blogis librorum. A blog about books. Rare books.

Such was Elmore Leonard's advice to his son. He had just finished reading the manuscript Peter Leonard's first novel, Quiver, and wanted to offer Peter some practical wisdom. Obviously, with over forty books to his name, Elmore was in a unique position to offer relevant insight. Meanwhile, Peter also went on to a successful career as a writer. It's no small wonder; writing, it seems, runs in the genes. A number of legendary authors have been fathers to another generation of writers. 

While writing his famous James Bond series, Ian Fleming often found inspiration in real people and events. Many of his characters borrowed their traits or names from Fleming’s old friends, rivals, or high-profile figures in the news. Discovering the backgrounds behind your favorite characters could add a fun new layer to your reading experience.

Literature of the American South continues to evolve with the times, beginning with the rich antebellum years and gradually morphing into the post-Civil War era. The 1930s saw another incredible outburst of literature with greats such as William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, and Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind.

"Maurice Sendak might faint but a staff member of Caldwell Parish Library, knowing that the patrons of the community might object to the illustrations of The Night Kitchen, solved the problem by diapering the little boys with white tempera paint. Other librarians might wish to do the same."

So ran the entire letter from Caldwell, Louisiana librarian Betty B. Jackson in the December, 1971 issue of School Library Journal. Though the letter was published unedited, the journal's editorial staff placed it under the headline "Three-Cornered Censorship" and opposite a half-page illustration of the "Cock-a-Doodle-Doo" image from Maurice Sendak's In the Night Kitchen. In this iconic picture, the story's protagonist, Mickey, is depicted au naturel, which is why the book had raised eyebrows at Jackson's library--and in plenty of other places around the country. But negative reactions to the book were later overblown by the press. 

This week we celebrate the life of author Saul Bellow, winner of the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, and three National Book Awards. He is most famous for his novels, The Adventures of Augie March, Herzog, and Henderson the Rain King. How well do you know this classic American writer? Test your knowledge against these ten facts.

Imagine standing in a crowd watching paint dry. For most of us, we could not picture anything more boring. However, most of us were never able to watch the immensely talented LeRoy Neiman paint. Known for his public paintings of anything and everything, Neiman is one of the most recognized and revered expressionist painters of the twentieth century.

Nobel Prize-winner, Ferit Orhan Pamuk, was born to a wealthy Turkish family on June 7, 1952. His novels have been translated into 55 languages and his work has sold over eleven million copies worldwide. As a child and young adult, Pamuk devoted himself to painting. Yet at age 23, he put his paints aside and began writing his first novel, Cevdet Bey and Sons.

If you're searching for the perfect gift for your father, perhaps you should consider adding a special volume or two to his bookshelf. After all, what dad wouldn't prefer a little James Bond to another boring tie? 

Creativity flourishes in a number of environments. Some writers find their inspiration by the ocean, in a cabin with a mountain view, or in a bustling coffee shop. Others just need isolation and plenty of spare time. This is why it’s no surprise that many great pieces of literature were composed during an author’s stint in exile. Here are some literary favorites and the stories behind their worst downfalls and greatest successes.

Although renowned as a novelist and screenwriter, Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry was above all a passionate book collector. A bookseller for more fifty years, McMurtry began writing as a way to fund his book purchases. He acquired quite a few—his own personal collection contains over thirty thousand volumes and his bookstore holds another 200,000. He said, "The tradition I was born into was essentially nomadic, a herdsmen tradition, following animals across the earth. The bookshops are a form of ranching; instead of herding cattle, I herd books.”