ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

WORDS

Unknown Translation Of Molière By “Clockwork Orange” Author Anthony Burgess Is Discovered

"Miser! Miser! is a complete translation of L'Avare (The Miser) of 1668 ... that Burgess wrote in the early 1990s, yet it has never been performed or published. But now it could finally be staged as it will published for the first time in a forthcoming book." - The Guardian

$100,000 Giller Prize For Best Canadian Fiction Work Goes To Suzette Mayr’s “The Sleeping Car Porter”

"The Calgary-based Mayr won for her novel ..., which follows a queer, Black sleeping car porter making a treacherous trip from Montreal to Vancouver in 1929." - Toronto Star

The Dreariness Of Book Clubs

I read and write about books for fun. And yet, time and again, my mind goes blank during book discussions, and all I can muster up is “Er, I thought the book was good, because …” - LA Review of Books

Opening A Small Town Bookstore At The Height Of The Pandemic Wasn’t Easy

But Roman philosophers helped a lot. Truly. - LitHub

Yes, You Can Judge A Book By Its Cover

After all, publishers spend a fair amount of time on it. "Whether the genre is romance, thriller or fantasy, artists, designers and authors who collaborate on book covers say they're more critical to a book's success or failure than most people understand." - CBC

A Novelist Who Doesn’t Believe Books Are Particularly Comforting

Sunjeev Sahota: "It may be true that novels keep you company, but really they spotlight your terrible isolation." - The Guardian (UK)

Like Many In Times Of War, Ukrainians Turn To Diaries To Document The Crisis

"The women were telling me that they were writing by hand at night with no electricity, by candlelight, just to not go insane." - The New York Times

In The UK, A Parliamentary Report Calls To Fund Libraries

Is this the same Britain that ruthlessly cut libraries in underserved areas all across the country? The report "recommends that the government should 'support the development of a network of hubs providing cultural spaces, workspaces and free, fast internet access.'" - The Guardian (UK)

Brigitte Giraud Wins The Prix Goncourt

She is the thirteenth woman to win in the prize's 120-year-old history. "The prize is worth just €10 but guarantees renown and massive book sales. Most winners prefer to frame rather than cash their Goncourt cheque." - The Guardian (UK)

Prix Goncourt, France’s Top Book Award, Goes To Brigitte Giraud For “Vivre Vite” (“Living Fast”)

"Giraud, 56, a French writer of novels and short stories, was declared winner ... after the jury voted 14 times. After a final vote ended in stalemate, the president of the Goncourt Academy cast a deciding vote, choosing Giraud over her closest rival, Giuliano da Empoli." - The Guardian

The Irish Language Is Seeing The Start Of A Renaissance In Northern Ireland

"Young people with no personal memories of a time when the Irish language was championed as a form of resistance by republican IRA inmates on hunger strike ... are the driving force behind a cultural revival that has breathed new life into a language long in decline." - The New European

The Power Of Profanity: Using Bad Words Really Is Good For You, Finds Study

"'Swearing produces effects that are not observed with other forms of language use. Thus, swearing is powerful,' a group of scientists from universities in the UK determined. 'It generates a range of distinctive outcomes: physiological, cognitive, emotional, pain-relieving, interactional and rhetorical.'" - New York Post

Messy As It Is, A Case For Translation

One ongoing effort to pin down the instable entity that is translation involves finding metaphors or analogies for it. This epistemological parlor game has resulted in a list that is long and still growing. The examples are instructive even if limited. - Hudson Review

It’s Word-Of-The-Year Season Again, And The First Winner Is Perfect For 2022

That word, chosen by Collins English Dictionary in the UK is "permacrisis."  Among the other top choices are "vibe shift," "Partygate," "quiet quitting," and "splooting." - CBS News

A John Steinbeck Essay About American Democracy Is Published In English For The First Time

"The piece, titled 'How About McCarthyism?' was originally published in 1954 in French in Le Figaro littéraire, although Steinbeck wrote it in English. The piece is being published in English in The Strand magazine." - The Guardian

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