Well, there is a trailer for the new Narnia movie:Prince Caspian. You can see it here, as well as read a transcript.
Personally, I am looking forward to what this new movie can teach me about life. The first big screen film (The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe) taught me many important lessons, which I will sum up in point form:
- Normal Coloured Tigers are good, White Tigers are evil.
- People who look like goats are good, people who look like bulls are evil.
- Santa Claus spends the off season as an arms dealer.
- Turkish Delight is apparently worth selling out your family for.
We have the entire series of Narnia books, as well as books on tape/CD and videos, available in our Catalogue.
Brush up on the series before the new movie. I will warn you though, the book Prince Caspian has some pretty blatant spoilers for the film.
Journalist and Author George MacDonald Fraser died on January 2nd.
Born in England of Scottish parents, Fraser joined the British Army in 1943, where he went on to fight in India and Burma. After being made an officer, he then went to fight in North Africa and the Middle East. After the war, he decided to leave the military and worked as a journalist for the Glasgow Herald. It was these wartime experiences that would shape his career as a writer.
Fraser is probably best known as the author of the historical fiction "Flashman" adventure series. These novels feature the travails of the bully Flashman from Tom Brown's Schooldays adult life as a member of the British Army. A rascal, cad and epitome of the term "anti-hero", Flashman still manages to come out on top at the end of each story.
Fraser was also an author of non-fictions works, such as Hollywood History of the World
The Flashman series, as well as Fraser's other works, are available in our Catalogue.
CBC is reporting that Peter Jackson will be helming development of the film adaptation of "The Hobbit".
This is good news for everyone who loved Jackson's take on the Lord of the Rings trilogy and hope that he brings the same level of quality to the prequel. Apparently the book will be spun out over two separate films.
"The Hobbit" films have a tentative release date of 2010 and 2011, so to keep us occupied while we wait, have a look at some of these books and films:
On the heels of the good news that Robert Jordan's final novel will be completed comes the less good news that Terry Pratchett has a very rare form of early onset Alzheimer's.(From Diskworld News)
This begs the question of why all the authors that I like seem to be suffering misfortune. First Robert Jordan now this. The only thing I can say is that Harry Turtledove better get himself to a doctor quickly. John Ringo and Max Brooks should probably go too.
In all seriousness, I recommend all of those authors if you like Terry Pratchett. They all have different fantasy and comedy works. Well I find them funny, but not everyone might find a Zombie Survival Guide humourous.
Fans of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series of fantasy novels can breath a sigh of relief as an author has been chosen to complete the final book.
According to Dragonmount.com Brandon Sanderson has been selected to finish the work. He will work closely with Jordan's widow and editor, Harriet Popham Rigney, to complete the book in Jordan's "Voice".
If you would like to read some of Sanderson's work before the new book comes out, we at the Pickering Public Library have two options for you.
For adults we have Elantris. A fantasy tale of intrigue, magic, and curses.
For children, we have Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians in both book and book on tape formats. I would like to note that we at the Pickering Public Library are not evil, and you should report anyone who says we are evil to us so we might grind their bones to make our bread. Delicious delicious bone bread. Mmmmmmm.
James Frey's A Million Little Pieces was a best seller after Oprah picked it for her book club. Then it was shown to not be an Auto-biography but a work of fiction. There was much gnashing of teeth and beating of breasts, but the book stayed on the bestseller list.
Now a judge has decided to award refunds too just over seventeen hundred people who bought the book before it was proven false.
I wonder if Oprah is one of the people trying to get her money back?
Read the article here
Compiled by Brian Bethune | June 25, 2007 | macleans.ca
- Fiction
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
- Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje
- The Quest by Wilbur Smith
- The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien
- Rant by Chuck Palahniuk
- On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
- The Overlook by Michael Connelly
- The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
- The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith
- The Ladies' Lending Library by Janice Kulyk Keefer
- Non-Fiction
- God is Not Great by Ghristopher Hitchens
- The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
- Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah
- The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge
- Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
- Troublesome Young Men by Lynne Olson
- The Canon by Natalie Angier
- The Assault on Reason by Al Gore
- Against the Current by Linda Diebel
- Travels with Herodotus by Ryszard Kapuscinski
Author J.K. Rowling has donated an undisclosed sum to the reward fund for now 4 year old Madeleine McCann. The fund has reached 2.5 million pounds – about $5.5 million.
One of Britain's richest people, Rowling asked that the size of her contribution remain secret, but various papers have said it was the largest of a series of celebrity pledges.
from The Toronto Star
The seventh and final book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be out July 21, 2007.
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If this sounds like too much work, be sure to check out our Coming Soon - Tomorrow's Bestsellers list in the catalogue.
"So it goes"
Kurt Vonnegut
Born November 11, 1922.
Died April 11, 2007.
Books by, and about, Kurt Vonnegut
Vonnegut died on April 11, 2007, from brain injuries sustained after a fall. The acclaimed novelist was 84 years old. Married twice, he is survived by 7 children (biological and adopted) and his second wife, photographer Jill Krementz.
He wrote 14 novels from 1952 to 1997, as well as many short stories, some plays and non-fiction work, the last in 2005. Often social commentaries on war, the state of the world, the environment, he was commonly referred to as a science fiction writer but also a philosopher using satire and humour. His writing had clear autobiographical tendencies -- from 1942-45, he was an American POW in Dresden, Germany. He eventually received a Purple Heart for this experience which led him to write Slaughterhouse Five, a staple of many high school curriculums.
For more information on Vonnegut or to read his novels online, please try searching for Kurt Vonnegut in our Research Resources:
- Novelist has lists and summaries of his work.
- Netlibrary has full-text copies of his novels and literary criticism.
- Literature Resource Centre includes biographical information and literary criticism.
- Tumble Readables allows you to increase text size to make novels into Large Print.