“We’re here in Hoxton because we love stories. And we know others do too, so we aim to help young people write their own stories..” from the new official Ministry of Stories site.

Nick Hornby has set up a shop in Hoxton High Street called “The Hoxton Street Monster Supplies” and it sells everything that any monster will need. This idea is based on a shop in San Franciso that sold everything that a pirate would need. As you went through the shop you would find young people writing stories, taking part in workshops and receiving mentoring from adult writers. There are now shops in Los Angles, Brooklyn and other parts of the UK. This original project was set up by Dave Eggers and he gave his blessing to Nick Hornby to do the same in the UK.

Good luck from all of the team at Pari Publishing, a fantastic project.

F. David Peat, will be speaking at the Scientific and Medical Network’s meeting “A New Renaissance: Transforming Science, Spirit and Society” to be held at Queen Mary College, University of London on Saturday 6 November. For more information go to http://www.scimednet.org/new-renaissance-dialogue-and-book-launch/

Pari Publishing has finally taken the plunge, with much resistance at the beginning, to move into the 21st Century and the digital age. I am an avid reader and love books, printed books. I love the feel and the smell and that is what I want to take to bed with me at night. Holding an electronic device and scrolling down the screen is not how I want to read my novel. But I have since learned that there are some distinct benefits to eBooks.

Technology is moving in the direction of everything being digital. People are using more and more their portable media devices for researching information and allowing them to have information with them at all times. Ipods, Iphone, Ipad, laptop, cell phone, Kindle or PDA. eBooks are the perfect addition to reading library.

You can now take hundreds of books in your pocket. You can have access to all the reference books you need when you are on your next trip. What’s more, buying them is fast and easy and everything today is about speed. eBooks are now accepted worldwide. They are becoming more and more popular and there is more and more selection.
I think this is one of the reasons that it took so long for people to accept the idea. There just wasn’t much choice and also nobody could figure out all of the different readers. If I invest in one type of reader will I be able to read any eBook or will I bite limited to certain books. It is not likely and I as a book lover hope that eBooks will never replace print books but it is a smart alternative in certain situations.

Buying English language books in Italy can be costly when it comes to shipping and there can be long waits for your book to arrive. Here are some of the people who are perfect candidates for eBooks!

eBooks are perfect for:

• People living abroad—this affects me, very important point. Shipping costs are so high and we can wait so long for our books to arrive. Also the English language sections of bookstores abroad have limited selection and the books are expensive.

• People who travel a lot (or little) who need to carry books with them can now fit all the books they want in their pocket (this will cut down on fees for overweight luggage or the kids having to trail in the back of the car with no leg room).

• Those night owls who need to read at night or who wake in the middle of the night and need to read to go back to sleep—one can read from their portable reader without turning on the light and disturbing their partner.

• Researchers and students who need immediate access to information, they can buy and download an eBook instantly without waiting for shipping. And their book is right there on the screen making research far easier.

Why an eBook instead of a print edition?

• Price—an eBook is much cheaper than the print edition, especially if it is a reference book that you only need to use occasionally, or a book that you are only interested in reading once, the perfect solution.

• They are quicker to obtain. If you need to research information in a specific book you can download an eBook instantly and access all the information you need. This is perfect for students, researchers… Or maybe you just can’t wait to read a novel that has been recommended to you!!!

• Environmentally friendly—eBooks don’t require trees to be cut down and the pollution from pulp mills.

• eBooks are light and portable.

• eBooks are instantly available worldwide . Once a book is released it is available to purchase worldwide, and you don’t have to wait for the release in your country. This also means that an author’s book is available to a much wider audience.

• Links: eBooks have hot links to information on websites. While reading you can just click and go instantly to a website to access more information. Also eBooks can often have extras and bonuses that printed editions don’t offer.

• eBooks can be updated easily, therefore the authors and publishers can update the book as new information becomes available.

• And really no one knows what the future holds, as technology gets better, certainly eBooks will get more and more interesting—graphically, special features and so on.

Therefore Pari Publishing, I feel, has made a wise choice for our customers. Seeing that most of our titles can be used as reference books, our books are ideal candidates as eBooks.