Archive for the 'Books' Category
November 2nd, 2009, 12:02 am by Jayson Peters
Every year the Honors program at Phoenix College holds a massive book sale that helps students pay for books and tuition. This year the 17th annual Padriac Hill Memorial Scholarship Fund Book Sale will be 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 10 in Sophomore Square at Phoenix College, 1202 W. Thomas Rd. (MAP)
The fund is named for Padriac Meriadoc Hill, a student in the Classical Studies and Honors programs at PC who was shot and killed during an attempted robbery of the movie theater where he worked in 1993. His first name is the Gaelic spelling for “Patrick” and his middle name, “Meriadoc,” comes from a Hobbit character in The Lord of the Rings, a book his father loved.
I attended PC as part of the Classical Studies program, and the sale was always a lot of hard work but was also a lot of fun. If you can get out that way, please support this program and you’ll find some great deals on books! And if you can’t make it but would like to contribute, call the Honors office at (602) 285-7305 to arrange for a student to pick up your book donations.
Posted in: Books • Collecting • Deals • charity • fund-raiser • Padriac Meriadoc Hill • Phoenix College • Tolkien | Post a Comment »
October 22nd, 2009, 2:04 pm by Jayson Peters
 Amazon announced today that it will release a free software application for Windows PCs that will read the same e-books as its $259 Kindle device.
The application, which was announced the same day Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system debuted at the company’s first retail store in Scottsdale, will be available in November, the Los Angeles Times reports.
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Posted in: Books • Business • PC • Technology • Amazon • e-books • Kindle | Post a Comment »
October 21st, 2009, 4:45 pm by Jayson Peters
 On Friday Sam Weller, the authorized biographer for sci-fi author Ray Bradbury, will appear at Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe as part of the store’s “Food for Thought” series. Weller, a journalist and professor at Columbia College in Chicago, is the author of The Ray Bradbury Chronicles: The Life of Ray Bradbury, which describes the writer who envisioned rocket travel to outer space but never learned to drive a car or operate a computer.
Bag lunches for the event are available for $5.50 at the adjacent Wildflower Bread Company; just call (480) 838-9773 and as for the “Food for Thought” special.
Posted in: Books • Events • Sci-Fi & Fantasy • Changing Hands • Ray Bradbury • Tempe | Post a Comment »
October 21st, 2009, 10:19 am by Jayson Peters
 Photo: Tor Books Author Brian Sanderson, who was chosen in 2007 to complete Robert Jordan’s “Wheel of Time” series after the novelist passed away, will appear next month in the Valley to promote the release of The Gathering Storm. Sanderson will meet fans Nov. 16 at the Scottsdale Public Library.
The book, which releases Oct. 27, is the 12th volume in the fantasy epic that fuses elements of European and Asian mythology.
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Posted in: Books • Events • Sci-Fi & Fantasy • Scottsdale • Brian Sanderson • Robert Jordan • Wheel of Time | Post a Comment »
October 19th, 2009, 9:45 pm by Jayson Peters
 Publisher Crucible 7 has released a seven-page preview and sample character sheet from its upcoming Doctor Who: Adventures in Time and Space roleplaying game.
Priced at $59.95, the release is described as a deluxe box set that contains a 144-page Gamemaster’s Guide, an 86-page Player’s Guide, a 30-page Adventures Book, a four-page Quick Start Guide, pregenerated character sheets, blank character sheets, gadget sheets, tokens and dice. The game, originally set for release this month, will be out in November.
This is the third official tabletop RPG based on Doctor Who: FASA published one in the ’80s and Virgin in the ’90s. The new game naturally focuses on the 2005 relaunch of the classic series that ran from 1963-89. But with 45 years of accumulated lore from TV episodes, original novels and plays and two spinoffs to date, there is plenty of material to support a full range of gaming supplements — if the market is there for them.
See also: ‘Doctor Who’ RPG set for fall release
Posted in: Books • Doctor Who • Gaming • RPGs • Sci-Fi & Fantasy • PDF | Post a Comment »
October 8th, 2009, 1:08 am by Jayson Peters
 Amazon has lowered the price of its Kindle e-book reader to $259 and unveiled an international model, according to PC World … but Canada is still Kindle-less due to a lack of wireless distribution agreements for the device’s bookish content, reports the Globe & Mail.
If you’re reading this, O Canada, here’s some of the fun you’ve been missing:
Posted in: Books • Geek gear • Holidays • Technology • Amazon • e-books • Kindle | Post a Comment »
September 28th, 2009, 4:13 pm by Jayson Peters
 A couple of events coming to the Valley next month will help to usher in the release of DK Publishing’s LEGO Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary, due out Monday, Oct. 5.
The LEGO Store at Chandler Fashion Center will be invaded by Imperial stormtroopers for its event, 2 to 4 p.m. Oct. 10. In addition, there will be giveaways of Star Wars-related LEGO toys.
The same day and time, Barnes & Noble at Desert Ridge Marketplace, 21001 N. Tatum Blvd., Phoenix, will hold a costume contest, LEGO building activities, games raffles and more.
If you’re in another geographical area, check the book’s official site to find a similar event near you.
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Posted in: Books • Chandler • Collecting • Events • LEGO • Star Wars • Phoenix | 1 Comment »
September 21st, 2009, 9:05 am by Jayson Peters
 Bookmans Entertainment Exchange spends each September raising awareness of the dangers of censorship, taking a stand for the idea that silencing a work just because it is controversial is wrong. To celebrate the campaign this year, the chain of used media stores — with locations in Phoenix and Mesa as well as Flagstaff and Tucson — is hosting a free screening of the controversial cult classic A Clockwork Orange, 8 and 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, at MADCAP Theaters in Tempe.
The 1971 film by Stanley Kubrick and starring Malcolm McDowell is an adaptation of a 1960s dystopian novel by Anthony Burgess. It will be shown in its original 35mm format.
For more information, hit the links above or visit Bookmans at Country Club Drive and Southern Avenue in Mesa or Northern and 19th avenues in Phoenix.
See also:
Posted in: Books • Events • Free stuff • Movies • A Clockwork Orange • Bookmans • censorship • Kubrick • MADCAP Theaters | Post a Comment »
September 7th, 2009, 2:49 am by Chris "KeL" Adams
Have you ever wondered what the coolest library on Earth looks like? The website blog.shelfari.com can answer that for you. They’ve got a series of photos showing best-selling author and comics scribe Neil Gaiman’s home library and it’s incredible. Check it out, it truly is a thing of beauty.
I could see myself sinking into one of those chairs with a cup of cocoa and spending about 10 years happily reading. The best part? This is only his DOWNSTAIRS library. He’s got an upstairs reference library as well. Just when I thought I couldn’t respect the man any more, he gets even better.
Posted in: Books • Gaiman • heaven • library | 1 Comment »
September 4th, 2009, 1:49 pm by Jayson Peters
Amazon is trying to pacify those Kindle owners who were outraged when George Orwell novels were ripped away after the company discovered it did not have the rights to distribute the works.
 According to The Associated Press, the e-tailer — which now says the rights issue has been resolved — is offering free books or $30 to customers who lost their copies of 1984 and Animal Farm in July.
Later that month a high school student sued, claiming the content’s removal also destroyed notes taken for school assignments.
From Friday’s AP report:
In an e-mail sent Thursday to Kindle owners whose books were erased, Amazon offered to redeliver the titles to their e-readers for free, along with any annotations users had made. Or the customers can get a $30 Amazon.com gift certificate or a $30 check - which could be worth much more than two Kindle books, because many of them cost $10 or less.
The Kindle is no stranger to controversy. In June, Arizona State University found itself on the receiving end of a lawsuit when advocates for the blind alleged discrimination because the school was offering textbooks in the Kindle format. While the device has the ability to read to the blind, its interface has no audio or Braille functionality to let them navigate the menus.
Posted in: Books • Business • Technology • Amazon • e-books • George Orwell • Kindle | Post a Comment »
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