Prison is a Great Place to Write
Jack Gantos talks about his new memoir, A Hole in My Life, and the events that changed his life. This ebullient children’s book author, a favorite among many booksellers, speaks with animation about his past and the time he spent in prison for trying to sail a boat load of hashish across the country. Source: Bookweb

Memoir of an African Childhood
Alexandra Fuller's Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood, (Random House) -- a vivid and often heartbreaking memoir by a daughter of white farmers who moved from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) to Malawi to Zambia. Source: Bookweb

An Unintended Memoir Holds a Lifetime of Memories
Jo Hammettâs book Dashiell Hammett: A Daughter Remembers is winning strong praise for its clear prose, its intimate glimpses of the legendary Hammettâs private life, and its profusion of marvelous photographs. Source: Bookweb

E-publishing industry update
Wired's M.J. Rose e-publishing update online. Topics include Godspeed (a Christian e-reader), POD industry update (non-return policies in retail bookstores have hurt sales and acceptance of print-on-demand books), and the Random House/Rosetta court case (do traditional publishers own the rights to backlist titles under contract before 1990?).

Yet another accusation of plagiarism
In what seems to becoming a plague of plagiarism accusations, another author has been accused of lifting passages from someone else's book. Apparently Olaf Olafsson's The Journal Home contains passages taken, without acknowledgement, from food writer M.F.K. Fisher. The author and his publisher, Pantheon Books, have created even more bad press by releasing the statement that "Olaf Olafsson's intention was to pay tribute to a writer for whom he has deep admiration." Source: CNN

Book publishing renaissance via the Internet?
Publishers are still afraid to fully embrace the Internet, says Newsweek's Michael Rogers. "The Internet and electronic distribution of books could provide salvation for this beleaguered business." Source: MSNBC

Open source books?
Slashdot has an interesting message board discussion about the concept of 'open source' books. Several posters warned the author against totally relinquishing his/her rights to the work.