Dragonhaven, by Robin McKinley
Robin McKinley’s Dragonhaven, her first novel in four years, is a celebration of atmosphere and characterization. It’s an intensely absorbing story, but longtime fans take heed: this book has much more in common with her character-driven vampire novel Sunshine than her earlier, more conventional fantasy novels...
Prettification
And speaking of new and improved cover art, somebody has FINALLY done a makeover on L.M. Montgomery's novels. Behold the New Canadian Library's versions of Anne of Green Gables and Emily of New Mo...
Moving up in the world
I'm normally a little irritated when a paperback author re-releases previously-inexpensive older material in new, pricier editions. (See: Meg Cabot, whose The Boy Next Door was previously availabl...
Best of luck, Mr. Pratchett.
A New Year's Day chat reminded me that I hadn't already posted this:"Terry Pratchett has been diagnosed with a rare form of early onset Alzheimer's, as he announced yesterday with a post to the we...
2008: A Year in (Pre)view
And here’s the flip side to yesterday’s list: the top ten literary events we’re anticipating in 2008. Happy New Year, dear readers!1. 2008 is the year that disappointed ICE Kunion readers will fin...
Wordcandy's Year in Books: 2007 Edition
Hey, everybody! We are delighted to present our annual list of the top ten Wordcandy-approved book releases, rumors, and events of the past year. We really enjoyed this stuff, and we hope you did,...
eBooks GALORE!
Girlebooks.com is a website with a mission: it offers free e-books by female writers, all in an effort to “make classic and lesser-known works by female writers available to a large audience throu...
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson
James Patterson has described Maximum Ride as his favorite series, and possibly his best. We totally understand why these books are his favorites, as the first installment in the series...
Shonen Jump turns five!
The January issue of Shonen Jump magazine hit stores on December 4th, and it is jam-packed with 392 pages' worth of holiday-worthy content. This "Mondo!" issue - which marks the anthology's fifth ...
How (Not) To Have a Perfect Wedding, by Arliss Ryan
It wouldn’t be smart to give Arliss Ryan’s novel How (Not) To Have a Perfect Wedding to anyone planning to get married in the near future. Ryan’s book (which she based on her experiences as a professional wedding hostess) is witty, well-written, and occasionally touching, but she ruthlessly strips every last drop of glamour and romance from the wedding experience...
Kissing Snowflakes, by Abby Sher
Kissing Snowflakes, Abby Sher’s first novel, isn’t outstandingly original, but it features plausible characters and a solidly entertaining storyline. The book reads like a Molly Ringwald movie, but...
Pushin' for the Oscars
I couldn't stand Joe Wright's recent adaptation of Pride and Prejudice (not, as has been suggested, because I'm an impossible-to-please Austen purist, but because the movie was TOTALLY STUPID), an...
Make every word tell
Here is the Wordcandy stocking stuffer of choice: a new, gorgeously illustrated version of our personal bible, Strunk and White's The Elements of Style:Is it not awesome? This elegant $15 paperbac...
Wordcandy Summer Trailers Presents: Chronicle Books
Publishers' Spring/Summer catalogs are beginning to roll in, and there's some seriously awesome stuff coming down the pike. We were particularly interested in the artsy, funky, elegantly present...
Intriguing.
I've never read a Gregory Maguire book, and I'm not leaping to do so - his cover art is good, but the guy seems like a one-trick pony. However, I was mildly tempted by this:In case you can't read...
Somewhere, Edward Gorey is spinning in his grave.
Okay, everybody, can you pick out the REAL Gorey cover?Seriously, just look at them. It's not that I don't like the Gorey-esque covers - on the contrary, I think they're remarkably eye-catching - ...
Not what I was hoping for
But let's face it: the only news I REALLY want from Yen Press is an announcement of when they'll be releasing the rest of ICE Kunion's titles. (Must... read... Angel Diary....)I suppose their othe...
There's a fine line between optimism and stupidity...
...and I frequently find myself walking it. After all, it's not like I enjoyed the first Narnia film adaptation, but I have a sinking feeling I'll end up seeing the second one. Click here for th...
Wordcandy's 2007 Gift List
Well, the holiday season is upon us. On the one hand, that means we're broke. But on the other, it also means that we get to compile our annual list of elegant, affordable, Wordcandy-worthy gift...
Porn for Women
Check out this awesome (and totally holiday-worthy) offering from Chronicle Books and the Cambridge Women's Pornography Collective:Here's the publisher's description:"Prepare to enter a fantasy wo...
Blood Brothers, by Nora Roberts
As someone who has never learned to appreciate delayed gratification, I was pretty excited about the one-book-release-per-month schedule Nora Roberts adhered to for her last trilogy, 2006’s...
Fablehaven, by Brandon Mull
I spent Sunday morning reading Brandon Mull’s debut children’s fantasy novel Fablehaven, and found it to be something of an emotional rollercoaster: this imaginative, fast-moving story had a lot g...
Bad movies abound.
New York Times book reviewer Rachel Donadio just wrote an article about the increasingly tangled relationship between books and movies. According to Donadio's article, some publishers are now part...
Welcome to the O.Z.
Pros: I like Zooey Deschanel well enough, and I like the concept of updating The Wonderful Wizard of OZ. Cons: Unfortunately, this trailer looks like 100% pure Velveeta.
How much would plane tickets cost, anyway?
I just got this mega-exciting press release in my in-box:VIZ PICTURES BECOMES PARTNER IN BAY AREA MOVIE THEATRE TO PROMOTEJAPANESE POP CULTUREThe J-Pop Center In Heart Of Japan Town To Offer Lates...
The Devil's Whisper, by Miyuki Miyabe
Miyuki Miyabe’s deliciously creepy mystery/thriller The Devil’s Whisper opens with three young women dying in quick succession: one throws herself off a building, another falls in front of a train...
Audiobook Obsession 101
My idea of the perfect afternoon is curling up on my couch with a huge mug of tea and a paperback romance novel. Recently, though, I've become obsessed with audiobooks, and while I'm not tossing t...
A swift (visual) punch to the eye
Slate is currently featuring an entertaining but much too short slide show about the evolution of children's book art from the dull "improving" stories of the mid-19th century to the weirder and m...