Somewhat controversial news from Britain where McDonald's is in the process of giving away 9 million books with Happy Meals.

The six titles which are being given away (along with a finger puppet and a voucher for a heavily discounted additional book) are all from Michael Morpurgo's Mudpuddle Farm series, published by Harper Collins. Technically speaking, this will make McDonald's the nation's largest bookseller for the four week period (and the charity Farms for City Children considerably better off, as Morpurgo intends to donate all his royalties to them).

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I learned to read when I was four years old and books have been a very important part of my life ever since. There were plenty of them around. My parents bought many books - cheap editions of classics available in regular bookstores, pre-war editions of books one could only get at second-hand bookstores and flea markets. There were libraries, too, but more popular titles were hard to get and there were no holds, unless a librarian took pity on me and helped me secure what I craved.

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Ever wondered what happens inside the bookstore when the last staff member turns the key for the night?

Thanks to Sean Ohlenkamp, an associate creative director at Lowe Roche Advertising in Toronto, and about 25 volunteers, we now know!

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Nancy Pearl, the closest thing American libraries have to a celebrity, unleashed something of a shockwave through the book industry yesterday with the announcement that she is publishing a series of books with Amazon.

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Recently, I attended a genocide conference that included a film called Beyond the Deadly Pit, produced and directed by Rwandan genocide survivor Gilbert Ndahayo. It documents confronting his father's killer during gacaca, the traditional court used to try "lesser" perpetrators of the 1994 genocide. Ndahayo said, "If one wants to be healed from the sickness, he must talk about it to the world. For 12 years, I lived with the remains of about 200 unpeaceful dead in my parents' backyard." I found the film so profoundly moving that I could not rise from my chair. Even now, writing this, I cannot prevent the tears. During the post-film q&a, I asked Ndahayo if making the film had facilitated healing. He said simply, "No."

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Wondering what books will be made into movies in Winter and Spring 2012? BookBrowse has the answer!

There's something for all ages and interests in this season's movies based on books. For the younger set, Danny DeVito, Taylor Swift and Zac Efron star in The Lorax. The YA crowd is already anticipating The Hunger Games. While adults with a political bent will likely be lining up for The Iron Lady. Personally, I'm pretty sure I'll be plunking down my money for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel!

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