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Penguin Group Publishes Half of the Titles on Man Booker Prize 2008 Shortlist

Penguin Group publishes or distributes five of the six titles on the Man Booker Prize 2008 shortlist, which was announced this week in London. A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz is published by Penguin Group imprint Hamish Hamilton in the UK, Australia, India and South Africa. The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry is published by Penguin Group (USA)'s Viking imprint in the U.S. and also distributed by Penguin Canada and Penguin India. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh is published by Penguin India and Penguin Canada. The Clothes on Their Backs by Linda Grant (Virago) is distributed by Penguin Canada and Penguin South Africa. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (Atlantic) is distributed by Penguin Australia and Penguin South Africa.

John Makinson, Chairman and Chief Executive of Penguin Group, commented, "This is a great day for Penguin's literary publishing around the world. Our publishers are responsible for half the titles on the Man Booker Prize 2008 shortlist and we are also delighted to sell, market and distribute a further two of the six finalists as part of our global distribution network."

The Man Booker Prize judging panel is chaired by Michael Portillo, former MP and Cabinet Minister. He is joined by Alex Clark, editor of Granta; novelist Louise Doughty; James Heneage, founder of Ottakar's bookshops; and Hardeep Singh Kohli, TV and radio broadcaster. The judging panel read more than 112 entries before whittling down the list to the Man Booker Dozen (13 titles) and then again to just six titles. They will meet to decide on the winning novel on Tuesday, October 14th, 2008, and the winning author will be awarded the £50,000 prize money at an awards ceremony later on that evening at Guildhall, London.

 Penguin Young Readers Group's Corduroy to Benefit Jumpstart's Read for the Record

Mark Nieker, President of the Pearson Foundation, and Jumpstart's James Cleveland, added enthusiastic words about their organizations' good works, including Jumpstart's Read for the Record (more on this event in next week's Spotlight), which takes place on October 2nd, when a new world record for the largest shared reading experience is expected to be set, raising funds for early education in low-income communities. This year's official campaign book is a custom edition of Corduroy published by Penguin Young Readers Group. The Pearson Foundation, the campaign's sponsor and founding partner, is underwriting the publication of the custom edition of the book, ensuring that 100% of the proceeds directly benefit Jumpstart's work with at-risk children. Plus, each book that is purchased online will be matched with a donation from the Pearson Foundation to support Jumpstart youth. For more details, please visit Jumpstart's Read for the Record website, as well as the Pearson Foundation website.

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This week I'm exploring the rumor psychology surrounding the phenomenal rumors that surround the 2008 U.S. Presidential elections. The most common of these is that Barack Obama is a Muslim and Sarah Palin is Trig's grandmother. What it is that drives these, and the many other, false and fantastic rumors?

My short answer is: one part uncertainty, one part belief, and one part defensive sentiment. And possibly one part propaganda. In the first post I explored how these rumors capitalize on uncertainty. Today, let's explore the role of belief.

One-part Belief

People tend to be more likely to spread rumors that they believe as compared with those they don't believe. But the interesting thing here is that belief depends in part on your already-held attitudes. People tend to believe rumors that agree with their own point of view.