The Prose Factory by DJ Taylor review – a lament for Grub Street

DJ Taylor’s survey of the English literary scene of the last century is vivid and rich but lacks analysisTo Dr Johnson, it was Grub Street, where “no man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money”. To Thackeray, it was “the Corporation of the Goosequill”. In the 20th century, Bloomsbury’s Frances Partridge would refer to “the Prose Factory”, the starting point for DJ Taylor’s investigation of a most peculiar “factory”.For instance, while trading conditions and the means of production have changed beyond recognition, the product itself remains remarkably resilient. An 18th-century coachman might be astonished by an inter-city bus, but his passengers would still recognise the 21st-century book. Related: DJ Taylor: 'I set out with every intention of just being a novelist. But then I got diverted …' Future generations will be mystified by 'galleys' and 'hot metal' but thrilled by the lunches and the long weekendsIf the book has an argument beneath its research, it is that the republic of letters has gone to the dogs Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-01-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Read the first reviews of Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea.

In 1966, after more than a quarter century in obscurity, the Dominica-born British author Jean Rhys published what is now considered to be her masterpiece. Wide Sargasso Sea is an astonishing, hallucinatory fantasy about the early life, and eventual psychological disintegration, of the first... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-08-24 12:59:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jean rhys #quarter century #early life #charlotte bront #jane eyre #british author

Naomi Duguid 'The Miracle of Salt' Cookbook Review: A Vital Reference for Pickling, Preserving, and Flavoring

Naomi Duguid’s The Miracle of Salt is a magnificent single-ingredient trip around the world. Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2023-08-22 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Can You Guess the Fantasy Book Based on Its 1-Star Reviews?

Are you a fantasy mega-fan? Well, let's put it to the test: Can you guess these fantasy books based only on their 1-star reviews? Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-08-21 10:35:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #1-star reviews #book based

Audiobook Review: ‘The Ghost Club,’ by Kate Winkler Dawson

Kate Winkler Dawson’s audiobook original reveals the origins of a society of occult-obsessed supernaturalists that included Dickens, Doyle, Yeats and more. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-08-18 09:00:23 UTC ]
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Read the very first reviews of Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club.

Fight Club, Chuck Palahniuk’s era-defining debut novel about a load of disaffected men beating the bejesus out of each other in order to feel alive, was first published twenty-seven years ago today. The book rapidly gained a cult following, was adapted into one of the most iconic movies of the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-08-17 15:30:58 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #chuck palahniuk #fight club #feel alive #debut novel

Christopher Carduff, 'Wall Street Journal' Books Editor, Dies at 66

Carduff, who was named books editor at the 'Wall Street Journal' in 2017, was also a contributing editor for the Library of America Series and the publishing consultant to John Updike's literary trust. He died on August 14. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #contributing editor #publishing consultant #john updike #books editor

Galaxy Z Fold 5 review: Five years in, Samsung is treading water

In 2019, Samsung released the original Galaxy Fold, the first phone with a flexible display (not counting pretenders like the Royole Flexpai). And even though it had more than its fair share of flaws, you could see its potential. Over the next couple of years, Samsung refined its flagship... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-08-09 14:00:02 UTC ]
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Catherine Taylor Reads From The Stirrings: A Memoir in Northern Time

Damian Barr’s Literary Salon tempts the world’s best writers to read exclusively from their latest greatest works and share their own personal stories. Star guests include Jojo Moyes, John Waters, Yaa Gyasi, Mary Beard, Diana Athill and Louis de Bernières—all in front of a live audience at... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-08-09 08:58:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #damian barr #personal stories #john waters #yaa gyasi #mary beard #diana athill #london home #memoir

Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 review: Save YouTube videos and more

At a glance ProsResolutions up to 8K possible, direct extraction of MP3 filesConsNo downloading of videos behind paywallsOur VerdictThe Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 is easy to use and useful, especially for users of public service media libraries. Watching videos offline has evolved... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2023-08-04 16:46:51 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #personal software #worked smoothly #downloading media #downloading playlists #direct extraction #makes sense #films threaten #media library #download audio #local storage #download netflix #simply surf #address bar #input field #libraries

The Gutenberg Parenthesis by Jeff Jarvis review – why print culture is key to the future

From the Gutenberg press to the word processor, a detailed trawl through the history of print offers lessons for the digital ageThe Gutenberg Parenthesis is a term coined by Danish scholar Lars Ole Sauerberg, who proposed that the history of literary culture as we had hitherto known it – the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-08-02 11:00:02 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘A Pocketful of Happiness,’ by Richard E. Grant

The Oscar-nominated actor’s new memoir is at once a Hollywood air kiss and a moving tribute to a happy marriage that ended too soon. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-08-01 09:01:10 UTC ]
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Video and Audio Downloader Pro 2 review: Save YouTube videos and more

[ PC World | 2023-07-31 17:44:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #personal software #worked smoothly #downloading media #downloading playlists #direct extraction #makes sense #films threaten #media library #download audio #local storage #download netflix #simply surf #address bar #input field #libraries

Read W. H. Auden’s 1954 review of The Fellowship of the Ring.

Sixty-nine (nice, but in Elvish) years ago this week, the godfather of high fantasy, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, published the first novel in a proposed thee-volume epic “largely concerned with hobbits.” The Fellowship of the Ring has, in the decades since publication, shifted over 150 million... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-07-28 16:55:39 UTC ]
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July’s Best Reviewed Fiction

Colson Whitehead’s Crook Manifesto, Patrick deWitt’s The Librarianist, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Silver Nitrate all feature among the best reviewed fiction titles of the month. Brought to you by Book Marks, Lit Hub’s “Rotten Tomatoes for books.” * Fiction 1. Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-07-28 09:07:50 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #colson whitehead #patrick dewitt #silvia moreno-garcia #book marks #lit hub #rotten tomatoes #fiction titles

July’s Best Reviewed Nonfiction

Laura Cumming’s Thunderclap, Kate Zambreno’s The Light Room, and John McPhee’s Tabula Rasa all feature among the best reviewed nonfiction titles of the month. Brought to you by Book Marks, Lit Hub’s “Rotten Tomatoes for books.” * 1. Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life & Sudden Death by... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-07-28 09:00:49 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #laura cumming #tabula rasa #book marks #lit hub #rotten tomatoes #memoir

Read an 1890 review of The Picture of Dorian Gray.

These days, if you use your book review to call an author a pervert and instruct him to abandon writing for the sake of public morality, most reputable editors will palm you a paltry kill fee and mothball your screed. Not so, it would seem, in 1890. Here’s how an outraged book critic for The […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-07-24 18:10:37 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘The Nenoquich,’ by Henry Bean

Henry Bean’s first novel, reissued as “The Nenoquich,” follows a young writer in Berkeley through a transformative affair. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-07-20 09:00:24 UTC ]
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IPG Lays Off Nine, Including Key Editors at Chicago Review Press

IPG CEO Joe Matthews told PW the company remains committed to its 50-year-old publishing programs but that "the current market" required adjustments. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-07-18 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Strip Tees,’ by Kate Flannery

Kate Flannery’s “Strip Tees” is a racy, thoughtful memoir of her tenure during the rise and fall of the controversial retail company. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-07-14 09:00:33 UTC ]
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