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Audio Books What could be better than reading a brand new book? Why, having someone (maybe even the author) read the book to you. And what could be even better than that? Why, having someone (maybe even the author) read the book to you for free. I listened to a P.G. Wodehouse book while I was doing yoga. Your mileage may vary. Web: Book-A-Minute Only got a minute? Read a quick, irreverent summary of a book, and your minute has not gone to waste. Finally, a quick, easy way to get through Beowulf. (Go see for yourself.) Web:
Book Browser This is one of my favorite book-related sites. I love information, and this Web site -- created by two professional librarians -- serves up heapin' spoonfuls of data in a well-organized buffet. For example, I was able to find a complete list of all the Perry Mason books by Erle Stanley Gardner. (I am a big Perry Mason fan -- I have all the books, which I read repeatedly -- so I think this list is a big deal.) There is also a collection of links to authors' Web sites on the Net, a pseudonym reference, lists of book awards, reviews, and much more. Check it out for yourself. If you like to read, you'll love this site. Web: Book Concordances A concordance is an alphabetical list of all the words used in a particular book, along with the context of each usage. This Web site provides an easy-to-use concordance that can help you research how specific words are used within various classic books. For example, I found out the word "sex" was used only six times in all of the Sherlock Holmes novels and stories. (But I like them anyway.) Web: Book Fairs One year, my local library had a big book sale to raise money, and I was one of the volunteers who worked at getting things ready and setting up the books. The best part was that I could go through the books ahead of time, looking for stuff for myself. Book fairs and library sales are so cool. You get to hang out with loads and loads of books; you get to look at loads and loads of books; you get to buy loads and loads of books; and then you get to take them home and wonder where you are going to put them all. Web:
Book Recommendations We all love to recommend books to other people, and we all know that most of the time other people don't pay any attention to our recommendations. Why? Because we are wasting our time on the wrong people: our family and friends. Instead, we should be sharing our literary knowledge and good taste with the faceless millions on the Net, who can better appreciate our personal sense of style and discrimination. If you like to tell other people what to read, take a moment to share your list of favorite books with everyone in the world. At the same time, you can check out what other, less stylish and discriminating people are reading. Web:
Book Resources When I think about my favorite friends and coworkers, I notice that -- as different as they all are -- they have one thing in common: they love books. My theory is that smart and interesting people love to talk to other smart and interesting people. In the course of a lifetime, we are limited as to how many people we will be able to meet and get to know. However, when we read a book, we can "talk" to the author, even though he or she is someone we will probably never meet in person. Thus, books are more than printed pages. They are "letters of introduction" to the most interesting people we will ever know. Web:
Book Reviews Why waste your time and money on an unrewarding book? Read the reviews on the Net and find out the real scoop before you make a serious commitment. Save your excess time and money for unrewarding people. Web:
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Book Talk and General Discussion There are a lot of people who love to talk about books, and there are a variety of Usenet groups and chat facilities devoted to such discussions. The Usenet groups cover books of all genres, including reviews and discussion of reviews. Moreover, talk is not limited to books: there is a lot of discussion about the publishing industry as well as requests for information on interesting bookstores and hard-to-find bargains. Web:
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Bookbinding Books are our friends, and important books are important friends. Being able to create your very own books from scratch is a wonderful skill you will appreciate your whole life. Even more important, as your older books start to deteriorate, it's handy to have some bookbinding skills so you can make the repairs yourself. Remember, books are people too. Web:
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BookWeb Book selling isn't just business, it's big business. If you want to stay plugged into what's new and exciting in the industry, check out BookWeb, maintained by the American Booksellers Association. Here you will find information about the American book industry, such as news, events and statistics, as well as a number of bookstore directories. (I am still waiting to find out the average number of Harley Hahn books that are sold to ballroom dance instructors every day.) Web: BookWire When you don't want the best book, only the best-selling book, check out this database of the hottest books on the market. The database is searchable by author or title. You'll find descriptions and links to book publishers and sellers on the Web, links to online libraries, a reading room, a book events calendar, and more. Web: Buying and Selling Books Whether you are looking for a rare first-edition of Isaac Asimov's autobiography, or just trying to find a copy of "Freddy and the Baseball Team From Mars" to fill in your collection, it's easy to search for the books you want on the Net. Use the Web sites to find what you want and to sell books of your own. For book reviews, book business chatter, and general book-lover discussion, try the Usenet discussion groups. Web:
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Do-It-Yourself Book Reviews Which books are real crowd-pleasers? Find out by reading reviews written by people on the Internet. Categories include science fiction and fantasy, general fiction, religion, new age, mystery, computers and technology, biographies, science and mathematics. Web: Online Book Clubs A book club is a group of people who all read the same book and then get together to discuss it. Does that sound inviting? (Of course it does. Some of the very best people belong to book clubs.) But what about an online book club, where you can have the same penetrating discussion without having to change out of your pajamas? Here's the information you need to join an online book club or to start one of your own. Web:
Pulp Fiction Pulp magazines existed in America from the turn of the century to the early 1950s. They offered an impressive array of stories about crime, mystery, detectives, war, love, romance, science fiction, horror, sports, westerns and adventure. The spirit of pulp fiction is alive today in modern paperback adventure series and on the Net. Did you know that the Shadow was really Kent Allard, a World War I ace and spy? Lamont Cranston was merely a disguise. If you listen to the radio show, you will be misinformed, but with these resources, you will know the truth. Web:
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Rare Books People always want what they can't have, so if it's rare, it's bound to be popular. Take rare books, for example. People collect them, and most of the time they just store the books and never look at them. I myself collect old Freddy the Pig books (but I read them). For lots of valuable information, see the Web sites. If you want to talk to other book lovers, join one of the mailing lists, where you can discuss out-of-print and rare books, as well as techniques for preserving your special collection (such as don't read a valuable Freddy the Pig book while you are eating spaghetti). Web:
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Romance Novels Fantasies are exciting because they are not played out in real life. All the more reason to immerse yourself in a good, old-fashioned romance novel. Are you looking for something new to read? Just specify your favorite author or genre, and the Net can help you find the first romance novel of the rest of your life. In the meantime, let me tell you some interesting statistics. Several years ago, two college professors presented the results of some important research at a scholarly conference. They read one hundred romance novels and found that at the beginning of the novel, 74 percent of the heroines were virgins while none of the men were. Notwithstanding, 98 percent of the heroines had an orgasm the first time they had sex. They also found that 17 percent of the novels had rape scenes, and 18 percent of the women who were raped had an orgasm during the attack. (By the way, a few years later, the two professors were back at the same conference where they presented a paper entitled "Collecting Mickey Mouse".) Web:
Technical Books If you have a squeak in your clicker or you can't get slot A to line up with tab B, check into these Usenet discussion groups to see if there is a technical book that can help. Just the place to look when you need to decide which Unix book to give your grandmother for her birthday. Usenet:
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