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Here lies my great love

A novel idea for a book? It's not easy, especially with nearly 300,000 new titles and editions published each year, and sales flat — at best. But here's a new twist on the old subject of failed romance: Relationship Obituaries, a book by Kathleen Horan due out in April 2009, based on the WNYC reporter's Web site.

It's mainly women writing death notices about their failed relationships. For a flavor of what to expect, you can go to the site, www.relationshipobit.com.

While the book is billed as humorous, the few entries I read on the site were more in the category of scorned and forlorn.

In an interview on National Public Radio, Horan described the site as a ”sort of wake for love.“ And just like when it's over in life, the dead rest in silence if not in peace.

This summer's breakout book

Who really decides what we read?

A recent survey found that adult readers were most influenced by recommendations from family and friends.

But look what happened to the 566-page debut novel by David Wroblewski. Since its release on June 10, Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins, has gone back to press three times to keep up with demand for Wroblewski's book, titled The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, a coming-of-age story set in rural Wisconsin about a mute boy and his dog.

The book gained media attention even before it came out, most notably with a cover story in The Washington Post's Book World. Significantly, Amazon.com weighed in with strong promotions after selecting it as one of the best books of June. Among other things, the retailer featured an endorsement of the book by celebrity author Stephen King. Amazon also had the book on its home page for two weeks at a 40 percent discount.

The Wall Street Journal now says the book is positioned to be one of the ”breakout titles“ of the summer.

Wroblewski, 48, worked on the book for 10 years. He grew up — with dogs — on a Wisconsin farm.