Idaho State Senator John Goedde stirred up some righteous indignation last week, when he sponsored a bill that would make Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged required reading in Idaho’s high schools – going so far as to require that students pass a test on the book as a graduation requirement. He stirred the pot a little more by saying “That book made my son a Republican” when asked why he chose it. I personally find this whole scenario (both the bill itself and the righteous indignation) to be pretty silly. I think high school children should have open, free access to any book they wish to read (including Ayn Rand). I don’t believe that the required reading of Atlas Shrugged is likely to “turn” anyone Republican (perhaps the fact that the Senator’s son grew up in a predominantly Republican household had some measure in forming his political beliefs…? Ya think?). Nor do I think that any required high school reading is likely to brainwash school age children toward one set of beliefs or another. I really enjoyed this response from The Daily Beast, in which author Michael Moynihan states in part: “If Goedde’s bill was serious and in danger of passing, it would have exactly the opposite of its intended effect. By mandating her books be studied in school, it’s likely that Rand’s influence on the young would be immeasurably lessened forever.” Haha, indeed. Maybe this bill is a good idea after all?
Amazon continues its bid to take over the world (although, not China apparently) by announcing the upcoming launch of its own currency last week. “Amazon Coins” will essentially have the same value as U.S. currency so I’m not exactly sure what the point of it all is. *Downloads another song with seemingly limitless fake money.*
Amazon also filed a patent at the end of January that will allow the company to “resell” digital files like audiobooks and ebooks. So for example, a user could potentially transfer the digital rights to a song or a kindle book to another user for a “used” price. Could this be the future of used book stores?
This week in fabulous soap box blogging, Kelly from Stacked writes in defense of introvert learning styles (see the comments for additional discussion) and Sarah from Clear Eyes, Full Shelves writes about the “right” way to read a book (spoiler: there isn’t a right way).
NPR Books had a series of great articles about the state of the publishing industry right now – and (surprise!!) – not everyone thinks it’s all doom and gloom. I know that I personally get very tired of the “sky is falling,” “publishing is DEAD!!” posts so I really enjoyed their more well-rounded point of view. Also, for all the Little House fans, check out this interesting/nerdy NPR article about why Laura’s sister Mary likely did not lose her sight to scarlet fever.
New shelving/book recommendation site Bookish launched last week. So far, it seems a lot less user-driven than Goodreads, but it could be a potential competitor down the road.
In entertainment news, Emma Roberts will play the lead role in a television adaptation of Lauren Oliver’s Delirium for Fox. No word yet on whether writer Karyn Usher will be able to translate the premise of the book into something that actually makes sense. There were also some very exciting casting announcements for the upcoming film version of The Book Thief.
And of course, the biggest news of the week: Washington D.C. and Seattle once again kick butt and take the top spots for “most literate city.” Woohoo! Suck on it, rest of the U.S.!
Stop by and let us know what we missed from your corners of the web!
Amazon continues its bid to take over the world (although, not China apparently) by announcing the upcoming launch of its own currency last week. “Amazon Coins” will essentially have the same value as U.S. currency so I’m not exactly sure what the point of it all is. *Downloads another song with seemingly limitless fake money.*
Amazon also filed a patent at the end of January that will allow the company to “resell” digital files like audiobooks and ebooks. So for example, a user could potentially transfer the digital rights to a song or a kindle book to another user for a “used” price. Could this be the future of used book stores?
This week in fabulous soap box blogging, Kelly from Stacked writes in defense of introvert learning styles (see the comments for additional discussion) and Sarah from Clear Eyes, Full Shelves writes about the “right” way to read a book (spoiler: there isn’t a right way).
NPR Books had a series of great articles about the state of the publishing industry right now – and (surprise!!) – not everyone thinks it’s all doom and gloom. I know that I personally get very tired of the “sky is falling,” “publishing is DEAD!!” posts so I really enjoyed their more well-rounded point of view. Also, for all the Little House fans, check out this interesting/nerdy NPR article about why Laura’s sister Mary likely did not lose her sight to scarlet fever.
New shelving/book recommendation site Bookish launched last week. So far, it seems a lot less user-driven than Goodreads, but it could be a potential competitor down the road.
In entertainment news, Emma Roberts will play the lead role in a television adaptation of Lauren Oliver’s Delirium for Fox. No word yet on whether writer Karyn Usher will be able to translate the premise of the book into something that actually makes sense. There were also some very exciting casting announcements for the upcoming film version of The Book Thief.
And of course, the biggest news of the week: Washington D.C. and Seattle once again kick butt and take the top spots for “most literate city.” Woohoo! Suck on it, rest of the U.S.!
Stop by and let us know what we missed from your corners of the web!
