Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy has become" the publishing phenomenon of the young century, with international sales exceeding 45 million," according to a very cool story in today's Los Angeles Times by my former colleague Scott Timberg.
He writes that Larsson's books have managed, in the 25 months since the first novel's U.S. publication, to go through almost 200 printings here. And next month, publisher Knopf will release its Millennium Trilogy Deluxe Boxed Set: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest.
Sara Nelson, books director of O: The Oprah Magazine, told Timberg that the heroine's ambiguity is part of her appeal. "She's not terribly well defined," Nelson says, pointing to her complicated sexuality. "Is she lovable? Yes, but she's not necessarily likable. Lisbeth is a hybrid, but the books are hybrids too — a chronicle of the media business, a comment on society.... It's not a standard police procedural."
UPDATE: Here's the link to the NYT's review of the Hornet's Nest movie.
(Illustration by Helena Lloyd.)
The Royal College of Arts is preparing to hold its "secret" postcard sale on Nov. 20. This is how it works: Every year 1,000 artists, designers, illustrators -- some of them would renowned -- donate their works for a one-day only sale.
The postcards are signed on the back, so the author's identity remains a secret until the cards are purchased. Last year, Tracey Emin, Gerhard Richter, Bill Viola, Julian Opie and Grayson Perry, well as fashion designers Sir Paul Smith, Manolo Blahnik and Erdem participated in the event, which raises funds for the arts college. (There's a flat rate per postcard: £45, and only four cards per person.)
There will be several special viewings of the cards, starting on Nov. 12, at the RCA campus in London -- but you have to register online first.
Do you have running shoes and a good eye? Give it a try. (And let me know how it goes!!)
I was very excited to discover today that the Barnes & Noble Review has a special section for books on clouds.
This is how they describe "The Invention of Clouds," by Richard Hamblyn:
"A fascinating study of the amateur meteorologist who, in the early 19th century, 'forged the language of the skies.' Creating the classifications -- cirrus, stratus, cumulus, nimbus -- which are now familiar, Luke Howard captured the imagination of contemporary artists and scientists, as well as generations of their heirs."
It also reminds me that I need to get out more with my Polaroid camera. (I took this photo, above, last year.)
Hello everyone. I finished two freelance pieces and now I'm rewarding myself with an afternoon escape -- reading about Paris. My latest book about my favorite city is called "The Secret Life of the Seine" by Mort Rosenblum, former Editor in Chief of the International Herald Tribune. Rosenblum lived for a time on a 54-foot boat made of Burmese teak and brass, tied up alongside the barges near the Pont Alexandre II in the center of Paris.
This is what I call escape reading. Without it, life would be so dreary.
What's your favorite escape book?
(Photo by Miu37)
