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Canadian books that made a difference over the past decade

Indigo Books & Music Inc. have revealed the 75 books that most impacted booklovers during the past ten years in the Canadian retailer’s first Best of the Decade List. Compiled, considered and debated by the dedicated team of Indigo book buyers who have read, reviewed, recommended and bought a staggering number of books since 2000, the Indigo Best of the Decade List is neither a selection of personal favourites nor a spotlight on overlooked hidden gems. Indigo’s listing of the new millennium’s best books so far is driven by their impact and their popularity, the top titles from more than 140,000 titles that were sold in 2009 alone; books that motivated Canadians to read, to talk and to think about life and the world around them.

On the Indigo Best of the Decade fiction list, the decade’s best fiction told heart-wrenching stories, followed strong female characters like Lawrence Hill’s Aminata Diallo, and harnessed the power of prize winning to heighten the success of bestsellers like Yann Martel’s The Life of Pi. Both Hill’s historical fiction and Martel’s modern fable landed on the top ten list of books that most changed the lives of Canadian booklovers.

Young adult fiction flourished through the past decade with Indigo and Chapters seeing 200% growth through the latter five years. As expected, the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer top the Indigo Best of the Decade List for young readers.

Indigo Best of the Decade 2000-2009

Fiction

• The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen, 2001
• The Life Of Pi, Yann Martel, 2002
• The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold, 2002
• The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini, 2003
• The Time Traveller’s Wife, Audrey Niffenegger, 2003
• The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Nighttime, Mark Haddon, 2003
• Shadow Of The Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, 2004
• Runaway, Alice Munro, 2004
• The Birth House, Ami McKay, 2006
• The Road, Cormac McCarthy, 2006
• The Book Of Negroes, Lawrence Hill, 2007

Biographies

• Lucky, Alice Sebold, 1999
• Reading Lolita In Tehran, Azar Nafisi, 2003
• Scar Tissue, Anthony Kiedis, 2004Dreams Of My Father , Barack Obama, 2004
• The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls, 2005
• The Know It All, A.J. Jacobs, 2005
• Tender Bar, J.R. Moehringer, 2005
• Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert, 2006
• A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah, 2007
• Infidel, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, 2007
• Beautiful Boy, David Sheff, 2007
• Somewhere Towards the End, Diana Athill, 2009

Non-Fiction

• The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, 2000
• No Logo, Naomi Klein, 2000
• Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain, 2000
• Paris 1919, Margaret Macmillan, 2001
• Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser, 2001
• The Power Of Now, Eckhart Tolle, 2001
• Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky, 2002
• Moneyball, Michael Lewis, 2003
• Shake Hands With The Devil, Romeo Dallaire, 2003
• 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, Patricia Schultz, 2003
• A Short History of Progress, Ronald Wright, 2004
• Long Way Round, Ewan McGregor, 2004
• Marley & Me, John Grogan, 2005
• Freakonomics, Steven Levitt, Stephen Dubner, 2005
• The World Is Flat, Thomas L. Friedman, 2005
• Team Of Rivals, Doris Kearns Goodwin, 2005
• Collapse, Jared Diamond, 2005
• The Audacity Of Hope, Barack Obama, 2006
• The Looming Tower, Lawrence Wright, 2006
• God Delusion, Richard Dawkins, 2006
• Three Cups Of Tea, Greg Mortenson, 2006
• The Omnivores Dilemma, Michael Pollan, 2006
• Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore, 2006
• The Secret, Rhonda Byrne, 2006
• The Black Swan, Nassim Nichola Taleb, 2007
• Made To Stick, Chip Heath, 2007
• God Is Not Great, Christopher Hitchens, 2007
• Stuff Of Thought, Steven Pinker, 2007
• 100 Mile Diet, Alisa Smith, 2007
• Ascent Of Money, Niall Ferguson, 2008
• Payback, Margaret Atwood, 2008
• In Defense Of Food, Michael Pollan, 2008
• The Last Lecture, Randy Pausch, 2008

Young Adult Fiction

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, JK Rowling, 2007
• Twilight, Stephenie Meyer, 2005
• The Amber Spyglass, Philip Pullman, 2000
• Eragon, Christopher Paolini, 2003
• Diary of A Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, 2007
• Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, Louise Rennison, 2000
• A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning, Lemony Snicket, 1999
• Bone: Out From Boneville, Jeff Smith, 2005
• The Book Thief, Markus Zusak, 2005
• The Tale of Despereaux, Kate DiCamillo, 2003

Booklovers’ Top Ten "Life-changing" Books

• The Bible
• To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee, 1960
• Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom, 1997
• Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery, 1908
• The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini, 2003
• The Alchemist, Paul Coelho, 1988
• The Book of Negroes, Lawrence Hill, 2007
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, JK Rowling, 1997
• The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien, 1954
• Life of Pi, Yann Martel, 2002

Posted: December 30th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini, JK Rowling, JRR Tolkien, Philip Pullman, Stephenie Meyer

Christopher Paolini to attend two Montana events to promote latest releases

Christopher Paolini will be attending two events to promote his latest releases, the Brisingr Deluxe Edition and Eragon’s Guide to Alagaesia. Please note that the two events are located in Montana. At this time, no other scheduled appearances have been announced.

The Livingston event originally scheduled for Sunday, November 29th has been rescheduled for Saturday, December 12th.

Sunday, December 6th
Event begins at 1 PM
Costco
2505 Catron Street
Bozeman, MT 59718
(406) 585-0383

Saturday, December 12th
Event begins at 3 PM
Livingston Library
228 W Callender St
Livingston, MT 59047-2618
(406) 222-0862

Christopher Paolini was born on the 17th November 1983 in Southern California. His best known works include Eragon and Eldest, both part of the Inheritance Cycle. Paolini’s childhood was spent in the Paradise Valley of Montana. Christopher was taught at home and passed his accredited correspondence courses at the age of 15. Following his graduation he began writing the novels that would go on to become Eragon and Eldest.

• Eragon book review
• Eldest book review
• Brisingr book review

Posted: November 30th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Eragon’s Guide to Alagaesia now available

From the creators of the bestselling books Dragonology, Egyptology, Piratelogy, and others, this is a never-before-seen glimpse into the world of Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance cycle. Alagaësia comes alive in a lush and detailed look at an unforgettable magical land. From elves, dwarves, Urgals, humans, and dragons, to the natural landscape and the magic it contains, Eragon himself offers the reader an unsurpassed tour. This oversized, full-color book provides 15 spreads chock full of spectacular artwork, engaging novelty elements, and fascinating insights into Eragon’s home. With gorgeous jewels adorning the cover and pages filled with envelopes, gatefolds, samples of dragon skin, and more, Eragon’s Guide to Alagaësia is sure to appeal to the legions of fans of Christopher Paolini’s bestselling Inheritance cycle.

Christopher Paolini was born on the 17th November 1983 in Southern California. His best known works include Eragon and Eldest, both part of the Inheritance Cycle. Paolini’s childhood was spent in the Paradise Valley of Montana. Christopher was taught at home and passed his accredited correspondence courses at the age of 15. Following his graduation he began writing the novels that would go on to become Eragon and Eldest.

• Eragon book review
• Eldest book review
• Brisingr book review

Posted: November 3rd, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

More news on the 29th Steinbeck Festival

The 29th Steinbeck Festival, which will focus on John Steinbeck’s life-long passion for King Arthur, will take place between the 6^th and 9^th of August at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas.

The theme of the festival is “Legends, Myth and Magic” and the event coincides with the recent Penguin Classics Deluxe edition paperback release of John Steinbeck’s book, “The Acts of King Arthur and his Noble Knights”. The book is Steinbeck’s first foray into the fantasy genre and features a foreword by fantasy author Christopher Paolini.

Paolini will be leading this year’s festival with his presentation entitled “Making Literary Magic” and will share his own story.

Those who register to attend the festival by July 31 will receive a free gift. Further information, including how to purchase festival passports and individual program tickets, can be found at www.steinbeck.org.

Posted: July 21st, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Ask Christopher Paolini your questions

Shur’tugal.com is currently accepting submissions for their monthly questions and answer session with Christopher Paolini, the young bestselling fantasy author.

To ask Christopher a question, or to see his answers from the two prior sessions, visit http://www.shurtugal.com/?news=697.

Here are the questions, that will answered soon, during the second Q&A:

• Was Vrael an elf or human?
• Were all of the Forsworn humans? Were they all males?
• If a dragon hatches for a person, what happens if someone else touches it before that person?
• If you cast a spell that expends too much energy you die. Does this apply to a dragon inside an Eldunari?
• On page 530 in Brisingr, Saphira refers to Thorn as “stunted-thoughts-red-scales-Thorn.” Is she simply insulting him, or does she mean that his actual mind has been harmed by his magically rapid growth? And, if that is the case, how would Saphira know? Has she communicated with Thorn?
• In Eldest, Oromis said something about how it’s not speaking the words that matters for magic, but thinking them. Why then is Eragon so shocked at Tenga using unspoken magic?
• Did Galbatorix allow Morzan and the other members of the Forsworn access to some Eldunari as he did with Murtagh?
• How does Galbatorix know that the last dragon egg contains a male?
• You mentioned in your last Q&A that it was Eragon, not Oromis that inspired the Dragons at the Blood Oath Celebration to use their magic. Also Eragon did the same for Saphira during the Dwarves’s Coronation with Isidar Mithrim, is it possible that Eragons Character, what defines him allows him to help the Dragons work their magic? by that I mean, somehow, does something about him help the Dragons – inspire if you will – to use their magic, when they would otherwise be unable to?
• Will the two elven children play any role in the last book? We know that elven children are significantly more powerful than adult elves – they could be useful assets in war. Do the elves allow their children to go to war?

Christopher Paolini was born on the 17th November 1983 in Southern California. His best known works include Eragon and Eldest, both part of the Inheritance Cycle. Paolini’s childhood was spent in the Paradise Valley of Montana. Christopher was taught at home and passed his accredited correspondence courses at the age of 15. Following his graduation he began writing the novels that would go on to become Eragon and Eldest.

• Eragon book review
• Eldest book review
• Brisingr book review

Posted: July 15th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Christopher Paolini to headline the 29th Steinbeck Festival

California’s will be able to catch up with their favourite fantasy son at The National Steinbeck Center this summer.

The 29th Steinbeck Festival, named Legends, Myth and Magic will be celebrated between the 6th and 9th of August 2009.

The four day festival of film, tours, talks and visual and performing arts will focus on the Arthurian Legend with which John Steinbeck had a life-long fascination.

The festival headline event, Feast at the Fox, features a program by Christopher Paolini, author of The Inheritance Cycle, which includes Eragon, Eldest and Brisingr. He will talk about Making Literary Magic and how he found inspiration from the legend of King Arthur.

The medieval-themed evening will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 pm. Aug. 8 at the Fox Theater at 241 S. Main St., Salinas.

Attendees will partake of a four-course feast, described as "fit for a king"; may sip from locally grown Stomper Wines and grog by Monterey Bay Brewing Co.; all while listening to the live musical interludes from the Lerner and Loewe musical "Camelot."

Following the feast, attendees will have premiere seating for Paolini’s program. Tickets for just his speech are also available.

Price including feast is $50 for general admission, $45 Steinbeck Center members. Tickets for the Paolini program only can be bought for $18 general, $12 members/students. Reservations: 831-775-4721; www.steinbeckstore.org.

Source: California Today

Christopher Paolini was born on the 17th November 1983 in Southern California. Paolini’s childhood was spent in the Paradise Valley of Montana. Christopher was taught at home and passed his accredited correspondence courses at the age of 15. Following his graduation he began writing the novels that would go on to become Eragon and Eldest.

Posted: June 27th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Questions and Answers with Christopher Paolini

Shur’tugal.com features a question and answers session with fantasy author Christopher Paolini. The questions were submitted by the fans themselves with over 1,000 questions in total being received by the website.

An example of the questions asked: Will an Eldunarí from a young dragon grow along with the dragon, or will it remain the same as when it was coughed up?

Christopher Paolini: As for whether an Eldunarí will continue to grow after being disgorged: no. And that’s another reason why dragons were reluctant to give up their heart of hearts while they were still young, before they had achieved the main part of their growth.

What is the plural of Eldunarí?

Christopher Paolini: The plural of "Eldunarí" is, in keeping with the rules of the ancient language, "Eldunarya".

Read the full Christopher Paolini session by clicking here.

Christopher Paolini was born on the 17th November 1983 in Southern California. His best known works include Eragon and Eldest, both part of the Inheritance Cycle. Paolini’s childhood was spent in the Paradise Valley of Montana. Christopher was taught at home and passed his accredited correspondence courses at the age of 15. Following his graduation he began writing the novels that would go on to become Eragon and Eldest.

Christopher Paolini biography

• Eragon book review
• Eldest book review
• Brisingr book review

Posted: June 13th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Winners of the 2009 Audies

The 2009 Audies, recognizing audio’s most engaging and innovative audiobooks of the 2008 publishing year, were held at a formal Gala at the New-York Historical Society on May 29th in New York City.

The Audies are the only awards program in the United States honouring spoken word entertainment.

Newbery Medal winner, The Graveyard Book, written and read by Neil Gaiman beat its contenders, Brisingr by Christopher Paolini and A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father by Augusten Burroughs, for the coveted Audiobook of the Year award.

The title earned this recognition for its combination of original musical composition, superb production and effective social media marketing. Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady, written by L.A. Meyer and read by Katherine Kellgren, received the newly-created Distinguished Achievement in Production award for its excellent production quality. This new award recognizes a production that represents the best the format has to offer in listening excellence.

The category winners, by category, were:

• Audiobook of the Year: The Graveyard Book; Author and Narrator: Neil Gaiman
• Michael Conroy Distinguished Achievement in Production: Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady; Author: L.A. Meyer; Narrator: Katherine Kellgren
• Alisa Weberman Audiobook Adaptation: English Majors: A Comedy Collection for the Highly Literate; Author: Garrison Keillor; Narrator: Garrison Keillor and cast
• Katrina Cicala Audio Drama: The Odyssey; Author: Homer; Narrator: Tim McInnerny
• Janet Whitaker Biography/Memoir: The Last Lecture; Author: Randy Pausch with Jeffrey Zaslow; Narrator: Erik Singer
• Karen DiMattia Business/Educational: The Little Red Book of Selling; Author and Narrator: Jeffrey Gitomer
• Audio Children’s Titles for Ages Up To 8: James Herriot’s Treasury for Children; Author: James Herriot; Narrator: Jim Dale
• Children’s Titles For Ages 8-12: The Graveyard Book; Author and Narrator: Neil Gaiman
• Michael Conroy Classic Great Expectations: Author: Charles Dickens; Narrator: Simon Vance
• Ron Formica Fiction: The Duma Key; Author: Stephen King Narrator: John Slattery & Potato Peel Pie Society; Author: Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows; Narrator: Paul Boehmer, Susan Duerden, Rosalyn Landor, John Lee, and Juliet Mills
• History: Gandhi and Churchill; Author: Arthur Herman; Narrator: John Curless
• Humour: The Learners By; Author: Chip Kidd; Narrator: Bronson Pinchot
• Inspirational / Faith-Based Fiction: Prague Counterpoint; Author: Bodie and Brock Thoene; Narrator: Sean Barrett
• Inspirational / Faith-Based Non-Fiction: The Word of Promise(R): Next Generation–New Testament; Author: ICB Translation; Narrator: Sean Astin and cast
• Literary Fiction Elmer: Gantry; Author: Sinclair Lewis; Narrator: Anthony Heald
• Multi-Voiced Performance: Mudbound; Author: Hillary Jordan; Narrator: Joey Collins, Peter Jay Fernandez, Kate Forbes, Ezra Knight, Brenda Pressley, and Tom Stechschulte
• Amber Cleveland Mystery: Voice of the Violin Author: Andrea Camilleri; Narrator: Grover Gardner
• Narration by the Author or Authors: When You Are Engulfed in Flames; Author and Narrator: David Sedaris
• Maja Thomas Non-Fiction: Hot, Flat, and Crowded; Author: Thomas Friedman; Narrator: Oliver Wyman
• Laura Wilson Original Work: Louis Vuitton Soundwalk: Beijing; Author: Stephan Crasneanscki; Narrator: Gong Li
• Clementine Duzer Package Design: Founding Fathers; Author: Arthur M. Schlesinger; Designed by: Margo Goody
• Personal Development: You Staying Young; Author: Michael F. Roizen, M.D., and Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.; Narrator: Johnny Heller
• Amber Cleveland Politics – Judges’ Award: Hot, Flat, and Crowded; Author: Thomas Friedman; Narrator: Oliver Wyman
• Romance: The Dark Highlander; Author: Karen Marie Moning; Narrator: Phil Gigante
• Science Fiction/Fantasy: Calculating God; Author: Robert J. Sawyer; Narrator: Jonathan Davis
• Short Stories/Collections: Armageddon in Retrospect; Author: Kurt Vonnegut; Narrator: Rip Torn and Mark Vonnegut
• Solo Narration – Female: Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady; Author: L.A. Meyer; Narrator: Katherine Kellgren
• Solo Narration – Male: The Count of Monte Cristo; Author: Alexandre Dumas; Narrator: John Lee
• Spanish Language: Por Un Dia Mas; Author: Mitch Albom; Narrator: Jose Manuel Vieira
• Teens: Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady; Author: L.A. Meyer; Narrator: Katherine Kellgren
• Thriller / Suspense: Child 44; Author: Tom Rob Smith; Narrator: Dennis Boutsikaris

The Audio Publishers Association (APA) is a not-for-profit trade organization whose primary goals are to promote awareness of the audiobook industry, gather and disseminate industry statistics, encourage high production standards, and represent the interests of audiobook publishers. Since 1986, the APA has worked to bring audio publishers together to increase interest in audiobooks. Please visit http://www.audiopub.org/ for more information.

Posted: June 5th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Audio-books, Christopher Paolini, Neil Gaiman

Eragon’s Guide to Alagaësia set for November release

Doubleday, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books (UK), will publish a unique novelty book based on Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance cycle this fall.

Eragon’s Guide to Alagaësia is being created by Knopf in conjunction with Templar Publishing, who is recognized as the market leader in developing groundbreaking and bestselling novelty gift books. This project marks the first time Paolini’s Inheritance cycle will be introduced in a format beyond novels.

The book will be published by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers in North America on November 3, 2009, and simultaneously by Random House Children’s Books in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.

“We’re thrilled to be able to offer this spectacular book to fans this fall,” says Nancy Hinkel, Publishing Director of Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers. “Eragon’s Guide to Alagaësia will take readers deeper into the captivating world Christopher created, offering a visual perspective of the novels that millions of readers across the world have come to love.”

Eragon’s Guide to Alagaësia is framed as a gift from Eragon to the reader—who is, in fact, a new Rider. In fifteen lavishly illustrated spreads, the reader is invited to explore the landscape and cities of Alagaësia and its many races, including dragons, humans, Urgals, dwarves and elves. Each spread is filled with special effects and stunning examples of paper engineering and other elements for which Templar is so well known.

Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance cycle, which includes the acclaimed novels Eragon, Eldest and Brisingr, is an international sensation – with over 50 foreign-language licenses – and has sold more than 22 million copies worldwide. Paolini is currently at work on the fourth book which will conclude the Inheritance cycle.

Random House Children’s Books is an award-winning publisher of books for children of all ages.
In addition to Christopher Paolini, Its bestselling authors include Terry Pratchett, Philip Pullman,
and Jacqueline Wilson.

Christopher Paolini biography

• Eragon book review
• Eldest book review
• Brisingr book review

Posted: May 28th, 2009
Author: Floresiensis
Categories: Christopher Paolini

Discounts available on all Children’s Choice Award nominees

BooksOnBoard congratulates the Children’s Choice Book Award Winners and Nominees. This week, BooksOnBoard will be offering a discount on all Children’s Choice Award Nominees with the promo code KidsChoice, valid through Sunday, May 17. More information is available here: http://www.booksonboard.com/index.php?F=kidschoice_ebooks

Stephenie Meyer won the Best Author Award for Breaking Dawn. Authors nominated for Best Author Award include Rick Riordan, James Patterson, and Christopher Paolini.

Rick Riordan’s bestselling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series is available in MP3 Audio Book format, which becomes popular in the summer months for long car and plane trips.

“As more children and young adults begin reading eBooks, we see a surge in popularity of these authors,” says BooksOnBoard Director of Operations Nathan Johnson. “Stephenie Meyer, Rick Riordan, James Patterson, and Christopher Paolini have all topped our bestsellers list within the past six months, largely due to their young adult appeal.”

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer also won the Young Adult Choice Award. Nominated titles include Airhead by Meg Cabot, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen, and Paper Towns by John Green.

“After the launch of BooksOnBoard’s iPhone site, we saw an increase in the sales of young adult titles,” says Director of Executive Operations Kelly Fine. “Teens are picking up their iPhones and reading outside of the house; they’re using their phones for more than just texting now!”

Posted: May 17th, 2009
Author: Floresiensis
Categories: Awards, Christopher Paolini, Stephenie Meyer