When the plume of fire and ash went up in Iceland recently, air traffic in the area notably (and justifiably) diminished. But of course, the roguish photographers at the National Geographic Society took the next plane up.

The result? NGS’s June Drop-In, VOLCANO: Iceland’s Inferno and the Earth’s Most Active Volcanoes.

This stunning, photographic overview of 20 major volcanoes around the world, whose eruptions have impacted landscapes and lives over decades, focuses on recent, high-profile volcanoes, with some flashbacks to bygone volcanic catastrophes. Features include a plot map of all the world’s volcanoes, a brief overview of the science behind volcanoes, and a profile of each volcano, including its alert status.

Don’t be surprised to find a spike in demand for books on this topic. And there’s no one that does Nature better than National Geographic.

-David

Random House, Inc. has announced that Knopf is publishing former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s memoir, out in September.

“Tony Blair: The Journey will break new ground in prime ministerial memoirs just as Blair himself broke the mould of British politics,” said Gail Rebuck, Chairman and Chief Executive of the Random House Group.  “His book is frank, open, revealing, and written in an intimate and accessible style.  As an account of the nature and uses of power, it will have a readership that extends well beyond politics, to all those who want to understand the challenge of leadership in today’s world.” 

Be sure to add this one to your lists for your politically focused patrons! 

The Bridge

On sale this April: David Remnick, editor of the New Yorker and one of America’s premier nonfiction authors, takes on the rise of Barack Obama in THE BRIDGE.

From the press release:

NEW YORK, 22-Feb-10 — New Yorker editor and best-selling author David Remnick has written a biography of Barack Obama that will be published by Alfred A. Knopf on April 6th, it was announced today by Sonny Mehta, Chairman of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. THE BRIDGE: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama is a sweeping and deeply reported look at both the life of the 44th President and the complex saga of race in America that led to his historic election.
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Remnick won the Pulitzer Prize for his book LENIN’S TOMB, about the collapse of the Soviet Union, and he is also the author of KING OF THE WORLD, a best-selling work on the evolution of Cassius Clay into Muhammad Ali in the midst of the civil-rights movement.
 

-David

This one snuck up on us! While I admit that I’d heard of this movie, “The Last Station,” based on a Jay Parini novel of the same name, I had no idea it was coming out so soon. Just Friday, the movie released in select locations in New York and LA so that it could be Oscar-eligible. I can see why; it has quite the ensemble. Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer, James McAvoy. Not bad. The movie-tie-in edition comes out just before the full-platform release of the film on January 12, 2010. Put your orders in now!

The book it’s based on is a fictional account of Leo Tolstoy’s final year of life, and was chosen as a New York Times Notable Book when it first published. You can watch the preview below.

-David

As a reader who counts Life of Pi as one of my favorite books, I am thrilled to announce that we have Yann Martel’s next novel to publish in April 2010: Beatrice and Virgil: A Novel. I haven’t been able to get my hands on a copy yet, but I am dying to read it (as I am sure many of you are as well.)  Stay tuned, but I hope to have galleys at either ALA Midwinter or PLA in Portland.  Stop by the Random House book and ask for a copy–I’ll be hiding a few under the skirted table for our loyal blog readers!

About the Book:
The follow-up to the international bestseller and Booker Prize-winning Life of
Pi, this is another novel that uses animals to discuss the human condition, in this
case, to address the atrocities of the Holocaust. At the center of the novel is the
relationship between two Henrys–a novelist and a taxidermist–who collaborate on
a play about a donkey and a howler monkey who have survived a genocide.
Heartbreaking and utterly original, the novel asks enduring questions about life
and art, truth and deception, responsibility and complicity. Like Life of Pi, it will
elicit endless discussion among readers and is destined to become a storytelling
classic.

BEATRICE AND VIRGIL (HC)
Yann Martel
ISBN: 978-1-4000-6926-2
On Sale: 4/13/2010
First Printing: 400,000
Price: $23.00
A Spiegel & Grau Hardcover

BEATRICE AND VIRGIL (AUDIO)
Reader to be announced
CD ISBN: 978-0-307-71515-9
CD Format and Runtime: 4 CDs, unabridged, 4 hours
CD Price: $30.00 US
On sale: 4/13/10

***LARGE PRINT***
BEATRICE AND VIRGIL
Yann Martel
LP PRICE: $23.00/NCR
LP ISBN: 9780739377802
On sale: 4/13/2010

What a night!  Not one, but TWO National Book Awards for Random House, Inc. authors!  Just wanted to give a little shout out of congratulations to our honored authors:

LET THE GREAT WORLD SPINby Colum McCann (Random House) received the 2009 National Book Award for Fiction right after THE FIRST TYCOON: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt by T. J. Stiles (Knopf) was announced as the Nonfiction winner.

A thrilling night for our authors, as well as for us. 

And we just got the news today that a trade paperback edition of LET THE GREAT WORLD SPIN  is being rushed to press and will be available on 12/08/09.  Perfect to help meet the surge in demand.

The movie tie-in edition of Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin has just been announced!  It will pub in January, just in time for the HBO movie, Temple Grandin, airing in February.  It has a star studded cast, with Claire Danes (as Temple Grandin), Julia Ormond, Catherine O’Hara, and David Strathairn.

NEW HBO TIE-IN EDITION will feature key art from the film

“Extraordinary, unprecedented. . . . A deeply moving and fascinating book.” —Oliver Sacks

“There are innumerable astounding facets to this remarkable book.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer

“A uniquely fascinating view. . . with insights that can only be called wisdom.”  —Deborah Tannen, author of You Just Don’t Understand

Temple Grandin is a gifted animal scientist who has designed one third of all the livestock-handling facilities in the United States. In this unprecedented book, Grandin delivers a report from the country of autism. Writing from the dual perspectives of scientist and autistic person, she tells us how that country is experienced by its inhabitants and how she managed to breach its boundaries to function and excel in the outside world.

The only autobiography by the King of Pop himself. Since Michael Jackson’s untimely death in June, there has been a surge of public adoration and interest in the legendary entertainer. His albums continue to lead record sales – he is quickly becoming the bestselling recording artist of the year. Celebrations of his singularly brilliant career and interest in his intensely private life continue to dominate the media.

ONE AND ONLY AUTOBIOGRAPHY: This is the only book about his life that Michael Jackson ever wrote. He chronicles his humble beginnings in the Midwest, his early days with the Jackson 5, and his unprecedented solo success.  Moon Walk details his songwriting process for hits like “Human Nature,” “Beat It,” “Rock With You,” “Billie Jean,” and “We Are the World”; describes how he developed his signature dance style, including the Moon Walk; and opens the door to his very private personal relationships with his family, including sister Janet, and stars like Diana Ross, Berry Gordy, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney, and Brooke Shields.

NEW CONTENT: This is a facsimile edition of the original 1988 publication. It will include a new introduction from a well-known figure in the entertainment industry who was close to Michael and an afterword from Publisher Shaye Areheart who was, along with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Michael’s original editor at Doubleday.

-Erica

No, I don’t have one of these endlessly fascinating contraptions. But I know more and more people are getting them every day. They like to show off how they can hum a song into it and it’ll come up with the title or turn it into a level for hanging pictures. As a human, I feel less and less useful all the time.

But apparently, the iPhone doesn’t necessarily come with all this stuff. These fancy tricks are downloadable “apps” (short for applications) that one adds on after getting their phone. And there are 25,000 of them. That’s a lot to handle.

So Prima Games, not normally known for books that will go on trade shelves, has produced a handy guide, with screenshots and illustrations, to help iPhoners sort through the seemingly endless apps to find the best ones, and the ones best suited for them.

This one goes on sale September 8th.

-David

Drop-in alert! I’ve  just learned my favorite author has a new book coming out. Joy! Unfortunately for me I’m not bilingual so I will have to wait because Isabel Allende’s first novel since 2006 titled, La Isla Bajo El Mar (The Island Below the Sea) is being published in Spanish first. Out in August from Vintage Español, this novel is the story of a slave fighting to win her freedom in 18th century Santo Domingo. As the English language edition has yet to be scheduled I’ll be waiting for a while, unless I learn to read in Spanish!

La isla bajo el mar

by Isabel Allende

Vintage Español

ISBN: 9780307476043

First Printing: 75,000

$26.95/CAN $33.00

On Sale Date: 8/25/2009

On the flip side, many are anxious to read the English translation of Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s The Angel’s Game, the English translation of  El Juego del Ángel  and long awaited prequel to the beloved The Shadow of the Wind. Having previously blogged about the anticipation surrounding this book, I’m sure it is going to be a hot one.

Be sure to have these titles on your list for your readers, English and Spanish speaking and bilingual alike!