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 ]
New retail website Bookshop.org has been hailed as a “game-changer” by Booksellers Association m.d. Meryl Halls while its founder has said more features are on the way. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-17 09:40:54 UTC ]
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Graphic novel publisher SelfMadeHero is launching a social media campaign calling for artists to support bookshops with a drawing of their favourite store. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-17 06:10:11 UTC ]
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The BBC Radiophonic Workshop made the famous science fiction theme tune and worked with the Beatles. Now it is preparing to make historyThe Radiophonic Workshop has always broken new sonic ground, from the Doctor Who theme to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Now they’re at it again – this... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2020-11-15 10:00:31 UTC ]
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Drawing on Octavia E. Butler's journals and notes, "A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky" offers a glimpse inside her journey to becoming a science fiction writer. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-11-11 15:30:06 UTC ]
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Authors Kim Stanley Robinson and Malka Older discuss how storytelling can help us govern for the future. Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2020-11-11 14:15:00 UTC ]
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Bath bookshop Toppings & Company is to move to a listed Georgian building, and will begin expansion building works next year. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-08 18:39:07 UTC ]
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As I wrote back in March, the enforced closing of bookshop doors is a terrible story for the editor of The Bookseller to report: it’s a gut-punch, and if you were on social media last Saturday at around 6.30 p.m.—when the Prime Minister announced the decision to shut non-essential retail in... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-05 23:57:12 UTC ]
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A new annual initiative celebrating the best of bookselling in the UK and Ireland sees 29 Bookshop Heroes hailed for their efforts in reaching readers with books—and beyond. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-05 23:21:06 UTC ]
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Some of our inaugural Bookshop Heroes — the best individual booksellers in the UK and Ireland — share the skills that are key to running a bookshop. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-05 16:20:56 UTC ]
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Author Holly Bourne has launched a campaign to support bookshops during lockdown, involving more than 300 writers so far. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-05 06:38:02 UTC ]
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Fairlight Books is ordering a second print run of its c.e.o. Louise Boland's travelogue, Bookshop Tours of Britain. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-03 02:57:21 UTC ]
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New online retailer Bookshop.org secured sales of around £65,000 in its first day, making £16,000 for indies. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-02 12:21:42 UTC ]
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Indie bookshop owners and managers are gearing up for a second lockdown with optimism, though some are divided over the viability of click and collect services. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-02 12:15:49 UTC ]
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Although Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963) – known as ‘Jack’ to his friends and family – is best-known for his seven children’s fantasy novels set in the land of Narnia, C. S. Lewis wrote a number of other works – fiction and non-fiction, science fiction and literary criticism – which have […] Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2020-10-29 15:00:09 UTC ]
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These mathematical science fiction books use mathematics in world-building to advance the plot and build characters. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-10-28 10:37:00 UTC ]
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One of my most vivid childhood memories took place in an English bookshop in Causeway Bay, a short minibus ride from my family home in Hong Kong. I was a voracious reader growing up, eyes constantly trained on any printed text available, even during dinnertime and when brushing my teeth. Intent... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2020-10-22 11:00:06 UTC ]
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TAMSYN MUIR’S DEBUT NOVEL, Gideon the Ninth, the first in her Locked Tomb trilogy, exploded into the world to universal critical acclaim last year. The series doesn’t fit nearly into the castles-versus-spaceships division that characterizes much of mainstream science fiction and fantasy. It has... Continue reading at Los Angeles Review of Books
[ Los Angeles Review of Books | 2020-10-21 17:00:28 UTC ]
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North London indie stalwart Muswell Hill Bookshop is to close, following the retirement of its owner, Ivan Beal. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-10-20 23:21:36 UTC ]
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London bookshop Heywood Hill has launched a competition to provide one book-lover with a free book every month for life. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-10-19 13:58:51 UTC ]
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Totnes Bookshop in south Devon is being closed in its current form by the trust that owns its lease and will reopen as a box office for local events. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-10-19 11:36:36 UTC ]
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