On Tuesday, Donald Rumsfeld—who, as defense secretary under George W. Bush, was a driving force behind the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq—died. Major outlets wheeled out pre-written obituaries. The AP’s, by Robert Burns, bordered on hagiography. Its headline initially declared Rumsfeld “a cunning leader undermined by Iraq war”; that language was later changed to “cunning leader who oversaw a ruinous Iraq war,” but the opening paragraph still says that “try as he might,” Rumsfeld “could not outmaneuver the ruinous politics of the Iraq war,” as if he had been forced to play chess against a supercomputer. The Iraqi death toll from the war is not noted; the American death toll is—but not before Rumsfeld’s charitable work on behalf of veterans, his “accomplished” college wrestling career, and colleagues’ recollections of his smarts and patriotism. The first words of the article’s URL are “Chicago Bears,” a reference to the football team Rumsfeld supported as a kid. Because the AP is a wire service, the obituary was republished widely. Other prominent efforts were better, but did not adequately foreground the human cost of Rumsfeld’s military aggression: The New York Times addressed Iraq only after mentioning the records he broke as defense secretary (he was the youngest person in that post, under Gerald Ford, then the oldest, under Bush) and his reputation as a “combative infighter” who challenged “military orthodoxies.” The Washington Post described him as “controversial,” but... Continue reading at 'Columbia Journalism Review'
[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2021-07-02 12:32:38 UTC ]
Haley Mlotek’s new memoir finds a fresh way to talk about the dissolution of a marriage. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-02-21 17:15:00 UTC ]
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Erin Steele’s memoir, Sunrise Over Half-Built Houses: Love, Longing and Addiction in Suburbia, chronicles the life of an isolated, self-conscious Canadian teenager growing up in middle-class British Columbia to loving parents who are simultaneously present and absent. As young Erin grapples with... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2025-02-21 12:00:00 UTC ]
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This round of mystery and thriller news is filled with upcoming adaptations. Plus, there’s a must-read memoir and The Da ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-02-19 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Haley Mlotek’s new book provides neither catharsis nor remedies for heartache, but rather a tender exploration of human intimacy. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-02-19 12:30:00 UTC ]
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Susanna Hoffs, along with bandmates Vicki and Debbi Peterson, spoke about new book "Eternal Flame," recalling key events in the Bangles' chart-topping run in the 1980s and how the band shaped their lives. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2025-02-18 18:48:12 UTC ]
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Rich Benjamin’s new book Talk to Me explores the coup that overthrew his grandfather, the president of Haiti, in 1957. Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2025-02-15 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Bologna's rights-business structure is evolving along with creative industries' growing engagement with book publishing. The post Bologna Children’s Book Fair’s Evolving Rights Hubs appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2025-02-15 01:29:36 UTC ]
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A big-name picture book adaptation of the Grimm fairy tale “Hansel and Gretel” goes to HarperCollins, Margaret Atwood brings a memoir to Doubleday, Sourcebooks picks up the memoir of the daughter of Gisele Pelicot, and more in this week’s book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-02-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The multi-award winning feminist author Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale) has announced that she will be releasing her long-awaited memoir ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-02-12 19:59:13 UTC ]
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“I am determined to keep writing, it has never mattered to me more.” Hanif Kureishi on trauma, recovery and what it means to be a writer. | Lit Hub Memoir Just in time for Valentine’s Day: 25 writers explain the anatomy of a good sex scene. | Lit Hub Craft Pankaj Mishra on nationalism,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-11 11:30:21 UTC ]
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The Lit Hub Author Questionnaire is a monthly interview featuring seven questions for five authors with new books. This month we talk to: * Justin Haynes (Ibis) Shane McCrae (New and Collected Hell: A Poem) Haley Mlotek (No Fault: A Memoir of Romance and Divorce) Maggie Su (Blob: A Love Story)... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-11 09:57:52 UTC ]
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This story about a child with cerebral palsy is badly misleading – and a slap in the face for families like oursAmazing news from Netflix: there is an extraordinary treatment available for children with very severe neurological disabilities, one that, given the appropriate level of parental... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-02-11 08:00:11 UTC ]
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I’ve known Lauren Markham’s writing since her first book, The Faraway Brothers, came out in 2017. Then, a couple years ago, I got to know her a bit more as a person when a friend emailed the two of us and another writer to ask our thoughts on writing (and teaching) journalism versus memoir or […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-07 09:57:40 UTC ]
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In Sarah Chihaya’s memoir Bibliophobia, we enter into the moment of her breakdown—an event that she has seen on her horizon since childhood, but also seemed impossibly remote. As a child of Japanese and Japanese-Canadian immigrants to the US, Chihaya’s parents “didn’t really believe in the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-06 09:56:18 UTC ]
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South by Southwest, the long-running media and music conference in Austin, Tex., is launching a book imprint, SXSW Books, focusing on works by experts and innovators across creative industries. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-02-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Sarah Chihaya’s unconventional memoir charts her troubled relationship with the literature that formed her. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-01-31 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Edmund White’s The Loves of My Life, Dorian Lynsky’s Everything Must Go, and Liz Pelly’s Mood Machine all feature among the best reviewed nonfiction titles of the month. Brought to you by Book Marks, Lit Hub’s home for book reviews. * 1. The Loves of My Life: A Sex Memoir by Edmund White... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-01-31 09:58:15 UTC ]
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This searing memoir recounts one woman's epic journey to trace the global slave trade across the Atlantic Ocean—and find her ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-01-30 12:00:00 UTC ]
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A new memoir by the tech mogul recounts a boyhood steeped in old-fashioned, analog pastimes as well as precocious feats of coding. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-01-30 10:05:04 UTC ]
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