Posted by paragraphonline on December 29, 2009
Warm and efficient service, warehouse prices, complimentary books as door gifts, unpretentious setting and an alternative location. What are you waiting for? (With time, I am pretty sure a more finely-curated assortment will ensue, so do be patient.)
Please find Shenton Publications at Block 1085, Eunos Avenue 7A, #03-06, Singapore 409535. Do note that it now opens ONLY on Sundays, from 12:00pm to 6:00pm.
Posted in Literary Gossip | Tagged: Shenton Publications, Warehouse Sale | Leave a Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 28, 2009
Finally, a great idea to make poetry accessible and pretty darn cool. It’s called the Global Poetry System, or GPS for short. Founded by Lemn Sissay of Southbank Arts Centre where he is artist-in-residence, GPS is all about finding verse in everyday life.
“[B]e it birthday card verse, statue epitaphs, graffiti or found poetry (that doesn’t realise it’s poetry) —the deal is to put a flag in its location and upload a video, photo, text or audio file to the site’s Google Map. In short, it’s a user-generated world map of poetry.” Lemn Sissay
You can find out more about it here, or read an article in The Times here.
Posted in Literary Gossip | Tagged: Global Poetry System | 4 Comments »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 15, 2009
“Eating death, the deed grows thin.” – Takashi Hiraide (For the Fighting Spirit of the Walnut, No. 11)
Check out the book sculptures of Jacquline Rush Lee and Mike Stilkey.
Posted in Literary Gossip, Musings | Tagged: Book Sculptures, Books and Art, For the Fighting Spirit of the Walnut, Jacqueline Rush Lee, Mike Stilkey, Takashi Hiraide | Leave a Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 10, 2009
The oft-mentioned idom, never judge a book by its cover, is still relevant in everyday life, but only figuratively. The literary literal meaning of it is quite frankly not something you can agree with anymore, thanks to the brilliant book cover designs we have today. Who would want this when you can have this?
I may sound very superficial, but the fact of the matter is, book cover designs are taken very seriously, and rightfully so. And why exactly? Well, first and foremost, we really can’t avoid some simple facts of life. We learn, as soon as we hit puberty, looks are everything. So we tend to opt for well-illustrated and uniquely designed books for the very same reason why men still prefer prettier, well-endowed women and why women still look for the elusive tall, dark and handsome man.
Secondly, the book cover industry is a thriving one. Not only are people more interested in picking up reading thanks to how sexy books look these days, many book cover designers have gone on to win numerous awards for their designs, and this in turn fuels creativity in the design industry as a whole. Do bear in mind that not all designers can design books; to be able to capture a book’s core essence or storyline in the choice of font, colour or photograph is by no means easy.
But of course, what’s the use of a good design if the content is mostly crap? I can think of a dozen books or so (picked up at books sales mostly – who has the time to browse when people come equipped with trolleys?!) with well-designed covers but with plots so weak you wonder how they can even be published. And then of course ever so once in a while you find a book designed very much like a school textbook but turns out to be a surprisingly good read…
Anyway, back to the topic. If you still think that book cover designs cannot influence your next purchase, then look at this. I bet you’ll change your mind.
Contributed by: D.C
Posted in Literary Gossip, Musings | Tagged: Book Covers, Book Design Review | 1 Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 10, 2009
What: The Penguin Warehouse Sale 2009
When: 3–6 December
Where: Singapore Expo
Book-lovers rejoice whenever a book warehouse sale comes along because that is when we stock up on all our orgasmic reads at such low, low prices. Love can indeed be bought, cheaply. The gray, metallic shutters roll up at 10am and people storm in like cattle, with a purpose. And despite our barbaric rush into the hall, we still have in mind a book-lovers’ etiquette. Here are a few of the many I’d like to share, so that we can better prepare ourselves for upcoming sales.
It is not rude to not establish eye contact. In fact, it would be a waste of time for each moment spent looking at someone would mean that a beautifully bound first edition title is being ignored, or worst, snapped up by others. Darn! This however operates differently for guys or girls who are there to ‘check out’ other guys and girls. Yes, I know that book-people are sexy people. But, prioritize people, please!
Do not let go! It is a known fact that once a book leaves your hand, is not in your basket but is instead placed back onto the table of books, it is up for grabs. The purpose of the first round is to collect as much as you can get. Dump it all into your bag/basket/box. Sieve through your picks later, keeping the keepers, and releasing the rest back into the wild. Endure the weight and burden of your choices. It is your responsibility to do so. Make sure that you come prepared with sturdy arms. A solid breakfast is thus necessary because in warehouse sales, there is no room for the weak.
And be prepared to get dirty and do some dancing. Your fingertips will be smeared with dark spots from the layers of dirt on the books. Tainted. But this is OK. These are merely the battle scars we as book-lovers have to bear. And as there will be little or no talking between people, your bodies will automatically be geared into a gentle sway, to and from the tables, amidst a sea of other bodies. Do not resist this. Instead, join in the rhythm and immerse yourself in it.
Till next year.
Am off to read and smell freshly-purchased books. Hmmm.
Contributed by: Nurul H.
Posted in Musings | Tagged: Penguin Books, Warehouse Sale | 1 Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 8, 2009
It could very well be the bilingual tongue it wags. The promise to offer ‘the best of both worlds’ is essentially an adjunct to how ‘language’ constitutes the several genome keys to our make-up: if every man is a universe, then his many tongues would certainly be the different planets, each with their own terrain and atmosphere. In a time when publishers vie feverishly for readership through content-based distinction, it is refreshing to see how language functions as an interface for differentiation within the reading experience. The challenge now for My Paper is therefore to make bolder its hitherto sketchy vision. Language as the expression of interiority can be simultaneously superficial and substantive. The effective newspaper is one that is able to seamlessly bring together both these worlds. The logical second act to SPH’s language investiture would be to match content to community.
Contributed by: s.t
Posted in Musings | Tagged: My Paper, 我报 | Leave a Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 8, 2009
Dear Murakami-san,
I just saw a trailer of a documentary titled ‘Dinner with Murakami’. Of course, true to your elusive form, you didn’t appear in the trailer at all, and I don’t think you will appear in the film either. Heck, I don’t think you even know that there was this documentary made about you back in 2007.
I wasn’t disappointed, unlike the others who commented on the youtube video. I’ve learnt, after all these years of reading all your books (yes, I’ve read them all, but in English, of course), that I cannot and should not expect anything more from you other than your words, because really, that’s all you have got to give. You are a man of much privacy and I know you hate doing book tours, let alone documentaries . And even though you would have made me a very happy girl if you actually came here to sign my books and let me gush whilst I tell you how your stories have the ability to comfort and haunt me at the same time, I have come to respect and admire your insistence on keeping a low profile.
(I think at this point you would agree with me that it is quite a sad thing now that for some authors, it is their faces that are more recognised than the works they create, or worse, they are known first for the movies that their books are based on.)
So anyway, I hope all’s well with you. Just so you know, I won’t be catching ‘ Dinner with Murakami’ when it screens here in Singapore, but like many others, I’m looking forward to your next book.
Keep running,
D.C
Posted in Books, Literary Gossip | Tagged: Dinner with Murakami, Haruki Murakami | Leave a Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 5, 2009
“…It took me 20 minutes to write, was broadcast 5,000 times and earned me £5,500…”
And with this, poetry died twice.
View article here.
Posted in Literary Gossip, Musings | Tagged: Advertising, Poetry | 8 Comments »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 4, 2009
Reading the right way up.
Posted in Literary Gossip | Tagged: innovation, newspaper, vertical newspaper | Leave a Comment »
Posted by paragraphonline on December 4, 2009
In any season of giving, books almost always rank high on a short list of ‘good gifts’. With any reason for giving, books as gifts are able to filter away the frivolity of material fulfillment, while retaining a kind of vulnerability that is central to human relationships, vis-à-vis communication. Yet, many times as with communication, the beauty and value, I think, lies with its asynchrony and ambiguity. As a giver of books, you get (re)-inserted into someone else’s life every each time s/he finds relevance in (re)-reading. And because of the capacity for multiple interpretations in the reading process, you attain resonating multiplicity in the lives of others.
(For other reasons, click here.)
However, this preciousness of book-giving is increasingly threatened by the lack of investment of thought on the part of the giver. There is an expediency that creeps into the process; a quick subjecting of the giver-receiver interaction to a preferred ‘neutrality’. This dilutes the potential intimacy of book-giving, rendering it merely another ‘favourite’ item on the list of any season of giving.
Contributed by: s.t
Posted in Musings | Tagged: books as gifts | Leave a Comment »
