In anticipation of his new book Viral Loop about “the interconnectedness of today’s socially networked society,” Adam Penenberg (Fast Company, Wired) has commissioned the design of an eponymous Facebook application to test his thesis. Described as part “infographic, game, and research project” Viral Loop estimates what slice of Facebook’s billions are all thanks to your activity on the site.

My plan was to allow anyone who wanted to read an advance copy of the book the opportunity to do so, provided they forwarded the book within a week to the next reader. I didn’t realize it at the time, but what I was doing played right into the new publishing environment, an environment that is still uncharted and mysterious. A brave new democratic book world where everyone is a potential reviewer.

It’s surprising to many that the detention center at Guantanamo Bay has a library, but it does — and an extensive one at that.

When pan-Arab newspaper Dar Al-Hayat asked the librarian at Guantanamo Bay what the most-requested books were, this is what they found:

Here comes the fall book season — which means here come the websites, blog posts, Twitter feeds and viral videos that have become necessary counterparts to the excerpts, readings, interviews and lectures that were once the only way of promoting a new book. These days, having a built-in audience is essential to making not only waves but sales — so authors better be able to tap into that.

Best-selling pop psychologist/author Malcolm Gladwell has announced plans for his next book, What the Dog Saw, which will be published this fall. But not unlike an early album leak for a recording artist, Gladwell’s new book is already available online in its entirety, and The New Yorker, where Gladwell is a staff writer, is to blame. Are his publishers just trying to sell us a Greatest Hits collection of stories all available online for free?

Vampires are having a moment. True Blood is a much-needed hit for HBO, with its latest episodes passing the 5-million viewers mark; Twilight is already churning out the third movie of its franchise, Eclipse, with newcomer Bryce Dallas Howard upping the star power of the cast. Kevin Williamson’s Vampire Diaries looks like Dawson’s Creek with [...]

After 26 years and 24 national Emmys, Reading Rainbow‘s butterfly in the sky will cease its long, illustrious journey as the longest-running children’s show on PBS after Mister Rogers and Sesame Street.

The Washington Post‘s Barton Gellman reports that Dick Cheney won’t hold back in his forthcoming $2 million memoir of his years in the Bush administration. Lawyer Robert Barnett, who negotiated Cheney’s book contract, told the Post that “‘the statute of limitations has expired’ on many of [Cheney's] secrets.”

What revelations should we expect from the book?

No doubt I was not the only person who thrilled to the discovery that this week’s New Yorker features a piece by Judith Thurman about Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the Little House series of children’s books, though some of you may be more familiar with the 70′s television series starring Michael Landon (which sadly does not hold up to adult viewing — I have tried). However the most interesting part is arguably what Thurman left out.

Historians generally agree that Watergate was a great moment for the press – and for the Washington Post, which published the scoops of that would eventually take down a president. But the July 17th issue of the Economist points to a more unorthodox take: That the Washington Post was selfish, irresponsible, and directly responsible for thwarting the World Peace that Richard Nixon would certainly have won.

It’s not often that some fake character becoming really famous makes me feel old. But the popularity of Harry Potter has consumed me with an overwhelming feeling of being old-fashioned. You see, I really know next to nothing about Harry Potter. He means nothing at all to me.