Larry Doyle

"Had Larry been cool, he could have never written I Love You, Beth Cooper, a hilarious yet painfully accurate account of high school in all its pimply glory," said Firoozeh Dumas, one of the judges for this year's prize.

Doyle lives in Baltimore with his wife and three children but it was his experiences at Buffalo Grove High School that inspired the novel that won him the prize.

The two runners-up this year were Patricia Marx (Him Her Him Again The End of Him) and Simon Rich (Ant Farm). Past winners include David Sedaris, Christopher Buckley, Jon Stewart and Alan Zweibel.

Tina Fey as Sarah Palin on "Saturday
Night Live." (NBC photo)

The New York Observer reported last Friday that Little, Brown & Company will release a book of -- what else? -- humorous essays written by the 38-year-old 21st century comedy wonder woman.

It stands to reason that Fey would write a book. She has said on numerous occasions that even though she's gained fame and visibility through her TV acting, she sees herself first and foremost as a writer. Proof positive came last year when she proudly walked the picket line with her Writers Guild brethren during their three-month strike. She also had this to say when she picked up her writing Emmy (for "30 Rock") just a couple of weeks ago: I'm very proud to be a writer, I would not have any of the other jobs I have if I had not been a writer first."

Little, Brown hasn't yet released any details on the deal. Stay tuned...

Zondervan kicked off a 90-city, 15,000-mile cross-country tour today in Grand Rapids, Mich., to mark the 30th anniversary of its popular New International Version translation of the book.

The tour will stop at special events, churches and U.S. landmarks to allow people to write out Bible verses. The collection of handwritten verses will be published and sold after the tour ends in San Diego on Feb. 12.

The Michigan-based publisher says most verses will be written by regular people, although the company hopes to collect a few from President Bush, the Rev. Billy Graham and others.

AP

NOTE: Find out where the Bible Tour RV is today and where it's going next. It's scheduled to stop in Chicago on Nov. 2-3.

While the book is fun to page through -- especially for someone who's worked with words her entire career -- I'm not sure who would actually plunk down six bucks for it. Some of the other books in the series would be worth buying as stocking-stuffers or gifts for graduates (100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know, 100 Words to Make You Sound Smart).

Two words in the new volume did grab my attention because their mispronunciation falls into the category of "my personal pet-peeves": mischievous and primer.

The first, "mischievous," is often mispronounced as such: mis-chee'-vee-us. There is no third "i" in the word yet lazy readers will see what they want to see and instead of looking up the proper pronunciation simply say it like they think it should sound.

The second, "primer," meaning a book that covers the basic elements of a subject, is commonly mispronounced with a long "i" rather then the short "i." The long-i "primer" is the first coat of paint you put on your walls. The instruction-booklet "primer" should be pronounced like the word "prim," as in prim and proper.

The 100 words are listed on the last page, so I went there first, to test my own knowledge. I did pretty well -- 95 percent. In my defense, I can honestly say I've never uttered in conversation the five words I got wrong. Here they are, in alphabetic order (correct pronunciations in parentheses):

Antipodes (an-tip'e-deez)

Boatswain (bo'sen)

Concupiscence (kon-kyoo'pi-sens) -- Sadly I'd never even heard of this word. It means "a strong desire, especially sexual desire; lust."

Quay (kee)

Quietus (kwi-eet'es)

Magnificent Desolation: The Long Road Home from the Moon will be published next year by Harmony Books, in time for the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing.

Buzz Aldrin (AP photo)

''From the pinnacle of Apollo, my greatest challenge became the human one -- overcoming alcoholism and living beyond depression -- a challenge that required more courage and determination than going to the moon,'' Aldrin, 78, said in a statement issued Thursday by Harmony.

''I was 39 years of age, had achieved my grandest goal, and should have been on top of the world, but there were no roadmaps, and few signposts if any along the way that could lead me out of the quagmire into which I had tumbled. For 10 years, I floundered.''

Neil Armstrong and Aldrin were on Apollo 11's lunar module, which landed on the moon on July 20, 1969.

AP

The onetime first lady began her publishing career at Viking and quickly moved on to Doubleday, where she worked until her death in 1994. Naturally, Doubleday will publish the book, which is due out in 2011.

Jackie Kennedy Onassis
in New York in 1992.
(AP photo)

''My book will mine this critical period in her life, the one in which she became the woman she'd always intended to be,'' Kuhn told the Associated Press.

I'm looking forward to this new look at the famous widow as this was the part of her life that I always found most intriguing -- that she actually went out and got herself a job when by all accounts she never had to work a day in her life. According to Doubleday, Kuhn has interviewed many of the authors she worked with, collaborators and friends. Should be a fascinating read.

It took author David Wroblewski more than a decade to finish the book, which was a best seller over the summer and received much advance buzz and rave reviews. On the surface it's the story of a boy and his dog in rural Wisconsin; on a deeper level it weaves coming-of-age, family intrigue, mysticism and more.

David Wroblewski took his time (more than 10 years)
writing The Story of Edgar Sawtelle.
(Michael Buckner~Getty Images)

Wroblewski will participate in a live, interactive Webcast with Oprah Book Club members. Details will be announced at a later date on Oprah.com. To join the book club (membership is free): www.oprah.com/bookclub.

Here is the Sun-Times' review of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle ...

Amy Leach

Leach and the other recipients -- Jennifer Culkin, Joanne Dominique Dwyer, Jolie Lewis, Hasanthika Sirisena and Therese Stanton -- will be honored in a ceremony tomorrow in New York City, where they each will receive $25,000.

Leach is working on her first book, a collection of essays described as addressing "the spiritual and the everyday with a comc's sense of timing to create something entirely original that falls on the boundary between prose and poetry." Her work has appeared in The Iowa Review, A Public Space and Identitytheory.com.

The awards program was created by novelist Rona Jaffe, who died in 2005.

Lynne Spears writes (with Lorilee Craker) about both her famous daughters -- Britney and famous pregnant teen Jamie Lynn -- in Through the Storm: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World (Thomas Nelson, $24.99).

According to the Associated Press, which got its hands on an advance copy of the book, Lynne Spears "rejects the image that she pushed Britney into show business, and writes that the singer was always focused on achievement and would constantly practice to the music of Madonna, Whitney Houston and others." (If I had a dime for every little girl who sang along with their favorite pop stars...)

Lynne Spears also praises Kevin Federline (Britney's ex-husband) as a "caring daddy" and Britney as "an amazing mother" -- but only when at her best.

This book will likely sit on the best seller list for a week or two, which is a shame because it sounds like nothing more than a mother cashing in on her dysfunctional daughters' successes and failures. Apples don't fall far from the tree, Ms. Spears.

It didn't win. The winning entry, crowned by an online voting public, is Greek Rural Postmen and Their Cancellation Numbers, published in 1994 by a British stamp-collecting organization.

Philip Stone, charts editor for The Bookseller, had this to say about the choice: "I sincerely believe that this title provides further proof to the current government that the British public are passionate about the maintenance and continuation of local mail delivery services."

I suppose he's joking here given the whole nature of the contest. And I've always enjoyed the British sense of humor, but come on! Not funnier than Living With Crazy Buttocks. Sorry. Here are some of the other competing titles:

People Who Don't Know They're Dead (runner-up)

How to Avoid Huge Ships (third place)

Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice

How Green Were the Nazis?

Reusing Old Graves

I'm thinking we here in the U.S. can come up with some funnier titles, so I'm going to start collecting them. Suggestions welcome. Send to: tbudasi@suntimes.com.

Yesterday he posted a timely item about John McCain's running mate Sarah Palin and her early days in politics. Apparently when she was mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, she wielded her power to fire a librarian who vowed to fight Palin in her "rhetorical" effort to ban books. This item was among a few others listed in a New York Times article. Leave it to Henry to flush out the small but significant details.

Louise Gluck

That's Random House's swift capitalization of Biden's being tapped by presidential hopeful Barack Obama. The new paperback edition of Biden's 2007 best seller -- which originally was going to be released after the election -- will arrive in stores Thursday. The publisher has ordered a printing of 100,000

''Bringing out the hardcover last year during the hectic lead-in to the primaries didn't help the book because it was perceived by some to be a campaign tool," said Tom Perry, a deputy publisher at Random House. "It's actually a fine and moving memoir ... this is a new opportunity for the book and it's a great way to get to know who this man is and what he stands for."

Biden has served in the U.S. senate for 35 years.

Here's what the Christian Science Monitor had to say about the book: "Joe Biden's Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics is the most unlikely of campaign biographies: It's a ripping good read... Biden is a master storyteller and has stories worth telling. From conversations with President Bush and world leaders to overcoming personal tragedies and a childhood stutter, the book is paced to keep the pages turning."

Being a Scot -- which doesn't yet appear to have a U.S. release date -- looks at Connery's early life as a milkman in Edinburgh's Fountainbridge neighborhood, then delves into a wide-ranging look at Scottish culture including the work of poet Robert Burns, novelist Sir Walter Scott and Mary, Queen of Scots.

Sean Connery unveiled Being A Scot at the Edinburgh Book Festival today in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

''It will illuminate what Fountainbridge's most famous former milkman thinks of many aspects of Scottish culture and life, including sport, architecture, and of course the gothic tendency in Scots literature,'' said Edinburgh International Book Festival director Catherine Lockerbie.

Connery is a vocal supporter of the pro-independence Scottish National Party. He lives in the Bahamas and has said he will not reside in Scotland until it gains independence from the United Kingdom.

He was the first -- and, many say, the best -- Bond. In a six-decade career, Connery also starred in ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,'' ''The Hunt for Red October'' and ''The Untouchables,'' which earned him an Academy Award for best supporting actor.

The unveiling of Being a Scot coincides with Connery's 78th birthday. The actor is appearing at the book festival alongside his co-author, the filmmaker and writer Murray Grigor.

The Edinburgh event is one of Britain's leading literary gatherings, and runs alongside jazz, comedy and performing arts festivals in the Scottish capital each August.

Ben McConville/AP

Note: Another former Bond, Roger Moore, also has a memoir coming out. Look for My Word is My Bond around Nov. 4.

Doyle, a former writer for "The Simpsons" and "Beavis and Butt-Head" and current contributor to the New Yorker and Esquire magazines, is now in post-production for the movie version of I Love You, Beth Cooper. Hayden Pannetierre (the cheerleader on NBC's "Heroes") stars as the title character, who gives a nerdy classmate a night he'll never forget after he professes his feelings in his high school valedictory speech.

Buffalo Grove native Larry Doyle wrote I Love You, Beth Cooper, which is now
being made into a movie. (John J. Kim / Sun-Times)

The other two finalists are Patricia Marx for Him Her Him Again The End of Him (Scribner) and Simon Rich for Ant Farm (Random House). The award will be presented in October at New York's famed Algonquin Hotel, once home to New Yorker cartoonist James Thurber.

Here's a YouTube video of Doyle talking about his novel, shoes and "The Simpsons," among other things. It's in two parts: