"What is a home for if not to fill it with books? What would I do without them? I can’t get rid of these stories, even though I’ve internalized them. They’re part of me. They’re mine, and the physical reminder of that needs to be here, on the shelf.” - Reactor
"What kinds of intellectual work is considered worthy of our attention? What boxes have women historically been permitted to fill?” - The New York Times
"Everything radiated outward from this central core across two carpeted floors, in diminishing order of importance: the slightly smaller publishing houses, then the ones whose best years are behind them, then the niche ones, then the flatly obscure." - The New York Times
In setting out to identify that new American canon, we decided to define American as having first been published in the United States (or intended to be—read more in our entries on Lolita and The Bell Jar). And we narrowed our aperture to the past 100 years. - The Atlantic
It's with the app called Espresso, whose 2023 subscriber numbers were up 64% from 2022. Says marketing VP Nada Arnot, "It's a snack-size version if you will, but it's not in any way a diluted version. It's not a substitute to the core product." - Press Gazette (UK)
“Poetry was the first way in which Tolkien expressed himself creatively and through it the seeds of his literary ambition would be sown." - The Bookseller
"Across Ireland, English is playing second fiddle to Irish in emerging arts scenes. Even though fewer than 2% of the population speak it daily, Irish is hip; the preferred language of young poets at bilingual spoken-word nights … and being blared out in metal, techno and hip-hop." - The Guardian
"(The American Library Association) announced that 4,240 works in school and public libraries had been targeted in 2023, a substantial hike from the then-record 2,571 books in 2022. … The number of separate challenges (is slightly down), ... but efforts to censor (multiple) books at a time have surged in Florida and Texas." - AP
The magazine, once a prominent publication for fiction, poetry, and literary nonfiction, with a focus on global art and politics, quickly found itself imploding as its all-volunteer staff revolted over the essay. - The Atlantic (MSN)
While women played key roles in the development of crosswords in the US, by the late 20th-century, puzzle-constructing was dominated by college-educated white guys, and clues reflected that. Today the puzzling world, gradually becoming more diverse, can help create a common cultural vocabulary in a diverse society. - The Atlantic (MSN)
The novel was published this week, unleashing a backlash from scholars, writers and fans who’ve taken exception not with the novel itself, but rather with what they see as an act of betrayal that endangers García Márquez’s legacy. - The New York Times
"Patriotic blogger Wu Wanzheng, who goes by 'Truth-Telling Mao Xinghuo' online, sued under a law that carries civil penalties and (occasionally) criminal punishments for perceived offenses against China’s heroes and martyrs. Wu claimed Mo’s books have smeared the Chinese Communist Party’s reputation ... and insulted former revolutionary leader Mao Zedong." - AP
"While one hardcover copy of (Robin) Cook’s latest novel costs (a) library $18, it costs $55 to lease a digital copy — a price that can’t be haggled with publishers. And for that, the e-book expires after a limited time, usually one or two years, or after 26 checkouts." - AP
The 13-book longlist "signals a 'second ‘boom’ in Latin American fiction', said judges, with a quarter of the nominated authors being South American." - The Guardian (UK)
Kathryn Scanlon, winner of the Gordon Burn prize, says, "I love that you could come to this book and not really know what it is you’re reading.” - The Guardian (UK)
