From the shock and awe of labour to domestic isolation, a wave of recent novels captures the transformative nature of being a motherThey say nothing prepares you. Before having my baby, I approached the literature of motherhood as though I were about to sit an exam. If my studies tempered the shock of birth and early parenthood, then I didn’t notice. The sheer physical and emotive force of the experience left me profoundly shaken. Words felt insufficient. And yet I kept reading – everything I could get my hands on. I wanted answers. I wanted to feel recognised. I wanted this untranslatable experience to be translated into language. Most of all, I think, I wanted restitution for all the maternal stories that had been left untold by centuries of silencing and minimising, not just for myself, but for all of us.Books about motherhood come in waves: the recent spate only the latest in a long line of literary endeavours. In the 1950s there was Shirley Jackson’s Life Among the Savages. The 1960s wave saw Margaret Drabble’s The Millstone and Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, alongside Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique; the 1970s The Women’s Room by Marilyn French, Adrienne Rich’s Of Woman Born, and In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens by Alice Walker. In the 1980s writing about motherhood became even more transgressive and imaginative, with Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, and Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter. The early 2000s saw an... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-01-20 11:00:01 UTC ]
Margaret Atwood, Evelyn Schlag and Jackie Morris have been named the recipients of this year’s Hay Festival Medals. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-05-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Margaret Atwood, David Walliams and Jacqueline Wilson are amongst those headlining the Hay Festival, which is set to respond to the world's “urgent need of empathy”, according to organisers. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Topped by Margaret Atwood, the UK’s Top 10 bestselling authors of literary fiction last year features only one male writer, Haruki MurakamiFlying in the face of Norman Mailer’s infamous comment that “a good novelist can do without everything but the remnant of his balls”, Haruki Murakami was the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2018-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By all accounts, the Hulu series “The Handmaid’s Tale” was a huge success in 2017. Counterintuitively, the Margaret Atwood novel it was based on has been a constant on bestseller lists. Hadn’t people gotten the story from watching the show? Apparently not. In fact, this was the case for a number... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-01-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It’s not an overstatement to say that, if you are a young writer who interrogates American race relations and white supremacy, Cornel West is the foundation upon which you stand. Alongside the likes of Kimberlé Crenshaw, Angela Davis, Toni Morrison, and, of course, James Baldwin, West’s work is... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2017-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The septuagenarian Canadian author has, this year, become a cultural icon, as well as Canada’s best-known author—and 'The Handmaid's Tale' has become a backlist sensation. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-12-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Margaret Atwood is back on top of the Apple charts, knocking John Grisham's latest, 'The Rooster Bar,' off the throne after a single week. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Transworld has acquired an "atmospheric" debut novel set on the Essex marshes during World War 2 and in the present day. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster and Elif Shafak have joined a number of other authors in criticising Russia’s treatment of Ukraine and calling for freedom of expression to be preserved. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The author of such works of fiction as 'The Shipping News' and 'Barkskins' is the 30th recipient of the medal, which has writers including Robert A. Caro, Judy Blume, and Toni Morrison. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nicci French's Sunday Morning Coming Down swipes the number one spot from Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new survey of Canadian readers found that Margaret Atwood is the Canadian author most residents recognize. The BookNet Canada survey also found that one in five Canadian readers cannot name a single Canadian author. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Assemble the ingredients and assemble the track on their interactive website. Chipotle hasn’t been shy about tapping the creative talents of prominent people in the past. They’ve published short stories by Jonathan Safron Foer and Toni Morrison on their packaging, and talked up their fresh... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2017-07-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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During Frankfurt Book Fair, Germany's publishers and booksellers will honor Margaret Atwood as 'one of the most important storytellers of our era.' The post German Book Trade’s Peace Prize Goes to Canada’s Margaret Atwood appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2017-06-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This year’s much-buzzed 10-episode adaptation of "The Handmaid’s Tale," which was streamed on Hulu in collaboration with MGM Television, rocketed Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel back onto bestsellers charts. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-06-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Readers keep Paula Hawkins's 'Into the Water' swimming along at the top of the iBooks bestseller list, while Margaret Atwood's 'The Handmaid's Tale' drops to #5. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel rockets to number one on Amazon after Channel 4 begins airing series starring Elisabeth MossThe Handmaid’s Tale, the 1985 novel by Margaret Atwood envisaging a hellish dystopia where the US is ruled by an ultra-far-right regime that treats women as chattels, has... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A rare public appearance from John le Carre, and events by Margaret Atwood and Zadie Smith, are among events to feature in Southbank Centre's summer/autumn 2017 programme. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-05-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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David Baldacci's latest Amos Decker thriller, 'The Fix,' remains in the #1 slot on the iBooks list, followed by Margaret Atwood's backlist dystopian novel, 'The Handmaid's Tale.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-05-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The announced panels include appearances from authors Dan Brown, Margaret Atwood, Veronica Roth, Rainbow Rowell, and Shea Serrano and pop culture icons including Bill Nye, Jeffrey Tambor, and Krysten Ritter. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-04-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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