Last week, Ruth Rendell claimed that reading novels is a dying art. Sadly, she might have a pointNo one can say precisely why John Williams's novel Stoner has become a bestseller almost 50 years after its first publication. After all, plenty of books, "forgotten" or otherwise, are recommended by word of mouth and yet most will not go on to sell more than a few hundred copies. And it's hard to know in what ways, if any, its story – a young man falls in love with literature and thus a new world is revealed to him – might have touched people. Many of those who rushed to buy it will not yet have got around to opening it and some will never read it. Stoner will languish on their shelves, its spine unbroken, just like Jung Chang's Wild Swans, the non-fiction hit of 1992.But still, it has given us something to think about, this dusting down of so plangent and substantial a novel. On Radio 4 last week, Ruth Rendell, the novelist and Labour peer, suggested that Stoner is a book for our times, her argument being that we live in an age when reading is for most an alien pastime, just as it is to William Stoner until he has an epiphany. (Asked to elucidate a poem by a professor, he is unable to say anything except: "It means... it means..." and yet, in this moment, everything changes; the verse, whether he understands it or not, has touched him on some powerfully deep level.) "We are told that it isn't happening," said Rendell. "But it is. Reading is no longer something that everybody... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
Book review of "An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us" by Ed Yong Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-07-01 12:00:27 UTC ]
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These queer short story collections span a wide range of genres form contemporary and historical fiction to sci-fi and fabulism. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-06-28 10:33:00 UTC ]
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Jen Silverman’s novel, We Play Ourselves, is out now in paperback from Random House, so we asked about her favorite books to give to friends, the best stories to revisit, and how she procrastinates. * What is your favorite book to give as a gift? I am bad at many things in life, among them... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-05-24 08:51:33 UTC ]
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The L.A. Times Book Clubs reads 'Letter to a Stranger,' a new collection that celebrates the serendipity of chance encounters. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-05-11 14:00:50 UTC ]
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The 26th iteration in Germany of the 'I'll Give You a Story' project brings reading and environmentalism to schoolkids this year. The post Germany’s World Book Day: ‘I’ll Give You a Story’ of a Secret Lake appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-04-20 18:49:10 UTC ]
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As a literary genre, fantasy is one of the oldest and most recent. Although modern fantasy only began to be recognised as a distinct genre in the late twentieth century, thanks largely to the popularity of J. R. R. Tolkien and his imitators, its roots can be traced back millennia. […] Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2022-02-23 15:00:28 UTC ]
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Two decades ago, I wrote my very first novel while working at The Community Bookstore, an independent bookstore in Brooklyn, New York. That job enabled me to complete my book, not just because of the flexible hours, but because the other staffers were all aspiring writers, and many of our... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-01-12 09:50:45 UTC ]
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Layoffs and restructuring at DC, the growing popularity of digital and print Korean comics, and the return of in-person attendance to New York Comic Con are among the topics covered in the most-read comics stories published by 'PW' in 2021. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-01-05 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Exploring the diversity of The Atlantic’s original fiction: Your weekly guide to the best in books Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2021-12-31 15:24:18 UTC ]
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The stories of the US short-story writer O. Henry, real name William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), are characterised by their irony and by their surprise endings, which became something of a signature of a good O. Henry short story. However, another word that is often used to describe O. Henry’s... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2021-12-31 15:00:32 UTC ]
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“René Magritte,” by the late Alex Danchev, is an insightful and broad-reaching exploration of the artist. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-12-02 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Lit Lists 2021 was a robust year for literary translations. This list kept growing, and we didn’t resist. As always, though, we recognize there are, thankfully, many more and hope you’ll add them in the comments, along with those you’re eagerly... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2021-11-29 19:56:31 UTC ]
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Shafak’s new novel weaves the tumultuous history of Cyprus into a story of young lovers split apart. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-11-16 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Legend Press has landed The Tin Nose Shop, an “incredibly powerful” First World War novel by Don J Snyder. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-11 06:14:29 UTC ]
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What are the best places to begin exploring the wonderful world of science fiction? Some of the classic novels of the genre, from Frank Herbert’s Dune to Asimov’s Foundation series (which eventually stretched to seven volumes), might appear daunting because of their sheer size and scope. Below,... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2021-10-20 14:00:25 UTC ]
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After criticism of the ‘casual racism’ of a story about a Chinese boy, the publisher has taken it out of the next print run of the bestselling anthology David Walliams’ story about a Chinese boy called Brian Wong, which was criticised by campaigners for its “casual racism”, is set to be removed... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2021-10-04 12:03:02 UTC ]
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One very short story – often attributed to Ernest Hemingway but actually the work of another writer – is just six words long: ‘For sale: baby shoes, never worn’. And some of the greatest fiction-writers of the last two centuries have written memorable short stories which stretch to little more […] Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2021-09-25 14:00:49 UTC ]
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Holly Smale, bestselling author of the Geek Girl series, discusses how autistic characters, and authors, should no longer be seen as ‘niche’ Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-23 18:27:19 UTC ]
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Williams’s urgent novel takes place on the shore of a rotting lake, where a group of eco-warriors has gathered. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-09-23 13:46:54 UTC ]
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Richard Osman has praised the "passion and intelligence" of booksellers up and down the UK, applauding their hard work and adaptability during the pandemic. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-12 17:58:45 UTC ]
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