, had the chance to interview Sir Paul in 1989 and met often in the years after - speaking on personal topics such as the former Beatle's relationship with Linda McCartney, and about tragically murdered band mate, John Lennon. It is, publisher Hodder and Stoughton suggests, an "intimate portrait"; and we expect that description will be nothing short of on point.

Conversations With McCartney is written "with the blessing" of the musician, and will undoubtedly convey thoughts and conversations providing a fascinating and honest insight into the man and the musician. It's fantastic such a book is being brought to the shelves, and Du Noyer himself is excited in sharing it:

Decades of access to Paul McCartney have been a privilege for me as a writer, and a personal thrill as a fan. I’ve now woven together our many interviews, many published for the first time, because - thanks to Paul's honesty, humour and unique perspective – I think they make for an affectionate and fully-rounded portrait of one of the great musicians of all time.

Frankly we can't wait.

Except we'll have to...until 24th September, when Conversations With McCartney is released in hardback and ebook forms.

Alexi - 'appy finding your next book?

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Picking your next book is always a tricky task...unless you've just finished To Kill A Mockingbird... But anyway, could an app called Alexi - brainchild of Andrew Kidd and Ayesha Karim (former employees of literary agents Aitken Alexander) - be a true path to literary discovery?

Sure there's the excellent What Should I Read Next?, Goodreads Suggestion Shelf, and several other options. But do any of them offer a slickly designed, inspiring curator-led approach? Kidd thinks not.

Alexi's proposition is an intriguing one. It isn't simply a stylised interface hiding a mammoth collection of digitised titles. Authors and thinkers such as Ali Smith, David Mitchell, John le Carré and Sarah Hall on board. Contacted by Kidd himself to be involved as Alexi curators. They will provide suggested reading lists, and you can follow whoever you prefer.

This is Alexi at its heart. And Kidd wants people to trust that a solution for readers' next book quandary can be found in curated, smartly guided, suggestions. And not an unguided wealth of content:

Subscription is an interesting experiment in digitising content and it makes sense that people would attempt to build a Spotify for books. Book subscription services are vast digital libraries. From a reader’s point of view that is just presenting them with another problem, rather than a solution.

Ah yes, the subscription. The app, currently in beta, can be downloaded for free (devised for iPhone, with iPad and Android versions planned) and offers users a one month 'window'. During this time recommendations can be added to a reader's personal list, and can be read at no cost for as long as the reader remains a member. But there is a cost.

After the free month's use is up, users will need to pay a weekly fee which Kidd says will be "less than a Sunday newspaper or a cup of coffee". That seems fair, but is Alexi worth getting excited about? Authors and publishers seem to think so.

Authors, Kidd reports, are happy to foster engagement with great writing (good, good!). Publishers meanwhile see the app as a "fantastic way to unlock the backlist".

Hmm, we're going to say Alexi is definitely one to watch. It might not always best a bookshop browse or a friendly recommendation. But in a digital world driving instant-engagement, an app offering new book discoveries seems an excellent idea

We really hope Alexi pulls it off.

Johnny Marr focused on pitch-perfect autobiography

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Johnny Marr is fully focused on a high-quality autobiography. Not content to push a ghostwritten title with one eye keen on his musical output, The former The Smiths guitarist revealed to NME that he's looking to deliver a book well worthy of fans interest. Interest which (hopefully) can be met in 'autumn 2016', the period he and his publisher, Century, are working towards.

Marr wasn't drawn on details, but he has made a few interesting assertions. Talking of his full dedication to writing, Marr says, "I always knew it was going to be a matter of downing tools to get the book done."

That should mean no musical work in the interim as Marr concentrates on a style enabling him to "write the way I talk". On the content Marr is tight-lipped, but has revealed:

The important thing is that the people who like what I do still like me the same once they know everything. I take writing seriously, but I also want it to be entertaining, because I don’t want to be too self-important or pompous.

If that sounds general, Marr said the title "won't be straightforward". It sounds intriguing to say the least. One for music-lovers certainly, and perhaps one for those enjoying a candid and engaging book which is true to the traditions of fine autobiography.

One thing's for certain though. Marr has rejected out of hand a title featuring a pun on his name.

We really can't blame him. He says he's bored of such things, and it really wouldn't suit him in any case.

Joanne Harris' 10 tweets highlight book world sexism

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Joanne Harris, author of the Rune series of titles, Chocolat, and a host of other works has used a #TenTweets set of posts on Twitter to highlight the sexism she's suffered in the world of books. Needless to say we applaud Harris' comments and willingness to post them; particularly as Twitter can be (ridiculously) combative for anyone rightfully speaking out on such an issue.

We hope the book world at large takes note, and anyone (still, somehow) ignorant of sexism properly consider their future interactions. With female authors, but more generally too.

The author was asked "What are interview questions that you respect?" Her response? A rather excellent, "Respectful ones".

New Man Booker International Prize - more great translations?

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The Man Booker International Prize is to merge with the Foreign Fiction Prize, in what seems to be a second democratic prize-based story of the day. The merger sees the Man Booker International keep it's name, but be awarded annually rather than every other year from 2016.

Not only will this mean greater continuity for the award, but it also ensures a regular tribute to brilliant translated work, and a constant reminder of how much...just isn't translated.

The £50,000 award for the winning title is to take on the marvellous sensibilities of the Foreign Fiction Prize, being shared equally between both the author and translator. Shortlisted authors and translators will also receive £1,000 each, and to us that seems like a sensible bit of parity and a fine merging of ideals.

Fiammetta Rocco, administrator of the Man Booker International Prize, has a goal in mind than simply shared monies though, telling The Bookseller, "What we are hoping is that this prize is going to encourage publishers to get more work translated and get more work published in Britain".

A mere 3% of the titles published in the UK and America on a yearly basis are translated. About that, and the merger itself, Jonathan Taylor, chair of the Man Booker Foundation, has said:

One of the persistent observations of Man Booker International Prize judges has been that a substantial body of important literary fiction has not been translated into English. We very much hope that this reconfiguration of the prize will encourage a greater interest and investment in translation.

We hope so too. Greater amounts of great fiction being read by a wider audience can only be positive. What's more, after the revelation today that Caine Prize winner Namwali Serpell wants to share her prize money, the story has left us feeling even more positive about the book industry. There seems a clear movement towards knowledge, entertainment, credit, and more books for all.

Something we certainly support.

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The 2015 Man Booker International Prize was won by László Krasznahorkai.

Foyles's selection of his works is here.

Or shop locally with Hive here.

Namwali Serpell wins Caine Prize - shares sum

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Congratulations to Zambian writer Namwali Serpell, who has won the Caine Prize - awarded annually to an outstanding African short story author writing in English. Serpell's story, The Sack, was selected from a shortlist of six stories as "a truly luminous winner", yet Serpell wasn't content to simply accept the award and the attached prize of £10,000 for herself.

At the Bodleian Library, Oxford, event last night, Serpell vowed to share the sum with her fellow shortlisted writers, each of whom formally receive £500.

Chair of judges Zoë Wicomb says The Sack, in which two men who live together love the same woman, "yields fresh meaning with every reading. Adding that it is, "stunning, haunting and enigmatic."

But while the praise is well-deserved, Serpell clearly feels the award should be better spread.

Speaking to the BBC, the author told that her decision to share the prize awarded was "an act of mutiny", clearly intended to highlight the community support of authors over elevation of individuals.

Something which, as Ms Serpell clearly feels in a position to do, we can only praise her for.

I wanted to change the structure of the prize. It is very awkward to be placed into this position of competition with other writers that you respect immensely and you feel yourself put into a sort of American idol or race-horse situation when actually, you all want to support each other."

Frankly, we say bravo, and have nothing but respect for that!

The Caine Prize powers-that-be have marvellously made The Sack available to read just here (it's a powerful 13 pages). And below you'll find details of the shortlisted runners up.

Enjoy!

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  • Segun Afolabi (Nigeria) for “The Folded Leaf” in Wasafiri (Wasafiri, London, 2014) Caine Prize winner 2005 for “Monday Morning” Read "The Folded Leaf"
  • Elnathan John (Nigeria) for “Flying” in Per Contra (Per Contra, International, 2014) Shortlisted in 2013 for “Bayan Layi”Read "Flying"
  • F. T. Kola (South Africa) for “A Party for the Colonel” in One Story (One Story, inc. Brooklyn, New York City, 2014) Read "A Party for the Colonel"
  • Masande Ntshanga (South Africa) for “Space” in Twenty in 20 (Times Media, South Africa, 2014) Read "Space".

Foyles offers Go Set A Watchman 'First Chance'

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Foyles doesn't mess about when it comes to book events. And the company is staying true to form with a midnight event celebrating the arrival of Go Set A Watchman.

Harper Lee's new novel, the follow up to the classic To Kill A Mockingbird, is released on July 14th. And Deep South music, drink and joy will be on hand at Foyles' Central London Charing Cross store.

From 11pm on the 13th until 1am on the 14th, Foyles is opening up the ground floor of the store to Mockingbird fans, live music from Fumi Okiji's Old Time Jazz Band, and early purchasing of Lee's much-anticipated title!

Oh, and attendees will be entered into a draw for a £100 Foyles giftcard and a free copy of Lee's new book. Even better, the event's completely free! You'll need to reserve a place, but you can do that here.

Do you know, we're half-tempted ourselves..

Saturday Summary #3

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A hopefully wholesome Saturday Summary for you today as - by the time you read this - we'll be somewhere on the Ceredigion coast seeking stories and bookish respite. Mixed news on Monday. The fallout from Independent Bookshop Week was thankfully positive indeed. Meryl Halls of the Booksellers Association said the event was now what was "always envisioned", this years was the biggest yet, and a "wonderful spectacle" was produced.

This came alongside news from the Read On. Get On coalition that 40% of boys on free school meals lacked language skills when compared to those better off (by the age of five). For girls the figure is 27%.

Chris Riddell, Children's Laureate shared this post on his Facebook page this week. It may or may not be related to the Read On. Get On report, but any parent reading to any child is, in our opinion, awesome.

Tuesday, the news that Dr. Henry Marsh picked up the PEN Ackerley Prize found us very happy indeed. It's a top title.

Apple, it seems, lost its appeal to challenge the claim that it fixed prices of ebooks, and Amazon - the company Apple's ebook approach no doubt targets - launched one day deliveries for those in certain parts of London. The service will reach other cities at later dates, but only for Prime members.

Annnd finally, the author of The Tree Climber's Guide to London has agreed a deal with Harper Colling's non-fiction department. The deal will see the tantalising title out in Spring next year. But, more importantly, author Jack Cooke wants to arrange a business meeting with our Kevin Pocock mid-canopy.

Exciting times!

The Treeclimber's Guide to London excites

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News that Jack Cooke's The Treeclimber's Guide to London has been snapped up by HarperNonFiction, can be met with delight and wide-eyes. Particularly by readers fond of closer interactions with nature than book-bound day-dreams provide. Tree-clambering is definitely both a primal and a terrifically exciting act (best done sensibly, of course!).

Cooke's title, to be released in Spring next year, has reportedly cost HarperNonFiction a five-figure sum. What the it receives for the outlay is a book Harper's publishing director Jack Fogg calls "one of a kind". The Bookseller reports that Harper nicked the book in a rather active five-publisher auction, so that bodes well. And Fogg particularly seems thrilled with Harper's catch:

Jack’s book is truly one of a kind. He writes beautifully on nature and its convergence with city life, and brings an elegant, lyrical and unassuming tone to his writing which fits perfectly with the subject.

What's the book actually about? It's Cooke's "charming account of the 80 or so trees" he has climbed in/around London in the period of a year. If that sounds somewhat left-field, it's clearly delivered in a style which makes publisher's knees go a-quiver - and it's sparking a little fire of joyful abandon within us.

Cooke's accounts will also be partnered by monochrome line drawings from his wife, Jennifer. Which, honestly, sounds the perfect accompaniment to her husband's words.

Of course we'll wait to see what the finished article does for the senses. But we're half-expecting our younger book-devouring selves to be quite satiated. As much as our youthful desire for acutely realised freedom and adventure.