Apr 21 Mark Twain's weird but perfect ending By Dr. Howard Markel The night Twain was born, there was a brilliant view of Halley's Comet flying right over his hometown. Continue reading
Apr 04 Accounts of book bannings and threats to librarians soared in 2021, says study By Hillel Italie, Associated Press Accounts of book bannings and attempted book bannings, along with threats against librarians, have soared over the past year. Continue reading
Mar 02 'New generation' of racially diverse creators to write and illustrate Dr. Seuss-inspired books By Mark Pratt, Associated Press Sketches by Dr. Seuss that have never been published will see the light of day in a series of books being written and illustrated by a diverse group of up-and-coming authors and artists. Continue reading
Jan 27 Mississippi mayor withholds library funds over LGBTQ books By Associated Press The director of a Mississippi library system says a mayor is withholding $110,000 from his city’s library because LGBTQ books are on the shelves. Continue reading
Jan 27 Holocaust novel 'Maus' banned in Tennessee school district By Associated Press A Tennessee school district has voted to ban a Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel about the Holocaust due to “inappropriate language" and an illustration of a nude woman, according to minutes from a board meeting. Continue reading
Jan 07 Rare Toni Morrison short story to be published as a book By Hillel Italie, Associated Press To much of the world the late Toni Morrison was a novelist, celebrated for such classics as “Beloved” and “The Bluest Eye.” But the Nobel laureate also completed plays, poems, essays, and a handful of short stories, one of which… Continue reading
Jan 06 Authors' unpublished books kept getting stolen. Now, a suspect has been arrested By Deepti Hajela, Associated Press Authorities say they've solved a publishing industry whodunit with the arrest Wednesday of a man accused of numerous literary heists in recent years, allegedly impersonating others in the industry to amass a veritable library of unpublished works. Continue reading
Dec 31 'Winnie the Pooh,' 'Sun Also Rises,' Hughes poems among works going public in 2022 By Associated Press "Winnie the Pooh" and "The Sun Also Rises" are among the works from 1926 whose copyrights will expire Saturday, putting them in the public domain in 2022. Continue reading
Dec 18 Hollywood bard, muse and reveler Eve Babitz dies at 78 By Hillel Italie, Associated Press One of Hollywood’s greatest bards, Eve Babitz, has died at age 78. With love and candor, Babitz chronicled the excess of her native world in the 1960s and 1970s and became a cult figure to generations of readers. Continue reading
Dec 12 Anne Rice, who breathed new life into vampires, dies at 80 By Jake Coyle, Associated Press Anne Rice, the novelist whose lush, best-selling gothic tales, including “Interview With a Vampire,” reinvented the blood-drinking immortals as tragic antiheroes, has died. She was 80. Continue reading