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Male writers dominate award shortlist
Male writers dominate this year's shortlist for the novel prize at this year's Costa Book of the Awards.
2008-11-18 11:36:07
New Book Reveals Faith of 59-Year-Old College Football Player
When Mike Flynt returned to play college football last year at the age of 59, his story was splashed across media outlets nationwide. Less publicized, however, was the faith...
2008-11-18 01:29:45
Bond will be good for kids and for local economy
Re: â€œSpend money on books, not on remodelingâ€ letter, 11-4.
2008-11-17 12:14:18
"Unlike Bush, Obama regime not to push Pak for its anti-terror support"
Islamabad, Nov 17 ANI: Experts on US policy vis-xE0-vis South Asia feel that the new Barack Obama administration's key policy with regard to situation in South Asia would be to 'convincingly' secure Pakistan's meaningful co-operation in anti-terror efforts, instead of pushing it, as done by the present Bush administration."Pakistan is the most dangerous country in today's world," the Globe and Mail quoted Obama's chief adviser on South Asia and former CIA officer Bruce Riedel, as saying."Convincing Pakistan will be the key, not brow-beating them, or pushing them. I think that will be the big change between the Bush-Cheney approach and the Obama-Biden approach," said Shuja Nawaz, an independent expert on the Pakistani military based in Washington, according to the paper.The paper further said that a radical change in US' policy toward Pakistan and Afghanistan may be in store, given Barack Obama's inclination to mediate in Pakistan's bitter dispute with India over Kashmir and pressure on him to reassess support for Afghan President Hamid Karzai."Clearly the only solution to Afghanistan now is a regional solution. The key to peace in Afghanistan is Pakistan. The Afghan Taliban leadership is living in Pakistan. The reasons for that happening is related to the Pakistani military's views on India," said Ahmed Rashid, author of Descent into Chaos, a recent book on US' failures in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Rashid has been consulted by Obama's team.In a far-reaching departure from George W. Bush and several preceding American presidents, Obama has indicated that he will seek to put US muscle behind mediating Pakistan's disputes with its giant neighbour India, which have corrupted Islamabad's role in global anti-terrorism efforts, said the report.It said: "Taliban and al-Qaeda extremists have found sanctuary in parts of western Pakistan, but Islamabad is not willing to take on some of these Islamic militant groups, which have been useful in fighting proxy wars with India in the disputed region of Kashmir and in Afghanistan, where the government of Karzai is perceived to be close to Delhi. If Pakistan no longer feels it needs to keep some extremist groups in reserve to counter Indian influence, it's hoped the U.S. will secure meaningful co-operation from Pakistan in anti-terror efforts."In interviews just before the US election, Obama had indicated his administration would "try to resolve the Kashmir crisis so that they Pakistan can stay focused not on India, but on the situation with those militants." ANI
2008-11-17 10:04:08
India's first ever museum on explosives in Assam
Guwahati, Nov.17 ANI: With terrorist activities becoming a global reality, a lot of people have started showing curiosity in understanding the details of blasts. Such inquisitive people can now educate themselves by visiting the Forensic Science Laboratory in Guwahati which has instituted India's first ever museum on explosives. Forensic Science Laboratory in Guwahati is meant to develop methodologies and facilitate in probing blast explosions in detail and thereby preventing such incidents in future. This Explosive Museum, inaugurated recently will be a nodal point to research and develop methodologies to probe blast explosions in detail and thereby prevent such incidents in the country.It may be recalled that Assam has witnessed several violent incidents in the last couple of years, the worst being the recent bomb blasts on October 30 in Guwahati and other places in the State.Over 80 people had died and several injured in the serial blasts in the State capital and other areas last month. The credit for setting up the museum is attributed to Dr. Padma Pani, currently Joint Director of the Forensic Laboratory of Guwahati, regarded to be among the best in country.This institution has trained personnel not only from the north-east but also from many other States and foreign countries."This is a really good effort to have a place which you can use for the capacity building of the police officials as well as even the public to see and gain knowledge on this. Because such type of gallery or museum can provide a place where one can get to know how different kinds of explosives have been used in the recent times as well as earlier. And how police actions and other steps are required to check the menace of illegal explosives," said Dr. Padma Pani, Joint Director, Forensic Science Laboratory, Assam.Padma Pani says that in north-east there have been around 1,000 blasts over the years and some way or the other, he has been associated in the investigation of many blasts. And, thus it came to his mind to set up an "Explosive Museum", which he says will help Investigators in many ways.Dr. Padma Pani has also authored many books on forensic sciences including a couple in Assamese. An expert in forensic science, he has been a regular guest speaker at seminars on criminology.Besides the police personnel, general public can also come to the museum and gather knowledge about explosives.The explosive materials that have been displayed in the museum include the RDX, PTD devices, TNT explosivse, grenades, guillotine sticks, detonators, and many others devices that have been used since early times in the North East. by Peter Alex Todd ANI
2008-11-17 10:04:08
Sarah Palin may make $10.8m in book deals
Melbourne, Nov 17 ANI: Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is emerging as an unlikely saviour of the US publishing industry, for literary agents are considering signing her for book deals. It is reckoned that Palin may make 10.8 million dollars by revealing about the recent election campaign.While many journalists and politicians are also expected to write books on this year's presidential election, Palin's personal account of her tumultuous introduction to national politics is widely regarded as the tale most likely to repay a multi-million-dollar advance. "She's poised to make a ton of money," the Australian quoted Howard Rubenstein, New York's best-known public relations adviser, as saying.Jeff Klein of Folio Literary management said: "Every publisher and a lot of literary agents have been going after her." ANI
2008-11-17 10:05:08
'Australian Sex Party' soon to be introduced to Oz politics
Melbourne, Nov 17 ANI: A political party called Australian Sex Party is all set to be launched on November 20th at Melbourne Sexpo in Australia.The political party, which follows sensible policies, with a strong desire to make sexuality and discussions about it less touchy subjects, chose the name as it stands out from the traditional ballot paper line-up.Australian Sex Party's slogan is "we're serious about sex", and its convenor Fiona Patten, who is also the chief executive of the Eros Association, is confident it will gain the 500 members required to register and contest state Upper House and Senate seats.Patten also revealed that she and others were concerned about the Government's proposed Internet filter, which is being tested over summer on about 10,000 sites to block "unwanted content"."This really came out of 20 years of lobbying on sex and censorship and then... the latest being the compulsory Internet filter, which will ... prohibit and blacklist adult material that is currently legal in magazines, books and film," News.com.au quoted her as saying."When we started talking about the Australian Sex Party, we realised that sex is a lot broader than just censorship and a lot of the policies are a lot broader," she said.The party also has a list of policies, which will be announced at the launch, and included in it is a national sex education school curriculum."With the internet and the fear that children are being sexualised at an early age, the first key action on that will be sex education," Patten said."Other countries such as the UK are introducing a national curriculum and we think we should follow that," she stated.Regarding the party's provocative and potentially alienating name, Patten revealed that it was a decision the group wrestled with."We felt that - sex in a crowded room - now we've got your attention. It's half the problem with politicians, because they still giggle when they say the word sex, and that's why we have such idiotic policies at state and federal levels," she said."Let's try and own that word on most government forms," she added. ANI
2008-11-17 10:05:05
Russian billionaire prints book of his wife's erotic poses
London, Nov 17 ANI: A Russian billionaire, who is very proud of his wife's beauty, decided to share it with the world by printing a book of erotic photographs of her.Sergei Rodionov, a banker, was so taken by the pictures of his wife Olga in her different erotic poses that he decided to publish a book of photographs on her, entitled 'The Book of Olga'.French photographer Bettina Rheims, whose previous assignments included Jacques Chirac's official portrait, took the pictures of 34-year-old Olga in a variety of erotic poses, with most of them totally in the nude."He loves the photographic art," Times Online quoted Olga as saying. "He loves me. He likes to call me Galatea in reference to the Greek artist Pygmalion, who created a statue so lifelike that he fell in love with it Galatea," she said.Olga, a business school graduate and chat show host with a 13-year-old daughter, sounds just as pleased as her husband about her physical attributes. "I'm not an exhibitionist," she said. "My body is the result of hard work. I want to show that having kids, a marriage and work are not excuses for a woman to stop taking care of herself," she stated.Olga is not new to stripping off in front of the camera, as she has posed for Russian Playboy and Penthouse magazines as well as for Helmut Newton, the late photographer famous for his provocative nudes. "I see no problem with showing off a beautiful naked body," Olga revealed. The new pictures, taken in a French country mansion, are more daring in nature, and conservative business associates have told Rodionov that his wife's pictures add up to adultery, but he has shrugged off the criticism. "I took her first nude pictures myself," he once admitted. "Then she started posing for professional photographers. I told her the gossip will fade, whereas the pictures will stay for ever and when she is 90 she will look at them and say, 'Look what a beautiful woman I was'. I am proud of her," he added. ANI
2008-11-17 10:00:05
'Noddy' to celebrate 60th Birthday with a book
London, Nov 17 ANI: Noddy, a character created by British children's author Enid Blyton, will have a book written to mark its 60th anniversary next year. The new book, provisionally entitled Noddy's Birthday Surprise, will be written by the late Blyton's granddaughter Sophie Smallwood, 38, and illustrated by Robert Tyndall, who began drawing the characters in 1953."It is a great honour, if a little daunting, to pick up the pen and take over from my grandmother," Times Online quoted Smallwood as saying.According to the Telegraph, the book has been commissioned by Chorion, the firm that owns the rights to Noddy, and earns a reported 180million dollars a year from sales of the books.Noddy had originally been published between 1949 and 1963, and it is the longest running show on British television since 1955, and though the book has undergone many changes, Smallwood said that she had no plans of undoing any of them.The books have since sold 200million copies in 40 languages, making Blyton the sixth most translated author in the world, just behind William Shakespeare. ANI
2008-11-17 10:07:05
UK science minister claims to have power 'like a sixth sense'
London, Nov 17 ANI: British Science Minister Lord Drayson claims that he has a power "like a sixth sense", which enables him to foretell some events even before they occur.The multi-millionaire businessman and Labour donor also said that he believed in God, and thought that faith and science were compatible."In my life there have been some things I have known, and I don't know why. I think there is a lot we don't understand about human capability," the Telegraph quoted him as saying.He added: "I think faith is a very strange thing," he said. "You don't necessarily believe in something just because you have the evidence to prove it." While discussing Blink, the bestselling American book about human instinct, by Malcolm Gladwell, Drayson said that he might possess the apparent power to predict future events, reflected in the book.He said: "It's a really fascinating book. He gives lots of examples of people who have demonstrated very clearly that they have good instinct in their lives. One particular fireman in America had this amazing instinct . . . This guy knew when something bad was going to happen, when you need to leave the building. He added: "Gladwell's book is about the ability of the human being to know something, but not to know why they know it. This struck a chord with me, because in my life there have been some things that I've known and I don't know why." Describing the ability as "like a sixth sense", Drayson said that it could be linked to the way humans have evolved.He said: "Gladwell talks about this guy who knew when someone was going to double fault, playing tennis, and you try to figure out, how does he know" ANI
2008-11-17 10:00:00