Whole Lotta Books! Dahl, Tolkien, Rogan, Nolan, and Martignetti, plus My ROW80 Check In
ook chat!It's the 50th anniversary of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the 60th anniversary of The Lord of the Rings!
Penguin's hosting a contest that involves a year's supply of chocolate, a trip to New York City, and tickets to see Matilda the Musical. Matilda was always my favourite Dahl story. Enter the contest or take part in the other celebrations on the official Roald Dahl site.
There's a 60th anniversary edition of The Lord of the Rings that's just been released -- I want it mostly for the updated reader's companion. One way you can celebrate this anniversary is by quoting some of your favourite lines on Twitter with the #FR60th hashtag. Here are a few of mine:
In other book news, the paperback of Barbara Rogan's A Dangerous Fiction is out now!
I reviewed A Dangerous Fiction back when I read the hardcover and was full of praise - for the tenseness of the mystery, the vivid characters, and for being set in New York City! I love it when a story's location is as real as the story's people. Read a sample on Barbara's website, and I guarantee you'll be hooked!
And yet another release -- Anthony Martignetti, author of Lunatic Heroes (which I reviewed a couple of years ago) and Beloved Demons, has some new short stories out!
For those of you busy writing (I'm doing okay on my own ROW80 goals -- had a minor setback last weekend when the batch of Wallace letters I'd typed didn't save at all, argh! but I'm back on track now), author Margaret Buffie has a great post on why your novel's first line should grip the reader. She quotes some wonderful first lines from some of my favourite books.
And author Kait Nolan has been on fire recently with two brilliant posts, one on entitlement in writer culture (vs helping each other), and another on whether superhero powers are a finite commodity - do male heroes have to lose power in order for female heroes to rise?
Plus she has a new Meet Cute short romance out!
Once Upon a Coffee
Which new releases or anniversary publications would you recommend?
Comments
I have just bought "Good Morning, Mr Mandela" by Zelda la Grange ... Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu's tag line for the book:
'President Nelson Mandela's choice of the young Afrikaner typist Zelda la Grange as his most trusted aide embodied his commitment to reconciliation in South Africa. She repaid his trust with loyalty and integrity. I have the highest regard for her'
I've been wanting to read this ..
I've never read Matilda either, but have recently read his autobiography: Boy - Childhood Tales ... I still have to get to grips with Tolkein ..
Cheers Hilary
Here's to 60 years of amazing fantasy!
Skimming through your older posts (I've missed a lot - chaotic summer!) and I love the pics. Switzerland looks gorgeous! Hope you're doing well!!!
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was my favorite Dahl. I still remember feeling the depth of his poverty. I admired his self-discipline and his fairness even though he had so little. That book really formed me growing up.
Now I feel like reading Matilda again :-)