• Home
• Author A-Z
• Top 100 Fantasy Books
• Young Adult's Fantasy Books
• Children's Fantasy Books
• About Us
• Contact Us
• News

Fantasy news round-up, August 2, 2010

Dawn Treader: new movie poster and trailer 
Dawn Treader, the film based on the CS Lewis book from the Narnia Chronicles, is being directed by British filmmaker Michael Apted and has been written by Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely and Michael Petroni. It will be appearing in cinemas around the world from December 10, 2010 onwards.

There has also been a trailer available for the past month:

Edmund and Lucy Pevensie, along with their pesky cousin Eustace Scrubb – find themselves swallowed into a painting and on to a fantastic Narnian ship headed for the very edges of the world. Joining forces once again with their royal friend Prince Caspian and the warrior mouse Reepicheep, they are whisked away on a mysterious mission to the Lone Islands, and beyond. On this bewitching voyage that will test their hearts and spirits the trio will face magical Dufflepuds, sinister slave traders, roaring dragons and enchanted merfolk. Only an entirely uncharted journey to Aslan’s Country – a voyage of destiny and transformation for each of those aboard the Dawn Treader – can save Narnia, and all the astonishing creatures in it, from an unfathomable fate.

German fantasy authors boast worldwide reach
Children’s books by German authors such as Cornelia Funke and Michael Ende are proving extremely popular worldwide. Books lover in the US, Korea and China love reading, amongst many others, Inkheart and The Neverending Story and since the 1960s German children’s books has slowly but surely conquered the international book market.

"I think that many countries experienced this social shift where people began to take kids more seriously and included them more in the conversation. In that sense, German children’s books were on the cutting edge, and that’s what made them a success abroad," says Regina Pantos, chair of the Association for Children’s and Youth Literature.

Daniel Radcliffe turns 21
Daniel Radcliffe, the actor who plays Harry Potter in the film franchise, turned 21 on July 23. Born in Fulham, England in 1989, he had only just turned 11 when he was chosen to play the role of the boy wizard from the books by JK Rowling.

Forbes Magazine names JK Rowling as one of the world’s 30 most inspiring women
After seeking input from ForbesWoman followers on Facebook and Twitter, a list was compiled of the 30 Utterly Inspiring Role Models, and JK Rowling was chosen as one of the 30 women who “make the world a better place”. She’s in good company, with Oprah Winfrey, Angelina Jolie, Danica Patrick, Betty White, Elizabeth Glazer, Condoleezza Rice and Hilary Clinton also included in the list.

Ursula Le Guin allows British students to make one of her short stories into a film
Budding producer Rob Watson (Beaconsfield’s National Film and Television School) wrote a letter to Ursula Le Guin in April asking her for film rights to one of her books, and was shocked by its response. The author immediately wrote back and agreed that they could go ahead with the film without paying a penny for the rights. Now Watson is making one of the biggest student films ever. The 20 minute graduation film The Fleet of Vision is to cost £12,000 and will use sets first used in sci-fi epics like Sunshine and Thunderbirds.

“She doesn’t usually give away the rights to her material but she let us have it for free – it was amazing when we got the reply. Most student films are shot on location but we’re doing pretty much all of this on specially-built sets. There’s even professionally-made spacesuits being used,” said Watson.

Penguin Group see spike in First Half Sales and Profit
Sales at Penguin for the first half of the year rose 9 percent, breaking 493 million pounds. Sales at Pearson, Penguin’s parent, also rose 9 percent in the first half of 2010, with adjusted operating profit increasing by 79% to 178m. Overall, the operating profit at the book publisher more than doubled, hitting 44 million pounds (up from 21 million pounds a year ago). Penguin is one of the most famous brands in book publishing, known around the world for the quality of its publishing and its consistent record of innovation. Over the past five years, Penguin’s sales have increased at an annual average rate of 2% and profits at 5%. In the early part of 2010 Penguin grew well ahead of industry in its major markets and produced a substantial profit improvement. Additionally, Penguin continues to extend their reach to new audiences, most recently with the launch of Apple’s iBookstore and iPad where, in the US, Penguin’s Winnie-the-Pooh was the only book pre-loaded onto the device.

Posted: August 2nd, 2010
Author: Lee
Categories: AA Milne, CS Lewis, Cornelia Funke, JK Rowling, Ursula Le Guin

Cornelia Funke to present award, sign books and conduct a reading in Hawaii this April

Fantasy author Cornelia Funke, often called the German JK Rowling, can be found in Hawaii this April. On April 29, she will be a special guest at The Nene Award Ceremony where she will receive honour for her best-selling novel, Inkheart. The Nene Award is presented to the best fiction book, as voted on by the children of Hawaii in grades 4 through to 6. This year, a total of 6,587 students voted state-wide at public libraries, private and public schools.

The 2010 Nene Award Ceremony will be conducted at Kamehameha School’s Princess Ruth Keelikolani Auditorium on April 29 at 10 a.m. Invited students, librarians, and teachers will honour the winner. There will also be presentations by the winners of student contests celebrating Inkheart in persuasive essays, interpretive essays and posters.

Perma-Bound Books will donate a copy of the 2010 award-wining title to each participating public library or school.

Funke will also be making two public appearances at free events in Hawaii:

• April 29, 3:30 p.m. Book-signing Event at Barnes & Noble-Kahala Mall
• April 30, 2:30 p.m.-4 p.m. "Meet the Author" program at Hawaii State Library; Edna Allyn Room for Children. Funke will conduct a reading and there will be a question-and-answer session. This program is suitable for ages 8 and older. Contact the Library two weeks in advance if a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation is needed. For more information, please call the Library’s Edna Allyn Room for Children at 586-3510.

The annual Nene Award is supported by the Hawaii State Public Library System and State Department of Education. Sponsors include the Hawaii State Teachers Association, Hawaii Association of School Librarians, Hawaii Library Association, Perma-Bound Books, Scholastic Book Fairs, Barnes & Noble-Kahala Mall, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Hawaiian Airlines, and Kamehameha Schools.

Cornelia Funke established herself with the Ghosthunters (Gespensterjäger) and Wild Chicks (Wild Hühner) series of books in her home country. Then, in 1996, the fantasy novel Dragon Rider saw her on the New York Times bestseller list for 78 weeks and brought her writing to an international audience.

Posted: April 20th, 2010
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke

Cornelia Funke’s Reckless to become a musical

Reckless, the new fantasy novel from best-selling author Cornelia Funke, is to premiere as a musical just six weeks after the book’s world release, the Dresden Theatre in Germany has announced.

Order Reckless from Amazon.co.uk

Publishers say they will print 1 million copies of Reckless for a simultaneous book launch in the United States, Britain and Germany on September 14.

The Inkheart trilogy and other Funke books for young readers have appeared in 40 languages and have sold 100 million copies.

Funke, who lives in California, has sold more books than any other living writer in German. She is often compared to JK Rowling, the British author for children who has many adult readers.

The music for the stage version of Reckless was composed by Polarkreis 18, a German band that mixes pop, electronic and experimental music.

The German author has revealed very little of what the book is about, except that it is about the brothers Jacob and Will Reckless, who are based on the German Brothers Grimm. She says she is drawing her own illustrations, one per chapter, for the novel.

She sold the theatre rights separately from the film rights, allowing a live version to be staged before any movie adaptation. The stage version has been co-authored by Robert Koall of Germany, who also worked on stage versions of the Inkheart series.

He described the story as being about "a race against time."

It will premiere in Dresden on October 29, said the state-funded theatre company, adding that it had only one galley of the book, which is marked secret and locked up from prying eyes.

Posted: April 16th, 2010
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke, JK Rowling

Cornelia Funke’s new book to benefit from worldwide coordinated launch

Three publishers will launch fantasy author Cornelia Funke’s Reckless on September 14, 2010, with a combined hardcover first printing of more than 1,000,000 copies.

Reckless follows the adventures of brothers Jacob and Will Reckless in a magical, yet haunting world.” The story was inspired by Grimm’s fairy tales.

Plans are underway for a New York City premiere event for the book’s launch, which will be streamed live online. The publishers are also coordinating their marketing efforts for the book, which will be centred around the www.corneliafunkefans.com web-site.

“I breathlessly await September 14th,” Funke said in a statement. “The publication of Reckless marks the first time in my career when my fans around the world will all be able to read my new book on the same day.”

Born in Dorsten, Germany, Cornelia Caroline Funke aspired to being an astronaut when a child but took the route of studying education theory at Hamburg University. After establishing herself with the Ghosthunters (Gespensterjäger) and Wild Chicks (Wild Hühner) series of books in her home country it was the fantasy novel Dragon Rider in 1996 that saw her on the New York Times bestseller list for 78 weeks and brought her writing to an international audience. She has since gone on to write several popular titles not least the Inkheart trilogy.

• Inkheart book review

Posted: January 16th, 2010
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke

Funke, Donaldson, Riddell and Kerr at the Edinburgh festival

The Edinburgh International Book Festival brings writers, poets, thinkers, politicians, photographers and artists from around the world to debate, discuss, argue and inspire. Over 800 events take place in the wonderful setting of Charlotte Square Gardens in the historic heart of Edinburgh, the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature.

There’s a big bag of events for children this year: recommended are a rare appearance from Inkheart author Cornelia Funke (Aug 17), as well as Gruffalo writer Julia Donaldson (Aug 24, 29 and 30). Chris Riddell talks about the end of The Edge Chronicles (Aug 22), while Judith Kerr (The Tiger who Came to Tea) remembers her childhood fleeing from the Nazis (Aug 20). All at Charlotte Square Gardens (0845 373 5888).

For more information, visit http://www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk/festivals/book.

Posted: August 1st, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke, Julia Donaldson, The Edge Chronicles

Fantasy rules audio-book downloads

OverDrive, the leading global distributor of audio-books and eBooks to libraries, schools, and retailers, today announced the ‘Most Downloaded Books from the Library’ for April 2009.

In juvenile fiction, the top 10 consists entirely of fantasy authors  Stephenie Meyer, Christopher Paolini, Eoin Colfer and Cornelia Funke all proving that fantasy is still very much close to the heart of today’s youngsters:

Juvenile Fiction (audio-books)

1. Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer (Listening Library)
2. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer (Listening Library)
3. Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer (Listening Library)
4. Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer (Listening Library)
5. Brisingr, by Christopher Paolini (Listening Library)
6. Eragon, by Christopher Paolini (Listening Library)
7. Eldest, by Christopher Paolini (Listening Library)
8. Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer (Listening Library)
9. Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke (Listening Library)
10. The Arctic Incident, by Eoin Colfer (Listening Library)

The fantasy genre also performs strongly in eBook downloads:

Juvenile Fiction (eBooks)

1. Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
2. Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
3. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
4. The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
5. Coraline, by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean (HarperCollins)
6. Prom Nights from Hell, by Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Lauren Myracle, Michele Jaffe (HarperCollins)
7. School’s Out–Forever, by James Patterson (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
8. Avalon High, by Meg Cabot (HarperCollins)
9. Brisingr, by Christopher Paolini (Random House Children’s Books)
10. The Alchemyst, by Michael Scott (Random House Children’s Books)

To see complete lists of the most downloaded books on OverDrive follow this link:
http://search.overdrive.com/Most-Downloaded-Audiobooks-eBooks-Library.asp

Posted: May 8th, 2009
Author: Floresiensis
Categories: Audio-books, Christopher Paolini, Cornelia Funke, Eoin Colfer, Stephenie Meyer

Cornelia Funke on JK Rowling

At the screening of the film of her novel Inkheart, author Cornelia Funke gave some new comments regarding the work of Harry Potter author JK Rowling. Cornelia Funke said “that she admires fellow author JK Rowling’s ability to use visual imagery rather than realistic descriptions to help readers of all ages understand difficult topics.”

She clouds your reality into a “costume.” For example when she does torture, in a children’s book, she goes so close to what torture is – and you can bear to look at it because she clouds it in a costume. Or when Dumbledore has the pensieve, where he puts the thoughts that bother him – he doesn’t want to get rid of the memories, but he can’t stand them for awhile. What a perfect way to express the human condition!

So that, I think is the task of fantasy writers that put our human condition into story – not into realistic description. And she [Rowling] can do that.

Source: The Leaky Cauldron

Joanne Rowling, better known and indeed, EXTREMELY well known around the world as JK Rowling was born in the town of Yate, South Gloucestershire in 1965. She is the most successful literary author of all time and her world-famous Harry Potter series has so far sold a staggering 380,000,000 copies worldwide and has been translated into over sixty different languages.

Cornelia Funke‘s fantasy novel Dragon Rider in 1996 saw her on the New York Times bestseller list for 78 weeks and brought her writing to an international audience. The Inkheart trilogy was completed in 2008 with the book Inkdeath following the release of Inkspell which won her the Book Sense Book of the Year Children’s Literature Award in 2006 and Inkheart has now become the subject of a multi-million pound film staring Brendan Fraser.

Posted: January 22nd, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke, JK Rowling

Win great Inkheart prizes!

IESB has some great Inkheart prize items that you have a chance to win!

Prize Packages

One Grand Prize Winner Will Receive – A Digital Book Reader, one Kajeet Prepaid Phone, one Inkheart Nintendo DS Game, one Leather belt with pouch, an Inkheart Sketchbook with Pencil Case & Pencil, a sheet of Tattoos and one Kids’ Unisex Inkheart Tee.

Four Second Prize Winners Will Receive – An Inkheart Sketchbook with Pencil Case & Pencil, a sheet of Tattoos and one Kids’ Unisex Inkheart Tee.

Click on the following link for a chance to win these great prizes:

http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6028&Itemid=99

Based on the best-selling book by Cornelia Funke, Inkheart is a fantasy adventure that sends a father and daughter on a quest through worlds both real and imagined.

Mortimer “Mo” Folchart (Brendan Fraser) and his 12-year-old daughter, Meggie (Eliza Hope Bennett), share a passion for books.  What they also share is a unique gift for bringing characters from books to life when they read aloud.  But there is a danger: for every character brought to life from a book, a real person disappears into its pages.

The Inkheart trilogy was completed in 2008 with the book Inkdeath following the release of Inkspell which won her the Book Sense Book of the Year Children’s Literature Award in 2006 and Inkheart has now become the subject of a multi-million pound film staring Brendan Fraser.

Posted: January 7th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke

Twilight tops UK box office

Teen vampire movie Twilight took the largest bite of the box office cash over the weekend, Screen International said on Tuesday.

Twilight, based on the bestselling novel by U.S. author Stephenie Meyer, took 2.5 million pounds in its first three days, beating animated comedy Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa into second place.

Seasonal comedy Four Christmases stayed in third place, while sci-fi remake The Day The Earth Stood Still, fell from top spot to fourth. Animated adventure The Tale of Despereaux, featuring the voices of Dustin Hoffman, Matthew Broderick and Emma Watson, debuted in fifth place with fantasy adventure Inkheart falling to sixth.

Posted: December 24th, 2008
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke, Stephenie Meyer

The Inkheart movie adaptation: what did the critics think?

“This is one of those adaptations that tries to keep you watching with its sheer busyness. At times, though, you just want it to stop and catch breath with the aid of some rather better lines and deeper characterisations.”
This Is London – 2/5

“The sublime irony of this medley of state-of-the-art special effects is how earnestly Softley’s film champions the superiority of the written word. Inkheart shows why books are wonderful yet dangerous places; how a well-told story unlocks the imagination; and how words unleash the most unpredictable emotions.”
Times Online – 4/5

“Although Brendan Fraser can play the strong but sensitive dad or husband with his eyes shut you never feel anything less than 100 per cent commitment to the role. And Eliza Hope Bennett holds her own with a stellar cast including Helen Mirren and Paul Bettany. Younger kids may get a bit confused but the action and special effects should see them through to the end. And they may even want to have the book read to them, which is no bad thing at all.”
Glasgow Daily Record – 3/5

“Adapting children’s fiction for the big screen is a process laden with pitfalls. Sticking closely to the original work may result in a dutiful, unimaginative film; stray from the source and you incur the wrath of fanatical young readers. Reworking Cornelia Funke’s best-seller Inkheart, British director Iain Softley navigates these hazards creditably… Irritatingly, many characters burst into irritating, honeyed paeans of praise about reading. “The written word,” we are told, “is a powerful thing.” As for books, they “love anyone who opens them”. Yet ironically, Softley resorts to computer-generated imagery to stage the story’s explosive climax: in film, words alone will not do. Still, Inkheart is cheerful and amiable, and in the absence of a Harry Potter film this winter, it fills a gap neatly”
Telegraph – 3/5

“While this film doesn’t break any new ground in this genre it is a great movie that will entertain both children and adults and fills the hole left by Harry Potter as well as delivering a great message about the importance of books and reading. Inkheart is a great fantasy flick to catch with the family this Christmas.”
Female First – 3/5

“Sadly, a well-meaning agenda doesn’t a make a good movie in itself, and that’s just what this is, a solid slice of family entertainment that won’t change your life. Hey, you might not remember much of it when it’s over, but it’s an enjoyable little distraction while it lasts.”
Epoch Times – 3/5

Posted: December 17th, 2008
Author: Lee
Categories: Cornelia Funke