Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver won the Orange Prize

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver has just won the Orange Prize, which honors English-language women's writing.  From the Globe and Mail:

"Daisy Goodwin, chair of the judges, praised The Lacuna's 'breathtaking scale and shattering moments of poignancy.'"  Click here for the rest of the article.

Stieg Larsson's Millennium series

Stieg Larsson's Millennium series has been a massive bestseller for good reasons--who doesn't want to hear about people taking down corrupt corporations and government agencies? Though The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo starts off slowly, the series gains momentum by the end of the first book and continues strong through the other two.

The series starts revolves around reporter Mikael Blomkvist and computer hacker/social misfit Lisbeth Salander, who continually get themselves mixed up in big, dangerous conspiracies.  Though Salander is definitely not easy to like, you soon begin to sympathize with her (not always so legal) point of view, just as Blomkvist does.  With cases involving a 40 year old disappearance of a teenager, sex trafficking, blackmail, and international espionage, there's a lot to keep you interested.

Larsson himself was a journalist in Sweden, and an avid fan of detective novels.  Before his untimely death in 2004, he had planned ten novels in the series.  See http://www.stieglarsson.com for more about him.  Also, some early Larsson stories have recently turned up--click here for details.  There's no word yet on whether they will ever be published.

Finally, Simon Vance's narration of all three audiobooks is excellent.  It's easy to distinguish which character is speaking (which the writing itself does not always indicate), and he pulls you through even the slower parts of the books.  They're definitely a worthwhile summer listen.

The beginning of audiobooks

Ever wonder where audiobooks got their start? 

"A year before his death in 1952, Dylan Thomas showed up at a New York hotel bar to record some of his poetry, but quickly realized he’d only be able to fill one side of the record. So on the other side, he told a story he had just sold to Harper’s Bazaar called A Child’s Christmas in Wales. This would later become one of Thomas’s best-known works and, according to some, his early recording is what kick-started the audiobook craze."  Click here for the rest of the National Post article.

These days the industry is big enough to attract big-name actors and have its own celebrities and awards, but don't let that stop you from recording your own poetry in hotel bars with your iPod.  Maybe you'll start a new craze.

National Audiobook Month

June is National Audiobook Month, and David Sedaris approves (click for link).

Sedaris is one of the prominent faces behind the "Get Caught Listening" campaign to promote literacy through audiobooks, but there are lots of others.  Click here to hear what LL Cool J, Valerie Bertinelli, James Patterson, and others have to say about audiobooks.