BTW News Briefs

SBA Offers Free Disaster Preparedness Webinars

To kick off National Preparedness Month, the U.S. Small Business Administration and Agility Recovery Solutions is hosting a series of free disaster preparedness webinars in September.

The webinars are scheduled from 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. ET on Wednesdays throughout September. The topic for September 14, “The 10 Commandments of Disaster Preparedness,” will be presented by James Rivera, deputy associate administrator, Office of Disaster Assistance.

Space is limited, and registration is required. To register and for details about upcoming webinars, visit preparemybusiness.org/education#.

The SBA provides disaster recovery assistance in the form of low-interest loans to homeowners, renters, private nonprofits and businesses of all sizes. To learn more, visit sba.gov/disaster.

2011 Man Booker Shortlist Announced

The six finalists for the 2011 Man Booker Prize, announced on Tuesday, September 6, are:

• Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending (Jonathan Cape/Random House)
• Carol Birch, Jamrach’s Menagerie (Canongate Books)
• Patrick deWitt, The Sisters Brothers (Granta)
• Esi Edugyan, Half Blood Blues (Serpent’s Tail)
• Stephen Kelman, Pigeon English (Bloomsbury)
• A.D. Miller, Snowdrops (Atlantic)

Kelman and Miller are first-time novelists, and four of the books are from independent publishers.

The winner will be announced on Tuesday,  October 18, at a dinner at London’s Guild Hall. The winner will receive £50,000 and each of the six shortlisted authors, including the winner, will receive £2,500 and a designer bound edition of their book.