Category Archives: Books

Say what you will about JK Rowling, she hasn’t been sitting on her laurels since she finished the last Harry Potter book. J.K. Rowling has been spotted at cafes in Scotland working on a detective novel, a British newspaper reported … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Dwight Silverman has a reading list of novels for geeks that you might like. The criteria for making the list is a bit elastic – from affecting the geek culture and language (the Hitchhiker’s Guide trilogy) to being about a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s done: I have finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Our copy arrived from Amazon UK yesterday, and after Tiffany announced that she didn’t intend to start reading it till Monday, I pounced. I’m happy to have finally … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I figure by now that about half the US population has read the last Harry Potter book. As we like the British editions, we’re waiting on our copy’s arrival from Amazon UK (according to an email I got yesterday, it … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I know that I will have to be very careful about seeing spoilers online for the last Harry Potter book when it comes out. But I had no idea people had experienced this sort of thing when the previous one … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Spoiler alert level: Elevated. The mystery surrounding the end to fictional British boy wizard Harry Potter’s saga deepened on Wednesday with a computer hacker posting what he said were key plot details and a publisher warned the details could be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Really sweet article by Rebecca Traister about a Harry Potter convention in New Orleans. Couple of comments: 1. I hadn’t realized that one of the biggest stars of the Potter fandom world, Melissa Anelli of The Leaky Cauldron, is a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

‘stina brings news of an incident at the Romantic Times Book Lovers’ Convention here in Houston. I’ll leave it to you to click over and read the details. All I know is that it looks like Fred Head finally found … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Interesting. That’s the question that author Troy CLE initially tried to answer when he created his character, Louis Proof. But it would be simplistic to paint Louis as simply a black version of the beloved Harry. Louis is a very … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron has a chat with Opus artist Berkeley Breathed, who has a new children’s book out. There’s a TMI-style Q&A with him, and this interesting tidbit from the story: His latest children’s book, Mars Needs Moms! (Philomel, $16.99), which … Continue reading → Continue reading →

TMI brings word of the golden anniversary of “The Cat In the Hat”, which was first published in March of 1957, and links to The Annotated Cat, a book about the two Cat books. One “did you know” fact they … Continue reading → Continue reading →

How big do you think the Day One sales for this will be? The last installment of the Harry Potter saga will be published on 21 July, author JK Rowling has announced. She confirmed the date fans will be able … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We’ve already established that Olivia likes to know the names of all of the characters in her books, including those whom the author does not identify. The subject came up again on Monday night as we read Down on the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So I was reading Green Eggs and Ham to Olivia this evening, and just as I was getting underway she pointed to the story’s protagonist, the guy who does not like green eggs and ham, and said “What’s his name?” … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I found this story about the band “Harry and the Potters” to be fascinating on many levels. Brothers Paul and Joe DeGeorge each portray Harry, the former as Harry in his Seventh Year, the latter as Harry in his Fourth … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I know that when the vast majority of the public thinks about blogs and bloggers (at least, the vast majority of that tiny slice of the public that knows who and what we are), words like “Cheetoes” and “Jolt cola” … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Of local interest only, but if you’re a fan of detective fiction in Houston, you’re probably acquainted with Dean James, manager of Murder By The Book, Houston’s best source for all things mysterious. According to the email I got last … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I love stories like this: Scientists say Harry Potter can prevent broken bones Harry Potter may not yet be able to mend broken bones with a wave of his wand, but the pint-size wizard of book sales apparently has the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

JK Rowling will begin work on the last Harry Potter novel on January 15. 2006 will be the year when I write the final book in the Harry Potter series. I contemplate the task with mingled feelings of excitement and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I don’t think any snarky intro I can think up could be any better than just a straight announcement that there will be a new line of NASCAR-themed Harlequin romance novels hitting a bookstore near you soon. The new project, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Note to self: Obtain a copy of Frank McCourt’s latest book, if for no better reason than to see if his description of life at Stuyvesant High School matches up with my memory of it as it did for Julia. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This article on Calvin and Hobbes cartoonist Bill Watterson is interesting, but ultimately doesn’t tell us a whole lot about the famously publicity-shy cartoonist that we haven’t read elsewhere. With one exception: Bill Watterson, 47, hasn’t made a public appearance … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The good news: Our copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince arrived yesterday from Amazon UK. The bad news: Tiffany got to it first, so I have to wait until she’s done reading it. The good news: She’s a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron goes all Harry Potter as the hours tick down to the official release at 12:01 AM. Bookstores all over town will be open along with eager kids and their bleary-eyed parents, no doubt lined up with randomly-drawn numbers … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The great and highly prolific novelist Evan Hunter, who sold over a hundred million books as crime writer Ed McBain, has died at the age of 78 from cancer. In a 50-year career, Mr. Hunter, sometimes as Ed McBain and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Ginger has tagged me with a book meme, so let’s dive in. 1. How many books do you own? I’ve never counted, but we have one bookcase’s worth upstairs (plus an overflow box) and three more cases downstairs, not to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Meet Mary GrandPre, the artist who has drawn the covers to all the Harry Potter books, including book number six. GrandPre, 51, of Sarasota, Fla., [has] been drawing him for the cover of each blockbuster book, as well as creating … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will hit bookstores on July 16. “We are delighted to announce the publication date,” which also will take place in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, said the joint announcement by Nigel Newton, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Did you know that Charles Shulz drew a second comic strip in the 1950s, before “Peanuts” really took off? I didn’t. The strip was a one-panel, three-day-a-week affair called “It’s Just A Game”, and it featured something you never saw … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Tom Hanks has bought the rights to the book Charlie Wilson’s War. More than a year after publication of the book Charlie Wilson’s War, the Washington lobbyist and former Texas congressman continues to ride the wave of interest in his … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Char Miller, editor of Fifty Years of the Texas Observer, gets profiled in the San Antonio Current this week. Miller has become so ubiquitous (he recently referred to himself with characteristic self-deprecation as a “media whore”) and so universally respected, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

New to my bookshelf – The Hammer, by Lou Dubose (that would be longtime Texas Observer editor Lou Dubose) and Jan Reid. Sean-Paul of The Agonist was kind enough to not only get me a copy of this book, but … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The planned signing of Fifty Years of the Texas Observer at the Holcombe Barnes & Noble in Houston, originally scheduled for this Sunday has been postponed. No word yet on a makeup date. And yes, I’m still working on reading … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Thumbs up from the Austin Chronicle on Fifty Years of the Texas Observer. They even noticed the George H.W. Bush “compassionate conservatism” meme from 1964. I’m still lagging behind on finishing this book, but this is as good a time … Continue reading → Continue reading →