This weekend saw another round of Mary Oliver discourse on Twitter. Like all Mary Oliver discourse, the essential argument was whether her poetry is Cringe and Corny or Good, Actually. I have no desire whatsoever to weigh in on this Read more >
When a formal letter begins with “Albertus Magnus would have been appalled!,” you know it’s gonna be good. That’s how The New School interim president Donna E. Shalala opened a blistering missive to Rector of the University of Cologne, Prof. Read more >
Attention, nostalgic cinephiles–in honor of the recent anniversaries of certain teen movies dear to former freaks and/or geeks (Happy 35th, Heathers! And 25th, 10 Things…!), I’ve been revisiting the classics with an eye to locating their literary cousins. If you Read more >
For obvious reasons, today is an excellent day to read Annie Dillard’s 1982 masterpiece “Total Eclipse,” in which she describes seeing a solar eclipse with her husband in Washington, and which is very likely the best piece of writing ever Read more >
“We refuse to let our work distract for even a second from the filthy business of war. To use language that will be familiar to a bank: it’s not worth it. We won’t be bought. There isn’t a book or Read more >
People around the world are getting ready for the total solar eclipse next Monday, April 8th. I secured a pair of glasses last month, since the last time there was a solar eclipse in New York, I had to borrow Read more >
Fellow travelers and cinephiles—look sharp. Solidarity may really be upon us. Word on the street is that Francis Ford Coppola’s much-anticipated epic, Megalopolis, about an idealistic architect with utopian dreams for New York City, is inspired by not just one Read more >
It’s hard not to think about form when writing—to say nothing of starting—an obituary for John Barth. The conventions of the obituary are there to be picked up: appraise the work succinctly (see “kaleidoscopic” above), trace the biography (did you Read more >
Today, the PEN/Faulkner Foundation announced the winner of the 2024 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction: Claire Jiménez’s What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez (Grand Central). What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez was chosen by a panel of judges (Xochitl Gonzalez, Alan Michael Parker, and Lynn Read more >
The Windham-Campbell Prizes has announced this year’s eight winners, each of whom will receive an $175,000 award. This annual prize recognizes excellence in fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry written in the English language from anywhere in the world, and is Read more >
If you’ve been to enough book events, you start to recognize some distinct archetypes. See how many you can spot at the next reading or book launch you attend. The Nervous Writer Some authors are confident and poised behind a Read more >
Maryse Condé, the Guadaloupean novelist, playwright, essayist, and “Grande Dame of World Letters” has died. A Booker Prize and New Academy Prize winning author, Condé was an international sensation, and the author of more than twenty books. She was known Read more >
It’s quite a day for new books. If you’ve been on the search for something different, dynamic, daring, devastating, or deviously funny, you’re in luck: I’ve compiled a list of no less than twenty-six options for you to consider. You’ll Read more >
Today Samuel Delany–inventor/expander of several galaxies–turns 82. And I for one would like to throw some birthday love towards this greatest of octogenarians. Known for his high-concept science fiction and his sharp theories on social contact, Delany’s canon spans genres Read more >
We may be in for another hot labor summer in literature and publishing this year. Two recent news items caught my eye, as workers continue organizing in the world of books. Workers at the Oxford University Press Union are threatening Read more >
Plath obsessives, take heed: rare book firm Type Punch Matrix is bringing over two dozen items from the poet’s early life and work—many of them never before shown in public—to this year’s New York International Antiquarian Book Fair. The collection Read more >
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