I was called aggressive for criticising passages in Kate Clanchy’s memoir. But the real problem lies deep in the overwhelmingly white world of publishingIt started with a tweet. Kate Clanchy, author of Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me posted on her Twitter account that a reviewer on Goodreads had “made up a racist quote and said it was in my book”. She urged her almost 40,000 followers to flag the review that claimed she had bigoted views on race, class and body image, and had used terms such as “chocolate-coloured skin” and “Jewish noses”. Prominent authors and columnists swooped in to offer support, decrying how Clanchy could possibly be subjected to such inhumane treatment – including the current president of the Society of Authors, Philip Pullman, who declared: “But of all the people and of all the books to have had this happen … It’s hard to stay optimistic about the human race sometimes.”However, it soon emerged that those terms were, in fact, in the book. Incredulous that antisemitic and anti-Black tropes could have made it into a book published as recently as 2019, I downloaded and read it. I recoiled as a Somali boy is described as having a “narrow skull”, while one Muslim girl is “very butch-looking … with a distinct moustache”, and another “looked brilliant because she has such a strong skull shape”, which sounds more like something a eugenicist might observe than a trusted teacher. There is a troubling exchange where Clanchy is baffled by a boy who,... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2021-08-13 13:51:20 UTC ]
“Somewhere beneath the bugle blast, the beer bloat, the crush of bodies, I was part of something.” Kyle Seibel on attending the Gathering of the Kyles (in Kyle, Texas). | Lit Hub Memoir “I am talking, of course, about #Scandoval, a word that I, a lowly lifestyle journalist and nascent author,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-26 10:30:02 UTC ]
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“Crucially, The Living Mountain needs to be understood as a parochial work in the most expansive sense.” Robert Macfarlane on Nan Shepherd’s uniquely poetic memoir of life in the Cairngorm Mountains. | Lit Hub Criticism “I went home and obeyed those directions for some three months, and came so... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-19 10:30:35 UTC ]
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This week, the hosts discuss Black Bag, Deli Boys, and the enduring legacy of Dave Eggers’ memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2025-03-19 07:20:00 UTC ]
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In the memoir “Firstborn,” Lauren Christensen writes about losing the daughter she was expecting. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-17 16:00:04 UTC ]
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Sam Altman, the OpenAI boss, has declared its new model ‘good at creative writing’. We asked writers including Tracy Chevalier, Kamila Shamsie and David Baddiel if they agreeThis week has seen writers divided over a story written by an AI model that is “good at creative writing” – at least... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-03-14 16:00:23 UTC ]
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SOIL will make you reconsider everything you think you know about nature (including your own connection to it). Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-03-14 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Whether the Meta boss and his ex-lieutenant Sheryl Sandberg are truly beyond awful is neither here nor there. I thought he was done with factcheckingI am as shocked as I am confused that Mark Zuckerberg is going all-out to block a memoir by Facebook’s former director of global public policy,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-03-14 12:37:30 UTC ]
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‘Careless People,’ which contains unflattering portrayals of Meta executives, is getting a sales boost despite attempts to stop its promotion. A new memoir that paints Facebook’s parent company and its executives in a negative light is rising on Amazon’s Best Sellers rankings faster than you... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2025-03-13 19:40:00 UTC ]
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His memoir “Growing Up” depicted her hometown “like a shining city on a hill.” Other authors who mean a lot to the musician (and now childrens’ book writer): Kevyn Aucoin and Hilary Mantel. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-13 09:00:09 UTC ]
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The new memoir about Sandberg and Mark Zuckerberg is billed as an exposé – but it feels like a morality tale for our timesMany years ago, when Facebook was an entity most people had warm – or at least neutral – feelings towards, I visited the company’s HQ in Menlo Park, California. I admired the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-03-12 17:57:42 UTC ]
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Oprah Winfrey has chosen a new memoir by venture capitalist Amy Griffin for her book club Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2025-03-11 12:30:31 UTC ]
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“Careless People,” a memoir by a former Facebook executive, portrays feckless company leaders cozying up to authoritarian regimes. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-10 12:07:24 UTC ]
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Most musicians can only make money on the platform by writing songs inoffensive enough to get on to one of its vapid playlistsIn the hands of some of its most gifted practitioners, songwriting is a kind of emotional alchemy. For the past week, I have been returning to a perfect example: Every... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2025-03-09 16:38:43 UTC ]
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Peter Wolf befriended music legends, married a movie star and led the J. Geils Band. His new memoir reminds us: He was there. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2025-03-07 11:00:38 UTC ]
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A new memoir by the historian Martha S. Jones combines a trenchant analysis of race and the historical record with a homage to other Black women scholars. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-03-04 10:00:40 UTC ]
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At the 30th annual Audies, presented by the Audio Publishers Association and held in New York City on March 4, winners across 28 categories were announced. Barbra Streisand’s memoir took home the night's biggest honor, Audiobook of the Year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-03-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
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At last, it’s official: Andrew Cuomo is running for mayor of New York City.That sentence would have seemed inordinately strange a year or two ago. But Cuomo had been telegraphing for many months that he wanted to launch a comeback. And now he’s running, with a Manhattan launch event and... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2025-03-03 15:46:55 UTC ]
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A fantasy epic sells for seven figures at Bramble, Bobbi Brown brings a memoir to Marysue Rucci, Stonefruit and Del Rey pick up two multibook horror projects, and more in this week’s book deals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Writing memoir is an act of saying I am here. This is what I find beautiful. Troubling. Worth paying attention to. And there is a democratic invitation in this gesture that interests me—the way that writing and reading memoir allow us to push past a monolithic understanding of the world and... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-02-27 09:58:16 UTC ]
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Out of the Shadows, by Lilach Galil Fiction [email protected] Mon, 02/24/2025 - 15:16 Photo by Lucas Alexandros / Flickr Lilach Galil’s 2009 novel, Betsilo (In its shadow), is a polyphonic novel told by the six main characters. Rona is a poet... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2025-02-24 21:16:13 UTC ]
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