Archive for February, 2010

Top 10 Books on DailyLit

Ever wondered what people are reading on DailyLit? Here’s our list of the top 10 most popular titles on our site since we first started serving up books.

–Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
–The Art of War by Sun Tzu
–100 Ways to Succeed/Make Money by Tom Peters
–Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
–Moby Dick by Herman Melville
–Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow
–The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
–War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
–The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
–Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

It’s a pretty impressive list–clearly our readers aren’t afraid of a challenge! Anna Karenina or War and Peace, anyone?

Question of the Week #62: Happy Birthday Charles Dickens!

This week we celebrate the birthday of Charles Dickens, master of the novel (and serialized fiction). If you’re a fan of classic literature you’ve probably read at least one of his thirteen novels–not to mention his voluminous other writings.

What is your favorite Dickens book, essay, story, or quote?

Share yours in our Question of the Week forum.

DailyLit Readers: Who We Are

Thanks again to all of you who took our recent reader survey. We wanted to share some of the information we got from the survey so you can know a little bit more about the people reading with you in the DailyLit community. Here are some of the most interesting details:

Age
26-35 19.5%
36-45 16.7%
46-55 22.9%
56-65 19.4%
66 or older 9.5%
Good to know: Love of reading never gets old.

Gender
Male 25.7%
Female 74.3%
Good to know: Women who read DailyLit, the women who run DailyLit–Susan and MaggieH–say howdy.

Do you have children?
Yes 51.3%
No 48.7%

How many books have you read in the past 12 months?
4-10 21.6%
11-20 24.4%
21-30 15.3%
Good to know: In addition to all of those books being read, 17.4% of you reported reading more than 50 books in the last 12 months. DailyLit: singlehandedly (well, many-handedly) disproving the idea that “people don’t read anymore.”

DailyLit’s Book Channel

We had a little glitch with our Book Channel last week so this week we get to feature three books in our book channel rather than the usual two. Woohoo for bonuses!

First is an excerpt from Gretchen Rubin’s Happiness Project, which just hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. It tells the story of a year spent following the wisdom of the ages about how to be happy. It’s an interesting, enlightening book, and one we thought would be perfect for the, ahem, sometimes less-than-inspiring gray days of winter.

We’re also featuring an excerpt from What Was Lost, a debut novel from Catherine O’Flynn that has gotten the kind of praise established writers would kill for. Publications from the LA Times to O, the Oprah Magazine (who called it “mesmerizing”) sang its praises, and it was shortlisted for some of the biggest awards in the business like the Booker Prize.

And last but certainly not least is Mark Twain: Man in White: The Grand Adventure of His Final Years. Since Mark Twain is always one of our most popular authors–and is certainly one of my favorites–I’m excited to share an excerpt from this new biography with you.

Sign up for our Book Channel to get tastes of new and noteworthy books like Oprah’s new picks, bestselling authors’ latest, and hand-selected titles from DailyLit staff and guest curators.

DailyLit Reader Spotlight: DailyLit Readers using Google Wave for Book Club

In our most recent newsletter we asked you to share your DailyLit stories with us–when you read, how DailyLit has affected your life, what you use the service for. One of the most interesting stories we’ve received so far has been this one from Christin, who writes:

I’ve been pleased with what my group of friends and I have done [with DailyLit]. We’re all very into Google Reader and Google Wave, so we’ve started a DailyLit book group using those as the medium. We have a single RSS feed from DailyLit to which all of us (about a dozen, a combination of coworkers and friends) subscribe, and we discuss each day’s installment on a running Wave. We just finished Heart of Darkness, and now we’re tackling The Picture of Dorian Gray. As we’re all several years out of school, we’d been collectively lamenting that we don’t read enough classic literature anymore, and group-reading online is fantastic both for ease-of-use and keeping ourselves accountable. Thanks!

It’s a great idea to use Google Wave with DailyLit for book clubs–hope this encourages more people to try it.

If you have a DailyLit story to share please email us at support[at]dailylit[dot]com.

Announcing the Winners of Anne Rice Creative Challenge

Thanks to everyone who participated in our Encounter with an Angel reader challenge. We’re delighted to announce the winners as selected by bestselling author. Each writer will receive a signed copy of Anne’s new book Angel Time. Congratulations!

Here, in no particular order, are the winners:

Elora, whose entry Anne thought was “delightfully original:”
Dancing together, we rise into the room. Looking down at motionless me, I am unafraid. “This is not your time but dance with me a moment longer.” Chords of sweet melody fill the air, my spirit intertwines with his until the crescendo. He leaves, and I live …again.

Alex.Allen, whose story Anne selected because of the “very touching description of the grandfather”
In response to my saying ‘tell me’, she turned. In her eyes, this glint flickered, like an aging ballerina, recalling her first dance steps at age six.

“When my grandfather died. He had said, simply: ‘light, so much light’. Then he…”

She turned away.

My work done, I smiled, disappearing.

laureqisaok2, whose story Anne thought “revisited the Angel of Christmas with great sensitivity.”
Mom cradles Baby Jesus, carved decades ago by Greatgrandpa in Holland. Tears drop on His broken body, sacrificed on the wrong holiday.

Nearby, Dad beerily snores into his Santa hat, passed out again.
Xmas morning, squabbling over presents, nobody notices Angel Gabriel lopsidedly watching Mary kneel before an empty manger.

Berlitz Spanish Lessons Now Free on DailyLit

DailyLit and Berlitz have teamed up to offer Berlitz DailyLit Spanish lessons, which are now available for free.

I’ve already gotten a few of these lessons in my inbox, and I have to say they’re great fun. I never thought I’d have the time to pick up a little Spanish.

To receive these 90 lessons for free, you need to sign up for them before May 1, 2010.

Here’s a fuller description:

Berlitz DailyLit Spanish Lessons—available only on DailyLit—allow students of all ages to study Spanish at their own pace and according to their own schedule. Readers can personalize the pace of their study—from leisurely to intense—by electing to receive weekly or daily installments.

Berlitz DailyLit Spanish Lessons are ideal for those who are just beginning to learn Spanish and for those who would like a refresher course. The lessons cover the most essential topics for language learners, including greetings, traveling, and working. Plus, each lesson is presented with clear explanations and helpful content, including:

•Useful everyday vocabulary
•Grammar and pronunciation
•Important cultural information
•Self-test for each lesson

And remember, sign up by May 1, 2010 to receive these lessons for free.

Question of the Week #61: Joycean Challenges

February 2nd is James Joyce’s birthday. The Irish author is famous for his innovative works like Ulysses and Finnegan’s Wake, both of which readers routinely cite as among the most difficult books they’ve ever read (or tried to read).

What’s the most challenging book you’ve ever read? Did you finish it? And, maybe most importantly, did you feel it was worth the extra effort?

Earlier posts