In this modern world of instant videos, tweets, Tumblr, Vine, Instagram and more, reading the printed word in a book can sometimes get left behind. Fortunately, the folks at Lucasfilm/Disney haven’t forgotten just how important reading is. In fact, in conjunction with partners like Del Rey, Scholastic and Dark Horse Comics, they’re helping celebrate reading by dedicating an entire day to it.

What are we talking about? Well, read on from the official press release to find out:

New York, NY – Lucasfilm, Disney Publishing Worldwide, and its publishing partners announced today the second annual Star Wars Reads Day to be held this October 5, 2013. Last year, 30 authors and 1,500 costumed volunteers participated in over 1,200 Star Wars Reads Day events across North America. On October 5 of this year, Star Wars fans, authors, and artists will again come together in this multi-publisher initiative that celebrates reading and Star Wars. Participating publishing partners include Abrams, Chronicle Books, Dark Horse, Del Rey, DK, Quirk Books, Random House Audio, Scholastic, Titan Magazines, and Workman.

“Star Wars Reads Day is the kind of initiative that we at Lucasfilm love to support” says Carol Roeder, Director of Publishing at Lucasfilm. “Reading and Star Wars have gone hand-in-hand since 1976, when the novelization of the original Star Wars movie was released. Over the years, many fans have discovered the joy in reading through Star Wars books, and we hope to continue encouraging more people to read.”

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How do you follow a debut novel that was named one of Time magazine’s best books of the year? For Charles Yu the answer is Sorry Please Thank You, a breezy but fascinating collection of short stories.

In an interview during San Diego Comic-Con 2012, Yu revealed that the transition from writing his popular and widely praised book, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe, to the short story format of Sorry Please Thank You was challenging. The author also admitted that not all of the stories turned out the way he had planned.

“Sometimes you write something and it’s just not what you thought it was going to be,” he said. Even so, Yu is pleased with the final product and readers will be too.

The collection of stories transports readers from futuristic earth to virtual reality and even into space. In every time and location the characters are searching for the same things: happiness and love. The fundamental nature of these desires helps keep Yu’s stories grounded even as some of them veer off into the more obscure and strange (an alien’s guide to Earth families, for example).

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Almost a week has passed since The Walking Dead season 3 reached its midseason finale. On that night, Twitter and Facebook were filled with posts of people asking what to do with their Sunday nights now that they are forced to wait until February for the show to return. Well, there’s no reason for fans of The Walking Dead to be stuck watching the previous seasons (or doing something really crazy like going outside) as Robert Kirkman and the rest of the team behind The Walking Dead have put out tons of other materials that both set up the story and characters of the show and/or went off in their own directions.

The Walking Dead Vol. 1 – 17

It’s where it all started. Over the course of 102 issues, The Walking Dead has taken readers through a rollercoaster of emotions. They have seen Rick and his ever changing band of survivors try to deal with a world that can never go back to what it once was.

While viewers of the show may witness some similar instances, they will also see how two different stories have been able to be told about the same essential concept. One of the things that keeps drawing readers back is the idea that really no one is safe and characters that they fall in love with end up becoming the biggest tragedies.

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It’s always interesting to see how people react to art books. Some people can’t wait to get their hands on them as they anxiously await a game’s release while others like to look at them after the fact so the vistas and characters aren’t spoiled for them. I received The Art of Assassin’s Creed III almost on the same day that the review copy of the game came to me and I opted for the latter and saved the artwork until after I had experienced Assassin’s Creed III’s gameplay. After going through almost 30 hours in this lush world, it made me appreciate the concept work that went into making it come to life even more.

The Art of Assassin’s Creed III starts off with what one wouldn’t expect, the modern world. Since the interludes of Assassin’s Creed III take place in the modern era with Desmond at the helm, there is a quick exploration of the temple of the First Civilization that Desmond and his team make their base as well as the areas they must venture to recover the keys to power the temple. After that, everything heads back to the American Revolution.

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You may be wondering why we would publish a story about a bookstore opening in New York. Well, that’s a fair question. The reasons are varied, but the most important ones are that this bookstore is selling Sci-Fi books exclusively, which we love, and, more importantly, is trying to save older, out of print books from disappearing forever.

We think that’s worth a mention.

According to an excellent article over at The Verge, the bookstore in question, located in Brooklyn’s DUMBO neighborhood and called Singularity & Co., opened its doors recently with the intention of bringing new and classic sci-fi novels to anyone who wants to read them.

What started as a Kickstarter campaign to find forgotten, out of print sci-fi books, digitize them, and sell them as e-books has grown into a full brick and mortar store. They still offer the eBooks, which you can subscribe to here, but now seek out rare and classic sci-fi books still in print to sell at the store.

In addition, founder Ash Kalb is also hoping to reprint some of the older, out of print books and pay actual royalties to the original writers. He’s working on the details right now and negotiating with publishers to get this going. We think that’s pretty cool too.

So, if you love Sci-Fi and love books, you should be clicking on the link and supporting this good cause. For more, check out the Singulairy & Co. video after the break.

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Jaws (1975) is the first summer blockbuster and is considered by critics and fans alike as one of the greatest films ever made. After success with the TV thriller Duel (1972) and his first theatrical release of The Sugarland Express (1974), director Steven Spielberg set out to adapt Peter Benchley’s novel about a Great White shark which terrorizes a small New England beach community. The screenplay was co-written by Benchley, actor-writer Carl Gottlieb (M*A*S*H*), and an un-credited John Milius who helped with some of the film’s most memorable dialogue like “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” and the legendary U.S.S. Indianapolis speech.

The film opens with one of the greatest sequences ever shot. A young woman leaves a bonfire beach gathering to go skinny-dipping in the ocean while being chased by an inebriated young man. The young man ends up passing out in the surf while the woman swims out to the middle of the channel. An underwater low angle shot represents the point of view of the shark as it begins to stalk its prey. John William’s haunting score builds as the young woman is thrashed around and is pulled under by the shark. This scene did to ocean night swimming, what Psycho (1960) did for women’s showering.

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Director Walter Hill’s The Warriors (1979) is a contemporary urban drama with all the traits of a western. Hill adapted the screenplay from the novel written by Sol Yurick in 1965. The film follows a group of nine gang members from Coney Island who trek up to the Bronx where thousands of other rival gang members have gathered for a summit held by a man known as Cyrus, the head of the most powerful gang in the city who plans to unite all the New York City gangs together as a crime syndicate.

The opening of the film is a series of montages that follow the Warriors as they take numerous subways from Coney Island to the Bronx. Other gangs are also shown as they too make their way to the meeting. Once the Warriors arrive at Van Cortlandt Park, the Warriors make their way to the front where Cyrus delivers a speech where he plans to unite all the gangs in an attempt to control New York. Cyrus demands that all the gangs put aside their differences and secure each city borough, and then create a collective organization that can battle not only the police, but the mafia as well.

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Lawrence of Arabia (1962) is one of the greatest films ever made and a tie for my number one favorite film alongside Dr. Strangelove (1964). It is one of director David Lean’s most lasting legacies in Hollywood and a truly epic one-of-a-kind film. It was a film that was the inspiration to future filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Sam Peckinpah, Martin Scorsese, and George Lucas.

I first saw the film at the age of twelve when my father took me to the Ziegfeld Theater in New York City in 1989 for the film’s restored re-release. My father told me that it was his most favorite film and that I was very privileged to see it on the big screen. I will never forget when the lights dimmed and Maurice Jarre’s score played before the opening credits of the film. It was the first film that I can remember where my eyes were completely fixed to the screen in fear that if I turned away for a spilt second that I might miss a pivotal moment.

As I began rummaging through the popcorn bag, I looked over to my father who smiled and gave me a wink. My experience seeing the film on the big screen was like for so many others, a film, which made me want to become a director and it solidified my love of cinema from that moment forward.

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It’s interesting how things have changed over the last ten years or so. It used to be if you wanted quality entertainment, you went to the movies. Now, with most movies being bloated music videos or commercials for various products, discerning viewers have turned to TV for their quality entertainment.

One channel people check out regularly is HBO and one show many seem to love is Game of Thrones. Roaring back to big numbers for the premiere of season two and with a third season already set, Thrones will air its third episode of the season (aka episode 13) this Sunday. Of course, we’ve got a preview for said episode to share with you right now.

In it, you get a look at the intrigue and action expected from this episode. We know some have thought this season has gotten off to a bit of a slow start, but we also know it’s building to something pretty amazing.

You can see some hints as to what in this preview and upcoming episode. Check out the preview for episode 13 after the break. Game of Thrones airs Sunday at 9/8C on HBO.

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This week’s pick is The Andromeda Strain (1971) that was adapted from Michael Crichton’s best selling novel. Director Robert Wise (The Day the Earth Stood Still) brings this sci-fi thriller to the big screen.

A small group of scientists are brought together at the request of the U.S. government to investigate a crashed satellite that has killed the inhabitants of a small New Mexico town. It’s unclear as to the cause of death, but it is quickly discovered that the satellite, which returned to earth, managed to pick up an organism from space, which has proven fatal for the small town’s inhabitants.

The team of scientists is headed by doctor Jeremy Stone (Arthur Hill) who is the first to be called in by members of the U.S. Air Force and The White House. Stone understands the severity of the situation and wastes no time gathering the other three members of the team who will help to identify, isolate, and cure this new disease from space.

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With The Hunger Games having such a strong opening last weekend and the big auction for Fifty Shades of Grey, Sony Pictures is looking for the next big trilogy and is currently the frontrunner to partner with Constantin films on the live action adaptation of Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments.

The first part of the series, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, is set in modern day New York City and centers around Clary, a seemingly ordinary teenager, who discovers she is the descendant of a line of mystical warriors known as Shadowhunters. These Shadowhunters are a secret cadre of young half-angel warriors locked in an ancient battle to protect our world from evil. Clary joins forces with a group of Shadowhunters who introduce her to a dangerous alternate New York called Downworld, which is filled with various deadly creatures including demons, warlocks, vampires, and werewolves.

Sony Pictures already has multiple franchises under its belt with the The Da Vinci Code and James Bond. They are also expected to go forward with the second installment in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo franchise. Even with these heavy hitters, the company is looking to fortify its business with a huge trilogy. The studio was one of the most aggressive bidders for screen rights to the E.L. James trilogy Fifty Shades Of Grey.

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For those of you who were “too cool” to attend any of the films in the multi-billion dollar franchise which is The Twilight Saga, you aren’t missing much. But, with that in mind, it makes complete sense that creator Stephanie Meyer would be ready and willing to capitalize on another franchise, now that her vampire/werewolf/emo chick love triangle is coming to an end.

Enter The Host, which hit bookshelves back in 2008. Toted as being “Science fiction for people who don’t like science fiction”, the book is said to be a bit of a departure from Meyer’s Twilight universe. Here’s the synopsis.

The Host is a riveting story about the survival of love and the human spirit in a time of war. Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact. Most of humanity has succumbed.

Set to hit theaters on March 29th of next year, the film has plans to take star Saoirse Ronan (Hanna) and possibly construct her into the next Kristen Stewart with this upcoming adaptation. Take a look at the first trailer after the jump, and be prepared to be dazzled by a series of photoshopped images of creepy eyes.

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Netflix has secured another original series with Hemlock Grove, a thrilling tale of murder and mystery adapted by Eli Roth (Hostel, Cabin Fever), is set to star Famke Janssen (X-Men, Nip/Tuck) and Bill Skarsgard (Anna Karenina, Simon and the Oaks). The series is set to be available for Netflix members to watch instantly, beginning early in 2013.

Set in a ravaged Pennsylvania steel town, Hemlock Grove starts with the body of a young girl, mangled and murdered in the shadow of the former Godfrey steel mill. There are a multitude of suspects from an escapee from the White Tower, a biotech facility owned by the former steel magnates, to a 17-year-old Gypsy kid named Peter from the wrong side of the tracks, who tells his classmates he’s a werewolf. 

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Good news for all you Ender’s Game fans out there as there is finally some forward motion on the film. Ender’s Game has had a long journey getting from a novel to the big screen and finally has a production blog. Even though there is only a single image posted so far, producer Roberto Orci promises to have exclusives from the film over the next year. This would include guest appearances by well known cast members.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Orson Scott Card book series, here is a synopsis. Set in Earth’s future, the plot presents an imperiled humankind who have barely survived two conflicts with the Formics, an insect like alien species that are usually called “Buggers”. These aliens act much like gigantic super smart Earth ants and are very protective of their queen. In preparation for an anticipated third invasion, an international fleet maintains a school to find and train future fleet commanders.

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Though it’s not the full trailer, the official “teaser” for the trailer has made its way onto the internet for the final piece in Summit & Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Saga, Breaking Dawn Part 2.

That’s right. It all comes down to this. From what we’re hearing, this is possibly the most action-filled story in the entire franchise itself. Here’s a quick rundown.

After the birth of Renesmee Cullen, Bella, now a vampire, finds herself enjoying her new life and abilities. However, the vampire Irina misidentifies Renesmee as an “immortal child”, a child who has been turned into a vampire, and because immortal children are uncontrollable, creating them has been outlawed by the Volturi. After Irina presents her allegation to the Volturi, they plan to destroy Renesmee and the Cullens. In an attempt to survive, the Cullens gather other vampire clans from around the world to stand as witnesses and prove to the Volturi that Renesmee is not an immortal child.

Take a look at the teaser after the jump, and catch the film in theaters on November 16th.

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When Universal Studios decided to back out of making three feature films and two limited-run TV series based on Stephen King’s mammoth post-apocalyptic Western The Dark Tower back in July, many thought it was the end of the project. Luckily for fans of the series of books, the partners in the film all pledged they were going to find a way to get a movie made. Now, the films and television series may indeed become a reality thanks to Warner Bros.

According to reports, the company is very close to a deal that will give Ron Howard (Apollo 13, Frost/Nixon) the chance to direct at least the first feature. They are also in talks with Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) about starring as the gunslinger Roland Deschain.

In the story, Roland Deschain is the last living member of a knightly order known as gunslingers and the last of the line of “Arthur Eld”, his world’s analogue of King Arthur. Politically organized along the lines of a feudal society, it shares technological and social characteristics with the American old west but is also magical.

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