Britain's first homegrown existentialist star, he failed to follow up the huge success of his 1956 book, The OutsiderFor a few dazzling months, Colin Wilson, who has died aged 82, was taken at his own valuation in his diary as "the major literary genius of our century", a writer destined to be "Plato's ideal sage and king". The phenomenal reviews and sales of his first book, The Outsider (1956), led him to be seen as a potential saviour of the human spirit, a thinker who might find a way through the spiritual nullity of the postwar years.The book remains extraordinary, more for its reach than its grasp. It was an attempt to map a single, negotiable path of mysticism from the span of recent western art and philosophy. Wilson looked for the path through case studies of the agonies and ecstasies of thinkers, artists and men of action including Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Ernest Hemingway, Vaslav Nijinsky, Vincent van Gogh, Hermann Hesse and Lawrence of Arabia. He condensed them into a single type, "the Outsider", a questing spirit straddled between devastating experiences of nothingness and moments of the highest insight."Our life in modern society is a repetition of Van Gogh's problem," Wilson said, "the day-to-day struggle for intensity that disappears overnight, interrupted by human triviality and endless pettiness." The book was excitingly written, with a sense of revelation. The failing, which took longer to emerge, was that it oversimplified... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2013-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
Britain's first homegrown existentialist star, he failed to follow up the huge success of his 1956 book, The OutsiderFor a few dazzling months, Colin Wilson, who has died aged 82, was taken at his own valuation in his diary as "the major literary genius of our century", a writer destined to be... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2013-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Scholarly and academic publisher Colin Jones passed away on March 1, after a bout with Alzheimer's Disease. He was 76. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author and illustrator Bruce Degen, best known for his detailed, humorous artwork depicting the fun and informative field trips of Ms. Frizzle’s class in the Magic School Bus series, died on November 7 of pancreatic cancer; he was 79. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-11-12 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Business memoirs are at hand as he navigates a new role as the founder of a startup to “democratize storytelling.” Meanwhile he has co-written “We Are Free, You & Me,” an illustrated book for kids. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2024-10-17 09:00:07 UTC ]
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Esteemed author and educator Lore Segal, who wrote and translated clever and sunny children's tales alongside the autobiographical adult stories and novels informed by her early life as a Jewish refugee during WWII, died on October 7 at her home in Manhattan. She was 96. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-10-10 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Television commentator and the moral conscience of snooker through his campaigning journalism on the sportClive Everton, who has died aged 87, was known to millions worldwide as the calm, authoritative voice of televised snooker, but of even greater importance was his work as a campaigning... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-10-03 16:19:28 UTC ]
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Michael Bowyer, who has died aged 95, was the author of many aviation books as well as a dedicated primary school teacher. His encyclopedic knowledge and rigorous research enhanced his many popular publications.His book on the RAF’s versatile Mosquito, co-authored with C Martin Sharp, was... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-09-30 16:48:55 UTC ]
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In Jim Wilson’s memoir, 'Tuned In: Memoirs of a Piano Man,' he writes about his career as a piano technician and his pathway to becoming a professional pianist. Wilson spoke to BookLife about the intersection of writing and playing music, his encounters with music legends, and his relentless... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-16 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Author Francine Pascal, whose massively popular Sweet Valley High series broke new ground—and several records—in the YA publishing realm, died July 28; she was 92. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-06 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Dilys Evans, a trailblazing representative of children’s book illustrators, and a fierce champion for recognition of their contributions to the fine arts world, died July 23; she was 88. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The former NFL quarterback turned civil rights activist, who founded his own publishing company in 2020, has launched Lumi, an AI-based platform providing authors and other creatives with another alternative to traditional publishing. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-07-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Starting with comics and graphic novels, Lumi will help creators develop and illustrate ideas, then sell their work through an all-in-one platform. A new AI platform led by activist and former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick aims to make it easier for anyone to publish—and monetize—their... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2024-07-24 16:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's author, illustrator, animator, and designer James Proimos died on July 8. He was 68. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-07-11 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's book author Cynthia DeFelice, oft-lauded for her deft storytelling and absorbing themes, died on May 24, in Geneva, N.Y. She was 72. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-06-13 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's book author, illustrator, and designer Nonny Hogrogian, acclaimed for her vibrant woodcut and mixed-media artwork and twice awarded the Caldecott Medal, died May 9 in Holyoke, Mass.; she was 92. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-06-06 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's author Katey Howes, whose picture books often focused on STEM/STEAM themes, creativity, and individualism, died suddenly on May 20 in Langhorne, Pa.; she was 47. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-06-04 04:00:00 UTC ]
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It’s not pretty but conference calls at dawn keep us showing up. We’ve got novels to write, which is the only work we really want to doGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastWhen you work solo, peer accountability is sacred.Three mornings a week I set my alarm... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-05-30 00:56:10 UTC ]
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Florence Minor, best known for numerous picture book collaborations with her husband, illustrator Wendell Minor, died on May 21 after a battle with ovarian cancer; she was 74. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-23 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Bestselling author of Lace and Superwoman and women’s editor for the Daily Mail and the Observer Shirley Conran, who has died aged 91, supplied interviewers with a multi-page CV, but her life could be summarised on a book dust jacket. All that was needed was her surname – from her first husband,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-05-10 12:06:47 UTC ]
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Swiss self-taught artist and animator Étienne Delessert, globally lauded for the surrealistic, wildly imaginative images in his more than 80 children's books, died on April 22 in Lakeville, Conn.; he was 83. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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