The creator of the "Harry Potter" books JK Rowling said on Tuesday she would release a free online serialisation of a bed-time story she wrote for her children 10 years ago.

哈利波特系列著作的作者JK羅琳週二表示，她將在網路上免費釋出10年前寫給孩子的床邊故事集。

Rowling said she decided to pull "The Ickabog" story "down from the attic" and publish it for children forced to stay at home during the coronavirus lockdown.

羅琳表示，她決定把《The Ickabog》從閣樓裡拉出來，出版給因為武漢肺炎封鎖令，被迫待在家裡的孩子們。

She would post the first two chapters on a dedicated website on Tuesday, with 34 further instalments released each weekday until July 10.

她會在週二將前2章放在專屬網站上，其他34章會在7月10日前每週刊出。

"The Ickabog" is unrelated to any of Rowling’s other previous works, though she noted it was penned "in fits and starts" between her "Harry Potter" books.

《The Ickabog》與羅琳以前的其他作品沒有關聯，儘管這部作品是在出版《哈利波特》期間開始動筆的。

She then intends to publish the story in English in November and other languages later on. All royalties will be given to projects assisting groups particularly affected by the pandemic.

她打算在今年11月以英文與其他語言出版這部故事。所有版稅都會捐給援助團體的計畫，尤其是受武漢肺炎大流行影響的團體。

Book sales soar as French lockdown eases 法國逐步解封 圖書銷量飆升

Book sales in France have soared since the country began to ease its lockdown, rocketing more than 230 percent in a week, a survey showed Monday.

一項調查週一指出，自從法國開始放寬封鎖令，境內圖書銷量也飆升，在一週內激增逾230％。

A study for the trade weekly Livres Hebdo found that from May 11 to 17 bookshops did a roaring trade, with readers desperate to stock up while public libraries remained shut.

根據貿易週刊「圖書週刊」（ Livres Hebdo）所做的調查，5月11日至17日書店銷量大增，因為讀者在公共圖書館仍持續關閉的情況下，拚命購買書籍囤積。

Many French bookshops had partially reopened in the last weeks of the country’s strict eight-week confinement for takeaway or click and collect sales.

在為期8週嚴格居家令的最後幾週，法國許多書店已局部重新開放，提供外帶或線上預定、再到店取貨的服務。

Even so, overall, sales were 60 percent down compared the corresponding period in 2019.

即使如此，總體而言，銷售額還是比2019年同期下降60％。

Despite the proliferation of online reading groups during the lockdown, the French publishing industry has been badly hit, with publishers claiming that revenues have dropped by 80 percent.

儘管在疫情封鎖期間電子書讀書會激增，但法國出版業仍受到嚴重衝擊。出版商聲稱，這段時間的營收下降80％。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1378546 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1378293