Neverending Shades of Grey; A Memorial for Maurice Sendak
Today in books and publishing: There may be a second Fifty Shades trilogy to weep over look forward to; a memorial for Maurice Sendak in New York Tuesday; the best of the indies and the self-published bunch; NYPL drama continues.
RELATED: How 'Fifty Shades' Is Changing the Face of Publishing
Just when you thought you were done with the first one, have another! In a book world that is currently all about E.L. James (real name: Erika Leonard, profession: writer of that book, Fifty Shades of Grey, and its sequels) there is more about E.L. James. Remember, the book was Twilight fan fiction in the first place. And, like Stephenie Meyers, who wrote at least a portion of a manuscript (Midnight Sun) from the point of view of her vampire hero, Edward, James is reportedly pondering her own rewrite, from the perspective of the BDSM-loving billionaire, Christian Grey—the one who wears the tie so prominently featured on the cover of the first book. Per Gatecrasher, "James' new spin on the series — which has sold approximately 10 million copies since being published in 2011 — would keep fans and the media talking about Grey and Steele while they wait for the movie adaptation of the trilogy." While you're taking requests, Ms. James, could we get a book from the perspective of, say, the tie? Meanwhile, Bret Easton Ellis is pushing for himself as a possible screenwriter for the inevitable upcoming film. He appears to want Ryan Gosling to star. Fifty shades of sighs. [Gatecrasher]
RELATED: 'Fifty Shades' Unbanned; Michelle Obama's Book Finally Drops
There's a memorial service at the Met today in New York City in honor of Maurice Sendak, who died last month at age 83. Judy Taylor Hough, the editor who brought Where the Wild Things Are to UK readers and a longtime friend of Sendak, spoke to The Guardian about her friendship with the author. "Maurice was always a fairly sparky character," she said. "He gave so much to people across the world. And I have lost a very, very great friend." [The Guardian]
RELATED: The Cutest Little Book Movement, E.L. James Is Lashing Her Way to the Bank
If you're done with your 100 Shades, GalleyCat has a list of other best-selling books in the self-published arena (which Fifty Shades was, originally). The top three, from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire, Summers at Blue Lake by Jill Althouse-Wood, and Motorcycle Man by Kristen Ashley. [GalleyCat]
RELATED: What We Know About Maurice Sendak's Partying Pig Book
The best indie books of the year have been named in the 2012 Next Generation Indie Book Awards, a nonprofit awards program group chair Catherine Goulet calls "the 'Sundance' of the book publishing world." First place went to Inner Visions: Grassroots Stories of Truth and Hope, by Jan Thrope (Orange Frazer Press) in nonfiction and The Parsifal Pursuit, by Michael McMenamin and Patrick McMenamin (Enigma Books) in fiction. [PR Newswire]
RELATED: 'Fifty Shades' Outpaces Potter; Authors' Drunk Texts Imagined
The New York Public Library Drama Continues. NPR tackles the ongoing controversy regarding the New York Public Library, where, at the Rose Reading Room in the main building, scholars and researchers request books from stacks kept on seven floors below. A renovation plan involves getting rid of those stacks, which librarians say are not an ideal place for the books, and move some to "under nearby Bryant Park, and up to 2 million...to climate-controlled storage in Princeton, N.J." The Central Library Plan, as it's being called, would also involve the sale of the buildings containing the nearby Mid-Manhattan Library and the Science, Industry, and Business Library, combining those books and offerings into "a new, state-of-the-art circulating library where the aging stacks stand now." This plan has the benefit of making money for the somewhat strapped library. People, including authors Salman Rushdie and Tom Stoppard, don't like the idea; others have argued that the branches and not consolidation should be the main priority, and still others think this will hinder researchers and scholars in getting at the books they need. [NPR]
Flying Book News. There's a new iPad app, "IMAG-N-O-TRON: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore," out June 19 that will allow user interactions with the book "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore," also an Oscar-winning animated short film. "'The app will do this new thing called augmented reality where it will target into the book,' author William Joyce said. 'As you use your iPad, the cover of your book will sprout arms and legs and stand up and wave to you and beckon for you to pick it up and read it.'" Books are people, too. [Shreveport Times]
