Einstein: His Life and Universe
by Walter Isaacson

By the author of the acclaimed bestseller Benjamin Franklin, this is the first full biography of Albert Einstein since the recent release of Einstein's personal letters in 2006. This book explores how an imaginative, impertinent patent clerk, a struggling father in a difficult marriage who couldn't get a teaching job or a doctorate, became the mind reader of the creator of the cosmos, the locksmith of the mysteries of the atom and the universe. His success came from questioning conventional wisdom and marveling at mysteries that struck others as mundane. This led him to embrace a morality and politics based on respect for free minds, free spirits, and free individuals. Isaacson was interviewed on NPR following his article in Time Magazine when Einstein's letters were first made public. Click here to listen to the interview.


Sign of the Times

This interesting tidbit appeared in the Shelf Awareness email today. Japanese teenagers are devouring more and more comics on their cell phones, Business Week reported. More than 300 websites offer some 10,000 stories for cell phone downloads, and last year Japanese consumers spent $20 million to view manga on handsets. The cell phone option is especially attractive to women and girls "who might have been coy about walking into a shop," as one publisher put it. However, another publisher said, "Many are still loyal comic book readers who use downloads as a way to try something they might not normally buy." Click here to read the full article.


Bookstore Buffet...All You Can Read

Bookstore hopping was featured as a pastime avid readers enjoy in the April edition of the Quill (Inkwell's monthly newsletter.) There is a website devoted to this endeavor called Bookstore Tourism. Visit the site to plan your own road trip, or join one of their organized tours. Flickr, the photo sharing website, has some beautiful photos of bookstores around the world. Definitely  worth checking out!