fiction news stories on Newser

Pulitzer Board Just Sucked Life Out of Book Industry

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 09:50:04 CDT

Sure, there's a possibility that when the Pulitzer Prize board failed to announce a fiction winner, the reason could have been a simple deadlock. But most who heard the news probably didn't assume that, and instead figured "it was a bum year for fiction," writes author Ann Patchett, who penned...

The 3 Novels That Almost Won a Pulitzer

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 07:30:05 CDT

For the first time in 35 years, no Pulitzer Prize for fiction was awarded —but that doesn't mean no works of fiction were considered. The Pulitzer jurors narrowed down the possibilities to three novels … and then the Pulitzer board decided, "after lengthy consideration," not to give the prize to...

This Year's Winner for Bad Sex Writing Is ...

John Johnson — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 14:41:05 CST

Ron Charles of the Washington Post wins the prognosticator award among book critics. When he reviewed (and panned) David Guterson's novel Ed King , he took note of one part: "What follows are three pages that might very well win the Literary Review ’s annual Bad Sex Award." Well, that award...

2011's Top 10 Books

Evann Gastaldo — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 09:10:05 CST

If you need a book recommendation for holiday reading, look no further than the New York Times ' list of the 10 best books of the year. Five are fiction and five non-fiction: 11/22/63 by Stephen King : A time portal sends an English teacher back to 1958 to try and...

New Authors Will Continue Parker’s Crime Novels

John Johnson — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 14:25:05 CDT

The two most famous creations of late crime novelist Robert B. Parker will live on. His estate will allow two writers to continue the Spenser and Jesse Stone novels, reports Publishers Weekly . Michael Brandman will take over the Spenser series, which debuted in 1974 and now number 39. Ace Atkins...

Did This Book Inspire Real-Life Murder?

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:13:05 CST

A Florida man confessed to killing his mother in the same fashion as a recently published novel describes: by beating her, cutting her open, and removing her inner organs. And the author of the novel admits that he based his main character partially on his friend, Beau Bruneau, 29—the...

E-Books Joining NYT Bestseller List

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 08:42:40 CST

E-books are gaining sales and credibility: The New York Times will add two e-book bestseller lists, fiction and nonfiction, beginning next year. The company has been working on a system to track and verify sales for two years, using weekly data from publishers, bookstores, and online retailers. “It was clear...

Jane Austen's Style? Not Actually Jane Austen's

Evann Gastaldo — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 09:33:00 CDT

Jane Austen is known as a “perfect stylist,” but those perfectly crafted sentences may not actually be hers. After studying 1,100 pages of Austen’s handwritten, unpublished manuscripts, an Oxford professor concluded that “the polished punctuation and epigrammatic style … is simply not there,” she tells the BBC . In its...

'Jewish Jane Austen' Wins Booker Prize

Emily Rauhala — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 06:01:49 CDT

The writer who once called the Man Booker Prize an "absolute abomination" was last night awarded the prize for his 11th novel, The Finkler Question . Howard Jacobson, who calls himself "the Jewish Jane Austen," was “truly flabbergasted” by the honor, reports the Telegraph . “I was beginning to look like I...