Bookselling, Publishing

Price War

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“Amazon is in conflict with the Hachette Group, Britain’s largest publisher, over terms and discounts and is refusing to sell its titles,” reports the Times Online. Amazon usually buys books at half the cover price, but it is pushing for more, apparently at the expense of author royalties.

Another Times reporter comments, “If [the price war] continued, it would not be long before Amazon got virtually all of the revenue that is presently shared between author, publisher, retailer, printer and other parties.”

Authors, Fiction, Reviews

Repost: Grand Klavan

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(Note: Phil has suggested that, in honor of Andrew Klavan’s new release, Empire of Lies (which I’m reading now with great pleasure), I should repost my previous reviews on his work. That sounds like a very wise and thoughtful suggestion, but–more important–it means less work for me. So herewith, from my entry for May 16, 2006 on the old blog site, is my first Klavan review. This one concentrates on his blockbusters, True Crime and Don’t Say a Word.)

Back in the 90s I discovered an excellent mystery writer named Keith Peterson. His novels about reporter John Wells were exciting and smart, but the thing I really loved about them was that Peterson created characters I could really care about. I think I’ve said this before (and I’m sure I’ll say it again) but sympathetic characters are the thing I most require in a book.

Then Peterson just disappeared. (Actually there were a couple more Peterson books, but I missed them). I looked wistfully now and then at my John Wells novels, which I’d hung on to.

Recently I did a web search on Keith Peterson and made a wonderful discovery. Keith Peterson was a nom de plume for Andrew Klavan, the big thriller writer.

That took me to the used bookstore, and… wow. I mean, wow. Continue reading Repost: Grand Klavan →

Non-fiction

Three Sides Better Than One

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The Jolly Blogger reviews J.P. Moreland’s The Kingdom Triangle, which he calls well worth reading. The triangle consists of “the recovery of the life of the Christian mind, the renovation of the soul and the restoration of the spirit’s power.” Here’s an excerpt:

Side two of the kingdom triangle is the renovation of the soul and I think Moreland offers one of the best and most incisive diagnoses of the illness that plagues our souls that I have seen anywhere. He describes this as the empty self, or the false self, and it has four characteristics.

  • The empty self is inordinately individualistic.
  • The empty self is infantile.
  • The empty self is narcissistic.
  • The empty self is passive.

He goes on to describe the antidote as a recovery of the art of Christian self-denial. This dovetails nicely with John Calvin’s contention that the summary of the Christian life is to be found in self denial.

So I am enthusiastic about Moreland’s diagnosis, but I diverge from him on the cure. Basically the cure for the empty self, and the practice of the renovation of the soul, is to be found in what I would call the practices of the Christian mystics, with an emphasis on the cultivation of the inner life.

Read on

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Throwing in the Towel

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Sentinel’s Michael Jacobson says there’s an upswing in terrorists giving up the cause. Some terrorists have become “disillusioned” with the death of innocients, particularly Muslims, and the character of their leaders.

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Links today

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I’m taking a couple days of vacation from work, so tonight I’ll just share some amusing links.

Apropos my post about children’s rhymes last night, I’ll bet you didn’t know that the poem “Little Bunny Fufu” has ancient historical roots. Thanks to reader Ori for directing me to this translation of that mighty Norse epic, “The Fufumal.”

And my friend the author Michael Z. Williamson gave me this link to a report on the one power tool every man must have.

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The Saint John’s Bible

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Saint John’s Abbey and University of Collegeville, Minnesota, has commissioned and produced the first handmade, illuminated edition of the Holy Bible since the printing press. The Library of Congress has an online exhibit, and you can see more about this edition at The Saint John’s Bible site. It’s beautiful.