The Book Booth is a weekly feature at The Political Carnival, relating news, notes, and reflections from the world of books and publishing. SeattleDan, along with his wife, SeattleTammy, are operators of both an on-line bookstore, as well a brick and mortar in small town Washington State. Both have been in the book business since shortly after the Creation, or close to 6000 years now.

In our little town, many home are now decorated with ghouly trimmings in hopes that the Great Pumpkin will soon be here. But, wandering around the drug store today, I was taken by the aisles of Christmas stuff now on display? What’s up with that? As a retailer, I know we like to get a jump on things, but I’m hot hauling out the Christmas books and displays until Thanksgiving. Damn, I’m one noble human being.

On to book news. The Booker-Man Award was announced. Hilary Mantel won for her novel, Bring Up the Bodies, which is part of an on-going saga centered on Thomas Cromwell, the man behind King Henry VIII, at least for a while. Our friends at Biblio.com have the story.

I read her Place of Greater Safety, which I enjoyed very much, which told the story of the French Revolution in dramatic fashion.
And for those of us who enjoy literary gossip, the Guardian passes along this list of past “fun” at the Booker Awards.

Hey, are you bogged down in term papers? Finding it hard to find the write words in Academia? Well, the writers program at the University of Chicago is here to help!

It is a week for anniversaries.First, it was 161 years ago that Moby Dick was published to the yawns of the public and to the scathing reviews of the critics. The Christian Science Monitor offers this appreciation of Herman Melville.

And fifty years ago we had the October Missile Crisis, which for those of us who lived through it, offers some vivid memories. Again from The Guardian, we have a quiz regarding books that feature nuclear holocaust. Don’t worry if you don’t get the right answers. It’s a hard test.

In the realm of media interviews, NPR had this feature on Daniel Martinez, whose The Boy Kings of Texas has been nominated for a National Book Award.

You know who wasn’t the only guest talking to Jon Stewart. J.K. Rowling also appeared on the Daily Show to talk about her new adult novel, The Casual Vacancy.

Years ago, when I worked for the Pickwick Bookshop in Beverly HIlls, we had customers who were interior decorators, who, in fact, would buy books, lots of books, based on the jacket colors. Random House has now made it easier for those folks. H/T to the lovely SeattleTammy for finding this link.

In the Show Biz to Books department, Johnny Depp has partnered with HarperCollins with his own publishing imprint. To his credit, it looks to be an ambitious project and good luck to him.

Not so lucky was the Bookends bookstore of New Jersey, who had sixty autographed copies of Pete Townsend’s memoir, Who Am I, stolen.

For those of you who like literary biography, Publishers Weekly has a very interesting article concerning the medical problems of the Brontes, W.B.Yeats, James Joyce and George Orwell.

And we wouldn’t have a complete Book Booth without a list from Flavorwire. This week it is writers who like other writers.

Have a grand weekend. And please let us know what is on your nightstand!