Somerset’s Combe Florey House, once the family home of Brideshead Revisited author Evelyn Waugh and his son Auberon, is finally for sale—and it’s pretty spectacular, looking onto parkland and water. The grounds include a twelve-bedroom home with red sandstone facades; a pool and pool house; a tennis court; several outbuildings; and a party barn, which I’ve just learned is a glamorous barn you throw parties in. … The house is currently on sale for $7.6 million, so consider making the purchase if you’re a Waugh fan with money to spare—or if you have some ideas for barn parties. Read more
Month: May 2021
Paris Bookstores Are Designated Essential — But These Landmarks Struggle To Survive
Gibert Jeune, which held a prominent place in Parisians hearts, is one of the latest to close. The pandemic is only one pressure on independent bookstores, but some have found ways to survive. Read more
When reading to learn, what works best for students — printed books or digital texts?
A wealth of research comparing print and digital reading points to the same conclusion — print matters. For most students, print is the most effective way to learn and to retain that knowledge long-term. Read more
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Raven Leilani has won the Dylan Thomas Prize
Last evening in a virtual ceremony, Raven Leilani was awarded the Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize—an annual £20,000 prize given to the best literary English-language work by an author aged 39 or under—for her debut novel Luster. Read more
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A French-Israeli Author Just Won France’s Most Prestigious Literary Prize
Author Shmuel T. Meyer was informed that he won the Spring Goncourt Prize during a family visit to Israel. ‘My culture is French, my heart is in Switzerland, but my soul is in Israel,’ he tells Haaretz. Read more
How a COVID-era Federal Writers Project went from wild idea to a proposed bill
During the Great Depression as part of the New Deal, Roosevelt established the FWP with the goal of providing work for writers, historians, librarians, editors, teachers and others. At its peak, the program employed more than 6,000 people nationwide. Read more
Excuse Me While I Steal Your Book Idea and Get Famous
Jean Hanff Korelitz’s “The Plot” is an addictive Russian nesting doll of a novel where every character’s hand fits neatly into someone else’s pocket. Read more
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Windmill House, former dwelling of Arthur Miller, is finally for sale
Need a secluded getaway with writerly flair? Have $11.5 million on hand? You’re in luck: Amagansett Windmill House, famously occupied by Arthur Miller, is finally up for sale after years of temporary renting.
Windmill House, built as a functioning windmill in the 1950s, was renovated and converted into a living space a century later by Samuel Rubin, founder of Fabergé cosmetics; now, it’s a two-bedroom, one-bath house, with an adjoining studio and two-car garage. It’s located on 5.5 acres of land, suitable for property expansion—or just a nature-shrouded experience. Read more
Spies, Lies, and Exile, The Extraordinary Story of Russian Double Agent George Blake
For fans of John le Carré and Ben Macintyre, an exclusive first-person account of one of the Cold War’s most notorious spies. Read more
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How To Handle and Store Rare Books
One of the questions rare booksellers get asked a lot is how best to handle and store books. From climate-controlled vaults to the ubiquitous white gloves that we often see on our screens, the handling of works on paper is misrepresented and over-complicated in popular culture, and this has give rise to the idea that specialist training and environments are needed to house a rare book collection. While it’s certainly true that some items of extreme fragility require specialist environments and care, most books can, with care, be safely stored in ordinary homes. Read more
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