Books

Michael Vick's book signing tour has been cancelled after threats were made against him for having infamously run a dogfighting ring in the past. The Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback was due to sign copies of his autobiography "Finally Free" at Barnes & Noble stores in Atlanta, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, but those have now all been cancelled as his publisher says that he received "credible threats".

Local police are said to be investigating the threats.

Worthy Publishing, the Christian publisher that is releasing Vick's book, said in a statement:

"Despite warnings of planned protests, Vick had hoped to continue with the appearances as planned, bringing his story of redemption and second chance to major markets. However, once the reported protests escalated into threats of violence against the retailers, Worthy Publishing, Vick and his family, decided to cancel the events."

A source with knowledge of the situation told reporters that the book signings were cancelled because of threats against Vick and store employees. Some angry people even took to the Barnes & Noble Facebook page to complain and make threats against him.

Byron Williamson, the president of Worthy Publishing, said:

"We cannot knowingly put anyone in harm's way, and therefore we must announce the cancellation of Mr. Vick's book-signing appearances."

In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Mitchell Klipper, CEO of Barnes & Noble's retail group, laid out plans for the national book chain. One of the biggest takeaways from that interview was that Barnes & Noble will close about 20 stores per year over the course of the next decade, cutting about a third of the bookseller's brick-and-mortar stores.

Barnes & Noble is not the only retailer to face stiff competition from digital content in recent years. In the past decade, we've seen the downfall of Borders Group Inc. (B&N's former rival), Tower Records, and Circuit City Stores, amongst others. It is not hard to imagine that one day in the future, booksellers will eventually become a thing of the past.

In 2008, Barnes & Noble peaked at 726 stores. By 2023, Klipper estimates that number will fall to about 450 or 500.

Even Clark Kent knows that newspapers are on death's doorstep. In the newest issue of the Superman comic, which is due out on Wednesday, Kent decides to give up his day job with the Daily Planet newspaper, presumably to launch some kind of online project.

Superman writer Scott Lobdell said:

“This is really what happens when a 27-year-old guy is behind a desk and he has to take instruction from a larger conglomerate with concerns that aren’t really his own.

Superman is arguably the most powerful person on the planet, but how long can he sit at his desk with someone breathing down his neck and treating him like the least important person in the world?”

In a move likely to garner more attention for her recently released non-Harry Potter book, The Casual Vacancy, aimed at a more mature, adult set, author J.K. Rowling has opened the door to the possibility of a new book about Harry Potter, but only if she manages to conjure up a fabulous idea.

During an interview prior to the publication of her new book, Rowling told a BBC interviewer that she is now at the point in her career where she doesn't need to write "just to make money." She says that as a result, she can focus on creating something for her own growth and employment as a writer, and for her readers. Rowling also said that she would be willing to revisit the Harry Potter series if she came up with a plot that met her criteria.

Rowling said:

"Harry Potter truly liberated me in the sense that there's only one reason to write, for me -- if I genuinely have something I want to say, and I want to publish it. "Now if I had a fabulous idea that came out of that world -- because I loved writing it -- I'd do it."

Rowling fans around the globe would undoubtedly be pleased if she decided to pen another Potter book, as would publishers.

One of the most successful third-party candidates in U.S. history, H. Ross Perot has inked a deal with Simon & Schuster for his autobiography, which is scheduled to be released in January.

On Tuesday, the publisher announced that the 82-year-old Texas billionaire and former presidential candidate's book is called "Ross Perot: My Life."

Perot has penned other books in the past, including "Ross Perot: My Life & the Principles for Success" and "United We Stand", a campaign book published in 1992.

In 1992, Perot received nearly 19 percent of the vote in a presidential race that was eventually won by Democrat Bill Clinton.

Ray Bradbury, the science fiction-fantasy author best known for writing "Fahrenheit 451", has died at the age of 91. His daughter, Alexandra Bradbury, said that he died on Tuesday evenig.

Bradbury had slowed down in recent years after suffering a stroke that left him in a wheelchair, but remained active into his 90s by continuing to write new novels, plays, screenplays and poetry. Each day, he wrote in the basement office of his Cheviot Hills home, and made occasional appearances at bookstores, public library fundraisers, and various other literary events around Los Angeles.

During his 91 years, Bradbury wrote more than 27 novels and story collections, with the most famous among them being "The Martian Chronicles", "Fahrenheit 451", "Dandelion Wine", and "Something Wicked This Way Comes". He also penned more than 600 short stories.

Children's book author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, perhaps best known for his book "Where the Wild Things Are", passed away at the age of 83.

Sendak's longtime friend and caretaker, Lynn Caponera, said that she was with him when he died early Tuesday at a hospital in Danbury, Conn. She says that he suffered from a stroke on Friday.

Sendak's book "Where the Wild Things Are" won a prestigious Caldecott Medal for the best children's book of 1964, and was turned into a hit movie in 2009.

Despite the popularity of e-books, Harry Potter fans have been relegated to reading stories about their favorite wizard in the good, old-fashioned paper book form. Now, for the first time, the Harry Potter novels can be purchased as e-boks through Pottermore, author J.K. Rowling's virtual world.

The series' seven books are now on sale in the Pottermore Shop in the popular EPUB format, which is compatible with most e-readers, including the Kindle, Nook, Sony's Reader, and Google Play. They are available in English print and audio formats, in their U.S. and U.K. editions. Four other languages will be coming soon, including Spanish, French, Italian and German.

The digital books range in price from $7.99 to $9.99 if purchased individually, or $57.54 for the entire series. Audio versions range in price from $29.99 to $44.99, or $242.94 for the complete series.

Rowling retained the digital rights to her books, and announced the e-book release last June when she launched Pottermore, an "online experience" for die-hard Harry Potter fans that want to completely immerse themselves into the wizarding world. It was opened to a limited number of beta uses starting last fall, and is expected to be fully available to the general public in April.

Amanda Knox, the American college student who was infamously accused and later acquitted of murdering her roommate while studying abroad in Italy, has finally been given the massive book deal that we've all been expecting. Knox will be paid $4 million to tell her side of the story.

The New York Times reports that Knox's book deal started with a "heated", multi-day bidding war and ended with Harper Collins submitting the winning offer. According to Harper Collins, the book will be "a gripping account of (Knox's) experiences in Italy."

Knox hasn't spoken much about her experience in Italy, and the book will be the public's chance to learn all about the real Foxy Knoxy.

Knox's Italian ex-boyfriend is also shopping around his memoir in Italy, but hasn't finalized any deal yet.

In its assessment of Henry Miller's "Tropic of Cancer," the Saturday Review observed, "who touches this book touches living tissue." These same words could be applied to displaced Cleveland native Scott Raab's remarkable The Whore of Akron: One Man's Search for the Soul of LeBron James
- a visceral and raucously funny rant that's more about Raab himself than it is about his target of disdain, LeBron James. And that's a good thing, because less is more than enough when it comes to the duplicitous hoopster.