For the Love of Books: Stories of Literary Lives, Banned Books, Author Feuds, Extraordinary Characters, and More

by Graham Tarrant

Overview

A light-hearted book about books and the people who write them for all lovers of literature.
Do you know:

Which famous author died of caffeine poisoning?

Why Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was banned in China?

Who was the first British writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature?

What superstitions Truman Capote kept whenever he wrote?

Who the other Winston Churchill was?

A treasure trove of compelling facts, riveting anecdotes, and extraordinary characters, For the Love of Books is a book about books—and the inside stories about the people who write them. Learn how books evolved, what lies behind some of the greatest tales ever told, and who’s really who in the world of fiction.
From banned books to famous feuding authors, from literary felons to rejected masterpieces, from tips for aspiring writers to stand-out book lists for readers to catch up on, For the Love of Books is a celebration of the written word and an absolute page-turner for any book lover.
Read all about it!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781510741584
Publisher:	Skyhorse
Publication date:	06/18/2019
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	582 KB

About the Author

Graham Tarrant is a former publisher and the author of more than thirty books, on subjects ranging from cinema to cricket. He is also the editor of several anthologies. He lives in a Wiltshire village near Bath in Great Britain.
Graham Tarrant is a former publisher and the author of more than thirty books, on subjects ranging from cinema to cricket. He is also the editor of several anthologies. He lives in a Wiltshire village near Bath in Great Britain.

Table of Contents

Introduction 7

The Coining of the Book 9

Novel Approaches 21

Ban the Book 34

Writers' Feuds 42

Writers at Work 54

Making Crime Pay 67

Prison Sentences 82

Family Connections 91

Under the Influence 102

Dear Diary 111

Grim Reapings 122

Other People's Lives 132

The Spying Game 142

Worlds of Imagination 153

Who's Really Who 159

Asteroids to Zombies 168

Writers in the Dock 178

Supply and Demand 186

Glittering Prizes 194

Naming Names 205

Children's Classics 216

Bestselling Phenomena 228

Coda 236

Resources 237

Editorial Reviews

06/01/2019

Tarrant (Cinema: From the Silent Screen to the Hollywood Blockbuster) delivers a trivia lover's delight. Starting with the history of the book, the subjects quickly progress through types of novels, writers' work habits (Truman Capote would never begin or end a project on a Friday), how authors lived, or died (Herman Melville was so little known at the time of his death that his obituary mistakenly named him Hiram), famous author feuds, and a look at different genres. Each section (22 topics in all) is filled with anecdotes, fun pull-out facts, and a list or two of titles. There are quotes from writers about writing and about other writers. The book leans heavily toward the British side of the pond but does encompass some American authors. It may have had greater appeal to today's readers if there were more publication dates after 2010. As is, this is more historical than current trivia, but intriguing nonetheless. VERDICT The By the Book podcast meets Andre Bernard's Now All We Need Is a Title, in this compulsively readable collection that may appeal to bibliophiles.—Linda White, Maplewood, MN

Library Journal

"Tarrant delivers a trivia lover’s delight. . . . The By the Book podcast meets Andre Bernard’s Now All We Need Is a Title in this compulsively readable collection that may appeal to bibliophiles."
—Library Journal

From the Publisher