Portrayal of liberal lawyer’s dark side praised for its realism by civil rights campaignerOne of the great figures of American literature has suffered dramatic reputational damage this weekend. The unexpected early release of shocking plot details from the new novel by Harper Lee, a sequel to her great work To Kill A Mockingbird, has revealed that the noble hero of her first book, Atticus Finch, in later life becomes a racist who seems happy for segregation to continue in Alabama. It as if the Statue of Liberty had been discovered to have cloven hooves.Lee’s much-anticipated new book, Go Set a Watchman, was actually written before the publication of her masterpiece in 1960. The manuscript contained a series of flashbacks to the early life of its heroine, Scout Finch, and her publisher, who was intrigued by the vivid picture they painted, suggested the author should go away and write another novel based on those passages. Related: Go Set A Watchman: read the first chapter - interactive Related: Go Set a Watchman's first chapter, first review: a beguiling journey into the past Related: Shami Chakrabarti: To Kill A Mockingbird made me a lawyer Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
Hachette Livre has announced the death of publisher Claude Durand at the age of 76. Durand was chairman and chief executive of Editions Fayard between 1980 and 2009. Arnaud Nourry, chairman and chief executive of Hachette Livre, paid tribute to Durand as a tireless defender of authors and a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-05-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Established in memory of Nobel Prize-winning author Saul Bellow, the $25,000 award is presented biannually to a living American author whose "scale of achievement in fiction, over a sustained career, places him or her in the highest rank of American literature." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Literary agent David Godwin predicts that small publishers in India will soon be forced aside by monolithic publishing houses run overseas. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The unnamed protagonist in Jack London's 'To Build a Fire' gets into trouble while hiking in the frozen Yukon with his dog. Widely considered to be London’s best short story, 'To Build a Fire' captures the cold with painful accuracy. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-01-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"City of Night" was not the first overtly gay-themed book but it may be the most unapologetic, a searing screed of life on the edge.I spent part of Wednesday afternoon at UCLA, on a panel to celebrate the 50th anniversary of John Rechy’s novel “City of Night,” newly reissued to commemorate the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Novelist Scott Turow's 'Identical' is a compulsively readable crime story about brothers, feuding families and a long-ago murder.Over the course of nine novels, Scott Turow's Kindle County has become one the best-known settings in American literature. While fictional locations are not uncommon... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-10-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James McBride takes liberties as he visits the story of white abolitionist John Brown through the eyes of a young slave in 'The Good Lord Bird.'John Brown, the white abolitionist who sought to free black slaves with the barrel of a gun, is a recurring character in American literature. He's one... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Times Book Critic David L. Ulin reflects on DOMA and writer John Rechy.John Rechy should be proud. It was his 1963 novel "City of Night" ¿ the story of a gay street hustler that took place, in part, in downtown¿s Pershing Square ¿ that helped carve out a place for gay writing in American literature. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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