News

In the UK, Puffin is publishing six exclusive special editions to celebrate it's 70th anniversary. The books that are being redesigned are James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne. The special editions will be redesigned by cultural figures including sculptors, fashion designers and illustrators. Each edition will be worth £100 (AU$175) and only 1000 copies will be released.  

Stephenie Meyer's Twilight has sold over two million copies in the UK, making her only the fourth author in the 21st Century to do so. This is quite a feat considering before Twilightmania hit in 2008, only 27 000 copies of Twilight had been sold. J K Rowling, Dan Brown and Mark Haddon are the only other authors to have reached this landmark.

Swedish author John Theorin has won the 2010 CWA International Dagger for his novel The Darkest Room. The Dagger in the Library went to Arianna Franklin, and Ruth Dudley Edwards won the Non-Fiction Dagger for Aftermath.

The longlist for the 2010 Man Booker Prize has been announced. Two Australian authors, Peter Carey and Christos Tsiolkas, have made the list. The shortlist will be announced 7 September and the winner on 12 October.



Booker Longlist:

Parrot and Olivier in America by Peter Carey

Room by Emma Donoghue

The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore

In a Strange Room by Damon Galgut

The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson

The Long Song by Andrea Levy

C by Tom McCarthy

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell

February by Lisa Moore

Skippy Dies by Paul Murray

Trespass by Rose Tremain

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas

The Stars in the Bright Sky by Alan Warner

James Bond star Daniel Craig is set to take on the character Mikael Blomkvist in the Hollywood remake of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The film, to be released in 2011, will be directed by Fight Club's David Fincher. Currently, there has been no confirmation on who will play Lisbeth Salander, though it's rumoured the role will go to Carey Mulligan.