Oxford University Press Pakistan launches piracy awareness song

Oxford University Press Pakistan (OUP) believes book piracy poses a major threat to the local book publishing industry and is hence actively involved in efforts to curb this menace in Pakistan.

As a part of its continuous Copyright Awareness programme, OUP launched the video of the song Lafz written, composed, and performed by the singer and social activist, Shehzad Roy. The song was launched at an intellectual property training workshop for judicial members organised by multiple interested agencies within Pakistan.

Kwame Anthony Appiah to chair the 2018 Man Booker Prize for Fiction

The New York-based philosopher, cultural theorist and novelist Kwame Anthony Appiah has just been named chair of the judges for the 2018 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, one of the most prestigious awards for fiction written in English. The Prize turns 50 next year, and during this significant anniversary Appiah will lead a panel of five judges in choosing the winner from eligible novels published between 1 October 2017 and 30 September 2018.

Kwame Anthony Appiah said: "Who could resist an invitation to join a diverse and distinguished group of fellow readers to explore together the riches of a year of Anglophone fiction, drawn from around the world?  The excitement around the prize can help draw attention to brilliant books and worthy writers and creates one of the more interesting literary conversations each year.  I'm delighted to contribute to that process."

Her Beautiful Monster: guest post by Adi Tantimedh

You never know what will happen when you turn the page…UK-based Mulholland Books publishes crime, suspense and thriller novels you’ll find difficult to put down. Somebody in the editorial department must have an interest in Asia, as the imprint is home to both Adi Tantimedh and Vaseem Khan, both of whom will be writing guest posts this week.  First up: Adi

Adi Tantimedh is of Chinese-Thai descent; he grew up in Singapore and London, and now lives in New York. He has written radio plays, television scripts, and Hollywood screenplays, as well graphic novels and commentary about pop culture.  He is currently writing a series of novels featuring British-Indian Ravi Chandra Singh, a most unlikely private investigator.

A failed religious scholar, Ravi now works for Golden Sentinels, a gleefully amoral private investigators’ agency. On the job, his attempts to do the right thing often result in mayhem. He has visions of Hindu gods, and thinks he might be going mad, which doesn’t help when it comes to solving crimes.

Six images of Chinese wallpaper

Chinese wallpaper has been an important element of western interior decoration for three hundred years. As trade between Europe and China flourished in the seventeenth century, Europeans developed a strong taste for Chinese art and design. The stunningly beautiful wall coverings now known as Chinese wallpaper were developed by Chinese painting workshops in response to western demand.

Despite their spectacular beauty, Chinese wallpapers have not been studied by European scholars in any depth until relatively recently. Chinese Wallpaper in Britain and Ireland, by Emile de Bruijn, changes that. It provides an overview of some of the most significant surviving Chinese wallpapers in private and public ownership in the British Isles. Sumptuously illustrated, it shows how these wallpapers became a staple ingredient of high-end interiors.

Journey to the West / guest post by Melanie Ho

Journey to the West: He Hui, a Chinese soprano in the world of Italian opera, by Hong Kong-based author and journalist Melanie Ho, is the first biography of China's first prima donna - arguably the most successful Western opera singer to come out of China. Soprano He Hui has made some of the biggest roles in Italian opera her own, including the title role in Madam Butterfly. Her story is one of East meeting West, and of East and West living alongside each other. It begins in her hometown of Xi’an, China, and moves on to Verona, her adopted Italian home. Along the way to stardom He Hui overcomes challenges, and rejection.

Melanie Ho here offers a brief overview of He Hui's journey.

StoryDrive Asia 2017

StoryDrive Asia is a conference dedicated to exploring new forms of collaboration, and developing new business models, across media and publishing boundaries in Asia. It is organised by the Frankfurt Book Fair, in collaboration with regional partners, and it is attended by professionals working in the print, audio, film, and TV sectors.

Backlist books: Noli Me Tangere by José Rizal

Backlist books is a column by Lucy Day Werts that focuses on enduring, important works from or about Asia.

This post is about Noli Me Tangere (aka The Social Cancer), an idealistic novel written to expose the injustices suffered by Filipinos at the hands of the theoretically poor, chaste and obedient Spanish friars during the colonial period.

Written in Spanish, published in Berlin in 1887 and banned in the Philippines, it nevertheless reached its target audience. Although the author seems to have preferred reform to armed revolution, violent radicals made him their figurehead, and at the age of 35 he was martyred for the Filipino nationalist cause.

See below to find out what you need to know to decide whether you should read Noli Me Tangere, or what you should know about it even if you never do!