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By the estimation of award-winning author Donal Ryan, there are times when 300 sales might be enough to make a chart topper – the bestseller mantle tends to have more promotional than monetary value. Of course there are the literary blockbusters — titles like Harry Potter and The Da Vinci Code — books that ship hundreds of millions of copies. But combine the sales of JK Rowling and Dan Brown, even throw in John Grisham, and you’re still lagging behind the sales figures of the world’s true bestselling author — James Patterson.
April 18, 2017
0 CommentsIf you're a fantasy lover, you'll know how great mythical creatures can be. They can be menace or hero, evil or saintly. And they are so cool. They have fascinating histories and many variations, and it's always interesting to see how authors bring them to life in their stories.
February 21, 2017
0 CommentsRobert Winston is a scientist, medical doctor, author, politician, television presenter and currently Professor of Science and Society at Imperial College London. Abigail Jaggers went along to Imperial College to talk to Robert about his varied career, the book he might write next, and passing on science to the next generation.
January 9, 2017
0 CommentsIt's Hug a Bear Day! If you've read the blog before, you might have caught that I'm a huge Winnie-the-Pooh fan. Well, I'll confess to you now, that whilst Winnie-the-Pooh might be my favourite literary bear, I love a lot of bears. By which I mean fictional bears, and cuddly bears, and fictional bears that you'd really like to cuddle.
November 7, 2016
0 CommentsWhat do ghosts do for fun? They listen to audio-BOO-ks! Okay, so we’re not going to win any prizes for our jokes. What we can do, though, is recommend some fang-tastic books for you to get your teeth into this Halloween! (Sorry, I really will stop with the puns now). Whether you’re looking for scary fiction, frighteningly real crime, or just something to make you laugh, this selection will have a book for you!
October 31, 2016
0 CommentsAudiobooks have so many things going for them and there's loads of articles out there about their recent rise in popularity. But what if you're yet to give audiobooks a try? Or don't know what they can offer you? Well let these reasons persuade you. And for all current audiobook listeners, this post is about revelling in the vast array of benefits audiobooks have and maybe discovering some new perks.
July 26, 2016
0 CommentsJames Runcie is a popular crime writer. As an author, he's best known for his series of books about the crime solving vicar Sidney Chambers, which has been adapted by ITV into the Grantchester series. James chatted to Holly Newson about what it’s like to see your work on screen, his favourite authors and what he learnt about writing and fame from making documentaries about J.K. Rowling and Hilary Mantel.
July 19, 2016
0 CommentsIf bookshop window displays are any indication, millennials are reading differently. The front shelves of YA dystopian novels are making room for more memoirs and essay collections. On the covers are not historical figures or seasoned actors, but fresh-faced internet personalities.
June 27, 2016
0 CommentsCosy crime, a sub-genre of crime whose stories are sometimes referred to as ‘cosies’, shows no sign of losing its popularity.
May 3, 2016
0 CommentsWe’re now almost a third of the way through the year (what, really? Surely it’s still February?), but what does 2016 have to show for itself? Well, if the news is anything to go by, it seems to have been dominated by the continuing migrant crisis, Donald Trump, and nobody knowing what to think about the EU referendum.
April 11, 2016
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