Write stuff for an odd accolade.A SHORTLIST of six of the nation's strangest book titles was revealed today.The unusual names were unveiled as contenders to win the Diagram Prize for Oddest Book Title of the Year. Previous winners of the accolade, run by The Bookseller magazine, include Oral Sadism sadism Psychosexual disorder in which sexual urges are gratified by inflicting pain on another person. The term was coined in reference to the marquis de Sade, who chronicled his own such practices. and the Vegetarian Personality, How to Avoid Huge Ships and Highlights in the History of Concrete. Horace Bent, from the magazine, said: "In this, the 31st year of the prestigious award, never have I found it so problematic to pick a shortlist of just six. "At a time when the economic climate is forbidding and costcutting companies are ten-a-penny, I'm proud to report that the British publishing industry has remained as stubborn in the face of change as ever. "Given the economic gloom, I would not have blamed publishers if they'd decided to slash their lists. "But it gives me great pleasure to report that diversity lives." The awards were devised in 1978 by Bruce Robertson from The Diagram Group when he was bored at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The winner of the 2008 award will be chosen by an internet vote at www. The bookseller.com and will be announced on March 27. The shortlisted titles are: Baboon baboon, any of the large, powerful, ground-living monkeys of the genus Papio, also called dog-faced monkeys. Five subspecies live in Africa, with one species extending into the Arabian peninsula. Metaphysics by Dorothy Dorothy L Cheney and Robert M Seyfarth (University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including The Chicago Manual of Style, dozens of academic journals, including ) Curbside Consultation of the Colon by Brooks D Cash (SLACK Incorporated) The Large Sieve and its Applications by Emmanuel Kowalski (Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press (known colloquially as CUP) is a publisher given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII in 1534, and one of the two privileged presses (the other being Oxford University Press). ) Strip and Knit with Style by Mark Hordyszynski (C&T) Techniques for Corrosion Monitoring by Lietai Yang (Woodhead) The 2009-2014 World Outlook for 60-milligram Containers of Fromage Frais by Professor Philip M Parker (Icon Group International) |
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