The automotive industry got one. The financial industry got one too. So, author James Patterson asks, why can’t the book industry get a bailout from the United States government? The weekend of April 20, Patterson took out ad space in the New York Times Book Review as well as Publishers Weekly, hoping to raise awareness about the decline of the book industry. The goal of the ad was to point out that there are serious consequences to letting paper books die out, and he asks for help from someone — anyone — to help save books and the publishing industry. [Read more…]

With the advent of new technology and a push for all industries to treat the environment a little better, even the publishing industry is going green these days. Since the days of the printing press, the book industry has relied on resources such as trees in order to create paper and print books. While this is still necessary today, more and more publishing companies are taking an eco-friendly approach to the development of their books, according to a report by the Book Industry Environmental Council and the Green Press Initiative. [Read more…]

A library got to make an unexpected appearance yesterday at one of the most watched events in the world.  A commercial for Oreo cookies that appeared in Super Bowl XLVII showcased a series of events unfolding in a library. [Read more…]

Florida libraries are used to seeing hot weather, but there is something too hot for even them to handle.

The Brevard County Public Libraries system in Florida decided to pull “Fifty Shades of Grey” from their shelves last week according to The Palm Beach Post.  It’s an erotic novel that heavily features BDSM.  The title has been the top-selling ebook everywhere for quite awhile. [Read more…]

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum yesterday announced that they have fifteen letters written by Ernest Hemingway to his friend Gianfranco Ivancich that are now available for scholars.

The earliest of the letters was written in 1953 and the last one was written in 1960.  They were written from various parts of the world including Cuba, Kilimanjaro, and Paris. [Read more…]