IBIC's mission is to provide you with useful, interesting, and important information about books.


Sponsorship information

What Makes IBIC Different From Other Book-Related Sites?

What IBIC Is What IBIC Isn't What The Difference Means
IBIC is an enthusiast publication intended to serve the global community of book-lovers. IBIC is not a trade publication intended primarily for professionals in a field. IBIC is more like AUTOMOBILE or PREMIERE than it is like PUBLISHERS' WEEKLY.
IBIC is animated by a strong, personal editorial perspective. IBIC is not a bland corporate rag. IBIC provides a unique, distinctive point of view, and this is the one and only place to find it.
IBIC went on the Web on March 30, 1994. We remember when there were only 130 Web servers in the whole world--and that seemed like a lot! We aren't a parvenu to the Net community. We were on the Web before the gold rush. IBIC was the first book-related "megasite" to appear on the Web; that's why PUBLISHERS' WEEKLY called us "the granddaddy of book-related sites on the Internet".
IBIC is a "Center." IBIC is not a periodical. IBIC publishes new information whenever it is important and worthwhile to do so. Practically speaking--the What's New for Book-Lovers and Letters pages are updated daily; news items are added 2-3 times/week; new reviews are added to Bookviews every couple of weeks. Updates will be less frequent during summer 1996.
IBIC is an "Internet" Information Center. IBIC is not a traditional publication repackaged for the Web. Unlike many of our competitors, we do not hesitate to link liberally to sites outside its own Webspace. We link to the best information available, wherever it is located.
IBIC is a system of selective, interrelated guides ... not an omnibus database. We're not trying to duplicate review databases like the one at Amazon.com, or Leonard Maltin's movie review book; instead, we're trying to make interesting and important connections for you.
IBIC is more like a multi-volume book ... ... and less like a magazine ... in that it represents a massive, somewhat obsessive attempt, written primarily (but not exclusively) by a single individual, to provide comprehensive coverage of a very wide range of issues and interests in the field of books.
IBIC is a global service. IBIC tries not to be parochial. Please let us know about important events related to the world of books, especially outside North America. We know our users are from all over the globe. That's why we provide services like the World Literature page.
IBIC has been located at http://www.bookviews.com/ibic since June 1, 1996. For the first two years of its existence, IBIC resided in serverspace provided courtesy of Sunsite, a joint venture of Sun Microsystems and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

We gratefully acknowledge the terrific folks at Sunsite!
IBIC has a business agreement with Amazon.com Books. There is no management or ownership relationship between IBIC and Amazon.com Books. IBIC and Amazon.com Books are completely separate, independent companies.
IBIC's revenues are derived from 1) sponsorships and 2) a percentage of revenue of books sold via the Amazon.com ordering system. IBIC isn't a charity. IBIC is (once again) a pioneer in on-line publishing, in that it has successfully developed a dual revenue stream.
As an organization devoted to serving the needs of book-lovers, IBIC is in favor of publishers selling lots of books. IBIC does not accept any payments from publishers or authors on behalf of particular titles. (In winter 1995, the NEW YORK TIMES reported that it is commonplace for traditional booksellers to charge publishers substantial fees for the right to place featured titles in prominent locations.) IBIC's first loyalty is to you, our readers.
IBIC is a Michigan corporation. IBIC is not owned by a huge multinational media conglomerate and we don't have any venture capitalists. On the one hand, we don't have any to grind any axes on behalf of a mystical corporate "synergy". On the other hand, we wouldn't mind being better capitalized, and we're always interested in hearing about new opportunities.
IBIC is a popular and well-regarded service.See our "kudos" page for more details. We aren't indifferent to what you think. Please tell us how we're doing!


Editor's Recommendations, Summer 1996

In this inaugural edition of IBIC's Featured Books, I'd like to draw your attention to several titles which have helped to shape my life and thinking.

  • When I was around fifteen, I came across Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's science fiction novel, INFERNO. This '70s remake of Dante's classic describes science fiction writer Allen Carpentier's descent into Hell. It's still a very fresh, accessible take on the classic. What a great movie it would make!
  • The Niven/Pournelle INFERNO immediately inspired me to read the original Divine Comedy. I've read a number of translations over the years, but my favorite is the one by Dorothy Sayers (INFERNO; PURGATORY; PARADISE). The notes are excellent, and Sayers had such a knowledgeable and witty mind that reading her prose is a pleasure in itself. (For those interested in a more contemporary translation, I should mention that Robert Pinsky received excellent notices for his 1995 THE INFERNO OF DANTE : A NEW VERSE TRANSLATION; it's a very handsome book.)
  • I also want to tell you about the late Henry Fairlie's THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS TODAY, which probably did more than any other single book to galvanize me into a lifetime interest in Christianity that led me, eventually, to faith. Ironic, because Fairlie was a self-proclaimed agnostic socialist! But reading between the lines of this insightful and deeply feeling book, one realizes that the love of God cannot have been far from Fairlie's heart.
  • Finally, I should draw to your attention a more recent acquisition, the very handsome NIV STUDY BIBLE (10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) from Zondervan, indexed and bonded in leather in IBIC's theme color, burgundy (black and brown are also available). The notes to this Bible are amazing. They appear to provide you with a very substantial portion of what you need to know to have an intelligent layman's appreciation of the linguistic and historical issues involved in understanding Scripture.

IBIC now provides seamless links to the on-line ordering system at Amazon.com Books. To order a book, just click on an underlined title. As a default, we link to paperback rather than hardcover editions of a particular title (although we may modify this rule if a hardcover edition looks to be a particularly good deal). Our editorial philosophy is to put your interests first.

Comprehensive Table of Contents | Help

Copyright © 1996 Internet Book Information Center, Inc.

Send a Letter to the Editor