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 ]
Zooming in on the rocker’s interior life, the Apple TV+ film “Bono: Stories of Surrender” documents the musical stage presentation of the singer’s 2022 book. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2025-05-30 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Charlie Mackesy sells a sequel to The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse to Penguin Life, Cory Booker brings a memoir of his historic 25-hour speech on the Senate floor to St. Martin’s, and more in this week’s book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-05-30 04:00:00 UTC ]
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When I was seventeen, my friend—the kind of person who always finds hidden gems in used bookstores—leant me Every Secret Thing, Patricia Hearst’s memoir about being kidnapped and forcibly radicalized by an urban guerrilla group. Hearst spent nearly all of 1974 on the run with the Symbionese... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-29 07:28:27 UTC ]
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Over the last six months, the book publishing arm of the Walt Disney Co. has undergone dramatic changes. And given the scope of the $91 billion conglomerate’s business interests, many industry insiders are wondering what, exactly, its plan is for books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-05-29 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Fiction by Taylor Jenkins Reid and V.E. Schwab; a memoir of a year without sex; new thrillers from James Patterson and S.A. Cosby; and more. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-05-28 09:00:44 UTC ]
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Author Sally McQuillen shares the costs and rewards of writing and publishing a memoir of loving and losing a child. The post Why I Wrote and Published My Memoir appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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My habit is quaint, I know, and there are downsides – but for those who value literature, the focus will shift to this: how do we prove we didn’t use AI?When I was very young, three or four, before I learned to write, I’d search out empty pages in my father’s thin, hardbound ledgers and... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-05-23 03:29:59 UTC ]
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This week's featured new releases include a new graphic novel from Alison Bechdel, a memoir on grief, an exploration of American patriarchy, a medieval fever dream, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-05-20 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Memoir Nation: Weekly Inspiration for Writers is an extension of the Memoir Nation community hosted by Brooke Warner and Grant Faulkner, two friends and colleagues who bring a community-minded sensibility to the writing journey. Originally launched as Write-minded in 2018, this is a weekly... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-19 08:10:54 UTC ]
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Beyond disclosures about his sexuality and marriage, the media mogul’s memoir mostly serves up goodies for fans of Hollywood name-dropping and infighting. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-05-16 09:00:51 UTC ]
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In her latest book, part memoir and part biography, Returning to My Father’s Kitchen, Monica Macansantos writes fifteen richly textured essays about her father’s legacy both in her writings and in the kitchen where she finds his continued presence as she recreates his recipes that he’s developed... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2025-05-15 11:00:00 UTC ]
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In her searing and revolutionary memoir First in the Family: A Story of Survival, Recovery, and the American Dream, writer and mental health advocate Jessica Hoppe discusses and inspects addiction and how ingrained the culture is within BIPOC communities, notably within the Latine community. In... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2025-05-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Tracy Slater examines the parallels between Trump’s anti-trans policies and the persecution of Japanese Americans during World War II. | Lit Hub History Sonya Bilocerkowycz on the impact of generational trauma in the midst of Russia’s imperialist onslaught against Ukraine. | Lit Hub Memoir David... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-12 10:30:51 UTC ]
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Acclaimed author Jill Bialosky examines the messy house of memoir, including how important the structure is to the story memoirists tell. The post The Messy House of Memoir appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-05-09 16:26:53 UTC ]
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William Morrow picks up a collaboration between James Patterson and YouTuber MrBeast, Michael J. Fox sells a memoir to Flatiron, Abrams will adapt Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’ as a graphic novel, and more in this week’s book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-05-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Michele Filgate on navigating loss alongside her father: “Is this my family’s thing? The need to pin memories down, preserve them in a drawer, put a frame around them?” | Lit Hub Memoir “Rivers are the veins of our mother, the earth; they are the visual mapping of a watery network.” Leanne... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-05-08 10:30:40 UTC ]
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In a memoir that tries to wrest control of her story, Ms. Baldwin says she was “canceled” via online sleuths who looked for inconsistencies in her Spanish accent. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-05-07 20:25:13 UTC ]
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This memoir tells an incendiary story that shocked a reader who already thought the worst of the company and people it blows the whistle on. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-05-07 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Keith McNally’s new memoir is full of revelations, but one stands out: His work is an underrated art form. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2025-05-06 15:25:00 UTC ]
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