Cultural Cross Sections Dipika Mukherjee A writer travels from Chicago to a residency in rural Malaysia, where part of her novel-in-progress is set. While encountering the many living creatures who surround her and making progress on her work, she participates in the local literary scene, catching a glimpse of a possible New Malaysia. “Are you sure you are not a serial killer?” The Grab driver is joking, of course. He is driving me back to my cottage—Rumah Balai—set within the dense foliage of Rimbun Dahan, where I am the writer-in-residence for five weeks. I have come from my home in Chicago to work on my novel in rural Malaysia, where part of the novel is set. Tonight is a cloudy night, and the solar lights along the way are completely dark; there is no illumination at all. Our cottages are not air-conditioned, water is recirculated, everyone is encouraged to create compost for the herb gardens from the food we consume, but even the eco-warrior in me understands how driving on an untarred road by the light of car headlights can make grown men a little nervous. During the ride from Kuala Lumpur, we have discovered that he has the same last name as a deceased journalist married to my distant uncle in the Bengali community. It never ceases to astonish me that no matter where in the world I am, the enormous Klang Valley operates as a village, and a link to community can always—always!—be found. We feel like family, and have spent... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2019-07-23 13:14:38 UTC ]
Bookshop.org, an alternative to Amazon that shares proceeds from book sales with independent bookstores, will give more money to those stores in response to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on small businesses. Bookshop announced today that it would increase bookstore partners’ affiliate... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-03-18 15:09:12 UTC ]
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Indie bookshops are cashing in on a pre-order boom for Hilary Mantel’s new book and are hosting everything from midnight openings to silent discos this week. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-01 15:13:26 UTC ]
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Ruth Jones will be embarking on a UK tour to celebrate the publication of her new novel Us Three in a collaboration between Fane and Transworld. The tour, combining a Fane-produced theatre tour with bookshop events organised by Transworld, will comprise seven dates across the UK. It begins at... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-28 11:07:04 UTC ]
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Button & Bear children’s bookshop in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, has been forced to close today (Wednesday 25th February) owing to rising floodwaters. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-25 14:31:43 UTC ]
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Bookshop Santa Cruz in California and Changing Hands Bookstore in Arizona, have partnered in a drive to register Arizona voters and persuade them to vote Democrat in this year's presidential election. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Could a bespoke book subscription service break you out of your reading rut or encourage you to explore new genres?Heywood Hill bookshop has stood on the same spot since 1936. It inhabits a Georgian townhouse at 10 Curzon Street in Mayfair, London, a blue plaque outside commemorating its most... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-02-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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A pair of Prosecco-drinking burglars have been sentenced after police caught the two men knocking back alcohol during a break-in at Gay's the Word bookshop. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-13 04:34:38 UTC ]
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Just a month into 2020 and my wishlist is already straining under the weight of all the new titles I’m looking forward to being published. Maybe it’s working in a bookshop or the concentrated effort I’ve been making to retreat into a fantasy-bubble when I’m at home, but I’ve found myself excited... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-03 09:50:09 UTC ]
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The copy of Françoise Frenkel’s No Place to Lay One’s Head that was recently found, I’m told, in Nice, in an Emmaus Companions charity jumble sale, had a curious effect on me. Perhaps because it had been printed in Switzerland in September 1945 for Geneva-based publishers Jeheber. That... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-01-27 09:49:55 UTC ]
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Sometimes you just have to read between the lines—the felines, that is! There’s something about books and cats that just go together. You’ve probably met your fair share of bookshop cats, but have you ever stumbled into a store looking for A Tale of Two Cities and left with two kitties? Otis and... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-01-16 18:38:25 UTC ]
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An indie bookshop which was the official bookseller of the Barnes Children’s Literature Festival has been replaced by organisers in favour of Waterstones. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-14 03:02:58 UTC ]
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The new online bookstore intended to benefit indies is nearly ready to go, and will launch January 28. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-01-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Coven, an English language bookshop and café in Paris, has fulfilled its crowdfunding goal of around £21,000 to open a store dedicated to "intersectional feminism, engaged literature and ethical hospitality". Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-08 16:28:22 UTC ]
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Wakefield indie Rickaro Books will close its bricks and mortar bookshop in March and move its focus to its website selling rare and antique books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-07 01:28:46 UTC ]
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Mary Webber O'Malley of Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville, Ill., recommends 'The Roxy Letters' by Mary Pauline Lowry. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-01-06 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The independent family-run Kennys Bookshop & Art Gallery in Galway, Ireland, is celebrating 80 years in business this year after attributing its success to "innovation and experience". Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-06 04:40:44 UTC ]
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A crowdfunding campaign to create a “feminist safe haven” bookshop in Paris has only a week left to raise the remaining £7,000 needed to secure premises, after securing two-thirds of its financial target. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-02 16:26:28 UTC ]
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A Kickstarter is under way to create a 'feminist safe haven' bookshop in Paris called COVEN to offer English language books, a café and range of events. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-12-20 11:14:17 UTC ]
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When it was announced that the legendary bookshop Le Pont Traversé would definitely close down on the 31st of December in Paris, many French TV stations put in phone calls and tried to convince Josée Comte-Béalu to do a filmed interview. She refused every single one of them. “They are like... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2019-12-20 09:48:10 UTC ]
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A new independent bookshop has opened in Barnsley, run by a mother and son team who became fed up watching the big chains leave their town. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-12-19 02:33:27 UTC ]
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