Author: SarahBelle Selig

This Week in Literary News: Week of July 19

We lost civil rights hero and U.S. Representative John Lewis this week, who died on July 17 at the age of 80. You should go and read everything he’s ever written, but in the meantime, read this Brain Pickings feature and ten of his best quotes on getting into “good trouble.”

THE FARM

Here at Catalyst, we celebrated the South African release of Max Annas’ thriller The Farm (translated by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds) with a virtual book launch with Boekemakranka featuring Izak DeVries of LAPA Uitgewers, our South African distributor. The Farm is out now in South Africa, and comes to North American readers in September (you can pre-order it here).

Calling all His Dark Materials fans: Phillip Pullman just announced a new novella based on the bestselling series, to be released in October. And in comic news: the original 2003 Walking Dead comic book is being re-released in full color, and A-list action star Keanu Reeves is writing a comic book (and casually slipped that he’d like to play the lead character in a movie rendition – so that’s probably happening).

ICYMI: in early June, a bunch of big-name authors (including Atwood, Gladwell, Rowling, Rushdie, and Steinem) penned an open letter about the dangers of cancel culture in Harper’s Magazine. But then a counter letter was released in The Objective, calling out the authors of the Harper’s letter for writing from a place a privilege (among other grievances). Catch up on the drama here. NPR responded with typical Swiss neutrality vibes by getting authors from both letters on a podcast together.

African Arguments released a three-part interview with the 2020 AKO Caine Prize Nominees. Check out Part 1 on joy and writing, Part 2 on reading and the politics of prizes, and Part 3 on what it means to be mainstream.

COVID-19 has hit the book world hard: according to a survey from nonprofit Americans for the Arts, 253 literary organizations reported over $7.2 million total losses to date. But it’s not all bad: with bookstores and festivals shut down, big box retailers like Walmart and Costco have been helping readers get their fix, and three literary nonprofits teamed up with the Mellon Foundation this week to create a Literary Arts Emergency Fund, distributing $5,000 to $50,000 grants to literary organizations across the United States. And one book festival in the United Kingdom came up with an innovative way to bring joy to book lovers at a distance: a drive-in book fair. If Britain is a bit too far for a road trip, Book Riot has a handy list of some upcoming virtual book events. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of July 19”

This Week in Literary News, Week of June 28

After losing South African treasure Elsa Joubert last week, we said goodbye to two more literary legends, including the father of Chicano literature Rudolfo Anaya, and Charles Webb, the man who gave us The Graduate.

Queenie author Candice Carty-Williams became the first Black author to win Book of the Year at the British Book Awards, and Girl, Woman, Other author Bernadine Evaristo also scored an award. Here’s what Carty-Williams had to say about her win.

On that note, The New York Times published a collection of interviews with Black authors, agents, editors and booksellers on what it means to Black in publishing. A collaborative research report on the industry, titled “Rethinking ‘Diversity’ in Publishing,” (PDF) was also released this week, featuring a foreword by Evaristo.

John Bolton’s hotly debated memoir sold over 780,000 copies in its first week, and another Trump book is on the way: a New York court gave Simon & Schuster the green light to publish President Trump’s niece Mary L. Trump’s tell-all book, set to release this month.

A previously unpublished, unfinished story from Little Women author Louisa May Alcott was released this week, and it looks like we may not have to wait much longer for the next Game of Thrones book. More good news: Lucasfilm just announced a huge publishing deal to produce a series of novels, storybooks, comics and more, based on the wildly popular Star Wars spin-off, The Mandalorian.

We have two new additions to our “Conversations with…” YouTube series, a series of conversations with Catalyst authors, friends, and partners. This week, our publisher Jessica Powers is in conversation with A Road Called Down on Both Sides author Caroline Kurtz and Bunmi Emenanjo, founder of Atlas Book Club. And ICYMI: check out my conversation with Small Mercies author Bridget Krone last week.

On LitHub, Meghan Cox Gurdon recounts the ancient skill of oral storytelling and argues why we should be reading aloud more often. Also featured on LitHub this week: 10 quotes from Ta Nehisi Coates’ Between the World and Me. Coates’ book is one of many we list on our “Where to Begin” blog post, a reading and resource list in response to the death of George Floyd.

Looking for some title inspo? Here’s seven pan-African book groups disrupting the traditional book club. Or check out these 30 LGBTQIA science fiction and fantasy books, because let’s be real: Pride Month should last all year.

In more Catalyst news, Shaka Rising and King Shaka: Zulu Legend author Luke Molver is featured in the National Arts Festival’s awesome Afropolitan Comics digital exhibit, celebrating the African continent’s thriving comics industry. Check out Luke’s mention in New Frame’s exhibit coverage.

Loved the character but hated the story? Us too. Buzzfeed has you covered.Did someone say covers? LitHub’s Emily Temple picks her twelve favorite book covers from June. If some aesthetically-pleasing reading is just what the doctor ordered, check out Charles Owens’ visual history of real and mythical serpents, or get aquatic with the Cephalopod Atlas, a weirdly satisfying encyclopedia about octopus.

Finally, Washington Post with the headline we can all agree on. [Ed. Note: And, though she’s too modest to share, for a follow-up to this, check out SarahBelle’s article at World Literature Today on how one bookstore is responding to these new, browser-less times]

This Week in Literary News, Week of June 7

The #PublishingPaidMe hashtag is making waves on Twitter, raising awareness about the massive discrepancies in author advances for writers of color compared to their white counterparts. On June 8, more than 1,000 workers in the publishing industry participated in a day-long strike, taking the day off their regular work duties to be “in service of the Black community: protesting, organizing, fundraising support, phone banking, mutual aid,” and working on books by Black creators.

Working on a COVID-themed manuscript? So is everyone else, according to literary agent Erin Clyburn, who reported to NPR that agents are seeing more and more writers submitting pandemic stories. But don’t rush it and sacrifice quality, she begs.

Electric Lit lists 24 new and forthcoming books that celebrate all facets of Black lives, and urges readers to seek Black literature beyond books on racism. NBC News published a thought-provoking piece on the rise of anti-racist book lists, and Washington Post gives some numbers on the massive surge of readers buying books on race.

In award news, The Shirley Jackson Award nominees were just announced. The award celebrates “outstanding achievement in the literature of psychological suspense, horror, and the dark fantastic.” And if you haven’t read them yet, here are the complete texts for the five AKO Caine Prize finalists. The Prize received an unprecedented (and incredible!) 222 submissions from 28 African countries this year.

Nigerian writer Emeka Joseph Nwankwo wrote on how African women in publishing are bringing inclusivity to the forefront, a necessity urged by Girl, Woman, Other author Bernardine Evaristo this week.

Missing the museum? Electric Lit recommends 10 books set in museums to last you through lockdown. Not enough to satisfy your escapism bug? LitHub has you covered, with five 20th-century books about travel. And ICYMI: an argument for reading (and against shaming) the summer “beach read.”

Outside the Lines

In Catalyst news, Ameera Patel’s Outside the Lines officially hit North American shelves this week! Read an excerpt on CrimeReads. Bitter Pill, the final installment of Peter Church’s beloved Dark Web trilogy, get its North American debut on Monday. The e-books of the full series are available for 25% off on our site all summer long.

Finally, Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist and Ogresse creator Cécile McLorin Salvant reads Black lesbian poet Audre Lorde’s “The Bees,” published posthumously in the 2009 anthology Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry.