Blind Chinese Dissident to Release Memoir
Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese lawyer and human rights activist who escaped the wrath of the Chinese Communist Party this spring, has signed a publishing deal to tell his story.
Chen, now residing in New York, has signed with a MacMillan imprint, Times Books. In a statement, Chen explains, “This is an opportunity for me to share with the world the true conditions in China, especially in the vast stretches of rural China. I hope the book we produce together will help usher in a new era of passion for life, active engagement with all challenges, and confidence that we can overcome all difficulties.”
The memoir is expected to his shelves in the Fall of 2013.
Julia Child Gets an App
Late, legendary cookbook author Julia Child can be found on a Nook or iPad near you. Knopf Publishers announced this week that “Mastering the Art of French Coking: The App” will include 32 recipes from Child’s famous cookbook of the same name and 30 clips from “The Way to Cook” video series, as well as social networking features, rare photos, and audio commentary.
Harlem Book Fair Promotes Literacy
On July 21, the Harlem Book Fair teamed with community nonprofit Total Equity Now to kick off the popular book fair and spread the message of literacy on 135th Street, from Malcolm X Boulevard to Fredrick Douglas Boulevard. The first annual “Literacy Across Harlem” included a “march, book swap, and community-wide celebration of reading, writing, and the exchange of powerful ideas,” according to the fair organizer.
“There is a desperate need for community members in Harlem to come together to improve literacy learning opportunities in our community,” Total Equity Now founder Joe Rogers told Harlem World Magazine.
Total Equity Now celebrated the success of the event on its Facebook page, saying, “Today, ‘Literacy Across Harlem’ was born, and over 250 books (with hundreds more scheduled to arrive next week) will soon fill the hands and home libraries of fellow Harlemites, learners sharpening their reading and writing skills through the Harlem YMCA Literacy Zone and other literacy service providers in our community.
What we accomplished today (and in collaborating to make today possible) was an important reminder of what we can achieve when we believe in, and tap into, our collective power to strengthen our community.”
U.S. Department of Justice Defends Stance on Apple E-Book Pricing
In a filing July 23, the Department of Justice answered public comments regarding its antitrust case against Apple and several major publishers, claiming that the “30 to 50 percent” increase in e-book pricing in April 2010 coincided with Apple’s introduction of iBookstore and was a result of collusion.
“The United States conducted a lengthy investigation into this steep price increase and uncovered significant evidence that the seismic shift in e-book prices was not the result of market forces, but rather came about through the collusive efforts of Apple and five of the six largest publishers in the country. That conduct, which is detailed in the United States’ Complaint against those entities, is per se illegal under the federal antitrust laws,” the filing reads.
News Corp.’s HarperCollins Publishers LLC, Hachette Book Group Inc., and Simon & Schuster Inc. have agreed to settle the suit, according to The Wall Street Journal. The case presses on against Apple, Pearson PLC’s (PSO, PSON.LN) Penguin Group USA, and Macmillan.
The settlement, which was opened for comment, has drawn criticism from Apple, among others. The company claims “the Justice Department’s actions will prevent retailers from being able to do business, and that it puts every e-book distributor, except Amazon, in peril,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
New Zealand Author Margaret Mahy Has Died
Beloved children’s book author Margaret Mahy passed away on July 23 after suffering from cancer, the Associated Press reports. She was 76.
Known for such books as “A Lion in the Meadow,” “The Man Whose Mother Was a Pirate,” and “The Seven Chinese Brothers,” Mahy was “the most acclaimed of New Zealand’s children’s writers,” according to “The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature.”
She was recognized with many awards throughout her career, including the Carnegie Medial in Literature (twice) and the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award.
The New Zealand prime minister paid tribute to the Mahy saying she was “widely acknowledged as one of this country’s finest authors, and one of the world’s greatest writers of children’s and young adults’ stories,” according to the BBC.
Compiled by Barbara Danza, Epoch Times Staff
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