New & Upcoming

The Queens Museum of Art in NYC is running an art exhibit of photographs from the book Detroit Disassembled through January 15th.

The exhibit, which is in its final week, is based on the photography book in which photographer Andrew Moore and Poet Laureate Philip Levine document the wasteland of what was once one of America’s most prosperous cities.

The book, published by the Damiani/Akron Art Museum, highlights the decay of what was once prominent architecture through recent photos. For example, Henry Ford’s office at the Model T plant is photographed with a carpet of moss growing on the floor. Another page shows the classrooms of the former location of Cass Technical High School — a prominent magnet school — vandalized and forgotten.

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Create a social media strategy, launch your campaign, and track the results in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. The online event and workshop will feature speakers including The Onion‘s Baratunde Thurston (left), Facebook’s Morin Oluwole, and bitly’s Tim Devane. Register now.

Other Press has picked up the rights for The Flowers of War by Chinese author Geling Yan. The book was translated by Nicky Harman, and publication is set for January 17, 2012.

Director Zhang Yimou (director of Hero and House of Flying Daggers) adapted the novel in the upcoming film, The Flowers of War (trailer embedded above). In China, the novel was originally titled The 13 Women of Nanjing.

Here’s more from the release: “Based on true events, this powerful novel is set in December 1937 after the Japanese have taken Nanking…The story’s unexpected denouement shows how war can challenge all prejudices and how love can flourish amidst death and destruction.”

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HBO has released a teaser trailer for season two of its George R.R. Martin adaptation, Game of Thrones. We’ve embedded the video above–what do you think?

A number of new actors will join the cast, including Gwendoline Christie as the warrior Brienne of Tarth, Liam Cunningham as former smuggler Ser Davos Seaworth and Stephen Dillane as would-be king Stannis Baratheon.

According to Deadline, fans have to wait until April 2012 for the first of ten new episodes.  A Song of Ice and Fire series author Martin is currently working on a few projects: a not-yet-titled novella and two novels, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring. (via Shelf Awareness)

Crime novelist Lindsay Ashford‘s new novel, The Mysterious Death of Miss Austen, explores the possibility that Pride & Prejudice author Jane Austen was murdered.

According to The Guardian, Ashford read about symptoms of arsenic poisoning while combing through old volumes of Austen’s letters. A scholar told her that Austen’s hair was once tested for arsenic. Austen said she suffered from rheumatism, a disease treated with arsenic in the 1800s.

In the article, Ashford explained: “Having delved into her family background, there was a lot going on that has never been revealed and there could have been a motive for murder. In the early 19th century a lot of people were getting away with murder with arsenic as a weapon, because it wasn’t until the Marsh test was developed in 1836 that human remains could be analysed for the presence of arsenic.”

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Children’s author Kristin Cashore will publish Bitterblue, a new novel set in the universe of her debut YA novel, Graceling.

The new book stars Queen Bitterblue, a character who first appeared as a supporting character in Cashore’s fantasy novel about teenagers with remarkable abilities. Dial Books for Young Readers will release the title on May 1, 2012. Bitterblue is the second companion book to Graceling. Cashore also published the companion book, Fire, in 2009.

Editorial director Kathy Dawson had this statement: “It felt like a long waiting period but Bitterblue was worth every single minute. With every book she writes, Kristin becomes a more accomplished writer, and for this one, she learned all about codes and ciphers. She even hired a linguist to create an entire language! Bitterblue is a fascinating character because while she has no powers, as queen she has the ultimate power.”

While accepting the Mason Prize at George Mason University this weekend, novelist Stephen King gave fans a peek at a sequel to his classic novel, The Shining.

Above, we’ve embedded a short video clip from the event. Follow this link to read more about all the topics King discussed while receiving the award–past recipients included Chinua Achebe, Dave Eggers and Greg Mortenson.

Here’s more about the reading: “Doctor Sleep, his upcoming novel about a grown-up Danny Torrance from The Shining. In the book, Danny is a hospice worker who uses his powers to help ill patients to pass away without pain. Unfortunately, he runs afoul of a gang of wandering psychic vampires who feed on people’s energy.” (Via Matt Staggs)

Assouline Publishing will commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with the release of Art for Heart: Remember 9/11. The book features a collection of drawings created by young children shortly after the terrorist attacks.

All of the proceeds will be donated to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, a not-for-profit organization that operates the memorial and museum at Ground Zero. Museum director Alice M. Greenwald wrote the introduction and political journalist Christy Ferer wrote the forward.

Here’s more from the release: “In Art for Heart, the innocence so profoundly disrupted that day is nowhere better demonstrated than in the words and drawings created by children following the attacks. Straightforward and heartfelt, these works reveal the human instinct to bear witness, provide comfort, and attempt to make sense out of the unthinkable.”

This week The New Yorker ran an excerpt from Haruki Murakami‘s upcoming novel, 1Q84.

Check it out: “Most people think of Sunday as a day of rest. Throughout his childhood, however, Tengo had never once viewed Sunday as a day to enjoy. For him, Sunday was like a misshapen moon that showed only its dark side. When the weekend came, his whole body began to feel sluggish and achy, and his appetite would disappear.”

If you want some mood music for “Town of Cats,” check out our growing Murakami playlist on Spotify. It includes many songs from the novel, constantly updated as this GalleyCat editor works his way through a review copy of the novel.

Abrams will release The Oprah Winfrey Show: Reflections on an American Legacy on November 15th. According to Publishers Weekly, an initial printing of 500,000 copies has been ordered.

Here’s more from the release: “The book chronicles the full 25 years of ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ with unforgettable highlights and images, as well as essays about its indelible impact and most important themes by well-known individuals across a wide variety of areas and interests.”

Nonfiction writer Deborah Davis will write the narrative text. The book will feature a forward by poet Maya Angelou and essays by Pulitzer winner Toni Morrison and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel. All three of these authors were featured in Oprah’s book club.

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Novelist Jodi Picoult has finished editing Between the Lines, a YA novel she co-wrote with her daughter. Publication has been set for June 2012.

Here’s more from Picoult’s Facebook announcement: “Color me happy! My daughter Sammy and I JUST finished editing the young teen chapter book we co-wrote, BETWEEN THE LINES … it’s about a prince who wants to break free from his fairytale existence … and the girl who falls for him while she’s reading. It’s sweet and romantic and funny — and to celebrate, we’re going out for ribs!!”

According to The Book Case, the mother-daughter duo will tour to promote the title. Picoult is not the first writer to partner with her daughter on a writing project.

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