AbeBooks' Reading Copy

I am a sucker for a good pun. I know, I know, it’s a loathsome and vile pastime, and one I manage to keep to myself (and a few very close, unlucky loved ones). I rarely pun in public. But I definitely enjoy the art of punnery. So it is with equal parts shame and [...]

Two hundred years ago today, on January 28th, 1813, Pride and Prejudice was published. The author, Jane Austen, was 38 when it was published, and 41 when she died, but had written the bulk of it in her early twenties. It was her second published work (first was Sense and Sensibility). Two centuries later, Pride [...]

I’ve always admired and respected Harper Lee for being the best literary one hit wonder I’ve ever come across. There is something so noble and restrained about doing something extremely well, and then stopping. I always felt as though she put every ounce of every word she had to say into To Kill a Mockingbird, [...]

Australian author Bryce Courtenay has died from stomach cancer at the age of 79, as reported on The Big Story yesterday. He was best known for The Power of One, which, despite it being Courtenay’s debut novel, garnered much critical acclaim and made a name for Courtenay among Australia’s most respected writers. Throughout his career, Courtenay [...]

Tom Wolfe doesn’t bring out a book very often. His latest novel is Back in Blood but his previous one before that was I am Charlotte Simmons in 2004. Back in Blood has been reviewed everywhere and it’s a big sprawling novel of American life and American strife set in Miami. His first book was [...]

Happy birthday to Bram Stoker – at the top of this post you can see the famous yellow first edition of his famous novel, Dracula, and then four more that caught my eye. Some many editions, so much great artwork.

Marjorie Celona – if you haven’t heard the name before, remember you heard it here first, because she is going places. The Victoria, British Columbia-born author is on a launch tour for her debut novel right now. Simply titled Y, the novel has already generated all kinds of literary buzz, earned legions of devoted fans, [...]

This has been a good week for me so far. First I discover the world’s most creative and crafty brick bookends, and now The Telegraph has an interview with Barbara Kingsolver, one of my very favorite authors, about her new book Flight Behavior. (One word or warning to those who want to go in blind [...]

Chinese writer Mo Yan has won the 2012 Nobel Prize for Literature, reports the BBC.  Born Guan Moye, he writes under the pen name of Mo Yan, which translates as “don’t speak” in Chinese. The 57-year-old began writing while working as a soldier in the Chinese army and was first published in 1981. He is [...]

One of our booksellers AlmostAll1stEditions attended yesterday’s book signing in London by JK Rowling for The Casual Vacancy.  They took this photograph of the author – I love how she’s taken off her stilettos while doing the signings.  Signed copies of the book are now available.