Essay “Literature was a vast minefield occupied by enemies,” Roberto Bolaño, who enjoyed accruing enemies in the pantheon of Latin American letters, writes in the short story “Meeting with Enrique Lihn” (New Yorker, December 22, 2008): except for a few classic authors (just a few), and every day I had to walk through that minefield, where any false move could be fatal, with only the poems of Archilochus to guide me. It’s like that for all young writers. There comes a time when you have no support, not even from friends, forget about mentors, and there’s no one to give you a hand; publication, prizes, and grants are reserved for the others, the ones who said “Yes, sir,” over and over, or those who praised the literary mandarins, a never-ending horde distinguished only by their aptitude for discipline and punishment—nothing escapes them and they forgive nothing. Aptitude for discipline and punishment Bolaño himself had aplenty, too. And in spite of his precarious health, he had stamina. At a young age, he had made up his mind he would die. Who cared if he annoyed others? His mission, as is clear from The Savage Detectives (1998), was to upend that tradition, to take it by the neck and expose its platitudes. What is the use of sacred cows if not to be desecrated? Indeed, every tradition needs an enfant terrible, maybe more than one. When was the last time a rabble-rouser came along in Latin American literature? As Bolaño put it in... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-28 21:05:10 UTC ]
In today’s world of Twitch and Zoom a good headset is becoming a must-have item for their comfort and audio quality. But there are two major stopping blocks toward them being an everyday item: their high cost and unfriendly designs. No one wants to look like an air traffic controller or call... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2022-03-22 14:30:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this
From sci fi horror like Parasite by Mira Grant to science fantasy like Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao, those genre-blending science fiction books have something for every reader. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-03-10 11:35:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Book Reviews Photo by Yousef Espanioly on Unsplash Fahredin Shehu writes of Gili Haimovich’s Promised Lands (Finishing Line Press, 2020), “This book communicates globally giving more than a single book of poems may offer. There is her origin and... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2022-03-09 21:17:53 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Book Reviews Photo by Dominik Scythe / Unsplash A new book by a Nobel laureate and Booker award-winning author always brings with it a sense of trepidation. Will the new novel live up to the already established high expectations? Klara and the... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2022-03-01 21:50:34 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Essay “Literature was a vast minefield occupied by enemies,” Roberto Bolaño, who enjoyed accruing enemies in the pantheon of Latin American letters, writes in the short story “Meeting with Enrique Lihn” (New Yorker, December 22, 2008): except for a few... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-28 21:05:10 UTC ]
More news stories like this
News and Events Laura and Bunmi celebrate 41 books by Black authors. From Black joy to history to empowerment, the books on this list provide affirming messages for children and young adults with a special shout-out to NSK Neustadt Prize finalist Jason... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-24 19:13:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Take a look into our present and future with these near-future science fiction books that are eerily prescient, including Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace6. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-02-17 11:35:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Anti-racism activist and co-founder of New Beacon Books, Britain’s first specialist black bookshop and publishing companyThe veteran activist Sarah White, who has died aged 80, was for more than half a century a stalwart of initiatives dedicated to anti-colonialism, anti-racism and... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-02-16 19:10:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The online virtual reality experience that almost every tech giant today wishes to commercially exploit may not catch onIn the 1992 sci-fi dystopia Snow Crash, the author Neal Stephenson imagined a bleak 21st century where the collapse of the global economy had seen governments fall and their... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-02-07 19:11:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A late baby-boomer, I spent my tweens and adolescence in the 1970s under the Tolkien-woven spell of heroic fantasy, immersed in the imagined worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea trilogy (1968-72), Patricia A. McKillip’s Riddlemaster trilogy (1976-79), and Evangeline Walton’s Welsh-myth-remix... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-01-26 09:55:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Kim Stanley Robinson’s novels envision the dire problems of the future—but also their solutions. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2022-01-24 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
From reads about lexicographers and bookshop employees to librarians, these books about books, including The Sentence, are for serious bibliophiles only. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-01-21 11:36:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
More than 100 writers, artists, comedians and musicians will voice James Joyce’s seminal novel in celebration of its publication a century agoOne hundred years ago, in February 1922, Sylvia Beach, owner of the Paris bookshop Shakespeare and Company, published James Joyce’s Ulysses, in full, for... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-01-20 09:30:55 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Science fiction is full of computer programmes and androids who fall afoul of the plots of some of Shakespeare’s most brutal tragedies. Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2022-01-14 13:00:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The number of independent bookshops in the UK and Ireland has grown for the fifth consecutive year despite challenges brought by the pandemic, the Booksellers Association says. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-07 22:34:12 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Feeling nostalgic? Try ‘The Chronicles of Prydain.’ For something more modern, there’s ‘The Midnight Bargain. And so many more. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-01-03 23:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The best science fiction and fantasy book deals of the day, curated by Book Riot Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-01-03 13:53:28 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The UK's first Black specialist bookshop is to shut its doors and move entirely online, as financial constraints jeopardise its future. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-28 16:05:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this
We're spotlighting some of the best science fiction and fantasy series concluded in 2021. Dive into them now, no waiting required! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-12-24 11:33:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The Margate Bookshop has collected almost £3,000 to buy books for local schoolchildren with plans to run the fundraiser as an ongoing scheme alongside other independent bookstores, potentially as part of a charity. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-23 07:48:13 UTC ]
More news stories like this