The Second Court of Appeals heard arguments on Thursday in the appeal of Judge Deborah Batts’ pre-publication blocking of Fredrik Colting’s 60 Years Later: Coming Through the Rye. Judge Guido Calabresi made it clear that he thought Colting’s book was a “rather dismal piece of work if I may say so.” Calabresi did question Salinger’s attorney as to “whether the lower court judge might need to hear more evidence because the case relates to the First Amendment.”AP
Archives for September 2009
Florida Attorney General Sues Writer's Literary Agency and Robert Fletcher
The state’s crimes division “received more than 175 complaints from around the world claiming Fletcher and his associates, who claimed to act as literary agents and publishers, allegedly collected money from victims anxious to see their work published.” The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief as well as full restitution. According to the suit, “few books were ever sold as a result of the efforts of Fletcher’s companies.” He “used more than 20 websites and related companies to collect funds from potential authors, but misled victims about fees, costs, and promised results.” The filing asserts that “usually each prospective author was good […]
October 2009 Indie Next List
Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette WallsHer Fearful Symmetry: A Novel by Audrey NiffeneggerThe Children’s Book: A Novel by A.S. ByattGoing Away Shoes: Stories by Jill McCorkleJuliet, Naked: A Novel by Nick HornbyThe Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover BartlettStardust: A Novel by Joseph KanonAmerican on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig FergusonStitches: A Memoir by David SmallThe Brutal Telling: An Armand Gamache Novel by Louise PennyA Quiet Belief in Angels: A Novel by R.J. ElloryGenerosity: An […]
Google Case: Objection Deadline Moved to Tuesday
Due to “scheduled maintenance” in the Federal Court’s electronic filing system that starts this afternoon at 2 and goes until 8:00 am on Tuesday, September 8, Judge Denny Chin has postponed the deadline for filing objections to the Google Books Settlement and amicus curiae briefs until 10:00 am on the 8th. Note carefully, there is no indication in the judge’s order of a change in the Friday opt-out deadline itself (rightsholders opt out through the settlement web site).
Briefs
In addition to their preview piece of 25 hot fall titles (see the Automat link below), USA Today tips H.M. Naqvi’s Home Boy, David Small’s Stitches, and Gwen Cooper’s Homer’s Odyssey; A Fearless Feline Tale, Or How I Learned About Love and Life With a Blind Wonder Cat as “sleepers” for the season. Seattle is closing its entire public library ssytem for a week due to budget cuts, which will save approximately $655,000. The city took similar measures in 2002 and 2003 (closing for two weeks each time). “City Librarian Susan Hildreth said this week was chosen because school is […]
Today in the Google Court Docket
In the latest filings with the court on the proposed Google Books settlement, the biggest new objection comes from the American Society of Media Photographers, the Graphic Artists Guild, the Picture Archive Council of America and the North America Nature Photography Association along with four individual photographers, claiming the agreement favors written copyright owners over visual artists. They say it “would sacrifice the interests of Visual Arts Rights Holders to promote the interests of a subset of copyright owners (authors and publishers) and Google. This abuse of the class action process cannot fairly be judged to be in the public […]