"The scrap of papyrus — scarcely larger than a postage stamp with four lines of angular script — is one of just a few from the Late Iron Age, archaeologists said." How it ended up being sold to a Montana woman in 1965 is unclear, but it's been returned to Israel. - AP
"Punk feminist" author Virginie Despentes's novel, titled Cher connard (roughly, "Dear Asshole"), goes deep into what this correspondent describes as "France's sometimes difficult relationship with the #MeToo movement." - The Guardian
While some on the internet were glued to Twitter or the BBC, checking for news or watching the planes en route to Balmoral Castle, one group of dedicated Wikipedia editors sprang into action updating the late queen’s page in the minutes after Buckingham Palace announced the news. - Gizmodo
Strategies on how to lodge complaints against books are traded on Facebook and shared among branch chapters of parental rights groups. One of the most influential of these groups is the Florida-based Moms for Liberty. Since January 2021, it has grown to 200 chapters with 100,000 members. - The New York Times
"It’s absolutely beyond creepy—and therefore totally in keeping with Facebook’s general vibe—that adults are spending time avidly thumbing through children’s books to look for anything they might consider vaguely 'pornographic' (or, you know, vaguely affirming of non-white or queer identities)." - LitHub
One 17-year-old in the secret book club: "Anne Frank is, like, as a friend for me. ... I mean, Anne Frank is suffering from war, and I am, too. And Anne Frank cannot go to school, cannot, like, go out very freely. And I have the same situation." - NPR
"Sometimes writers draw from older stories—myths, histories, ancient epics—when crafting new ones. One might find in that rewriting an opportunity to recast a celebrated figure." Obvious. but many new (or popular on BookTok) works are strong on the retelling right now. - The Atlantic
Volunteers held the line for a decade, but now local government has stepped in to save and shore up the tower in Dublin where Joyce began Ulysses. - Irish Times
With the cost-of-living crisis taking hold, the publishing industry hopes Truss and her government will bring in a range of measures to ensure people from all backgrounds are able to access books easily. - The Guardian
In announcing this shift, prize founder Scott Griffin said that Canadian poets are capable of competing on the world stage. “Yes, Canadians will not have this automatic prize each year. But in a sense, there is a statement here that’s saying Canadians can hold their own.” - The Globe & Mail (Canada)
"High-level (layoffs) are unusual for any established magazine, and they are unprecedented for National Geographic, which has enjoyed stable editorial leadership since its founding by the nonprofit National Geographic Society of Washington in 1888." - MSN (The Washington Post)
While complaints from junior staffers about crushing workloads and low pay have begun to creep into some industry reporting, publishing veterans are also unhappy. Some say that decades of corporate consolidation and two-plus years of working from home have exposed widening cracks. - Publishers Weekly
"The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will discontinue its daily print edition and go to a weekend print edition, but it will continue its digital news operation seven days a week, according to interviews with a half dozen people close to the newspaper." - SaportaReport (Atlanta)
