Showing all posts about books
Pulling Weeds, Folding Laundry, a book by Leslie K. Lau
22 August 2023
Sydney based Australian writer and artist Leslie K. Lau recently self-published a book, Pulling Weeds, Folding Laundry. These are tasks many people probably don’t care to think much about, let alone carry out, but Lau saw them in a new light — as moments between moments — while undergoing treatment for cancer:
Ultimately, it is a story of how a cancer diagnosis revealed the reality of life, how volatility and uncertainty was in fact the norm and not the exception.
It is the retelling of a journey of finding peace, contentment, and joy in the moments between moments.
It is a tale of navigating hard times, perceived or otherwise, and coming out the other end.
What a wonderful way to say slow down and appreciate those seemingly insignificant moments in life, since they are still very much a part of it.
Via Justin Fox.
RELATED CONTENT
2024 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards open for entries
21 August 2023
Entries for the 2024 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards (VPLA) are open until Sunday 10 September 2023. The VPLA is one of Australia’s most valuable literary awards, and the shortlists — which will likely be announced sometime in December — are always filled packed with quality titles.
RELATED CONTENT
Australian literature, books, literary awards, writing
Critic Swallows Book marks 10 years for Sydney Review of Books
14 August 2023
Book cover of Critic Swallows Book, published by the Sydney Review of Books.
Australian literary criticism journal, the Sydney Review of Books (SRB), has been online for ten years. To mark the occasion, SRB has published a book, Critic Swallows Book, containing twenty-two essays, written by contributors over the past decade:
It includes essays on decolonising Australian literature and revisiting the classics, on blockbuster fiction and book-length poems, on modernism in the Antipodes and reading during the pandemic. Essays on Susan Sontag and Rita Felski sit alongside critical considerations of the work of Murray Bail and Joan London, of new books by Evelyn Araluen and Samia Khatun.
Hmm… Critic Swallows Book, if you think the title is riffing on Boy Swallows Universe, the 2018 novel by Australian author Trent Dalton, I think you’d be right. Catriona Menzies-Pike, editor of Critic Swallows Book, wrote a scathing critique of Boy Swallows Universe for SRB in May 2022.
RELATED CONTENT
Australian literature, books, Catriona Menzies-Pike, Trent Dalton
Dan Ackerman claims Tetris film story copied from his 2016 book
14 August 2023
Book cover of The Tetris Effect, written by Dan Ackerman.
Dan Ackerman, editor-in-chief of design and technology publication Gizmodo, claims in a recent court filing that Apple TV+, producers of the 2023 film Tetris, directed by Jon S. Baird, copied the storyline from his 2016 book, The Tetris Effect. Ackerman further alleges he sent a pre-publication edition of the book to Maya Rogers, CEO of the Tetris Company, and soon after received a cease and letter warning him not to adapt the story for film or television:
Ackerman accused Rogers of working with screenwriter Noah Pink to develop a screenplay using content taken from his book without his knowledge or consent. Apparently, numerous producers showed interest in adapting his book, but the Tetris Company refused to license its IP for the project. “This was done at the direction and behest of Ms. Rogers so that she and the Tetris Company could pursue their own project and opportunities based on Mr. Ackerman’s book without compensating him,” the lawsuit reads.
I wrote about the film last March, but still haven’t had a chance to see it. According to the film’s IMDb page, the screenplay was written by Noah Pink. No mention, at least that I can see, is made of Ackerman, nor The Tetris Effect, there.
RELATED CONTENT
books, Dan Ackerman, film, Jon S. Baird, screen adaptations
Online symposium VOLUME seeks to encourage Australians to read more
10 August 2023
Australian authors Jess Scully, Kate Larsen, and Nardi Simpson, are among speakers at VOLUME, a one day symposium, taking place online, on Thursday 21 September 2023. Amidst concerns Australians do not read enough, VOLUME will explore strategies to encourage more people to read.
Despite its ability to enhance health, knowledge, and wellbeing, support for embedding reading in our daily lives is often overlooked. With national literacy and reading rates declining for children and adults alike, it’s time for urgent action. By exploring effective approaches to encouraging reading alongside insights into advocacy from other industries, VOLUME will provide a platform to untangle the issues affecting reading engagement.
Turn off the TV an hour earlier, put down the games console, and leave your phone in the other room (unless you use it to read e-books), a few of my suggestions to make for more reading time.
RELATED CONTENT
Private equity firm KKR buys publisher Simon & Schuster
8 August 2023
The book publisher is said to have been bought for US$1.62 billion, reports The Guardian. This in the wake of the failed 2020 takeover attempt by Penguin Random House, which was blocked in late 2022, by a US court.
Late in 2020, Paramount had announced the sale of Simon & Schuster to Penguin Random House for $2.2bn, a deal that would have made the new company by far the biggest in the US. But the Department of Justice, which under the Biden administration has taken a tougher stance on mergers compared to other recent presidencies, sued to block the sale in 2021.
I don’t know a whole lot about the book publishing business, but US$1.62 billion seems like quite a bargain to me.
RELATED CONTENT
You and the Universe, a new book by Stephen Hawking for children
8 August 2023
A children’s book titled You and the Universe, written by late British physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking, will be published in March 2024:
The new book is based upon a 2018 partnership Hawking’s family had with the European Space Agency, along with the Greek composer Vangelis (“Blade Runner”, “Chariots of Fire”, “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage”.) The message used words adapted from Hawking’s book for adults, “Brief Answers to the Big Questions” (Bantam, 2018), set to music by Vangelis.
The book is co-written by Hawking’s daughter, Lucy, and illustrated by Li Xin. You and the Universe asks readers to imagine themselves as time travellers heading towards the future, and to work together to ensure the future will be a place free of the ravages of climate change.
RELATED CONTENT
books, climate change, science, Stephen Hawking
Publishing contracts that allow AI chatbots to learn from books
29 July 2023
A few weeks ago, I wrote about two authors, Mona Awad and Paul Tremblay, who had filed a law suit against OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT. Awad and Tremblay were claiming books they had written were being used to help “train” the AI powered chatbot. They say this had happened without their prior knowledge or permission.
It now looks like there may be a solution to this problem, but not perhaps the one writers have been seeking. According to a tweet by the Australian Society of Authors (ASA), some book publishers in the United States are adding clauses to their publishing contracts, allowing the works of authors to be used to train generative chatbots:
We know that some terms of service in publishing have already included clauses allowing the use of authors’ work to train AI and we are now hearing that authors in the US are being asked by publishers to agree to clauses which allow their work to be used to train generative AI.
That’s sure as hell one way to “solve” the problem. But I wonder if authors agreeing to their works being used in this fashion are being offered additional remuneration? And what of writers who disagree with such a proviso? Do their works go unpublished?
RELATED CONTENT
artificial intelligence, books, publishing, technology
The Penguin Books 2023 Write It Fellowship Shortlist
28 July 2023
The 2023 Write It Fellowship shortlist was announced earlier this month, and is made up of eleven Australian writers with works of fiction spanning historical, autobiographical, crime, psychological horror, fantasy, memoir, and poetry genres.
The Write It Fellowship was established by book publisher Penguin Random House Australia in 2018. The Fellowship is intended to support unpublished writers from under-represented sections of the community, including those with disabilities, and LGBTQIA+ and First Nations backgrounds.
The winner of the Fellowship will be named on Monday 9 October 2023.
RELATED CONTENT
Australian literature, books, literary awards
Man apologises for social media threats against Yumi Stynes
27 July 2023
A man has apologised to Australian author Yumi Stynes after making threats against her through social media last week. Stynes has been subjected to a barrage of online hostility recently, amid a backlash against Welcome to Sex, a sex education book she co-authored with Melissa Kang. Some people have been angered by a selection of illustrations in the book that they perceive to be pornographic in nature.
A twenty-three year old man, Eli Engwicht, was arrested by police after being identified as one of the people making the threats, and appeared in court in Sydney yesterday. After his appearance, he issued an apology to Stynes:
“I apologise to Yumi Stynes and her direct family members for the inconvenience and the trouble and the threats that I have sent,” Mr Engwicht said outside court. “I’m sorry. This is a public and sincere apology (for) … my wrongdoing.”
The matter is expected to return to court in September, after Engwicht indicated he would plead guilty to the charges against him.
RELATED CONTENT