Dec 8 2015

Maybe a nice vacation?

So, I finally got around to watching the trailer for Captain America: Civil War. (It was posted last month, but my interest in Marvel's increasingly bloated universe is waning.) It looks...

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Dec 8 2015

Does not compute.

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In an effort to arrive at a definitive list of the United Kingdom's greatest novels, BBC Culture contributor Jane Ciabattari polled 82 non-British book critics for their favorites. The resulting list is novels only (no short stories/poetry/plays), and it is perfectly respectable, although...

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Dec 7 2015

The Man in the High Castle, by Philip K. Dick

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According to Wikipedia, Philip K. Dick considered his Hugo Award-winning 1962 novel The Man in the High Castle to be his masterpiece, but was too disturbed by his own creation to ever finish a sequel. Seeing as Dick made a career out of churning out disturbing literature, this might seem surprising, but...

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Dec 7 2015

Weekly Book Giveaway: The Man in the High Castle, by Philip K. Dick

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This week's Book Giveaway is Philip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle, which has recently been transformed into a TV miniseries from Amazon. I usually find Dick's ideas more interesting than his actual novels, but what the hell: it's only 274 pages, so it can't be that bad either way...

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Dec 3 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #8: Any of the literary posters at Pop Chart Lab

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Gift Idea #8: Pop Chart Lab's extremely detailed literature-themed posters ($29)...

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Dec 3 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #7: 2016 Jane Austen calendar

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Gift Idea #7: "Amiable Rancor", the Republic of Pemberley's 2016 Jane Austen calendar ($19.99)...

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Dec 3 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #6: Literary subscription boxes

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Gift Idea #6: Literary subscription boxes (approx. $30 to $50 per box)...

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Dec 2 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #5: Any of the great Alice's Adventures in Wonderland anniversary editions

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Gift Idea #5: Any of the 3 billion (or so) 150th anniversary editions of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (approx. $10 to $50)...

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Dec 2 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #4: Edward Gorey anything

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Gift Idea #4: Any of the many fine goods at the Edward Gorey House Store (prices vary)...

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Dec 1 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #3: MOMA bookends

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Gift Idea #3: Hiroaki Watanabe's Indice Bookends ($25)...

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Dec 1 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #2: "2 Spaces 4 America" Hoodie

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Gift Idea #2: Any of the new Bloom County products, really, but particularly the "2 Spaces for America" hoodie ($49)...

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Dec 1 2015

Holiday Gift Guide Idea #1: Harry Potter artwork

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Dear readers, it is once again time for the Wordcandy Holiday Gift Guide. As usual, we're running late, but (also as usual) we've found some awesome stuff.


Gift Idea #1: Harry Potter artwork from MinaLima (Prices vary, but are all high)...

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Nov 30 2015

Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen

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I have long owned the Mr. Boddington's Penguin Classics editions of Pride and Prejudice and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and both suffer from a major quality control issue: the ink periodically fades to near-invisibility. Still, I loved the line's cover art, so when their edition of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility...

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Nov 30 2015

Weekly Book Giveaway: Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen

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This week's Book Giveaway is the Mr. Boddington's Penguin Classics edition of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. This has never been my favorite Austen novel, but I figure the week after Thanksgiving is the best possible time to read a book about the heroism of family members who keep their personal issues to themselves...

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Nov 25 2015

Pride and Prejudice and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Quarto Classics Reimagined), by Jane Austen and Lewis Carroll

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As longtime Wordcandy readers know, I collect editions of Pride and Prejudice and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I only have so much shelf space, so I try to be discerning, but every once in a while I see more copies that I absolutely need to own...

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Nov 24 2015

It's not meant to be a horror story, but...

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The Guardian recently posted one of their pictorial essays on the real bear who inspired Winnie-the-Pooh. Apparently, in 1914 a vet named Harry Colebourn was on his way to fight in World War I when...

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Nov 24 2015

About time

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And speaking of H.P. Lovecraft, there's an article about his long and disturbing history of racism over on Salon. (See why I can't make a logical Christmas/Lovecraft connection?) Lovecraft has been in the news recently because...

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Nov 23 2015

I should Photoshop a Santa hat onto this guy.

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The Guardian posted an article about British booksellers' attempt to create yet another shopping holiday: "Civilized Saturday", a day designed as the “perfect antidote” to the crazed bargain-hunting of Black Friday...

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Nov 23 2015

So pretty! Also discounted!

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First: Hi, guys! We're not doing a Book Giveaway this week, because it's so short. The Giveaway feature will return next Monday.

Second: if you too admired the very beautiful "Mr. Boddington's Penguin Classics" editions that were previously only available at Anthropologie, you...

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Nov 19 2015

Pre-holiday shopping (for me)

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I'm thinking of buying myself this adorable unicorn-shaped bookend from CB2 ($24.95), but I feel like I'd have to re-arrange my books so it was just holding back a shelf of fantasy novels, and I might be too lazy for that...

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Nov 19 2015

Year to date

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The Washington Post has put together a timeline of the major literary news and events of 2015. I actually found it pretty interesting reading, but, um, 2015 isn't over yet...

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Nov 18 2015

Big stuff worth sweating

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The Telegraph recently posted a totally creepifying story about self-help author Kristine Carlson, who has endured years of stalking after...

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Nov 17 2015

Heads up, E.L. James

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Deadline informs me that Lionsgate is developing a new, one-hour series with Twilight novelist Stephenie Meyer titled The Rook, based on the 2012 novel by Daniel O’Malley...

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Nov 17 2015

It's no Moominworld

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According to Jezebel, the Stockholm apartment of Astrid Lindgren, beloved author of the Pippi Longstocking series, is going to be opened to public tours. I was a little confused to hear that no one under age 15 will be admitted, but...

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Nov 16 2015

These Shallow Graves, by Jennifer Donnelly

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Jennifer Donnelly's These Shallow Graves is the kind of book you want to take on a plane: long, engrossing, and simultaneously fun yet intellectually challenging enough to distract you from the super irritating guy hogging the armrest...

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Nov 16 2015

Weekly Book Giveaway: These Shallow Graves, by Jennifer Donnelly

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This week's Book Giveaway is Jennifer Donnelly's These Shallow Graves. Somewhat to my chagrin, it seems that this is not a book about zombie prom-goers*, but instead a combination of "dark mystery" and historically-accurate depiction of the Gilded Age. A full review will follow shortly...

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Nov 12 2015

Cute!

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There's another manhwa-to-TV adaptation in the works: an adaptation of Park Hee-jung's webtoon Cat and Dog. According to Dramabeans, it's a contract marriage-based romantic drama...

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Nov 11 2015

So. Much. Better.

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Speaking of paperback vs. hardcover editions, I recently caught my first glimpse of the original hardcover version of Anne McCaffrey's 1967 scifi novel Restoree, and it is absolutely spectacular...

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Nov 10 2015

Unexpected

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Last month, Literary Hub published a fascinating essay by graphic designer Linda Huang about the differences between hardcover and paperback book cover art. Ms. Huang works for Vintage & Anchor Books

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Nov 10 2015

Newer & improved

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Mental Floss recently posted some comparison images of the changes Richard Scarry’s 1963 picture book Best Word Book Ever underwent between its initial publication and...

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