Author Launches $300,000 Book That Self-Destructs in 24 Hours
Have you ever read a book so engaging that you just couldn’t put it down, fearing that it might explode if you did? Well, bestselling author James Patterson decided to turn that fear into a reality with a self-destructing book that literally explodes 24 hours after it’s been opened. The self-destructing book is actually a […]
French Author Rewrites the Bible as a Novel
In a bid to deliver the tales of the Bible to all the cultures and religions of the world, French author Philippe Lechermeier has given the ancient text a makeover – he’s rewritten it as a fictional novel! He describes the book as a ‘spirit of cultural transmission without a religious message of faith or […]
South African Homeless Man Refuses to Beg, Makes a Living by Selling Books on the Pavement
Philani Dladla, a homeless man living on the streets of Johannesburg, is probably the last person you’d expect to be a bookworm. Yet, the 24-year-old is quite a voracious reader. And instead of begging like other homeless people, he has chosen to make a living by reviewing and selling books. South African director and cinematographer […]
The Voynich Manuscript, Also Known as World’s Most Mysterious Book
Featuring rudimentary depictions of plants illustrated in aged colors and written in a language system that has yet to be deciphered, The Voynich Manuscript is the world’s most mysterious book. In order to pay for the restoration of their college, the Italian Jesuits of Villa Mondragone gave Wilfrid Voynich, an antique book dealer, an old manuscript […]
The Blood Qur’an – A Holy Book Written with the Blood of Saddam Hussein
We’ve heard of fanatical lovers writing letters to their beloved in blood. But Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein took this practice to a new level. In the late 1990s, he commissioned a calligrapher to make a copy of the Qur’an, using his own blood as ink. For the project, Saddam donated 7 gallons (27 liters) of […]
Woman Spends a Year Living According to the Bible
31-year-old Rachel Held Evans has spent an entire year trying to follow of the Bible’s instructions for menstruating women, from “submitting” to their husbands to removing themselves from the community. Now she’s launching a book on her religious experiment, called “A Year of Biblical Womanhood”. The Tennessee-based evangelical blogger set out to obey the Bible’s […]
Clever Experiment Proves We Do Judge Books by Their Covers
Brian Brushwood and Justin Young, hosts of the NSFW Podcast, managed to push their $0.99 e-book to the #4 position on iTunes, without having to write a single word. How did they do it? Easy, they included lots and lots of sex. You’ve probably heard of Fifty Shades of Grey, the erotic novel that took the […]
The Book That Can’t Wait Literally Disappears if You Put It Down
An Indie Argentinian publishing house has come up with an innovative concept, using disappearing ink that simply fades away in two months time. Dubbed “El Libro que No Puede Esperar” (The Book That Can’t Wait), this interesting format was pioneered by independent Argentinian publishing house Eterna Cadencia, as a way to promote young authors, who “if people […]
The Mind-Blowing Book Carvings of Alexander Korzer Robinson
Bristol-based Alexander Korzer Robinson creates incredible works of art by carving discarded encyclopedias and literally exposing their inner beauty. Book carving is one of the fastest growing art forms of the moment, and artists like Alexander Korzer Robinson, Brian Dettmer and Guy Laramee are leading the movement. Korzer Robinson carefully cuts into the pages of old […]
This Norwegian Princess Can Teach You How to Talk to Angels
A princess talking to angels – sounds like a chapter right out of a fairy-tale, doesn’t it? Turns out it isn’t. Real-life Norwegian Princess Martha Louise can not only converse with the unearthly beings, but also teach you how to do it. Last Thursday saw the release of her second book on the subject, with […]
Incredible Carved Book Landscapes by Guy Laramee
Can’t find any use for those thick books lying around your house? Carve landscapes out of them! At least, that’s what Guy Laramee has been doing for some time now. An interdisciplinary artist who has been practicing for 30 years now, Laramee has done several things in his lifetime, from stage writing to contemporary music, […]
Baby Barbells Teaches Dads How to Use Babies as Gym Equipment
Having a baby is a blessing, but taking care of a toddler is a full time job and hitting the gym on a regular basis gets pretty tough. Thankfully, Joshua Levitt’s book, Baby Barbells, teaches fathers how to spend time with their babies and stay fit at the same time. Modern life makes it almost […]
The Book Stack Sculptures of Kylie Stillman
Although relatively new, book carving has become on of the most popular art forms of our time, with masterpieces of acclaimed artist like Brian Dettmer or Long Bin-Chen exhibited in galleries around the world. Kylie Stillman cuts new life into old, outdated books, by sculpting them as slabs of stone and turning them and giving […]
Modern Tower of Babel Made of Books Appears in Buenos Aires
Popular Argentine artist Marta Minujin has created a 25-meter-high spiraling Tower of Babel made from 30,000 books written in various languages. This modern version of the Tower of Babel was designed in celebration of Buenos Aires’ designation as World Book Capital 2011, by UNESCO, and local authorities say it represents the ideas of pluralism and diversity which […]
The Mind-Blowing Book Carvings of Long Bin-Chen
You’ve probably seen book carvings before, but Long Bin-Chen’s works are definitely in a league of their own. Taiwanese artist Long Bin-Chen uses discarded old books to create incredibly detailed sculptures that look like they’re made of marble or wood. Although all his artworks are made out of several books, he carves them all in […]