Article first published as Book Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins on Blogcritics. About: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is a dystopian novel written for young adults (YA). Even though the main audience targeted, the book has struck chords with parents as well and has been a best seller since it came out. 384 pages Publisher: Scholastic Press; Reprint edition (July 3, 2010) Language: English ISBN-10: 0439023521 My rating for The Hunger Games – 4 Buy this book in paper or electronic for­mat Or get The Hunger Games Trilogy in paper or electronic format through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account More books by Suzanne Collins Thoughts: I’ll admit it, I read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (website) because my wife did and I didn’t… we can’t have that now. Can we? I can certainly see why the book was such a hit. The novel struck many chords and many themes (teenage anguish, love, work, poverty and more), was an easy and quick read, as well as full of action. Ms. Collins built a fantastical and believable world where the United States is no more and instead the country is now called Panem which is run from “The Capital” and divided…

Author Suzanne Collins (website) said she got the idea for The Hunger Games while surfing channels and seeing people competing on a reality show and footage of the invasion of Iraq. The two blurred and an idea was formed.

M.J. Rose: I’ve been fascinated with lost fragrances since long before I started writing The Book of Lost Fragrances… since I found a bottle of perfume on my great grandmother’s dresser that had belonged to her mother in Russia. Here is one of those lost fragrances that stirs the senses and the imagination… (researched and described with the help of the perfume writer Dimitrios Dimitriadis) GUERLAIN – MARIE CLAIRE Guerlain is revered as one of the most spectacular perfume houses in the world. More than 180 years of perfume history has translated into the creation of over 700 perfumes – many of which are rare editions and long-lost gems. In 1996, Guerlain created an eau de parfum for the French edition of Marie Claire magazine – limited to only 1000 examples – which were assigned to recipients by way of a competition. Nowadays, this rare treasure has all but disappeared. Marie Claire (the perfume) was a summery bouquet of white blossoms – jasmine, tuberose and ylang ylang, which bloom over a dry, earthy vetiver base. A perfume with titanic sillage and an enduring presence, Marie Claire has slipped from our consciousness as yet another perfume lost to time.

Join Regal Literary in celebrating the ALA’s third annual National Bookmobile Day! In appreciation of our nation’s bookmobiles and the library professionals who keep them running, we’re giving away signed copies of THE NIGHT BOOKMOBILE and HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY by fellow bookmobile lover Audrey Niffenegger, international bestselling author of THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE. See more about the books below, and enter to win at http://www.regal-literary.com/contests/bookmobileday2012/. This sweepstakes ends on April 11, 2012. For contest updates, follow us on Twitter @regal_literary. Enjoy National Bookmobile Day, and best of luck! ======================================= The Night Bookmobile By Audrey Niffenegger The Night Bookmobile tells the story of a wistful young woman who one night encounters a mysterious disappearing library on wheels. This library includes everything, and only everything, she has ever read. Seeing her history and most intimate self in this library, she embarks on a search for the bookmobile. But over time her search turns into an obsession as she longs to be reunited with her own collection and therefore, her memories. The Night Bookmobile is a haunting tale both of transcendence and the passion for books, and features the evocative full-color pen-and-ink work of one of the world’s most beloved storytellers. Her Fearful…

Like every other bookish person, I like bookends as well, especially ones that goes nicely with the books they hold in between even though, most likely, I’ll be the only person to ever notice. I was looking for bookends, not to buy but just to imagine when I noticed how many bookends of people there are. To be honest – they look good but I like the “Reading Sophisticates” one especially. Here are some of my favorites – which one is yours? Sterling Home Child Games Bookend Trio, 7-1/4-Inch Tall by Sterling Homedj 7-1/4-Inch tall bookend trio features young children playing hide-and-seek Makes a great gift for a teacher, parent, child care provider, or grandparent Crafted from durable composite material for long lasting beauty Antiqued finish Bookends can decorate a table or shelf or even use to hold up books Bey Berk Lady Justice Bookend by BEY BERK Dimensions: 4 inches x 3.75 inches x 8.5 inches (per side) and 9.5 pounds Blind justice guards the innocent daily in the court, now let her protect you books Cast in solid bronze and set upon solid marble Sterling Home Pair of Children Swinging Not Too High Bookends by Sterling Home Pair of not too…

Article first published as Book Review: Queenmaker: A Novel of King David’s Queen by India Edghill on Blogcritics. About: Queenmaker: A Novel of King David’s Queen by India Edghill is considered to be biblical fiction. I have studied the bible (both Jewish and Christian) and do enjoy biblical fiction very much. 384 pages Publisher: Picador; First Edition edition (November 2002) Language: English ISBN-10: 0312289197 My rating for Queenmaker – 3 Buy this book in paper for­mat through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account More books by India Edghill Thoughts: I enjoyed India Edghill’s (website) Delilah: A Novel (book review) very much so I figured I’ll pick up her novel Queenmaker as a follow-up. Queenmaker is a biblical fiction first person narrative of Michal, King David’s first wife (out of several) and the one to hold the title of Queen. The book follows the biblical books of Samuel and II Samuel from Michal’s perspective; from her humble beginning as a daughter of Saul, a humble farmer, through his ascension to king, wars and madness. After marrying her father’s harper / war hero David she helps him escapes her father and for her help gets sold to another man until David’s army goes back to reclaim /…

From comic creator Mark Waid: originally posted at http://markwaid.com/?p=695 Hi. Mark Waid here. As promised if you were paying attention at WonderCon today during my spotlight panel, here’s a free PDF download of a short digital-comics story I did as proof-of-concept with the talented artist Jeremy Rock. It’s a little zombie story called “Luther”, and it’s a sample of the approach I’m taking to my long-promised–and now imminent–series of Digital Comics. Download it for free. Open it in whatever program you use to read PDF files. A simple right-click or page-tap takes you through, screen by screen, dead simple. For best results, view it full-screen, landscape format, so each image reads as a separate “page.” And enjoy. Free from Jeremy and me to you. If you like it, we could use your assistance. Send the link to your friends. In fact, I encourage you to share “Luther” with as many people as you like. Help us spread the word. Help us show off what we think Digital Comics can be. Help point the audience here. It’d be much appreciated. Then come back here April 2 to see what else I have in mind for the future of webcomics and find out how you can participate. This is big.

Before anything else, here is a good question for anyone who intends to launch and endorse his or her next book usinmg social media. “How do you plan to create a fan base on Twitter, Facebook, or any social networking site?” Internet Facts First, let us look into important numbers regarding the Web’s development more than two decades ago. The first website was set up in 1990. There were 252 million people in North America and 738 million in Asia browsing the Internet by 2009. There were 234 million websites by 2010 with 1.8 billion users. Social Media Truths Those are statistical facts about the Internet. Now, let us proceed with a few insights on social media. Facebook has over 650 million users. Many people view more than 30 billion YouTube videos in a month. Twitter has received 74 million unique visits in January 2010 and has passed the 10-billion Tweet mark after two months. What do all these details mean to you and your profession then? Social media is capable of strengthening your content. Social Media Optimisation OK. So, what comes next? Now, here are some strategies for specific sites. 1….

On 3 October, 1993 soldiers from the United States Delta Force, Army Rangers, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, 10th Mountain Division,UN forces, and Navy SEALs attempted to capture Mohamed Farrah Aidid, a Somali warlord in Mogadishu

Today is the anniversary of the publication of Nathaniel Hawthorne‘s The Scarlet Letter. Besides a great tale, The Scarlet Letter also had a wonderful that goes with its own publication. Great price on this book in paper or FREE in elec­tronic For­mat through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account More books by Nathaniel Hawthorne 1 ) The Scarlet letter is set in 17th century in Puritan Boston between 1642 – 1649. 2 ) The story that Hawthorne planned to publish the book as a novella and was convinced by his publisher to make it a full length novel is untrue. 3 ) The manuscript for the novel was written at 14 Ma.. St., Salem MA at the Peter Edgerley House. The house still stands. 4 ) Hawthorne believed the book would not be popular due to some portions which were “powerfully written”. 5 ) Contradictory to Hawthorne’s forecast, The Scarlet Letter was an instant best seller. 6 ) The Scarlet Letter started Hawthorne’s best period as a literary author. 7 ) Even though the novel sold many copies, it only brought in $1,500 to its author over a period of fourteen years. 8 ) Upon publications, protests arose in Salem due to the town’s depiction. 9…