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.

Following last week’s posting, your humble poster came down with a mild case of the flu. I’ve felt much worse in my life, but I forgot how draining these episodes are. I encourage you all, if you can, to get flu shots. Believe me, you don’t want to get sick. And while I’m giving advice, I do want to encourage everyone to donate to The Political Carnival. We need Paddy here, everyday, with a good computer. So please contribute what you can to this place. You know it is worth it.

Onto the wide world of books. Award season, as we noted last week, and will undoubtedly note again, is upon us. This week the National Book Critics Circle nominations were announced. Publishers Weekly has the listings.

Not to be outdone, the prestigious Edgar nominees were also announced, for the best in mysteries. (And happy to see Dennis Lehane’s Live by Night among the nominees. I’m now in the middle of reading it, and I Highly Recommend it.) It is also interesting to note that the category of Best Original in Paperback, which harkens back to the day when many mystery novels never saw the light of day in hardcover, is still being used. It is tied into what I think is the death of the mass market paperback, but that is a topic for another day. Though I still find it difficult to believe that a mass market paperback retails for ten bucks.

And if you happen to be wondering how books get selected for nomination, mystery.net has the answer.

And looking forward to this year, the very cool website Writersnoonereads highlights the coming attractions of literary note for the first six months this year. For myself, I am excited to see that a collection of letters by one of my favorite authors, William Gaddis, will be released soon.

Shine from Yahoo has 26 books that will appear in a film incarnation early this year. Aside from the usual suspects. there are remakes of both Carrie and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I’m not sure why, but I’ll hope for the best. I think Brian DiPalma did a great job on Carrie the first time (it is very funny in parts) and I’m not sure Danny Kaye can be outdone in his take on Mitty.

In the Isn’t this Cool department, here is an eleven minute film made in 1947 by the Encyclopedia Britannica on how books are made. I think the technology may be a bit different now, but, hey, it’s still ink on paper!

Also very cool is what is happening with libraries these days. Our local libraries here have some great programs going on, and I’ll bet yours is too. Why just this week, SeattleTammy attended a presentation on shorebirds with a packed house at our local library. The AtlanticWire has the story.

The Christian Science Monitor wonders if you are as well read as a 10th Grader. Well, at least their conception of a 10th grader. Here’s the quiz, and you might be surprised. I’d be surprised if most 10th graders have read all these books and stories.

Over in London, there is a year long symposium going on about modernist culture entitled The Rest is Noise. From the Guardian comes this interesting essay on the advent of Modernist literature when, in 1899, both Freud’s The Interpretation of Dreams and Conrad’s Heart of Darkness were published.

On Monday, President Obama will be inaugurated for his second term in office, and I thought I’d take the occasion to point out a couple of new political books. Justice Sonia Sotomayer has a new autobiography My Beloved World published and the Washington Post reviews it here.

And, of course, we cannot leave out Vice-President Joe Biden. It seems the Onion has the scoop on his “autobiography”. Via the New York Times.

Finally, Bill Moyers asked his viewers to suggest some books for the President to read. Here is the list that was compiled. And congratulations, Mr. President, on your second term. May it prove to be a fruitful one.

What’s on your nightstand this weekend? Let us know what you’re enjoying from the world of books!

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.

It’s the first New Moon of the year.You wont be able to read by moonlight for the next several days, so make sure that your night light is working. Especially if what you hold in your hand is a real book and not something you have on your Kindle or Nook. The death of the printed book has been exaggerated, it seems, and so reports Nicholas Carr over at the Wall Street Journal.

With the New Year comes new books. The Millions has listed some of the more eagerly awaited titles coming out this year. Looks like a lot of good reading ahead, including works by William Gass, Jamaica Kincade and David Shields.

But before we leave 2012 to the mists of time, Publishers Weekly reviewed the passings of some notable writers during the past year. There was a lot of talent that left us.

Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of The Great Gatsby is now scheduled for a May release to theaters. For all you Fitzgerald addicts out there, Salon’s Greg Olear has an interesting essay about the book in which it is suggested that Nick Carraway, the narrator of Gatsby’s story, is gay. And in love with Gatsby.

Apparently the film version of Jack Kerouac’s novel On the Road has received some limited release, but it hasn’t shown up in our little town. Kerouac was the champion of what he called spontaneous prose, where no revision was permitted. Oddly enough, though, his best novel, the aforementioned On the Road was heavily revised, and probably for the better. Flavorwire has a good summary of other authors on the art of the revision.

Some of you may have seen this before. In 2006, Harper Lee wrote a beautiful letter to Oprah Winfrey about learning to read and the power books have over us.

What evil woman in literature really gives you the creeps? The Guardian has a run-down on several. Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca was right up there on my list.

As readers and lovers of books, we must embrace our inner geekiness. Here are some signs from Epic Reads that you, too, may be afflicted.

And if we can follow these simple rules from Book Riot, we will all be happy geeks.

Tell us what’s on your nightstand this weekend! And great reading to you all!