Long-awaited sequel

Twenty years ago a novel set against the political backdrop of the newly independent India of the 1950s was published, and went on to sell more than a million copies.

It's quite a gap, but according to the BBC NEWS, a sequel is finally on track. Yes, Vikram Seth is writing the follow-up to his epic bestseller, A Suitable Boy.

In the original story, Lata's mother is looking for an acceptable bridegroon for her daughter. In this "jump sequel" Lata is an old woman searching for a "suitable girl" for her grandson, so the setting is a lot more modern, taking into account the great changes in India since 1952.

Read More

2:08 PM | 0 comments

Whale Tale wins BBC non-fiction prize

Whales, it seems, are the flavor of the month. A book named Leviathan has won the twenty-thousand-pound BBC Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fiction.

No, not the acclaimed account of the history of whaling in America, also called Leviathan, written by Eric Jay Dolin, which has won the John Lyman Award and L. Byrne Waterman Award, both for excellence in American maritime history.

This particular prizewinner is Leviathan, Or The Whale, the story of a man's lifelong obsession with whales, by Philip Hoare. According to the BBC announcement, Hoare describes his travels about the world in pursuit of whales, an odyssey he compares to Herman Melville's Moby-Dick, Or The Whale. Which must account for the coincidence in titles.

And no wonder Greenpeace has ordered another ship.

Read More

2:40 PM | 0 comments

Those galleances again

Those loyal souls who have been reading this blog since it first began may remember a mystery I posed when reading the logbook kept by Capt. Samuel Wallis of the Dolphin in 1767, during the first European "discovery" of Tahiti.

Discovering also a woman he assumed to be the "queen," (Purea, aka Oborea), he presented her with a number of things, including three galleances.

Galleances? What the heck were galleances? Some kind of fowl, from the context. I posed the theory that they were guinea fowl: see "Galleances and guinea fowl" for the entire discussion.

And I received all kinds of interesting comments and suggestions -- but now I can triumphantly declare the mystery solved. And I was right! Three guinea fowl, they were.

My evidence comes from the private journal of James Burney, who sailed on the Adventure on Cook's second expedition. It was published by the National Library of Australia in Canberra in 1975, and edited by Beverley Hooper. On page 69, Lt. Burney is in Tahiti, making the observation that "Obreea" (Purea, the so-called queen) had fallen on hard times. "Captain Wallace had given Obreea a great many things amongst which were 2 Geese - 3 Guinea Hens - a Turkey cock & Hen & a Cat - of these the Indian [Omai] on board us, gave the following account. 1 of the Geese died - the Guinea hens were Stole from her & killed - the Turkey hen had 5 young ones but th cat killd them all. the Cat who was kitten miscarried, was stole & carried away to another Island & the Turkey hen is since dead -- So unlucky has Obreea been with these presents."

Those three poor guinea hens were unlucky, too. Doubtlessly they were cooked in an earth oven and eaten. I wonder what they tasted like?

Read More

12:47 AM | 0 comments

Sailor's diary from Nelson's time

Anna Brady reports in the Antiques Trade Gazette that a treasure from the Nelson era has been sold for a record sum.

This is a very rare bird indeed -- the diary of an ordinary sailor, lavishly illustrated with his own watercolors.

Seaman George Hodge first went to sea in 1790, at the age of 13, and commenced his diary at the same time. By 1833 it had grown to 500 pages, and recorded Hodge's service in the Napoleonic wars and the American War of 1812.

Life in the forecastle was precarious in the extreme. Hodge was held twice as a prisoner of war by the French, and was press-ganged back into the navy after being released the second time.

The diary, offered with more than 600 other maritime items from a private estate, was listed for sale by Northeast Auctions in Portsmouth New Hampshire. Because of its rarity, the seaman's journal roused a great deal of interest, which was matched by the price received. Estimated at up to $50,000 it sold for $110,000.

Read More

4:05 PM | 0 comments

Long time, no blog

Yes, yes, I know it has been a while. I have been sailing in Tupaia territory, including the island of his birth, Raiatea (pictured), where a breathtaking 4WD adventure took us across hills and through craters to his alma mater, the great marae Taputapuatea, on the southern coast at Opoa. This -- with Tahiti (and Samoa and Tonga) -- was an amazingly inspiring experience.

It was accomplished by cruise ship, which might seem bizarre. I have to admit that my spirit quailed before we boarded, as it seemed a crazy way of doing it (though very cheap, particularly considering prices in French Polynesia). However, it worked well, because I found that the cabin of a cruise ship is the Ideal Writing Environment. No phone, no internet, no meals to cook, no house to clean, nothing to do but write, save for the rushes up the deck to watch for island profiles. It was the closest I could get to Tupaia's voyaging in his home island network, without the prohibitive expense of a yacht. And there were other writers on board, after that Ideal Writing Environment. Joy Cowley was spied. And Graeme Lay was there, too, promoting his beautiful new book In Search of Paradise (Random House). Great fun.

Read More

3:56 PM | 0 comments

Literature festival crippled by politics

The BBC reports that Israeli police have shut down a Palestinian theatre in East Jerusalem, preventing the closing event of an international literature festival from being staged.

Police said they were acting on a court order, initiated by Israel's internal security minister. Saturday's opening event was also closed down.

East Jerusalem has been occupied by Israel since 1967, when the area was annexed.

The British consul-general in Jerusalem, Richard Makepeace (an ironic name, if there ever was one), was attending the event. "I think all lovers of literature would regard this as a very regrettable moment and regrettable decision," he said.

He added that the closing event will now be staged at the British Council in Jerusalem.

Read More

3:31 PM | 0 comments

Groundbreaking writers' conference in NYC

The Mercantile Library Center for Fiction is proud to announce its first Writers’ Conference, a full day of presentations dedicated to helping writers understand and thrive in the rapidly changing world of publishing.

The one-day conference will be held June 27, 2009 at Fordham University’s Lincoln Center Campus, 113W 60th St.. All conference attendees will receive one month free writing space at the Center’s Writing Studio at 17 East 47th Street and 10% off the first 3 months thereafter, a $130 value. The cost to attend is $200.

The event’s keynote address will be given by Daniel Menaker, a veteran New Yorker fiction editor, former Random House executive editor-in-chief, accomplished short story author and novelist and host of the groundbreaking Internet talk show Titlepage.

Featured authors will include New Yorker editor Ben Greenman, author of Please Step Back, Jennifer Weiner, author of In Her Shoes, Marlon James, author of The Book of Night Women, Stefan Merrill Block, author of The Story of Forgetting, Amanda Stern, founder of the Happy Ending Music and Reading Series and author of The Long Haul, Peter Cameron, author of Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You, Touré, author of the novel Soul City and Maryann McFadden, author of So Happy Together.

Featured editors will include Jonathan Karp, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Twelve, Richard Nash, consultant and former publisher of Soft Skull Press, Sara Nelson, former Editor-in-Chief of Publishers Weekly, Laurie Chittenden, executive editor at William Morrow, Sarah Crichton, publisher of Sarah Crichton Books at Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Featured agents will include Kate Lee of ICM, Renee Zuckerbrot and others. Panels will include topics like: Beyond the Desk: Finding Your Community of Writers, What Good Are Book Reviews, Anyway?, How To Get Your Foot in the Door, Creating Your Own Buzz, What Editors Are Looking For, and After the Book Deal.

Why couldn't they have staged this stellar event when I am in New York in August! A don't-miss event if you can make it.

Read More

2:06 PM | 0 comments