The Hub

News, Notes, Talk

Here are the finalists for the NYPL’s 2026 Young Lions Fiction Award.

Today, the New York Public Library announced the finalists for its Young Lions Fiction Award, which celebrates fiction by “exceptional early-career authors” (read: 35 years old or younger). This year’s judges are Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Raven Leilani, and Alexander Sammartino, Read more >

By Literary Hub

Why you should be reading Nancy Lemann’s nonfiction, too.

This April, a jewel of the American South is experiencing an overdue literary renaissance. Nancy Lemann, bard of New Orleans and stylist nonpareil, has gotten a glow-up—and in some corners, there’s already been much rejoicing. In this week’s New Yorker, Read more >

By Brittany Allen

One great poem to read today: William Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 28”

This April marks the 30th iteration of National Poetry Month, which was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996. To celebrate, the Literary Hub staff will be recommending one great poem to read every (work) day of Read more >

By Drew Broussard

BPL Chief Librarian Edwin B. Maxwell on his favorite books about libraries.

National Library Week is a moment to pause and reflect on what libraries truly are and what they make possible. They are, of course, places of books. But they are also places of access, of memory, of connection, and of Read more >

By Edwin B. Maxwell

One great poem to read today: Carson Jordan’s “Permiso”

This April marks the 30th iteration of National Poetry Month, which was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996. To celebrate, the Literary Hub staff will be recommending one great poem to read every (work) day of Read more >

By Oliver Scialdone

Meet the shortlisted writers for the 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Today, the Women’s Prize Trust announced the shortlist for the 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction, narrowed down to six from a longlist of sixteen. The winner, who will be announced on June 2, will be awarded £30,000 and a statuette Read more >

By Literary Hub

Why a group of writers and artists is boycotting the 92nd Street Y.

Today, an organized group of artists and writers announced the launch of 92NO, a collective protest directed at the New York cultural institution 92NY (formally known the 92nd Street Y). The group represents the formal culmination of a dispute three Read more >

By Brittany Allen

Here’s the shortlist for the 2026 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction.

Today, the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction, which awards $150,000 annually to women and non-binary writers with books published in Canada and the US, announced its 2026 shortlist. The nominated writers were chosen for their “creativity and excellence” by a Read more >

By Literary Hub

One great poem to read today: Allen Ginsberg’s “A Supermarket in California”

This April marks the 30th iteration of National Poetry Month, which was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996. To celebrate, the Literary Hub staff will be recommending one great poem to read every (work) day of Read more >

By McKayla Coyle

Jayne Anne Phillips, Xochitl Gonzalez, T. C. Boyle, and more: 20 new books out today!

A great week for nonfiction, our week’s bounty includes a memoir by Jayne Anne Phillips, a survey of American men by Jordan Ritter Conn, and a deep dive analysis into one of the world’s most dangerous mysteries, the billionaire Elon Read more >

By Julia Hass

$2M worth of stolen rare books have been returned to the Whitney family.

Earlier today, the Manhattan DA’s office announced that it will formally return 17 stolen books to their rightful owners: the Whitneys. And yes, I do mean those Whitneys. The rare books in question were lifted from the family compound nearly Read more >

By Brittany Allen

One great poem to read today: Ada Limón’s “The Noisiness of Sleep”

This April marks the 30th iteration of National Poetry Month, which was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996. To celebrate, the Literary Hub staff will be recommending one great poem to read every (work) day of Read more >

By James Folta

These were the 11 most challenged books in 2025.

Today, to coincide with the beginning of National Library Week, the American Library Association (ALA) has released its list of the 11 Most Challenged Books of 2025, which is part of their annual State of America’s Libraries Report. In 2025, Read more >

By Emily Temple

Here’s what’s making us happy this week.

The name of the game this week is games and growth. We at Lit Hub are splitting the biscuit between new beginnings and alternate histories. We’re getting out, and looking back. Jonny Diamond is welcoming spring Mary Lennox-style—i.e., with the holiness transition deserves. Read more >

By Brittany Allen

This week’s news in Venn diagrams.

I’ve been one of the folks running out Best Literary Film Adaptation bracket this week—have you voted yet?—and so I’ve missed a few of this week’s stories. Let’s catch up together with some Venns. This is a sidebar, but there’s Read more >

By James Folta

One great poem to read today: Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays”

This April marks the 30th iteration of National Poetry Month, which was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996. To celebrate, the Literary Hub staff will be recommending one great poem to read every (work) day of Read more >

By Jonny Diamond

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