"Don't Be Evil"

I'm fast starting to believe that everything in the world is a giant conspiracy theory against me. Okay, that's me being a tad hyperbolic. Just a tad - not more, not less. There are two pieces of news that I have stumbled upon in the last seventy-two hours, which depress me to no end. Amazon Purchases GoodReads

There you have it. Amazon suddenly has a lot more power and influence in the book industry. For those of you who like graphs:

The chart is staggering. The rise of Amazon's dominance is almost unreal, but as we have our beloved bricks-and-mortar stores closing all around us, one has to wonder? How much of this industry is Amazon going to monopolise? Has it already reached the point where there is no competition in this space? At least, not from the other so-called "big players". The online stores have quite possibly already won this battle. That said, I fully believe there will be indie bookshops that will be survive - as long as there are book-lovers, there is a place for the smaller, more independent bookshops, that's more about the books, less about the money.

Yet, with Amazon purchasing GoodReads, a site "for book-lovers by book-lovers" (I'm ad-libbing), it almost seems like there will soon be no real e-competition left either. Amazon already owns The Book Depository, Shelfari (the "Shelfari by amazon.com" banner makes me cringe, ever-so-slightly), and Abe Books (by virtue of which, it has a stake in LibraryThing). The one thing we learn in high school economics is, monopolies are detrimental to the economy. It doesn't take rocket science to work that out. With the purchase of GoodReads, Amazon is one step closer to attaining that monopoly?

GoodReads is fantastic. I use it to maintain lists (boy, I love my lists!), keep track of what I am reading, and to connect with other book lovers who may not be on the blogosphere. I'd browse it for hours, peruse the quotes from a book if the book itself piqued my interest, and read reviews. Also, I spent a fair bit of time browsing through all the various editions and covers of the books, marvelling at how they have evolved through time. Yes, it is entirely possible that I have squandered precious time exploring GoodReads, much like a child in a candy store. The one option I have never used (yet always appreciated) on GoodReads is "Get A Copy" - the immediate option is 'Kobo' and then there are a bunch on 'online stores' listed in a drop-down. Amazon doesn't even feature at first glance, such that it is almost refreshing. That's going to change! It is inevitable.

With this purchase, Amazon now has a great recommendation site, that caters to passionate book-lovers and that's it. This will add an immense value to Amazon's "recommendations" (if you liked this...), which for me has been a bit hit-and-miss lately. It also means that one can expect tight integration with the Kindle and GoodReads, for, from what I have read, the Kindle social component is virtually non-existent. GoodReads, on the other hand, very very good.

I am not going to delete my GoodReads account - honestly, I don't see the point. As long as it continues giving me what it gives me right now, and doesn't undergo a complete metamorphosis after the takeover, I will carry on using it. However, if it does undergo a complete metamorphosis...

...let's not worry about that for now.

The Death Of Google Reader

Apparently, a few days ago, as part of it's spring-cleaning, the "Don't Be Evil" company that is Google announced that it would be killing Google Reader. Now, I don't know about you, but I use Google Reader excessively - to keep up with my reading blogs, tech blogs, language blogs, and well, a plethora of other random things that pique my interest at some point or the other. I suppose it is true: Google giveth, and Google taketh away. But seriously - Google Plus stays (is anyone even using it?) but Google Reader goes? I would be quite interested in getting the numbers for both those services, in terms of how actively they are being used.

I've been exploring alternatives, and while Feedly seems to be the obvious one, I'm not blown away. It's not that I am hard to please. However, Feedly doesn't seem to have:

1. a web interface - instead it relies on a browser add-on.
2. search functionality
3. no "Mark All As Read" feature
4. the ability to read in the app itself - it means, for each article, I need to visit the site.

This is all second-hand information, but it does make me worry a tad. On the bright side, it remembers the articles I've "starred" in Google Reader which is a major plus.

How about you? Are you a big Google Reader user, and if so, what alternative(s) are you leaning towards?

18 miles and... nothing?!

I'm back from NYC, and I had a great time. Worked hard, partied hard, read little. The guys I work with were on a mission to ensure I missed at least one of my half-seven meetings after a night out. Much to their dismay, they didn't succeed. I didn't do any sightseeing whatsoever, barring a couple of early morning runs at Central Park - not sure that counts though? However, on the Sunday that I landed, I did make my way to the Strand Bookstore: "18 miles of books".

I love books, I love bookstores, and the thought of eighteen miles of books was more than a little appealing. I half-thought I'd go crazy and buy half the store. As I approached the store, I told myself, "you will not spend more then $50 here," and I was quite uncertain as to whether I'd be able  to stick to that resolve.

Before entering the store, I scoped the outside, where loads of secondhand books were stacked, but in no order or categorisation. I tried looking through them to find something, and considering there were about a few thousand books there, I thought finding three to four books to read would be easy - but nope! No such joy. The books were literally just dumped there, and while they were only $1 each, I just couldn't find anything even remotely interesting. Guess part of the charm is to search through loads and loads of books to find the gems, but.... I don't know.

Anyway, I strolled inside, thinking that I'd have more luck with books. Immediately, I was overwhelmed. The shelves were stacked from floor to the ceiling, and it was just - wow!

I started browsing, just enjoying myself in this apparent book-lover's haven. However, the whole place was a little strange, as in, the popular fiction books had tables devoted to them - completely random. The tables were called "Fiction-I", "Fiction-II" etc. and they were books that the store recommended (presumably). However, again, it was just idly scattered as in, it wasn't done by author or genre or anything. They did, however, have a "Best of the best" section, which I quite liked.

I picked up a couple of books and thumbed through them, only to be slightly turned off by the quality of the books. I now understand what Hanff meant in 84 Charing Cross Road, when she said that the books in New York felt cheap and not as beautiful as the books across the pond. I was carrying The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay at the time, and I picked up the same paperback at the store. While the number of pages were the same, the book was significantly thinner than my edition. It felt as though the pages would rip the minute I started turning them - does anyone feel the same way about American paperbacks? Or, is it just me?

What really got me going, though, was this beautiful edition of Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber that they had sitting on one of their fiction tables.

I already have two editions of this book: one sent to me by Claire in March last year, and one I found in a second-hand bookstore a couple of months later, which featured the cover art of Roxanne Bikadoroff. Anyway, I couldn't justify buying a third edition of this book, so I asked one of the employees if they had any other books by Angela Carter - and I just got a brusque "if it's not on the table, then no". Fair enough - other than the fact that about ten minutes later, I did find some more books by her - none in this kind-of edition though. :(

Ideally, people who work in book shops should be book lovers, but I didn't think that was the case here. Even the brand new books (full-priced books) weren't kept well. I almost bought Maus, but all six copies they had were torn - and they were all at full price. And when I say torn, I don't mean a slight crease at the edges. Parts of the cover of the book were definitely detached from the book itself, and unfortunately, in my little world, that's not okay!

I eventually did buy two books, just because it would be wrong to leave a bookstore that overwhelming empty-handed, but all in all, I was slightly disappointed by the experience. I love going to Foyles in London {Charing Cross Road}, because they have an amazing collection, but more importantly, each time I go to pay, I end up chatting with the cashiers about my purchases or/and request them to recommend some of their favourites to me. It's the same with the two Waterstones I frequent.

How about you? Do you have any such illusions about bookstores? Do you have a favourite store which you visit more for the experience than for the actual books? And am I just being idealistic and silly?

Rambles and Digressions - Of the Booker, August Reading, September Reading and...

So, the Booker shortlist was announced yesterday. Y'know the funny thing? It completely passed me by. I didn't even realise it, and even while writing out my $0.02 worth of thoughts on The Slap, I was half-wondering when the shortlist was going to be announced. I could've googled it, but laziness took over.

I don't really have an opinion on the shortlist. Spent much of August reading books from the longlist, and barring a couple (Room and Skippy Dies), I was disappointed. Typically, only two of the six books I read made it to the shortlist which comprised of:

• Peter Carey - Parrot and Olivier in America
• Emma Donoghue - Room
• Damon Galgut - In a Strange Room
• Howard Jacobson - The Finkler Question
• Andrea Levy - The Long Song
• Tom McCarthy - C

And as some of you might already know, I'm not a big fan of Peter Carey (despite only reading the one book by him - is that wrong?), so I will be quite disappointed if he becomes the first author to win the Man Booker Prize three times, specially considering I was rooting for Coetzee last year. Oh well, que sera sera... shout out your favourite(s) for this year's Man Booker Prize?!

I had big reading plans for August. Thought it would be fantastic to do this whole around-the-world thing. Turns out, I didn't read a single book from the list! Not a single book! See, that's the problem with plans - they just never turn out as they're supposed to (for me, at least). It's almost embarrassing, but heigh ho! Sometimes that's the way it goes!

I am still reading The Master and Margarita, and am feeling quite proud of myself that I've passed the 300 page mark, and am continuing on, despite long phases of complete bewilderment. I'm going to have to re-read this book someday, but... let me finish it for the first time first. Have you read Bulgakov's classic? Did you feel completely lost at times too, or is it just me?

So, what's my reading plans for September? Well, I can't expect any of you to take me seriously after the August I had... I'm just keeping it open! I've given up on the whole hundred books for the year thing - it's too much effort, and it's not worth it. Not for a statistic! So, at the moment, I'm focusing on finishing The Master and Margarita, which I'll probably follow up with either The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay or Specimen Days. I'm in the mood for a book set in the Big Apple, and these are the two I have on my shelf, so they'll definitely make the cut. Do you have any other recommendations on books set in New York?

So apologies for this completely random rambling post, which seems to be a just bits and bobs tossed together in a lame attempt at sounding coherent. I blame the insomnia - I've gone from being a girl who could sleep eighteen hours a day to one who can't sleep at all. You'd think that would increase my reading time, right? Well, it does, and here I confess my latest guilty pleasure - fan fiction! It's annoyingly addictive, although some of it is so worrying! Are any of you fans of fan fic? Recommendations please!

And with that little confession (which does beg the question: what's your guilty pleasure?!), I'm going to sign off for this evening. Toodle-oo!

When Spring Began

I've been AWOL last few weeks, as I've been moving house, and working overtime! Not the best combination. The new place still doesn't have internet, but, thank god for tethering. I apologise for disappearing into thin air, but hopefully, I'm back! I've got two books still to review, from my reading in March, plus I just finished The Bloody Chamber so, lots to catch up on! March wasn't a great reading month for me, so I'd ideally like to finish last month's book stack this month. Not counting on it though, as I'll be travelling for about ten days in ten days time (seriously!), and work's just piling on as well.

Also, Claire's hosting the Angela Carter month this month, so, I'd recommend stopping by there irrespective of whether you're an Angela Carter newbie, or a fan. As already said, I've just finished The Bloody Chamber, and I'll be penning down my thoughts on the book tonight.

I plan to read a couple of more Carters this month, with Shadow Dance and The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman being the most likely. I'm really looking forward to reading them, as well as seeing what everyone else is reading, and how they're getting on with her works.

Finally, it would be almost rude to talk about moving home, and not sharing pics of my new work area and bookshelf. The bookshelf's already overflowing, but I absolutely love it. And I adore my new workspace as well. It's still missing my big screen, which is still at my old place, but I don't have the guts to attempt getting it on the tube, so, going to have to find someone willing to make the trek and give me a hand.

Spent all day yesterday building my favourite part of the room, and I am pleased with the results, so here goes...

Moving house is annoying, but, when the end result looks like that, there's some gratification. Don't you think so?

Also, what do you have planned for April, when spring's 'round the corner, and hopefully, we'll be able to put away our overcoats for the next six months? Can't wait!

Looking Back On October, and Thinking Ahead To November

Happy Halloween, everyone! What have you been doing this Halloween? Watching scary movies? Reading scary books? Trickin' & treatin'? Or, hiding under the covers?

Me - well, I've almost ignored Halloween completely, barring the couple of hours of TV that I indulged myself in. I meant to read Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived In The Castle, or, Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book. However, I didn't end up doing either (I have a valid excuse: I don't have either of the books), and that pretty much seems to sum up my October.

I'm not one of those people who blogs daily. I don't feel compelled to, and I don't want to put myself under that kind of stress (I get stressed very easily). This is supposed to be a fun thing, right? However, I'm quite shocked about how little I've blogged this month (just the nine posts, excluding this one), and almost embarrassed.

Even my reading stats have been worse than usual this month, with me only finishing five books. To be honest, when I was home, I indulged myself in "comfort reading," including many Roald Dahls, and both, the St. Clares and Malory Towers series. It was a welcome change, and I enjoyed that for a week or so. Being ill, and suffering from god-knows-what didn't really help either.

Anyway... I did read some amazing books this month, with my favourite being a toss-up between Rebecca and I Capture The Castle. How are you supposed to choose one of those books over the other?

I do have some extensive reading plans for November, including:

Of course, as most things, nothing will go according to plan, and you probably won't see anything on any of these books for the next few months (barring Susan Hill's The Beacon, and that's only because I'm half-way through that book).

Anyway, as I do feel slightly guilty about a very quiet October, I promise I'll try my best to make it up in November...... wish me luck!

Unauthorized Sequels

There's an article on BBC today (and some other newspapers) about a Swedish author publishing the sequel to one of my favorite novels of all times, Catcher In The Rye. I don't know why, but I love the book, and I absolutely loved the hypocrite that was Holden Caulfield, I don't understand how someone can't love him. 

Sorry, I digress, because, this isn't a post about Caulfield. If it was, I could rant on and on, for about two hours, and still have a lot to say. Instead, I find that it really annoys me that someone decided to write a sequel to one of the most controversial books of our times, without Salinger's permission. And then, then, he ends up referring to the legal action as a little bit insane. 

This isn't the first instance of someone picking up characters created by a genius, and trying to make a quick buck by riding on their success. I've seen it happen with Enid Blyton, where someone tried to extend The Famous Five, and recently, while I was walking around in Selfridges, I came across something called The Famous Five Case Files. I picked one of them up, and almost gagged at how commercial it sounded... 

Someone did the same with The Naughtiest Girl series, and I actually purchased one of the non-Enid Blyton ones. I was mortified, and said a silent prayer for poor Blyton, who must be turning in her grave - it was honestly cringe-worthy. Whatever next?

The thing with Catcher is, Salinger has made it very clear that he doesn't even want Holden Caulfield to be played on the big screen. He's withdrawn from the public eye, and whatever little I know seems to indicate that, at the age of ninety, he doesn't want to battle some bright spark who thought it was a good idea to figure out how Caulfield was doing some sixty years later. His defense is, he always wondered about it... But, didn't we all? And wasn't that the beauty of the ending - that all of us could let our imagination run away with us, and figure out how Caulfield was doing. Honestly, in my head, I envisaged two or three different endings for him, and I still can't choose my favorite. I'll leave that for another day. 

If you're interested in reading more, The Guardian has a slightly more informative article on this. 

What do you think? Should the sequel be allowed? Or, do you hope Salinger wins the court battle, and we never have to witness this travesty?