Do you think you know what makes a classic novel… er… classic? The Washington Post thinks maybe we should think again. WaPo recently asked readers of their Book Club newsletter “which classic books are overrated and which unsung novels should be considered top-tier, we didn’t predict the level of enthusiasm that would accompany the responses”. Among those that some readers thought should get the toss were iconic books like J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the […]
It’s been (ahem) an eventful few weeks. We won’t go into it deeply in this space. Just yet. But one thing that brightened the last week or so was the constant stream of people we noted on social media compiling lists — and pointing us at others — where one could read “real books” on Appalachia, “better than the POS one” by the man who is now a vice-presidential hopeful. All right then. Bookriot said […]
The New York Times does it best, of course. What lines from poems and plays have fueled the imaginations of more contemporary writers? Take this 12 question, multiple choice quiz to see how you rank. And prepared to be amazed. The thing that astonished me the most comes early on, in question 2: Chinua Achebe’s 1958 novel “Things Fall Apart,” Joan Didion’s 1968 essay collection “Slouching Towards Bethlehem” and Robert B. Parker’s 1983 thriller “The […]
Robert MacNeil, the journalist who brought news to PBS, died Friday “after a long illness” according to the PBS news representative who confirmed MacNeil’s death. It was the Canadian-born journalist’s coverage of the Watergate scandal that led to the first newscasts on PBS. He was the founding anchor of “PBS NewsHour,” first launched in 1975 as “The Robert MacNeil Report” and later renamed “The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour” when journalist Jim Lehrer was added to the lineup. […]
The 2024 shortlist for the International Booker Prize was announced last week, introducing us to six books from around the globe that have been translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland. The prize recognizes the vital work of translators with the £50,000 prize money divided equally: £25,000 (about $31,000 US) for the author and £25,000 for the translator (or divided equally between multiple translators). In addition, there is a prize of £5,000 […]
by Courtney Bill Tekteksen, or East Point, Saturna Island. August 10, 2018. Sixty people collected on the grass overlooking the Salish Sea. They cross their legs, lean back on their hands, fumble to take pictures of the fading sky. They had gathered to listen to a talk about the southern resident orcas. In the distance, past the sculpted sandstone cliffs stood the San Juan Islands and a view of Mount Baker. The East Point Lighthouse […]
Sometimes, these days, it’s better to laugh than cry. You know: when life gives you lemons, chug some lemonade. The lemonade in the banned book scenario is a brand new reading list: created for us by those who would restrict what we’d read. Thankfully, it doesn’t work that way. Not sure what to read this week? Choose one of these. And we can make light (back to that laugh so you don’t cry scenario) but […]
Everyone is looking for the perfect creative space, but it’s not unthinkable that Fear of Flying (1973) author Erica Jong’s Upper East Side New York apartment might fit the bill for a number of creators: if you can get past the $4.25 million dollar price tag, that is.“Located in the coveted Imperial House building on the Upper East Side,” says Top Ten Real Estate Deals, “the 3,000-square-foot apartment boasts specta cular Central Park and skyline […]
Today, finally is the day. And you don’t need us to tell you about it. If you’ve picked up a newspaper or magazine, listened to a podcast or read news online, there’s no way you didn’t hear about it, Spare, Prince Harry’s tell-all book — who everyone has been talking about for a week — went on sale today. Far be it from us to add promotion where certainly none is needed. But we thought […]
In Bane of All Things we arrive to the Four Kingdoms. Here the Holy Clerisy preaches that the gods are dead, and prayer is the path to Hell. Anyone who defies doctrine is punished for heresy. But blind faith can damn a soul as surely as betrayal. One bitter winter’s night, Ryn Ruscroft, once sworn to serve as the Clerisy’s loyal soldier, finds himself torn between conscience and duty. Those slain include his best friend, […]
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