Sales of ink and paper editions have risen for the first time since 2007 – and the national book chain, Waterstone’s, is now removing Kindle e-readers from its shelves because of “pitiful’’ sales.
Over the first 36 weeks of this year, sales of paper and hardback books rose 4.6 percent compared with the same period last year, the first such rise for eight years, according to Nielsen, the market analysts.
James Daunt, the chief executive of Waterstones, told The Bookseller magazine. “Sales of Kindles continue to be pitiful so we are taking the display space back in more and more shops.’’
However, while sales of print are on the rise it comes after a long decline. Sales of printed adult fiction fell by £150 million from 2009 to last year, while hardback sales fell almost 12 per cent.
A LIVELY display of some of Britain’s most famous faces is currently featuring at Whitehaven Library.
It offers a selection of biographies and autobiographies to co-incide with the new Simon Schama’s TV series, The Face of Britain: The Nation Through Its Portraits , which looks at the stories behind some of the most compelling images in British art.
The series looks at portraits through history including Winston Churchill’s 80th birthday portrait, the royalists and parliamentarians fighting over the image of the executed Charles I during the Civil War and how photography allowed Queen Victoria to re-brand the monarchy as a modern family.
Some of the pictures, which feature in London’s National Portrait Gallery, also include surveillance photographs of militant suffragettes and Alice Liddell taken by Lewis Carroll.
CAN you remember where you Christmas-shopped in Whitehaven during 1980s and 90s? How did you manage before the internet?
If you can recall your favourite King Street shops then pop along for a day of hot drinks, mince pies and memories at Whitehaven Library.
This event will be held on Tuesday, November 24 between 11am and 2pm. All are welcome. No need to book.
Whitehaven staff will also be holding a Tea and Teach session which will help people shop online.
They will aid you find reputable shops, keep your information safe and have shopping delivered to your door.
Anyone interested should take along their tablet or laptop on November 24 between 10-11am. Telephone the library on 01946 506402 to book a place.
WITH the clocks now back it is time to dig out some classic scary novels to set the tone for those long, dark nights.
So, light the candles, pull round the duvet, and settle in for some disturbing, but enjoyable, reading.
IT by Stephen King; The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty; Hell Hous e by Richard Matheson; The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson; The Woman in Black by Susan Hill; The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse; The Collector by John Fowles and Collected Ghost Stories by M R James.
You can also check out some of the newly-released titles to send a chill down your spine this winter.
Slade House by David Mitchell. Every nine years, on the last Saturday of October ‘a guest’ is summoned to Slade House. But why has that person been chosen, by whom and for what purpose?
House of Shadows (Kindle) by Pamela Hartshorne. A woman wakes up in hospital, she can remember nothing. When her memories return, they are not hers.
Midnight by Dean Koontz. A string of inexplicable deaths has occurred in a picturesque coastal town; sinister shadowy figures stalk the streets in the dead of night.
The Bazaar of Bad Dreams by Stephen King. A collection of 20 short stories by the King of Horror.
AUTHOR Philip Caine will be talking about his new book Picnic in Iraq at Egremont Library on Thursday, November 26 from 2-3pm.
The novel tells the tale of a close-knit group of friends who find an Iraqi map. They are joined by a glamorous war correspondent and travel the length of Iraq, following the original Knights Templar route and encounter the American security forces, Iraqi bandits and Islamic State.
To book a place at the free event contact Egremont Library at 820464.
THE shortlist for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year has been announced.
There are six titles in the running to be crowned the 2015 winner of the £27,000 prize. They are:
Graham Sharpe, William Hill spokesman and co-founder of the award, said: “Five brave writers are stepping into the ring with Donald McRae but the outcome is far from certain.
“These books represent non-fiction writing at its best, with truly exceptional writers casting light on stories of triumph and tragedy from the world of sport. Our judges have a tough job ahead of them.”
This year’s judging panel consists of retired professional footballer and former chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association, Clarke Carlisle; broadcaster and writer John Inverdale; broadcaster Danny Kelly; award-winning journalist Hugh McIlvanney; and columnist and author, Alyson Rudd.
The winner will be announced at BAFTA, in central London, on Thursday, November 27.
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