Books :: Paste

Book Excerpt: Joe Pernice's It Feels So Good When I Stop

By Joe Pernice on 8:00 AM on July 30, 2009

Lou Barlow from Sebadoh was headlining, playing solo acoustic, so I was okay with suffering through the four opening acts... read more

Grocery-Store Memoir Promotes Writer from Cashier to Author

By Angela Pham on 7:40 AM on July 27, 2009

Writer Anna Sam may be from a city about 200 miles west of Paris, France, but she is certainly living what we call The American Dream. The story goes something like this: Girl goes to university for literary studies. Girl graduates and gets a temporary job as a cashier, which turns almost permanent. Girl writes a blog about it. Girl gets a book deal, then a movie deal, then a musical deal, then a second published book, all while earning the title of best-selling author.... read more

Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Charlize Theron, 22 More Commemorate Nelson Mandela's 91st Birthday With Audio Book

By Catherine Prewitt on 2:10 PM on July 21, 2009

Nelson Mandela celebrates his 91st birthday this year, and in celebration, a slew of Hollywood staples have partnered with Hachette Book Group and Artists for a New South Africa to present the audio book Nelson Mandela's Favorite Folktales. Matt Damon, Whoopi Goldberg, Scarlett Johnassen, Don Cheadle, Hugh Jackman, Charlize Theron and Samuel L. Jackson are just seven of 23 actors and two musicians who donated their dynamic voices to bring new life to these old stories. The three-disc set also includes a message from Archbishop Desmond Tutu of Cape Town.... read more

Q-Tip to School Musicians on the Entertainment Business in New Book, Industry Rules

By Gray Chapman on 12:15 PM on July 21, 2009

Veteran rapper Q-Tip has announced plans to pen a book for the Ballentine imprint that will detail the ins and outs of the entertainment business, according to AllHipHop.com. The co-founder of A Tribe Called Quest will release Industry Rules in correspondence with the 20th anniversary of ATCQ's debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. ... read more

Barnes & Noble Releases Kindle Competitor

By Angela Pham on 11:35 AM on July 21, 2009

Is the Amazon Kindle not cutting it for you? Is your Sony Reader not getting, well, read? If so, lovers of the e-book, don't revert to (gasp!) those old-fashioned, tangible pieces of paper to read literary works; you have another option.... read more

Frank McCourt: 1930-2009

By Ani Vrabel on 4:30 PM on July 20, 2009

Frank McCourt, the former New York City schoolteacher whose memoir Angela's Ashes won him a Pulitzer Prize, passed away from cancer on Sunday in a Manhattan hospice. He was 78.... read more

Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility: Now With Sea Monsters!

By Angela Pham on 7:40 AM on July 20, 2009

After the surprising success of this year's Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (a mash-up of Jane Austen's original text with doses of dead bodies and blood), publishing company Quirk Books hungrily sought out its next literary victim: Sense and Sensibility.... read more

Almost Everything I Say Is True, Says Todd Snider's Upcoming Book

By Michael Saba on 2:47 PM on July 17, 2009

As you may have gleaned from Paste Associate Editor Steve LaBate's rather excellent interview with folkie maven Todd Snider, the dude has just added aspiring author to his resumé. As Snider explains, he's working on a book called Almost Everything I Say Is True, based in part on his notorious onstage banter:... read more

Jay-Z to Publish Lyrics Book

By Caroline Klibanoff on 11:00 AM on July 16, 2009

Jay-Z has been in talks with a branch of Random House Publishing, Spiegel & Grau, to finalize a deal for a book, according to The New York Observer. The book will consist of explanations and stories behind the rapper's lyrics, though no publication date has been released yet.... read more

Harry Potter and the Wittiest Sequel Tweets

By Catherine Prewitt on 1:47 PM on July 14, 2009

In anticipation of tonight's release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince premiere, Twitter is abuzz about the world's favorite wizard. Fans have been hash-tagging (a Twitter tool for associating a tweet with a particular subject) Potter-related topics all week, boasting their ticket purchases, planning their costumes for the midnight showing and otherwise expressing their excitement.... read more

Snitches Get Stitches: Full-Contact College Quidditch Sweeps the Nation

By Julia Askenase on 9:30 AM on July 14, 2009

When any creative project starts out small and humble and then vastly expands, those involved face the proverbial challenge of staying grounded... read more

Harry Potter and the Supposed Allegiance with the Devil

By Ani Vrabel on 9:00 AM on July 14, 2009

During the Middle Ages, hundreds of people who suffered from fits or other seemingly inexplicable behavior were immediately suspected of being in cahoots with the devil... read more

Potter In Universities A Harry Subject

By Walton Murphy on 8:45 AM on July 14, 2009

My brother took a swimming class in college; my father signed up for Judo... read more

Brad Neely's Wizard People, Dear Reader: Deconstructing Harry Potter and the Hero's Journey

By Michael Saba on 8:30 AM on July 14, 2009

Brad Neely is the face of comedy in the internet age... read more

Paste Presents: The Harry Potter Takeover

By Paste Staff on 8:00 AM on July 14, 2009

It's been a dozen years since the first of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books debuted... read more

Lil Wayne is a Bullfrog: Paste Puts the Patronus Charm on Nine Musical Artists

By Paste Staff on 7:45 AM on July 14, 2009

In Harry Potter’s world, a patronus is an animal protector created by a spell. Harry’s patronus is a stag... read more

The Super-Impossible Brain-Busting Harry Potter Trivia Quiz

By Michael Saba on 7:30 AM on July 14, 2009

Think you're steeped in the wizard lore of the Harry Potter books? Think that you can recall the trivia and minutia of the Harry Potter universe... read more