Archive for January, 2010

More Original Detective Fiction from Laurel Dewey

We love a good mystery–we’ve made the first-ever detective fiction story our Big Read for the month–so we’re excited to offer yet another piece from Laurel Dewey featuring Detective Jane Perry. As we announced earlier this week in our newsletter we’ve just launched You’re Only as Sick as your Secrets, the fourth piece of original fiction from Dewey that gives a glimpse into the mind of her fascinating heroine. This time it’s a blog entry detailing Perry’s involvement in a mystery that takes her places she couldn’t have imagined she’d go. Read it here. (And check out three other pieces of short fiction featuring Jane Perry here.)

Announcing Survey Winners of Advance Copy of Major Novel

Lots of you took our recent Reader Survey and we want to express our thanks–your feedback is incredibly helpful!

As promised we chose five lucky winners at random, each of whom will receive a free advance copy of bestselling novelist Henning Mankell’s new thriller The Man from Beijing. (It’s available in the U.S. starting February 16.) Congratulations to our winners:

Leah59
Canutillo
muse03
agauthier79
booka

Happy reading!

Emma Featured on Masterpiece Theater

A brand-new adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma is hitting TV screens this week on PBS’ classic series Masterpiece Theatre. There are, of course, seemingly a zillion adaptations–the one from the ’90s starring Gwyneth Paltrow and modern-day adaptation Clueless come to mind–but there’s an obvious reason why: we can’t get enough. In fact, I’ve just been looking at the previews for this new adaptation and it really looks lovely. And they’re planning a Twitter party to celebrate the series.

To get in the mood, why not start reading (or re-reading) Emma right now? (I mean, really, even if you are at work, reading Emma is probably more enriching than what you’re supposed to be doing, right?). You can also check out the first part of the Masterpiece Theatre series here. Check your local PBS listings to find out when the series is showing in your area.

New Invite a Friend Feature on DailyLit

As we first announced in our newsletter yesterday, we’re excited to now be offering a feature on DailyLit that makes it easy to share what you’re reading with friends. When you start reading a book on DailyLit you’ll have the opportunity to invite friends by email (and don’t worry if you can’t remember your friends’ email–we’ve made it so you can easily look them up in your address book). You can also share on Facebook, Yahoo, and other services with just one click. And don’t forget you can link your profile to Twitter to share your news there.

So don’t go it alone–read with friends.

DailyLit News: January 2010

Note from the CEO

I’ve been thrilled by your enthusiastic response to DailyLit and how much you appreciate our making all our books and stories free. Now it’s time to share the love. Tell 5 friends about DailyLit—pass on the word at dinner, forward installments to your colleagues, or mention DailyLit to moms at pick up. You can also now use your address book to invite your friends to read along or publish to your Facebook page. Thanks for spreading the word!

Susan Danziger
Founder and CEO, DailyLit
sdanziger@dailylit.com

Berlitz Spanish Lessons

Ever wanted to learn Spanish? Enjoy our daily, complimentary Spanish course created exclusively for DailyLit by Berlitz. Available only through May 1st. Read it here.

DailyLit’s Big Read

January is the month of Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday, so in his honor this month’s Big Read is his short story “Murders in the Rue Morgue.” It’s the world’s first-ever detective fiction—without Poe’s Auguste Dupin there might never have been a Sherlock Holmes. Read it here.

Reader Challenge

It’s a brand new decade, full of possibilities and hope. This month’s reader challenge taps into that optimism. Complete this sentence: “What I wish for the world in 2010 is….” And remember, one complete sentence only! Share your wishes for the world—literary, political, imaginary, whatever—in our Reader Challenge Forum.

New Feature: Invite a Friend

Don’t go it alone—invite your friends to join you. Now, when you start reading a book on DailyLit, you’ll be able to instantly publish what you’re reading to Facebook, Yahoo, and other sites. And if you open up your address book, you can invite any number of friends to join in one big read-along.

New Short Fiction from Laurel Dewey

Laurel Dewey’s compelling heroine Detective Jane Perry returns in this fourth original piece of short fiction. Here Jane investigates a suspicious death and uncovers secrets she could never have imagined. Read it here. (And find three other pieces by Laurel Dewey here.)

Make 2010 the Year of The Book

Always wanted to read Anna Karenina? Moby Dick? Pride and Prejudice? Make this the year that you finally tackle The Book—you know, one major classic you ought to have read at some point in your life. Take it one day and one installment at a time—you can do it! Check out our Classics for inspiration.

Your DailyLit Story

Thanks to everyone who took our reader survey last month—we loved reading your feedback (and your kind words about DailyLit). We’d like to feature stories about your experience with DailyLit and what you’ve been able to accomplish so if you have a story to share, please email us at support@dailylit.com.

Vogue and a Man Booker Prize Winner in DailyLit’s Book Channel

We’re featuring two different but great books this week in our Book Channel. First is The World in Vogue: People, Places, and Parties edited by Vogue editors Alexandra Kotur and Hamish Bowles. The stars were out in full glamour mode for this past weekend’s Golden Globes and inspired this pick, which features Vogue’s signature brand of glitzy sophistication.

Our other featured title this week is Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. Winner of the 2009 Man Booker Prize and highlighted as a favorite by several DailyLit readers, this book takes you to the 16th century court of King Henry VIII, where the fact that the king went through six wives was just the most infamous example of the viciousness of court society.

Sign up for the DailyLit Book Channel for hand-picked recommendations and excerpts from great books like those selected for Oprah’s book club and the newest titles from bestselling authors.

Children’s Books

This week saw the selection of a new Newberry Award winner–the gold standard in children’s literature–and a discussion in our forums about the pleasures of revisiting childhood favorites, so I thought we’d touch on some of our favorites here.

One of my favorite books as a kid was A.A. Milne’s classic The Wind in the Willows. I loved hearing about the adventures of Mole, Rat, Badger, and, of course, Toad in the Wild Wood. I still have oddly fond associations with those animals and I think Milne’s idyllic, pastoral scene and charming characterizations are the reason why. (Well, now that I’ve lived in New York City for a while, I’ll pass on the Rats. But the internet has given us all newfound love for Otters, right?)

I suppose that’s one of the marks of a great children’s book–that it sticks with you long after you become a grown-up, not only in terms of plot, but in terms of how it colors your memory and point of view.

Some of my other childhood favorites that are on DailyLit are The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, and The Jungle Book.

What were your favorites–and what do you think makes a great children’s book?

Happy Birthday Mr. Poe

Today is Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday. The master of American Gothic horror was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston–and, in fact, his first published work, Tamerlane and Other Poems, was published under the pseudonym “the Bostonian.”

Everyone knows Poe for his macabre works like The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, and The Tell-Tale Heart. Did you know, though, that he also invented the genre of Detective Fiction? Yes, there might never have been a Sherlock Holmes if not for the original brilliant detective, Poe’s Auguste Dupin. He made his debut in Poe’s 1841 story Murders in the Rue Morgue, considered to be the first-ever detective fiction.

And although today we celebrate his birth, Poe’s death usually gets more attention. Famously, on October 3, 1849 Poe was found wandering the streets of Baltimore, delirious, wearing clothes that were not his own, and unable to explain his circumstances. He repeatedly cried out the name “Reynolds” before dying, though who or what he was referring to remains unclear. The real cause of his death was never determined.

Today, then, we celebrate a life and death of mysteries–and a monumental contribution to the literary world.

Question of the Week #59: Authors Speak

This week we celebrated Martin Luther King Jr., a man famous for his social contributions and his oratorical gifts–his “I Have a Dream” is
surely one of the best speeches in history.

Which author would you most like to hear read his or her work?

Let us know in our Question of the Week forum.

Happy Martin Luther King Day!

We’re off today in honor of the Martin Luther King holiday, but we hope you’ll join us in remembering the work and sacrifice of one of history’s great leaders. The dream of equality may not have arrived yet, but it’s certainly much closer to our grasp thanks to the work of Dr. King. In his words:

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

Read the full “I Have a Dream” speech and watch Dr. King give it here.

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