Books on video...

Today I have discovered a new site. Books videos features reviews of the latest publications from a large variety of genres. From fantasy to health, biographies to graphic novels, it covers it all, collating titles from over 30 different publishers. Yet better than that, the site contains behind-the-story videos for each title, charting the book's rise to fame and the thoughts of the author - well worth a look!

There's an app for that...

You can forecast the weather, check the trains and book a restaurant, and now, you can read 'Wolf Hall'. Hilary Mantel's award winning novel, was today released as an app for the iphone. The historical novel, based on the life of Tudor advisor Thomas Cromwell, became the Man Booker Prize winner in 2009, and is fast on the way to becoming the best-selling Booker winner in history. The app features the full text, a 30 minute discussion between Mantel and historian David Starkey, a Tudor family tree and cast of characters, a essay by Mantel on historical fiction, and regular news feeds and podcasts.

Just for the rich?...

The ebook is a new piece of technology from Sony, allowing the user to store hundreds of books on one thin 'reader'. Recently released in the UK, the digital books can be bought online; Sony even offering a hundred free classics with first use. It can be argued that this new technological advancement is widening the appealing of reading to a more gadgets obssessed generation, and so should be celebrated and encouraged. Yet for all its advantages, can the reader really overtake the act of opening a novel and flicking through its pages? And at approximately £180, is it really opening up more opportunities, or is it just placating the rich? Over the next few months, it will be interesting to note the reaction of the British public and whether, at the end of the day, they just prefer a good book.