Category Archives: Books

Social life around books

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In posts to come, I will write about books that are currently on my mind and my reading list. But first: a bit about the process of discussing books on the web.

Over the last couple of years, I've used various websites that let you record books that you own or read and what you think of those books: LibraryThing, goodreads, Visual Bookshelf (a Facebook application), and Shelfari This selection of sites doesn't even include my Amazon wishlist ("Stuff I find interesting"), a WorldCat "Stuff I find interesting" list, my Google Books "My Library", and other lists I must have forgotten about. Some of these lists I use actively, while joining (in response to a friend's request) has been the only activity I've performed.

I've been intrigued by book-oriented social network services for some time now, but none of them has won me over. I explained my reluctance to adopt these services on p. 238 of my mashup book:

One thing that keeps me from investing too heavily in these sites is the struggle of how to move my book data in and out of any of these sites. For any given site, I look for APIs that help in that regard as well as any feeds that might allow users to easily import and export data.

In other words, I'd like to use any website of choice and have my information show up on all of them. I'd even be willing to program such information exchange (that's where the APIs come in.)

When I write about books, I have a choice about where to write -- on this blog or on one of the book social network services, or in a traditional print publication (among others). I will try to write in a lot of places and see what happens.

Book publishing and financial advice that cuts to daily life

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Food for thought in BookExpo America - Column - New York Times as I prepare to publish my first book and contemplate future books:

    Chris Anderson, the editor of Wired magazine who made his own splash last year with his book “The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More,” returned to the convention to talk about the possibility of giving away online his next book — which he fittingly intends to title “Free” — to readers who were willing to read it with advertisements interspersed throughout its pages. (He still intends to sell the book traditionally to readers who’d rather get their text without the ads.)

Though the financial advice in More Advice Graduates Don’t Want to Hear - New York Times is aimed at graduates, the article is useful for people like me, who is currently living off savings as I pursue the life of a self-employed author and consultant:

    I also suggested cutting out the latte habit, which was my symbol for those little things in life that when turned into a habit, add up to money that could have been spent on something worthwhile and memorable. Other people, my wife among them, pointed out that I may have been too draconian on that point. Consistent savings is a lot easier if there are small rewards along the way; otherwise, life seems as if it is just one bowl of cold grass porridge after another.

I rather enjoy my writing times sitting in cafes. I think of that time as paying rent for a home away from home.

Books on the Daily Show

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I like catching up with The Daily Show With Jon Stewart every so often on the web. This morning, I noted with surprise the high profile of the authors who show up on the show as well as the quality of some of the interviews. For instance, I found watching the May interview with Francis Fukuyama concerning his new book America at the Crossroads: Democracy, Power, and the Neoconservative Legacy
informative and entertaining; I always wondered what Fukuyama sounds
like and looks like and how he puts forth his ideas when interviewed.

I’m looking forward to reading David Ledbetter’s book

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Because I've been listening intently to Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier (Books I and II) for a year now, I was thrilled to see a new book on the subject: Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier: The 48 Preludes and Fugues. I was disappointed that someone beat me to putting it hold at the music library -- but I need to be patient! I'm hoping the book will explicate some of the wonders of the music and pinpoint the whys and hows of the power of the WTC.

(Hmmm...using the Amazon "see related items" feature, I found another book that is currently on the shelf and can therefore be in my impatient hands sooner: Bach: The Goldberg Variations.)