[Weekender] Mega stores seek to connect with readers

In an effort to overcome a decline in sales, and the profoundly dwindling public interest in reading, Korea’s two largest book retailers Kyobo Book Center and Yes 24 set out their own unique strategies. For Kyobo, Korea’s largest book chain with 14 branches nationwide, it is tailored book consulting service. At the core of this service are a new breed of professionals called “book masters,” who find books that customers are looking for, make recommendations based on their preferences and manage

July 11, 2014

[Weekender] Small, unique booksellers survive competition

Generally speaking, price and brand power matter most in the bookstore business. These factors have earned price-competitive chains the lion’s share of the market, while the small, independent bookstores continue to wither.In reality, the mom-and-pop shops are more embattled than what we see in rom-com films like “You’ve Got Mail” and “Notting Hill.”But not all of the neighborhood bookshops are losing out. Some are staving off the competition through differentiation strategies. Your Mind Your Mi

July 11, 2014

Glimpse into China’s business culture

To know China, you must know “guanxi.” Lexically, it is a relationship or connection, but it means more than that. It contains important cultural implications that no single English word can explain.In China, guanxi is the key to success, be it in business, politics or any field that requires people-to-people relationships. The Chinese understand guanxi as the art of networking in their own fashion. To them, guanxi is exchanging favors for a common interest. “If you scratch my back, maybe I will

July 10, 2014

Social worker runs afoul of survivalist in ‘Fourth of July Creek’

Fourth of July CreekBy Smith Henderson (Ecco)Reading the first pages of Smith Henderson’s astonishing new novel, you can sense the trouble rising like thunderheads over the plains. A cop waits outside a ramshackle house. You know the place: “Peeling paint, a porch swing dangling from one rusting chain, a missing windowpane taped over with torn cardboard.” A social worker arrives. A mother and son sit handcuffed behind the screen door, subdued.These two, says the cop, “are full idiots.” The socia

July 10, 2014

World of collectors of rare 78 rpm records

Midway through her thoughtful, entertaining history of obsessed music collectors and their quest for rare early 78 rpm records, writer Amanda Petrusich has a revelation. Focusing on one particular seeker and his knack for finding obscure titles others have missed, she describes him strategizing his search by “pursuing his prey with the kind of vehemence typically employed by a PI stalking a client’s ex-wife, or a cop chasing a kingpin. It felt calculated and thorough.”The difference? Unlike thos

July 10, 2014

For Maya Sloan, ghostwriting Jenners’ book just part of fiction fun

NEW YORK ― One day. That was all the time Maya Sloan allowed herself to Google reviews of the dystopian young adult novel she ghostwrote for Kendall and Kylie Jenner.Not surprisingly, Internet trolls had it out for the youngest sisters of the Kardashians ― lampooning the idea that two teenage models who have yet to graduate from high school wanted to be taken seriously as authors. But Sloan, 37, didn’t escape unscathed, either.“Maya Sloan must have a serious need for money to submit herself to t

July 3, 2014

‘War and Gold’ explains chaotic history of money

One of my souvenirs is a note from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. I paid a vendor in Victoria Falls $3 for it, and that was more than it was worth. Its value to me is in the impressive pledge on the note: “I promise to pay the bearer on demand TWENTY BILLION DOLLARS.”When your national currency is rooted in such paper promises, inflation and chaos are sure to follow.This is the lesson taught in “War and Gold” by Kwasi Kwarteng, a son of Ghanaian parents who is a historian, hedge fund analyst and

July 3, 2014

Maum’s novel an exercise in wit and ‘Fun’

I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without YouBy Courtney Maum (Touchstone)Richard Haddon, the morose British artist at the center of Courtney Maum’s amusing and yet still heartfelt new novel, used to be devoted to the avant garde. He made mixed-media collages using saw blades and driftwood and melted ramen noodle packets. He wrapped toy soldiers in Bubble Wrap to make a statement. He was confident and energetic and young. Hell, he even used to listen to Peaches.Now, though, things have changed. Richa

July 3, 2014

Powerful ‘Euphoria’ reimagines Mead

EuphoriaBy Lily King (Atlantic Monthly Press)This novel is as concentrated as orchid food, packing as much narrative power and intellectual energy into its 250 pages as novels triple its size.Inspired by the 1933 meeting of anthropologists Margaret Mead, Reo Fortune and Gregory Bateson (Mead’s second husband and her third), and interweaving many other real characters and theoretical developments, “Euphoria” is a tale of passions, discoveries, jealousy, dedication, sexual mores and violence. It i

July 3, 2014

Rowling has spun a web of publishing mystery in a fun hall of mirrors

J.K. Rowling. (J.K. Rowling Official Site)If J.K. Rowling had as much fun writing “The Silkworm” as I did reading it, she had a blast.As the woman who created Harry Potter, Rowling became one of the most famous authors on the planet. But she was known as a writer for kids. Her first book for adults, 2012’s “The Casual Vacancy,” made headlines and was a bestseller, but critics were not impressed.For her next venture, Rowling decided to write in secret. She invented a pseudonym, Robert Galbraith,

June 26, 2014

‘Zhivago Affair’: CIA’s literary Cold War

The book came in on two rolls of microfilm ― an unusual way to submit a literary manuscript. Then again, the recipient was not your ordinary publisher: It was the CIA, the year was 1958, and the agency was about to lob a grenade onto the battlefield of the cultural Cold War.The grenade was “Doctor Zhivago,” by Russian writer Boris Pasternak. It would be his only work of fiction, but the controversial circumstances of its publication would spark a furor in the Soviet Union, where it was officiall

June 26, 2014

Bird soars to greatness in new novel

“Above the East China Sea”By Joy Tipping(The Dallas Morning News)I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching Sarah Bird’s career flourish during the past few years. Her books, sometimes serious in tone, sometimes lightly comedic, have a loyal Texas following.Her latest novel, “Above the East China Sea,” should be the one that lands the Austin writer among the literary elite. This is the rare tome that has the goods for both popular and critical acclaim at the highest level.“East China Sea,” like Bird’s 200

June 26, 2014

‘Ruin Falls’ an intense family thriller

“Ruin Falls”By Oline H. Cogdill(Sun Sentinel)In her second novel, Jenny Milchman delivers an intense family thriller that touches on all the hot-button fears of a parent while keeping the threat of violence on the periphery of the story. Although “Ruin Falls” lags a bit in the middle, Milchman’s strength in creating characters who grow and change keep the story on track.Liz Daniels, her husband, Paul, and their children, Ally, 6, and Reid, 8, are taking a road trip to visit Paul’s estranged pare

June 26, 2014

New Rowling book finally available on Amazon

An employee of Waterstones poses with a copy of “The Silkworm” by author Robert Galbraith, aka Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, as it goes on sale for the first time at a bookshop in London on Thursday. (AFP-Yonhap)NEW YORK (AP) ― J.K. Rowling’s latest novel has quickly climbed up the best-seller lists now that it’s finally available for purchase on Amazon.com. Rowling’s detective novel “The Silkworm” was in the top 100 by late Thursday for both print and e-book sales. She wrote it under the pe

June 20, 2014

SIBF to explore communication with readers

Last year, the average Korean adult read 9.2 books, according to an annual report by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, a gradual decrease from 10.8 books in 2011 and 9.9 books in 2012. Today, with smartphones no longer just gadgets for the tech-savvy, but necessities for everyone, society’s attention has been diverted from books. In light of the changing environment, an international book fair will begin in Seoul this week to promote reading and expand the Korean publishing industry w

June 16, 2014

‘100 Ideas That Changed Street Style’ is eclectic

Josh Sims’ “100 Ideas That Changed Street Style” is the latest in a “100 Ideas” series of books from Laurence King Publishing (other titles include “100 Ideas That Changed Graphic Design” and “100 Ideas That Changed Photography”), and the lavishly illustrated softcover book strikes an entertaining balance between encyclopedia and field guide as it sprints through some 70 years of street style.Many of the movements, trends, fads, statements and style tribes highlighted, cross-sectioned and decons

June 12, 2014

Hillary Clinton’s ‘Hard Choices’ makes for compelling reading

She hasn’t decided yet.Or if she has, she’s not telling.But if Hillary Rodham Clinton does run for president in 2016, her new book “Hard Choices,” a chronicle of her four years as secretary of State, leaves no room for doubt about how she might conduct foreign policy (pragmatically), how she will defend herself against charges that she mishandled the attack on the American compound in Benghazi, Libya (robustly) and about how much she regrets giving President George W. Bush carte blanche to wage

June 12, 2014

‘Harry Quebert Affair’: Better in French?

“The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair” By Marion Winik (Newsday)I just finished “The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair,” by 28-year-old Swiss writer Joel Dicker, and all I can say is, God save Europe.According to the jacket copy, this book sold a million copies in France, won three literary prizes there and was a finalist for the Prix Goncourt, while knocking Dan Brown from No. 1 spots in Italy and Spain. I am not a Brown fan, but this book makes him look like Marcel Proust.Let’s assume t

June 12, 2014

Kidnappers turn War on Terror on head

“The Abduction”By Tish Wells(McClatchy Washington Bureau)In Jonathan Holt’s first book, he introduced readers to Capt. Kat Tapo of the Venice Carabinieri (police). She and 2nd Lieutenant Holly Boland make two interesting sleuths, along with the reclusive Daniele Barbo, creator of Carnivia, an elaborate online world that reflects Venice itself.His newest novel, “The Abduction” deals with the kidnapping of an American girl, interrogation techniques used by the United States in the War on Terror, d

June 12, 2014