May 28 Watch Remembering Maya Angelou’s iconic voice By PBS News Hour Drawing on a childhood of abuse and segregation, writer and author Maya Angelou moved the nation. Works such as her 1978 poem, “And Still I Rise,” explored the effects of racism and sexism on personal identity, with a voice that… Continue watching
Apr 18 Watch Remembering Gabriel Garcia Marquez, storyteller who resonated with readers around the world By PBS News Hour Spanish-language author and Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez drew worldwide admiration for the poetic style and magical realism of his many novels and stories. Marquez died Thursday in Mexico City at the age of 87. Hari Sreenivasan talks to writer… Continue watching
Apr 17 Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez dies at 87 By Ariel Min Colombian novelist and Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez died Thursday, according to a source close to the family. He was 87. The author, affectionately called “Gabo,” was well-known for defining the genre of magical realism. He exposed readers around the… Continue reading
Mar 19 Tolkien’s 88-year-old ‘Beowulf’ translation to be published this spring By Zachary Treu One of the oldest, longest and most influential works in the history of Old English will soon be experienced through the eyes of one of the world’s most beloved fantasy authors. Continue reading
Mar 11 Watch Chang-rae Lee on the fun of writing about the future for ‘On Such a Full Sea’ By PBS News Hour Continue watching
Jan 10 National Ambassador of Young People’s Literature Kate DiCamillo wants to spread the joy of reading By Victoria Fleischer Kate DiCamillo spoke to chief arts correspondent Jeffrey Brown about her new role as National Ambassador of Young People's Literature. Kate DiCamillo wasn't always a writer. Self-described as a "late-bloomer," she didn't actually start writing until she was… Continue reading
Jan 10 Watch From author to ambassador, Kate DiCamillo approaches reading with celebration Kate DiCamillo talks about her role as National Ambassador of Young People's Literature. Continue watching
Jan 08 The private thoughts of a public man: the ambitions and insecurities of literary giant Norman Mailer By Victoria Fleischer J. Michael Lennon, author of "Norman Mailer: A Double Life," spoke to chief arts correspondent Jeffrey Brown about the ambitions and insecurities of the literary giant. Norman Mailer had quite a public persona. He was a Pulitzer Prize… Continue reading
Dec 24 Watch Dick Davis on "Faces of Love" and poetry in Iranian culture Dick Davis on his translations of medieval Persian poems and poetry's importance in Iran. Continue watching
Oct 16 Eleanor Catton wins the 2013 Man Booker Prize By Victoria Fleischer The 45th Man Booker Prize for Fiction was awarded Tuesday to Eleanor Catton for "The Luminaries." Set in 1860s New Zealand during the Gold Rush, Catton's second novel is a murder mystery that constructs its own astrological calendar… Continue reading