Essay Photo by Miko Guziuk / Unsplash In his newest book, What Is American Literature? (Oxford University Press, 2022), award-winning cultural commentator, translator, and editor Ilan Stavans, the publisher of Restless Books and the Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities and Latin American and Latino Culture at Amherst College, rereads an assortment of American literary classics through the prism of the Trump years, from the poems of Phillis Wheatley to Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are. In the primer, written during the presidential election won by Joe Biden—and before the January 6, 2021, sedition instigated by Donald Trump—he also reflects on the role public libraries play in disseminating the nation’s literature, the art of teaching it to new generations of students, and the future of the book as an artifact disseminating knowledge in our graphic-driven age. The volume closes with an epistolary account, in Stavans’s words, of “the Second American Civil War.” What follows is the section on teaching. American literature starts and ends in the classroom. It starts there because whoever is a writer-to-be is likely to discover the magic of literature as an assignment, or else in response to the tedium that comes from feeling disengaged with the educational purpose. And it ends in the classroom because, at a time of precipitous declines in reading habits, books have their largest audiences among students enrolled in... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2022-02-02 19:59:22 UTC ]
The International Publishers Association has expressed concern following reports in the Guardian, Global Times and the Wall Street Journal that certain books have have been removed from public libraries and bookshops. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-07-19 23:19:42 UTC ]
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With the August recess looming and a second round of coronavirus relief in the works, $2 billion in funding for libraries hangs in the balance. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-07-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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As they try to re-open, public libraries have two big problems and three large advantages. The first problem, obviously, is that they have to be so safe that people actually want to work in and visit them. I don’t think anyone anywhere has solved that problem yet - but I’m sure there are... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-07-16 06:10:47 UTC ]
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Irving Howe wrote for the Book Review about American literature — “moving from visions to problems, from ecstasy to trouble, from self to society” — on July 4, 1976. “Land of the free? Yes, but also home of the exploited.” Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-07-02 21:18:57 UTC ]
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Interviews Veronica Esposito Photo by Camila Valdés Megan McDowell has translated many contemporary authors from Latin America and Spain, including Alejandro Zambra, Samanta Schweblin, and Lina Meruane. Shortlisted for the Man Booker... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2020-06-22 15:20:00 UTC ]
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Observers in recent years have argued that if public libraries didn’t already exist in America, we wouldn’t be able to invent them. In the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, the question now is: Can we reinvent them? Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-06-05 04:00:00 UTC ]
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First published in 1819, ‘Rip Van Winkle’ is one of the most famous pieces of writing by Washington Irving, whose contribution to American literature was considerable. ‘Rip Van Winkle’ has become a byword for the idea of falling asleep and waking up to find the familiar world around us has... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2020-05-28 14:00:18 UTC ]
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Find out how some libraries are shifting summer reading programs into digital spaces, maintaining their communities, and learning from the process. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-05-26 10:33:13 UTC ]
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As states begin lifting stay-at-home restrictions, public libraries face a wide range of short- and long-term issues. How do we keep library workers safe, and employed? How will buildings be redesigned to support physical distancing? Amid the economic damage wrought by the pandemic, how will... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-22 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, another critical transformation looms for public libraries. And the American public is counting on librarians to get it right. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The beginnings of Poems on the UndergroundPoems on the Underground started life in 1986 as an experiment by three friends, me (the writer Judith Chernaik) and the poets Cicely Herbert and Gerard Benson, all of us keen poetry lovers. We persuaded London Underground to post a few poems on its... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-05-04 14:39:46 UTC ]
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The value of public libraries is rarely questioned in times of crisis—think of the New Orleans Public Library after Hurricane Katrina, or the Ferguson Municipal Public Library during the unrest there. But this crisis is different. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Though many public libraries in the U.S. are completely shut, employees at some are concerned that they have been asked to continue showing up for work. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-04-14 23:04:05 UTC ]
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Book Reviews Dianne Johnson-Feelings Mildred D. Taylor at the University of Oklahoma, October 24, 2003 / Photo by Robert Taylor Generations of American schoolchildren have grown up with Cassie Logan and her brothers, Stacey, Christopher-John, and... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2020-04-09 13:31:33 UTC ]
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Both Google and Facebook have acted surprisingly quickly to remove disinformation related to the COVID-19 virus over the past few weeks, considering their somewhat mixed track record when it comes to removing hoaxes, conspiracy theories, and trolls related to political campaigns. But experts... Continue reading at Columbia Journalism Review
[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2020-04-09 11:45:11 UTC ]
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In The Freckle Report 2020, Tim Coates offers a sobering, data-driven view of the state of public libraries in the U.S. and the U.K. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
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With public libraries closed, the Internet Archive announced an initiative to offer 1.4 million books for free online—reopening a heated copyright debate. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2020-03-30 17:57:54 UTC ]
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Shuttering public libraries puts a strain on communities—even if it’s the only way to keep people safe. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2020-03-23 20:35:01 UTC ]
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More and more public libraries are temporarily closing shop across the country to limit the spread of coronavirus, but their Wi-Fi can still be a valuable resource for communities, the American Library Association said Monday. Libraries that close should leave their Wi-Fi open to the public... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-03-23 18:01:46 UTC ]
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Why are Chicago Public Library branches still open to the public during this global health crisis? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-03-19 12:06:40 UTC ]
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