Texas Pages

Dallas Children's Theater is preparing a stage version of The Giver, Lois Lowry's Newberry-winning work.

Nancy Churnin, with some help from students in the DCT, spoke with the author.

"If You Want Closure in Your Relationship, Start With Your Legs."

That's according to The Bookseller magazine, which just announced its Diagram prize, as reported by The Associated Press.

"Big Boom's" work defeated "I Was Tortured by the Pygmy Love Queen" and the third-place finisher, "Cheese Problems Solved."

Other contenders were "How to Write a How to Write Book," "Are Women Human? And Other International Dialogues" and "People who Mattered in Southend and Beyond: From King Canute to Dr Feelgood."

Past winners include the memorable "Weeds in a Changing World" (1999), "The Big Book of Lesbian Horse Stories" (2003); "Bombproof Your Horse" (2004); and "The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America: A Guide to Field Identification" (2006).

Bloomberg News delves into some of the history of the prize, noting the inaugural award in 1978 went to ``Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice.''

Here's what's coming Sunday in GuideLive:

"A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn - the Last Great Battle of the American West," by James Donovan. The Dallas agent is getting plenty of attention for his work -- and we'll have an exclusive online interview with him as well.

"The Blue Star," by Tony Earley. The author returns to the setting he mined for "Jim the Boy."

"Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East," by Robin Wright. The Washington Post correspondent takes a careful look at change in the region.

"The Book of Dahlia,' by Elisa Albert. Fiction that finds humor in the face of death.

Plus ... Si Dunn's Texas and Southwest Roundup.

Those crazy college kids. Just when I think we can universally agree that the sky is falling and book culture is doomed, along comes a Daily Texan column that pooh-poohs the rush to digital reading:

"There's a certain magical aura that surrounds the book, even if that 10-pound American literature compilation is not your best friend right now. Having a book with real paper and ink between your fingers, and knowing that long ago someone wrote the words that you can physically touch creates a connection to the past. "

Writer Amanda Patterson, described as a "French senior," also celebrates some of Austin's favorite bookstores.

And you thought all they did in college these days was steal mp3s.

(Spotted on Shelf Awareness.)

Anthony Douglas is scheduled to read from his poems and the work of Ralph Waldo Emerson at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Barnes and Noble, 1620 S.University Dr., Fort Worth.