Michael Viner, publisher of tell-all tabloid books and audio book entrepreneur, dead at 65

September 30th, 2009 NY publisher releases Deveraux novel as video bookNEW YORK — The latest novel from best-selling romance author Jude Deveraux isn't exactly a book. "Promises" is a reading and viewing experience, a digital text in which videos not only complement the narrative but add to it.

September 24th, 2009 'Da Vinci Code' publisher resigningNEW YORK — The man who published "The Da Vinci Code" is resigning. Stephen Rubin, a publishing executive since 1984 whose authors have included Dan Brown, John Grisham and Pat Conroy, said Thursday that he was stepping down as executive vice president and publisher-at-large of Random House Inc., effective Oct.

September 10th, 2009 E-book release delayed for Kennedy memoirNEW YORK — E-book fans will have to wait for a download of Sen. Ted Kennedy's memoir.

September 8th, 2009 Crankin': Patterson to write 17 books in 3 yearsNEW YORK — After more than 40 best sellers, James Patterson is just getting started. He has agreed to a 17-book deal with his longtime publisher, the Hachette Book Group — an unthinkable commitment for most writers, but for Patterson a mere three years worth of work.

September 2nd, 2009 Coolerbooks.com to get 1M books from Google scansSAN FRANCISCO — Interead, a British company that sells the COOL-ER e-book reader, is adding more than 1 million free public-domain books to its online bookstore. The texts are available from Google Inc.

August 13th, 2009 E-book of new Dan Brown novel coming Sept. 15NEW YORK — E-book readers can relax: The electronic edition of Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol" is coming out on the same day as the hardcover.

August 13th, 2009 Parker Posey to narrate 'Feminine Mystique' audioNEW YORK — Actress Parker Posey and authors Gay Talese and Naomi Wolf will be among those participating in a new line of audiobooks dedicated to famous 20th-century books. Audible Inc.

July 18th, 2009 Pirated copies of Orwell books pulled from KindleNEW YORK — A pirated e-book of "1984" led to an Orwellian moment for Kindle customers. Users of Amazon.com's e-reader device were surprised and unsettled over the past day to receive notice that George Orwell works they had purchased, including "1984" and "Animal Farm," had been removed from their Kindle and their money refunded.

June 30th, 2009 Instant Michael Jackson books comingNEW YORK — The "instant" books on Michael Jackson are coming soon. People and Life magazine each are preparing commemorative editions, due in August.

June 25th, 2009 Dolly Parton writes her first children's bookPIGEON FORGE, Tenn. — Dolly Parton created a charity 13 years ago to provide books to children and encourage literacy.

June 16th, 2009 Publisher launches online channels _ CEO singsNEW YORK — It isn't every day you get to hear a CEO sing. Penguin Group (USA), where authors include Nora Roberts and Khaled Hosseini, has launched "From the Publisher's Office," an in-house network of online channels that includes video interviews and readings, audio discussions of classic literature and audio and text excerpts from new releases.

June 16th, 2009 Publisher of 'Harry Potter' denies plagiarismLONDON — The publisher of the wildly popular and very profitable "Harry Potter" books says it intends to fight a lawsuit alleging that author J.K. Rowling stole the idea for the series about the boy wizard.

June 12th, 2009 Publisher warms to Scribd storeNEW YORK — The publisher of Stephen King and Chelsea Handler will be selling books through Scribd, the online document-sharing service that the industry has criticized for enabling the downloading of pirated texts. Scribd says that digital versions of books by King and thousands of others published by Simon & Schuster can be purchased through Scribd's online store.

June 8th, 2009 Finally, a book for people who get lost a lotMUSKEGON, Mich. — Are you one of those people with no sense of direction? Do you exit your hotel room and have no idea which way the elevator is located? Do you panic if a detour forces you to take an unfamiliar route home? Do you have to turn a map around in order to read it? If getting lost is your normal way of getting from one place to another, no matter how many times you stop to ask for directions, a new book out will help you realize you're not alone and even give you some pointers for solving your problem.

May 4th, 2009 Beck is Back, with 3 booksNEW YORK — Glenn Beck loves the publishing game. The conservative commentator and best-selling author has reached an agreement with Simon & Schuster for a series of books — fiction and nonfiction, for young and for old, in a variety of formats — the publisher announced Monday.