Written more than 2,600 years ago, the 101 words of verse deal with a theme timeless in both art and soap operas; the stirrings of an ageing body towards the nimbleness, youth and love it once knew.

The poem is the rarest of discoveries. Sappho's pre-eminent reputation as an artist of lyricism and love is based on only three complete poems, 63 complete single lines and up to 264 fragments.

These are all that have survived of the writings of a woman who the Greek philosopher Plato said should be honoured not merely as a great lyric poet but as one of the Muses, the goddesses who inspire all art.

On hearing one of Sappho's poems sung, the sixth century BC Greek ruler Solon, a contemporary of hers, asked for someone to teach him the song "because I want to learn it and die"

At Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville, Ill., the front window is all about Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (due July 16), but a life-size blowup of Narnia's lion king, Aslan, has already taken pride of place in the store near a table filled with Narnia books. Every person who buys Harry Potter will receive a Narnia bookmark.

Owner Becky Anderson says that soon after the Potter book goes on sale, she'll waste no time transforming store windows into a winter-like "Narnia world."

Discount chains also are getting into the act. Most Target stores began stocking shelves in their book department with Lewis titles in late May, says spokeswoman Lena Michaud. The book covers promote Lewis as "Author of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. A Major Motion Picture. Holiday 2005."

Two other novels -- Zabiba and the King and The Impregnable Fortress -- have been attributed to Saddam although they were released as novels written "by its author".

His latest book tells the story of Salem, a noble Arab tribesman who represents righteousness and Arab nationalism, and defeats his American and Jewish enemies. Illegal copies of the book have circulated in Amman.

The tale describes how Salem unites divided Arab tribes in Iraq to defeat Hisquel, a foreign intruder who represents evil.

A publisher for a London-based publishing house who was offered the rights to print an English translation by the Jordanian publisher said they turned it down.

"We read it but thought it had very little literary value," Hesperus Press publisher Alessandro Gallenzi told Reuters from London.

"We publish classics. I'm afraid this one does not make it."

Regan told the paper the satellite show will allow authors an opportunity to say what`s on their mind without worrying about FCC indecency issues. "My favorite thing to do is have intimate conversations," Regan said. "The freedom to have conversations that are unlimited and frank and free-flowing is very appealing to me."

"I'm not doing Botox. I love TV, but it's about hair and makeup. Radio is about intimate conversations, and there's nothing more satisfying to a middle-aged woman than an intimate conversation."

Black is well known in children's and young adult lit circles for her love of the fairie segment of the fantasy genre. Her debut novel, Tithe, dealt with fairies and trolls from a teen perspective, and The Spiderwick Chronicles, a New York Times bestseller on which she collaborated with artist Tony DiTerlizzi, saw the genre tackled from a kids angle.

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (Arthur A Levine Books), the most anticipated book release of the summer.
  
  
• Hero, Come Back (Avon Books), a collection of three wonderful historical romances from bestselling authors Stephanie Lauren, Christina Dood and Elizabeth Boyle.
  
  
• 78 Reasons Why Your Book May Never Be Published & 14 Reasons Why it Just Might by Pat Walsh (Penguin), the lively and plainspoken guide to getting published.
  
  
• Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim (Back Bay Books), the hilarious, bestselling book of essays from David Sedaris.

"Hermes regrets not having been able to accommodate Ms. Winfrey and her team and to provide her with the service and care that Hermès strives to provide to each and every one of its customers worldwide," the store said in a statement. "Hermès apologizes for any offense taken due to such circumstances."

The store said the incident occurred on June 14 around 6:45 p.m., about 15 minutes after the store closed. It said Winfrey and her team arrived at a time when "a private PR event was being set up inside." Harpo Productions spokeswoman Michelle McIntyre said Winfrey "will discuss her 'crash moment' when her show returns from hiatus in September." Crash is a film dealing with race relations. The phrase "crash moment" refers to situations where a party feels discriminated against on the basis of skin color.

A leaked ReganMedia memo linked the interview to potential TV movie deals and mentioned a $500,000 payment. The company confirmed an employee wrote the memo but noted that it wasn't signed and wouldn't confirm details of the arrangement.

Both Regan and NBC denied any quid pro quo or money changing hands. NBC said that there's no TV movie deal attached and that Couric and her producers simply outhustled others to get Wilbanks.

The English Roses, which first came out in September 2003 and spent 18 weeks on The New York Times' Bestsellers List, has sold more than 500,000 copies internationally. The story follows four 11-year-old friends who are all "a little bit jealous of another girl in the neighborhood."

Madonna, 46, is quoted on the contactmusic.com Web site as saying that she is returning to Roses at the suggestion of her 9-year-old daughter Lourdes, who loved the tale so much. (The young girl who is envied in the story is also said to be Lourdes.) Madonna reportedly turns over all profits from her books to the Spirituality for Kids Foundation, an educational arm of the Los Angeles Kabbalah Center.

Spies in Paris report that, in a stunning display of ignorance, the Hermès store in the City of Light refused entry to the talk show queen. "Oprah didn't have her hair done," says a source. "When she tried the door, they refused her entry because they have been 'having a problem with North Africans' lately' and obviously had no clue who she was." A rep for Winfrey says: "Oprah is in Paris," but declined further comment. Hermès didn't return calls.

First, the reference quality: How many recipes does it provide? What kind of glossaries, nutritional information, or conversion charts does it offer? Are the illustrations helpful or purely decorative?

Next, the mushier but crucial category of style: Does the book have panache? Is it written in a way that motivates the neophyte chef? Is it organized well? Does it reflect the way people cook and eat today? How enticing are the recipes?

Finally, what I call "the husband test": How clearly did the recipes direct Andrew? Did the books succinctly define the terms used in the recipes? How did the resulting food taste? And crucially, would Andrew cook from the book when he wasn't helping with this experiment?

MS is an intimate cook's notebook. The recipes have a fine-tuned quality that is hard to find in more comprehensive books, and Andrew responded to them immediately. His veal braised in milk and capers, rapini sautéed with chickpeas, and boiled rice with olives and chili were not stressful to cook, and the meal was, hands down, the best he made, with more complex flavors than any of his other offerings. "I'd eat this in a restaurant," he said without a hint of braggadocio.

In some ways the two books are quite similar. In The Hours, Cunningham improvised on Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf's masterpiece. In Specimen Days, Cunningham turns to poet Walt Whitman as an overarching element.

Both books also tell the stories of three characters in different times and places. In Specimen Days, Cunningham sets all three stories in New York City.

Most of the money will come from a movie deal, with the rights snapped up by Universal and Tom Hanks' Playtone production company. Hanks could end up playing W. Mark Felt, a.k.a. Deep Throat, a kind of Castaway for the past 30 years. According to published reports today, the family of Felt, 91, has picked PublicAffairs Books to publish a memoir/as told to next year with Universal Pictures optioning his life story for Hanks.

Lawyer John D. O'Connor, who wrote the Vanity Fair article that outed Felt as Deep Throat, will help out a great deal, as Felt's memories of the Watergate era may be fading. The book's working title reveals that it is broadbased: A G-Man's Life: The FBI, Being "Deep Throat" and the Struggle for Honor in Washington."

"I'm uncomfortable becoming the focus of this event, which left so many families in tragedy," she said in a news release. "But after prayerful consideration, I believe that God is calling me to use this opportunity to not only turn my own life around but also to inspire others to do that, too."

After the hostage ordeal, Smith was bombarded with offers for books, movies, speaking engagements and even a few oddball marriage proposals. Following months of negotiations, she struck a deal with HarperCollins.

The Spoonerisms can be a mouthful, but Silverstein's book, like its bunny, is unfailingly kindhearted. And if the jumbled letters fluster some parents, well, that may add to the beauty of "Runny Babbit." Most of all, the book offers a rare sense of the sheer pleasure of language, and for children who get the hang of it, Silverstein speaks a language all their own.

Cameron had focused much of his attention on Battle Angel, based on Yukito Kishiro's 12 popular Japanese graphic novels about a nymphette who morphs into an action heroine. Cameron has reworked a script from Alexander screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis that could serve as the beginning of a franchise.

While Cameron's Lightstorm would not reveal a final title or story line for the new project it is calling Project 880, Cameron could decide to film that feature before tackling Battle Angel, which has proved to be a difficult script to adapt.

"We are delighted to announce the availability of downloadable audio books as part of our circulating collection," said Susan Kent, director and chief executive of the branch libraries. "Library users today are much more technologically sophisticated than ever; our aim is to continue to provide our users with free access to materials in whichever format they prefer."

Digital audio books are available for free to members through the library's Web site. Users can borrow up to 10 digital books at a time, and after 21 days the materials will be automatically checked in and made available to others.

Something in them hits that summer sweet spot between brainy and beachy, causing readers to ditch the Grishams and Pattersons and turn to new voices. Here are five of this summer's most promising debuts. Later you can say you knew them when.

A Los Angeles Literacy agent tells British newspaper The Sunday Times, "The first to produce the book could make $1 million, especially if they convict Jackson. "And even if they clear him, the public will want to know why."

Under Californian law the jurors are obliged to remain silent for 90 days after the verdict - however this rule is not always enforced, raising speculation over whether these prospective book deals could give some jurors an interest in dragging out proceedings. Jackson, 46, has pleaded not guilty to charges of child molestation, administering an intoxicating agent and conspiracy involving allegations of child abduction, false imprisonment and extortion.

Bryson said his next book, expected to be published in the fall of 2006, would be about growing up in America in the 1950s. "It is a complete change from A Short History of Nearly Everything," Bryson said. He said it would be "nothing but jokes," which he expected to please his publishers. "I think they still think of it (A Short History of Nearly Everything) as a bit of a fluke, and probably a dangerous one at that." "I think they are glad I am getting back to the kind of thing I'm normally associated with," Bryson said.

Ron Grantski, Laci Peterson's stepfather, told the Modesto Bee that he would help Rocha, his longtime companion, write the book.

"A lot of truths haven't been told, and I kind of think they should be," he said. "Everyone has written little bits and pieces. This story is going to be a good one."

"Lotsa was by far the richest man in the country. He had everything that money could buy," is the opening line of her latest book. "But there was a teeny, tiny problem. No matter how much money Lotsa de Casha made, he wasn't happy." The short book concludes with the moral, "When you learn to share, you will not only find happiness. You will also find a friend."

"I'd like to think I've been evolving and transforming my whole career, I grew up," she told Reuters in an interview. Her new book, which features art by Portuguese artist Rui Paes, follows the transformation of an greyhound with a bad Italian accent, who loses everything but finds a friend in a vaguely Baroque fairy tale setting.

"The media likes to say it's just another one of my guises," she said of her career as an author. "But it's much more deep and profound than that."

In the Vineyard of the Lord: The Life, Faith, and Teachings of Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI by Marco Bardazzi (Rizzoli, $16.95). Bardazzi, U.S. correspondent for the Italian News Agency ANSA, prepared material for 10 possible papal candidates, then started his book "immediately after Ratzinger appeared on the balcony" at the Vatican. Bardazzi says he wanted to write a portrait of both the pope and the man. "For example, I think it's interesting to know his passion for (classical) music," he says.

The Rise of Benedict XVI: The Inside Story of How the Pope Was Elected and Where He Will Take the Catholic Church by John L. Allen (Doubleday, $19.95). Allen, who also wrote a biography of then-Cardinal Ratzinger, covers the Vatican for the National Catholic Reporter, CNN and National Public Radio. He interviewed eight cardinals for insight into the election. "They were not voting for God's Rottweiler (a nickname given to Ratzinger); they were voting for the very gracious, very profound person they saw in front of them," Allen says.

Another possible book is being shopped around by an agent for Deep Throat himself -- W. Mark Felt. "I'll arrange to write a book or something and collect all the money I can," the former FBI official told reporters Wednesday outside his home in Santa Rosa, Calif.

Police were called to an address in Kettering in central England on Friday after reports of a shot being fired.

The Sun newspaper said the incident came as the men tried to sell one of its reporters a stolen copy of Harry Potter And the Half-Blood Prince for 50,000 pounds ($90,880). Northamptonshire police confirmed two men from Kettering had been charged in connection with the incident. "A 37-year-old has been charged with possession of an offensive weapon and handling a stolen book," a police spokesman said. "A 19-year-old man has been charged with the theft of the book and a possession of an imitation firearm intending to cause fear of violence."

The behind-the-scenes account of the Watergate scandal by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, whose investigation for the Washington Post led to President Richard Nixon's resignation, rocketed up the best-seller lists on Thursday, hitting No. 27 on Amazon.com.

The renewed popularity of the 1974 book comes after revelations that former FBI No. 2 Mark Felt was the reporters' mysterious super-source, Deep Throat. "It's a huge news story of historic importance, something the world has been speculating about," said Victoria Meyer, spokeswoman for Simon & Schuster, a unit of Viacom and publisher of All the President's Men. "It's no surprise to us that there is consumer interest in learning more," Meyer said.

From a ranking somewhere above 10,000 at the start of the week, the book now ranks No. 44 on Barnes & Noble.com's best-seller list. And DVD sales of the Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford movie based on the book proved just as hot, coming in at No. 28 on the site's hottest selling list.

1. The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, Publication date: 1848, Score: 74

2. Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler, Publication date: 1925-26, Score: 41

3. Quotations from Chairman Mao by Mao Zedong, Publication date: 1966, Score: 38

4. The Kinsey Report by Alfred Kinsey, Publication date: 1948, Score: 37

5. Democracy and Education by John Dewey, Publication date: 1916, Score: 36

6. Das Kapital by Karl Marx, Publication date: 1867-1894, Score: 31

7. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan, Publication date: 1963, Score: 30

8. The Course of Positive Philosophy by Auguste Comte, Publication date: 1830-1842, Score: 28

9. Beyond Good and Evil by Freidrich Nietzsche, Publication date: 1886, Score: 28

10. General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes, Publication date: 1936, Score: 23

The winner receives a jeroboam of Bollinger Special Cuvee and a case of Bollinger La Grande Annee, as well as the honour of having a locally-bred Gloucestershire Old Spot pig named after their novel.

"The architecture of those homes was and is unremarkable to just about everyone who sees them, but to me, they're my life -- they're where I became, who I am," Edwards said. "I know there are countless stories like mine from people from all around America. I want to share those stories -- and what they say about America and Americans -- through this book."