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Articles Index

Quoth the raven "Nevermore."
Edgar Allen Poe's death is still shrouded in mystery. After visiting Virginia as a lecturer, Poe disappeared and was later found in Baltimore, in horrible condition. He died in the hospitable four days later. 100 years later, in 1949, a mysterious figure began marking January 19, Edgar Allen Poe's birthday, by slinking into the Baltimore cemetary where Poe is buried, and leaving French cognac and three roses on his grave in the middle of the night...

The Nine
Here are a few of the stand out titles that I've hand-picked from the treasure-trove emergent early in 2004. Mostly fiction with a pinch of memoir thrown in (I'm a sucker for memoir), these books promise to deliver. Included are new works by Anne Tyler, Elmore Leonard, Hollis Gillespie, and Sam Kashner.

The Big Read
In April the BBC's Big Read began the search for the nation's best-loved novel, and asked their audience to nominate their favourite books. The votes poured in from all around the UK and below are the results.

2003 National Book Festival
The third annual National Book Festival, organized and sponsored by the Library of Congress and hosted by Laura Bush, will be held on Saturday, October 4th, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., between 7th and 14th streets from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (rain or shine). This widely anticipated national cultural event is free and open to the public.

The Most Frequently Challenged Books of 2002
The American Library Association annually calculates the most challenged books and authors and publicizes the results during Banned Books Week. This year Banned Books Week is September 20-27.

The Rock Bottom Remainders
The Rock Bottom Remainders are a rock band composed mainly of writers including Dave Barry Stephen King Ridley Pearson Scott Turrow Amy Tan Matt Groening James McBride Mitch Albom, Roy Blount, Jr. Kathi Kamen Goldmark Greg Iles.