Thom Peart, Author at For Reading Addicts
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Thom Peart

January 15, 2019
0

Literary Scholar Finishes Translating the Hebrew Bible After 24 Years

By | News | No Comments
Over the past 24 years, a literary scholar named Robert Alter has been working, by hand, on a 3,000 page translation of the Hebrew bible. “I’m very particular, he said. “I write on narrow-lined paper and I have a Cross mechanical pencil.” His steadfast work has resulted in a translation that spans three volumes.

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January 9, 2019
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Reader Illustrates a Mini Cover for Every Book He Read in 2018

By | Arty, Inspired by Literature | No Comments
Some readers might make annotations in the margins of books they’re reading in order to better understand the characters, themes, and plot-lines, but one man has taken to creating mini covers for each book he reads. James is an Australian who now teaches in the United States and, in 2018, he decided that he would create a mini cover for each book in order to motivate his reading and to encourage himself to reflect on what he’d read. James shared his work on Reddit, where it quickly blew up. Take a look at his alternative covers, we think they’re good enough to be the real deal.
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January 5, 2019
3

Barack Obama Reveals His Favourite Books of 2018

By | Discussion and Recommendations, News | No Comments
Since leaving the White House in 2017, Barack Obama has occasionally taken to social media to share books, films, and music that he has enjoyed. In late December, Obama took to Facebook to list off the best art that he’s read, watched, and listened to over the past year. Books included in his list consists of Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela, Why Liberalism Failed by Patrick Deneen, and (of course) Becoming by Michelle Obama. Read More

January 4, 2019
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Thousands of Books, Films, and Pieces of Music from 1923 Have Now Entered the Public Domain

By | Literature, News | No Comments
As of January 1, 2019, tens of thousands of works of literature, music, and film have entered the public domain, meaning they can be enjoyed and used for free without paying royalty fees to the copyright holders. The list of new works of art available is staggering, and includes works from the likes of Agatha Christie, E.E. Cummings, Charlie Chaplin, and Louis Armstrong.

For readers, this will mean that many books from that year will now be available to download for free on e-readers and they can be more easily be used in schools for educational purposes.
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December 22, 2018
1

Zadie Smith to Publish Her First Short Story Collection Next Year

By | New Releases | No Comments
Zadie Smith shot to fame in the year 2000 with the release of her first novel White Teeth. Four novels later and the author has announced that she plans to publish her first short story collection next year in 2019.

Called Grand Union, the collection will include ten brand new short stories as well as several of her best previously published stories. As The Book Seller reports, Grand Union will weave old and new stories together and, as Smith’s publisher states, will offer “a wise, playful and richly varied portrait of the world as seen by the one and only Zadie Smith”.
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December 19, 2018
2

Never Judge a Book by Its Cover? Check out These Monstrosities…

By | Inspired by Literature | No Comments
They say you should never judge a book by its cover, and that’s certainly a good rule of thumb. However, it may also be true that truly awful cover art serves as a warning to potential readers. Like the colourful poison dart frog, some books have cover art which seem to be designed to make sure readers stay well away.

If you enjoy truly horrible cover art then you’ll want to take a trip over to the subreddit r/TerribleBookCovers, where users submit images of horrifying, funny, and just bizarre covers for books. We’ve compiled a selection of our (least) favourites for you to enjoy.
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December 18, 2018
1

Kurt Vonnegut’s War Journal Auctioned for Almost $200,000

By | Authors, News | No Comments
Considered by many to be one of the finest writers the United States has ever produced, Kurt Vonnegut has written several groundbreaking novels, including the likes of Cat’s Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five. Before becoming a famed writer, Vonnegut served in the US army and was taken prisoner by the Germans following the Battle of the Bulge. He was held in Dresden and managed to survive the allied bombing of the city by taking cover in a meat locker in the slaughterhouse he’d been imprisoned in.

Vonnegut’s experiences during the war had profound influence on his writing and, between 1944 and 1945, Vonnegut compiled a large scrapbook of photographs, correspondence, and newspaper clippings of that period. The collection has remained out of the public eye and in the safekeeping of the the author’s sister, until now.

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December 15, 2018
2

Aquaman’s Amber Heard Had to Hide Her Books on Set

By | Adaptations, News | No Comments
Amber Heard, who recently starred in the DC superhero film Aquaman alongside Jason Momoa, said that she had to resort to hiding her books on set to prevent them from being torn by her co-star. Heard revealed during an interview with GMA that she’s a big reader and that a member of the crew would hand her books between sets, even when she was suspended on wires during the filming of action sequences. Read More

December 14, 2018
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John Le Carré’s New Novel Will Focus on ‘Division and Rage’

By | New Releases | No Comments
He may be 87 years old, but John Le Carré shows no signs of slowing down when it comes to writing. His upcoming novel, Agent Running, will be set in London in 2018 and will tackle “the division and rage at the heart of our modern world.”

According to publisher Viking, the novel follows a 26-year-old “solitary” man who, “in a desperate attempt to resist the new political turbulence swirling around him, makes connections that will take him down a very dangerous path.” Agent Running will be Le Carré’s 25th novel and is set to be released next year in October.
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December 13, 2018
0

‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ Will Deliver Answers, Promises Rowling

By | Adaptations, News | No Comments
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald was recently released and some fans have found themselves feeling a little perplexed given some of the revelations the film gives us about certain characters. Others also argued that the second film left a lot of big questions unanswered.

Those who still have lots of questions will be relieved to know that a third Fantastic Beasts movie is in the works and that J.K. Rowling recently took to Twitter to promise fans that all will be revealed. Read More