I was told by my marketing handler at Penguin/Berkley to visit the Penguin Books Booth when I was on the trade floor at Book Expo America last month. She wanted me to introduce myself to the sales and promotional people there so they had a face with the name in case Harry Potter’s Bookshelf ever takes off. That turned out to be a fool’s errand — the sales people were there to make sales with the gazillion booksellers present, not make face time with wanna-bes — but I did catch a glimpse of what may be the future of popular literature. Or is it just a repackaging of the present?

Penguin/Dutton was promoting heavily via hard displays, advance copies, and video terminals a book titled Level 26, “the first Digi-Novel,” “from the creator of the hit show CSI.” If you go to the web site for the book, you’ll read this description of the “Digi-Novel” experience:

Read, watch, log-in, and inter-act. Level 26 breaks all boundaries of traditional publishing by combining motion picture quality film and an interactive community website with a thriller novel.

I was given a copy of the book, and, frankly, thought little of it. I read the first chapter on the bus ride home, though, and was curious enough to go to the press web site to check out the “motion picture quality film” that serves as a bridge between chapters. You can read the book straight through, it turns out, without checking out the video bridges and still follow the story — but the video segments are incredible. [Read more…]

So says The New Republic:

“Her former clerks report that because Sotomayor is divorced and has no children, her clerks become like her extended family–working late with her, visiting her apartment once a month for card games (where she remembers their favorite drinks), and taking a field trip together to the premier of a Harry Potter movie.”

That’s one breakdown of the Court’s thinking on issues I haven’t read. Anyone care to guess the opinions, majority and dissenting, of our Supreme Court Justices on Harry?

(H/T — RHT)

I’m on my way! There is an ‘Author’s Event’ this afternoon where a bunch of the Gilderoys of the Potter Pundit set will gather for conversation, to sign autographs, and, I’m told, to have our pictures taken with fans. [I’m hoping (with everyone else) that I can get my picture taken with Melissa Annelli.] Tomorrow afternoon, I’m scheduled to give a Featured Presentation on the ‘Eyes of Deathly Hallows.’ Fortunately or unfortunately, online and on their printed programs, I’m scheduled opposite a Keynote talk by the Order of the Phoenix screenwriter and a literary talk by Karin Westman, the Chairman of the KSU English department. I may join the crowds and no-show my own talk to sit in on the others!

The highlight of the event promises to be seeing HogPro All-Pros in attendance and Potterdelphians. I’ve already contacted and made dates with Toni and David Gras and with Boston Nadja. I hope the rest of you folks who will be there will give me a shout out so we can have our photos taken with the WRock stars and online celebrities of Fandom!

Here’s one:

The Albus/Rose/Scorpius trio on Christmas break their first year overhear an unreformed Death Eater just out of Azkaban telling Lucius at Malfoy Manor he has found a Time Turner. He has managed to super-charge it and intends to return to the weeks following the Battle of Hogwarts, 19 years previous.

His plan? To take the Wand of Destiny from Dumbledore’s tomb and kill Potter before Harry arrests him in his first adventure as an Auror. [Read more…]

In this month’s Touchstone magazine, there is an article by S. M. Hutchens called ‘Picture Imperfect: On the Discovery of Dirt in Potter’s Field.’ I cannot link to this piece yet because it hasn’t been posted to the magazine archives online but I am obliged to recommend the article — and the magazine as well.

Touchstone claims to be a “Journal of Mere Christianity,” and, given that hat-tip to C. S. Lewis, you’d expect it to be brilliant, eloquent, and combative, with an engaging sense of humor to boot. You’d also think it would be a place to find insightful thinking about social issues, faith, and quite a lot about literature. Touchstone is all of these things and has won the awards to prove it. [Read more…]