Lit Hub Weekly: April 20 - 24, 2020

• “Underneath all the trappings of talking animals and fairy godmothers are tough stories about people who are marginal,  undervalued, and isolated.” Rebecca Solnit on how life inside this strange new fairytale doesn’t have to be lonely. | Lit Hub Life in a Pandemic
• How did writers survive the first Great Depression? Jason Boog looks back to find a way forward. | Lit Hub History
• “To me, nonfiction is an act of translation, and the task for the writer is to bring dead letters to life.” Jessica Pearce Rotondi on writing the family saga of her missing uncle. | Lit Hub Memoir
• Ruth Franklin on reading Stephen King during a pandemic, Nicole Flattery on a gargantuan Andy Warhol biography, and more of the Reviews You Need to Read This Week. | Book Marks
• Molly Odintz recommends 14 crime books set during plagues, contagions, and outbreaks. | CrimeReads
• A recent survey by the Society of Authors reveals a clearer picture of how hard the Covid-19 crisis is hitting writers. | The Bookseller
• Geoff Dyer recommends some under-the-radar books that will make you laugh. | The Guardian
• “These endless days, when my friends and I can’t be together to talk shit or support each other, it’s an even more important way of feeling close.” Emily Gould on pettiness amid the pandemic. | The Cut
• These culinary books will help you take a gastronomical adventure while staying at home. | National Geographic
• On our 50th Earth day, here’s how to find a book about climate change that’s right for you. | The New York Times
• If you need a break from Netflix, why not dive into this “unjustifiably forgotten” 1,198 page novel? | JSTOR
• The announcement of the International Booker Prize has been postponed to May in the hope of helping its winners in a struggling market for books. | The Booker Prizes
• “Let’s all agree now that we’re only giving books as gifts this holiday season.” How independent publishers are responding to the pandemic. | PEN America
• Poets answer the question: How do they decide which piece will end a collection? | Chicago Review of Books
• What does studying Shakespeare teach us about thinking? | Inside Higher Ed
• If you’re finding it difficult to read right now, you’re not alone. Rebecca Makkai, Idra Novey, and more writers recall the moments they fell out with reading—and what brought them back. | The Believer
• Now might be a good time to pick up that book you’ve been intimidated to start for years. | Washington Post
• Crossword puzzle makers recommend some great games to play while social distancing. | The New Yorker
• Benjamin Taylor remembers the many, many hours he spent with Philip Roth over the last 20 years. | The Atlantic
• Carolyn Forché speaks about her first poetry collection in nearly 20 years. | The Nation

Also on Lit Hub:

Christopher Tomlin asks: Who can claim the history of Nat Turner? • Ian Zack on the life of  Odetta, the shy folk singer who defied the fear tactics of the McCarthyites • Why did a misquoted ancient became the voice of weight loss campaign? • Lauren Elkin on what we remember when we walk in the city • Joshua Sperling on the decade John Berger became an art world revolutionary • How the Trump presidency became a hotbed of conspiracy theory • Veronica Esposito on reshaping her life story, and falling out of love with modernist literature • Eight memoirs to keep you company in isolation • Jason Rosenthal on his wife’s final column, recommending him as a good husband • Watching Normal People have very good sex: on adapting Sally Rooney to the small screen • Noam Chomsky on the promise of a Green New Deal · Finding hope for the natural world in poetry • An Yu, thinking of Beijing, while stuck in New York • Lawrence Joseph on Robert Hayden, Etel Adnan, Adrienne Rich, and Cathy Park Hong—poets whose word can help us find a way forward amid the pandemic • Christian Kiefer on writing and hope in the age of pandemic • The trials of Jared K.: At the podium with the first son-in-law • Assimilation and 80s punk culture in small-town Pennsylvania • One-star Amazon reviews of… the dictionary • Gabriel Bump on book tour in the early days of coronavirus • Ilya Kaminsky in conversation with John Freeman • In honor of the Bard’s 456th birthday, five Shakespeare scholars discuss the past, present, and future of theater amid the (current) plague • Tara Neilson reflects on a childhood spent in the wilderness, preparing for the apocalypse • Mai Tran on art and ego • Elizabeth F. Thompson details Syria’s doomed struggle for independence after WWI • Jane Costlow on learning at a distance during a pandemic • Bethany Saltman: a reading list for unpacking a messy world • On balancing panic and relief in a pandemic • Patrick Cockburn on the rise and fall of ISIS, and what comes next • Shahidha Bari on the pleasures and politics of what we wear • A poem by Philip Metres • When coffee truthers W. O. Atwater and Frederick Winslow Taylor tried to destroy America’s mornings

Best of Book Marks:

New on CrimeReads:

(Mentally) escape quarantine with April’s best international crime novels • Camilla Bruce invites you to explore the uncanny • A look at the best new crime nonfiction books coming out in April • From heroes to dirtbags: Paul Levine looks at the evolutional of the fictional lawyer • Paul French on Seishi Yokomizo, the king of Golden Age mysteries in Japan • TaraShea Nesbit appreciates the art of the slow, complex crime novel • Neil Nyren celebrates the life and work of Catherine Aird • Time to settle in on the couch with April’s best crime and mystery debuts • Jack Carr reflects on the warrior’s life and a classic short story • Marcia Clark talks crime, compulsion, and (lack of) closure, interviewed by John B. Valeri