One Week in Reykjavík, by Alizah Holstein

Cultural Cross Sections Alizah Holstein I stepped out of Keflavík airport at 4:30 a.m. Far off in the dimly lit parking lot was the bus to Reykjavík—parked, empty, still off-duty. Winds buffeted me from above, the cold air curling its way up my wrists and down my neck. The landscape around me was shrouded in night. I could see nothing but desolate airport roads unfurling like tendrils out into the void. I made my way to the unlit bus, pulled my jacket tighter around me, and waited. I had come to Reykjavík for a new beginning. This September day marked the official start of my master’s program in creative writing and literary translation—Vermont College of Fine Arts’ new “International MFA”—a program dedicated to literature with a global perspective. And Iceland, a nation with one of the world’s deepest and most abiding literary traditions, would be the site of our first weeklong residency. But really, what on earth I was doing? I already had a PhD in medieval Italian history, a degree that had gifted me many things—Italian, Rome, lifelong friends, a life of the mind—but not, alas, a tenure-track job. After deciding not to accept adjunct positions, I left academia to try entrepreneurship. I had sewn a fleece vest for my infant son that other parents had wanted. Before long, I had a business designing and manufacturing outerwear. As an entrepreneur, I was inspired by all there was to discover. If the past is a foreign country to... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'

[ World Literature Today | 2019-12-03 17:31:19 UTC ]
News tagged with: #public library #historical societies #literary magazines #competing desires #bookstore

Other Publishing stories related to: 'One Week in Reykjavík, by Alizah Holstein'


Capitol Weekly Cuts Print Version, Will Continue Online Only

Capitol Weekly will stop producing a print edition as of Thursday. The publication devoted to California government said on its website that it will continue posting stories online. Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #continue online #california government


Independent Booksellers Week set for July

Independent Booksellers Week is to take place over the first week of July, with the Booksellers... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


PW Picks: On Sale the Week of January 9, 2012

This week, a fistful of mystery-thrillers bump up against bios of Elizabeth II and the Obamas, as well as a fascinating memoir from the "godfather of rap." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Regional Mag Publisher Looks to Resuscitate Local Newspaper Business with Weekly Offering

Dan Shannon, publisher of North Carolina city titles Chapel Hill and Durham Magazines, has spotted a hole in the current news publishing model. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Guinness tops charts in another weak week

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Wed, 09/11/2011 - 09:53 The latest edition of fact compendium Guinness World Records was the bestselling book in another slow week for the book trade. Sales of Guinness World Records 2012 rose 26% week-on-week, to 27,360 copies sold, but overall book... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #latest edition #bestselling book #book trade


Gloucestershire and Somerset library ruling out next week

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 04/11/2011 - 14:36 The High Court ruling on the challenge to library closures in Gloucestershire and Somerset will be given next Wednesday 9th November. The judgment, to be handed down by Judge McKenna at the Royal Courts of Justice in London,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #library closures #royal courts


Dark week for indies as four close

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 02/09/2011 - 07:53 Four independent bookshops with a combined total of 175 years on the high street have announced their closure within a week, blaming their downfall on high rates, competition from internet retailers and supermarkets, ebooks... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #independent bookshops #combined total #high street


Pritchard's fourth indie in a week to close

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 25/08/2011 - 07:40 Pritchard's Bookshop has become the fourth independent this week to announce its closure, shutting its doors for the last time next month after 50 years of trading. The bookshop, in Formby, near Liverpool, is the second... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #remain open


Travel Bookshop to close in two weeks

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 23/08/2011 - 09:15 The Travel Bookshop in west London, which was made famous by the Hugh Grant film "Notting Hill", is closing down in two weeks' time. The London shop on Blenheim Crescent was founded 32 years ago and is owned by European... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #travel bookshop #west london #made famous #notting hill


Book sales slump £1m in riot-riddled week

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 16/08/2011 - 16:03 Spending on printed books slumped £1.1m last week, as the UK riots caused retailers to shut stores early and the public to avoid the high street. Although bookshops remained largely unscathed during the rioting, spending... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #previous week #high street #printed books #six-year low


Data Shot: Consumer Weeklies Out-Page Monthly Mags for Ads

Weekly and bi-weekly magazines proved to be more agile in the first half of 2011 than their monthly counterparts, posting a 1.3 percent gain in ad pages, according to MagazineRadar. Monthly magazines’ ad pages only increased .3 percent during the same period. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-08-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #data shot #ad pages


French favourite for third week

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 12/07/2011 - 15:33 Dawn French has retained her position at the summit of the Official UK Top 50 for a third week. The mass-market edition of French's début novel, A Tiny Bit Marvellous (Penguin), sold 34,100 copies at UK booksellers in the seven... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #previous week #mass-market edition #uk booksellers #bestselling book #lesley pearse #karin slaughter


Electronic gift cards to launch in Ireland this week

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 27/06/2011 - 15:45 National Book Tokens will launch the Euro Gift Card in the Republic of Ireland for the first time this Friday. The Euro Gift Card is being introduced by NBT after “a great deal of interest” in the system following its launch... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #great deal #press advertising #positive response


Patterson top in another Random week

Written By: Tom Tivnan Publication Date: Tue, 21/06/2011 - 15:59 Random House had another stellar week, there was a record for Wilbur Smith and a Father's Day push led to double digit week on week rise in value and volume sales for the trade. RH did not repeat its unprecedented octet of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #wilbur smith #volume sales #pretty close


Vintage Launches Crime Fan Site, 'The Weekly Lizard'

Under the auspices of its Vintage Crime/Black Lizard imprint, Vintage Books is launching the Weekly Lizard, a mobile-optimized online site devoted to news and feature content about crime and mystery writing. While the Weekly Lizard is designed to attract readers interested in crime, mystery and... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-06-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #mystery writing #vintage books


Financial Times Sees 100,000 Downloads In Week After HTML Launch

Financial Times has decided to go another way for their digital subscription offering, opting out of the Apple sub model and creating an app through HTML 5, allowing users to get the app experience through their Web browser. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #allowing users #web browser


Grisham top for a second week

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 14/06/2011 - 16:09 John Grisham's The Confession (Arrow) has retained its position at the summit of the Official UK Top 50 despite a 24% drop in sales week-on-week. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #grisham top #confession arrow


Authors readied to support strong Independent Booksellers Week

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 25/05/2011 - 08:45 Edmund de Waal, Maggie O’Farrell and Tony Parsons are among the authors lined up to take part in Independent Booksellers Week. The week of events, in association with the Booksellers Association, will take place between... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #booksellers association #authors lined #tony parsons


Second week at the top for Madeleine memoir

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 24/05/2011 - 15:55 Kate McCann's Madeleine (Bantam Press) was comfortably the bestselling book at UK booksellers for the second week running, selling 63,909 copies in its first full week on sale. It brings total sales of the hardback edition of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestselling book #week running #full week #uk booksellers #hardback edition #non-fiction titles #records began #delia smith #david beckham #tony blair


Bidders given two weeks to make Waterstone's move

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Mon, 16/05/2011 - 09:10 Bidders for Waterstone's have a reported two weeks to express a formal interest in the chain, as parent HMV Group said it was in "advanced discussions" over a sale. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #advanced discussions