We’ve collected the books debuting on Indiebound’s Indie Bestseller List for the week ending July 05, 2015–a sneak peek at the books everybody will be talking about next month.
(Debuted at #3 in Hardcover Fiction) The English Spy by Daniel Silva: “Gabriel’s target is Eamon Quinn, a master bomb maker and mercenary of death who sells his services to the highest bidder. Quinn is an elusive man of the shadows—’a whisper in a half-lit chapel, a loose thread at the hem of a discarded garment’—but fortunately Gabriel does not pursue him alone. At his side is Christopher Keller, a British commando turned professional assassin who knows Quinn’s murderous handiwork all too well.” (June 2015)
(Debuted at #9 in Children’s Illustrated) Minions: Long Live King Bob! by Lucy Rosen: “The story of Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment’s Minions begins at the dawn of time. Starting as single-celled yellow organisms, Minions evolve through the ages, perpetually serving the most despicable of masters. Continuously unsuccessful at keeping these masters-from T. rex to Napoleon-the Minions find themselves without someone to serve and fall into a deep depression. But one Minion named Kevin has a plan, and he-alongside teenage rebel Stuart and lovable little Bob-ventures out into the world to find a new evil boss for his brethren to follow.” (May 2015)
(Debuted at #14 in Hardcover Nonfiction) Once Upon a Time in Russia by Ben Mezrich: “Written with the heart-stopping pacing of a thriller—but even more compelling because it is true—this story of amassing obscene wealth and power depicts a rarefied world seldom seen up close. Under Berezovsky’s krysha, Abramovich built one of Russia’s largest oil companies from the ground up and in exchange made cash deliveries—including 491 million dollars in just one year. But their relationship frayed when Berezovsky attacked President Vladimir Putin in the media—and had to flee to the UK. Abramovich continued to prosper. Dead bodies trailed Berezovsky’s footsteps, and threats followed him to London, where an associate of his died painfully and famously of Polonium poisoning. Then Berezovsky himself was later found dead, declared a suicide.” (June 2015)
How does a nonfiction author figure out what to write about? Recently, Ben Mezrich revealed his selection criteria during a talk he gave at Google. He feels most drawn to stories that feature ambition, intelligence, and people who “game the system” to be intriguing.
Mezrich also makes it a rule to “never start a book if I don’t think there can be a movie. Because I feel like if it can’t be a movie, it’s probably not going to be a good book.”
The video embedded above features his entire talk. In the past, Mezrich has written books on a diverse range of topics such as college students counting cards in Las Vegas, the founding fathers of Facebook, and a trio of moon rock thieves. Recently, he studied how a group of Russian oligarchs climbed up and came into power.
How does a nonfiction author figure out what to write about? Recently, Ben Mezrich revealed his selection criteria during a talk he gave at Google. He feels most drawn to stories that feature ambition, intelligence, and people who “game the system” to be intriguing.
Mezrich also makes it a rule to “never start a book if I don’t think there can be a movie. Because I feel like if it can’t be a movie, it’s probably not going to be a good book.”
The video embedded above features his entire talk. In the past, Mezrich has written books on a diverse range of topics such as college students counting cards in Las Vegas, the founding fathers of Facebook, and a trio of moon rock thieves. Recently, he studied how a group of Russian oligarchs climbed up and came into power.
Author Ben Mezrich‘s latest project is a nonfiction book entitled Sex on the Moon. According to the LA Times, Sony Pictures has already optioned the film rights to the book proposal.
Here’s more from the article: “The new film tells the story of Thad Roberts, a once-promising young scientist working for NASA who back in 2004 hatched a crazy plan to steal highly prized moon rocks from his bosses at the Johnson Space Center and sell them on the Internet. The motivation: wanting to impress his girlfriend.”
Read more about the incident at this link. The production team behind The Social Network — Kevin Spacey, Dana Brunetti, Scott Rudin and Michael De Luca — will reunite for this project. Mezrich (pictured, via) tweeted the news: “The cat is out of the bag, new book new movie same amazing producers and studio…”
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