First eBook Titles from Barnes & Noble Digital

In January, Barnes & Noble announced its entry into the ebook publishing arena with the formation of Barnes & Noble Digital, an epublishing division (see previous newsletter article). In September, B&N Digital released its first title, The Book of Counted Sorrows by well-established author Dean Koontz. In October, B&N Digital released an additional ten titles, many of which are ebook-only, including a long-lost Mark Twain manuscript.

A Murder, A Mystery, And A Marriage
by Mark Twain
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Digital
Price: $9.95
Formats: Adobe Reader & Microsoft Reader

"Set in the quaint hollow of Deer Lick, a mythical town resembling Mark Twain's Hannibal, Missouri, this bizarre tale chronicles the fortunes of a humble farmer, John Gray, determined to marry off his daughter, Mary, to the scion of the town's wealthiest family. But the sudden appearance of a stranger found lying unconscious in the snow not only derails Gray's plans but also leads to a mysterious murder whose solution lies at the heart of this captivating story. Twain, already one of the country's most celebrated authors, composed this story in the year of America's centennial as a work of entertainment, a so-called "blind novelette." He then dared other great writers of the day, including Henry James and William Dean Howells, to compose other endings to the story, but the competition never took place and the story was thought by many to have been lost." (from publisher's website)

The Betrayal of America: How the Supreme Court Undermined
the Constitution and Chose Our President
by Vincent Bugliosi
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Digital
Price: $5.95
Formats: Adobe Reader, Microsoft Reader & paperback

"In the December 12, 2000 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court handing the election to George W. Bush, the Court committed the unpardonable sin of being a knowing surrogate for the Republican Party instead of being an impartial arbiter of the law. The Court majority, after knowingly transforming the votes of 50 million Americans into nothing and throwing out all of the Florida undervotes, actually wrote that their ruling was intended to preserve "the fundamental right" to vote. That an election can be stolen by the highest court in the land under the deliberate pretext of an inapplicable constitutional provision has got to be one of the most frightening and dangerous events ever to have occurred in this country." (From publisher's website)

The Long Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven
by Sherman Alexie
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Digital
Price: $7.95
Formats: Adobe Reader & Microsoft Reader

"n this poignant collection of short stories, Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian Sherman Alexie paints a picture of reservation life that is at once lyrical and darkly ironic. Alexie's characters live in an ethereal world where visions of tribal dances mix with government subsidies and graveyard shifts at the 7-11. Amidst poverty and police cars, the Indians of the Spokane reservation find relief in alcohol, laughter and stories of their shared heritage. With a spare yet powerful voice, Alexie reveals the tensions Indians face both on and off the reservation, as well the daily conflicts between the realities of their present and the traditions of the past" (from publisher's website)

Barnes & Noble Digital plans to publish approximately 15 new titles per month.